《Shadowbane》


 Index Chapter - Characters/Art/Races/Maps WIP

    This chapter will be used for character profiles/art and to explain everything else related to Shadowbane. It''s mostly designed for those currently reading the story to reference it in case they don''t understand something, but new readers can also check out the art/characters and see if it''ll be for them. There are art previews of yet-to-be-written parts of the story, so if you don''t want to see those, don''t look at the very bottom of the chapter.

    Barriers/Enhancements/Gifts

    Barriers:

    Barriers recharge on their own over time, and unless the person is gifted in defense(gifts explained below), they will only protect you against damage that was generated through the use of mana or ether. The barriers strength is based on a percentage of your overall strength.

    ^

    EX: A fireball created through a spell/ability will be blocked by your barrier, but that doesn''t mean you can just jump into a pit of fire. It won''t protect you, and you''ll have a very bad time.

    All humanoid creatures(with exceptions like Rei) have barriers. Monsters cannot use barriers. Although there are exceptions, like the Tengu Lords.

    Also, as an extra note, they only stop a percentage of impacts from attacks. A fireball exploding on you can reel you a bit with your barrier up, but someone hitting you in the face with a high-speed air attack can easily break some bones, even if your barrier is still active.

    Lastly, they slowly diminish overtime while they are active, and it''s for this reason that people only activate them when they are in danger.

    Enhancements:

    Enhancing is the act of pouring mana into a specific part of your body(or a weapon) and reinforcing it.

    Your mana drains at a rate proportional to how much you''re currently enhancing.

    You also lose mana proportional to the damage inflicted on any parts of your body that are currently enhanced, which includes damage you inflict on yourself while attacking. After all, punching a brick wall with the power of a mallet would normally completely destroy your fist, so your mana will need to ensure that doesn''t happen.

    There is a maximum limit that you can enhance, proportional to how much strength you have overall. Going over that(over-enhancing), stresses your body and soul out, causing backlash and weakening that part of your body afterward.

    Enhancing weapons is much more tricky and requires a large amount of training. Also, the moment the weapon leaves your hands, it quickly loses the aura you created on the weapon.

    Gifts:

    This is rarely talked about in SB, as they are quite rare, with the exclusion of defense which can cause some major problems for Rei.

    Gift of Strength

    The ability to over-enhance themselves with none of the normal detriments. However, there is a debuff added that greatly lowers their ability to defend themselves, including from self-harm. As a result, they stick to over-enhancing their speed to avoid attacks while using weapons to damage others. Using their fists is the same as purposely destroying their own hands.

    This is a very rare gift. One in a million have it.

    Keith has this gift.

    Gift of Defense

    Your enhancements fuse with your barrier, becoming a single ability. Because of this, your barrier can now protect you against physical damage. And not only does your barrier still recharge on its own, but you can also infuse mana into it now as well.

    The debuff associated with this gift is their inability to enhance weapons, which greatly reduces the amount of damage they can do. As a result, gift of defense users need Artifact weapons more than anyone else(explained in the artifact section), or managing to learn a really good unique ability that does a lot of damage(like Janet''s purple bombs).

    They are the bane of assassins. Therefore, Rei hates them and fears them the most.

    This is a somewhat rare gift. One in five thousand have it naturally. This is also the only known gift that you can acquire in your soul realm if you''re lucky enough.

    Ishar and Seifer are the only Gift of Defense owners right now at the end of book 1/chapter 40.

    Gift of Mana

    The apex of gifts. All of your mana costs with spells are lowered to what they''d cost if they were abilities.

    The rarest of gifts. Only a few have ever been known to exist naturally. The other way they were once obtained was through an Eldritch that could gift it to those it deemed worthy, but this quickly led to the death of that very same Eldritch, as the nations around it refused to allow such a being to exist.

    Soul Realms, Spells, and Abilities

    Soul Realm:

    A soul realm is an area inside your soul that you can mentally enter. By default, it takes on the form of the area you consider ''Home''. There are ways to change it, but it requires training.

    In your soul realm you can reproduce anything you''ve seen in life, but you can only experience them if you actually understand that part of them. Merely seeing a Lemon in real life isn''t enough. You need to actually eat one to be able to eat one in your realm and taste it.

    Likewise, as a human you are able to test abilities on humans since your soul understands them quite well.

    Spells

    You are able to learn them in the real world, but only someone mad would do that. Inside your soul realm you have infinite mana and don''t risk backfiring a spell you don''t understand, which could leave you crippled.

    Technically everyone can learn any spell they want, but people quickly learn that they are meant to only use one or two different elements. The cast time and mana drain are greatly increased on spells your soul isn''t designed to cast. Also, the elements you''re attuned to are the only spells you can naturally learn without someone else teaching you.

    There are easier ways to know what kind of spells people are meant to use. Their personalities, for example. The soul reflects onto the person, and vice versa. An arsonist has a 100% chance of being attuned to the fire element.

    Plus, there is an even greater reason to stick to elements you''re meant to use... Abilities.

    Abilities

    Abilities are spells designed entirely for you based on the elements you are attuned to. Abilities learned without any outside help are always unique(Janet''s bombs for example). But you can also focus on a single spell you love and use it over and over and over in your soul realm in the hopes that it''ll turn into an ability.

    The more abilities you learn, the less chance you''ll have to learn more. The first one is easy, while the next one is very hard to unlock. People with three abilities are extremely rare.

    Pros of abilities

    Much lower mana cost and channel time.

    And you are able to change the ability in different ways. Altering spells is extremely difficult and almost nobody can do it, but abilities can always change. You continue to unlock extra ways to use them as you train/use them.

    Technically your barrier is considered an ability and can be expanded upon too. In chapter 9 Albel speaks of how he tried to adapt his barrier to nullify real fire, he does that by standing in fire in his soul realm while imagining the barrier completely negating the damage. It took him months of doing that until he finally unlocked a new feature to his barrier, but it was for fire he cast, not real fire. You don''t always get what you want, but this is still a very useful upgrade for him.

    Reimia''s aura and abilities explained

    Her aura is the veil that surrounds her soul. When she "activates" it, the veil merely expands outwards, surrounding her entire body instead of her soul.

    How light works with her veil:

    Types of light sources generally don''t matter. The sun and the Tengu''s blue flora are the exclusions. Light from the sun doesn''t hurt her nearly as much as most light sources do, but that doesn''t mean she can just stand around on a bright sunny day with her veil activated. It will quickly drain her mana if she''s being hit directly by the sun, but hiding in a well-lit alley from ambient lighting won''t hurt her all that much. Direct lighting >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ambient lighting.

    Distance from the light source matters in proportion to the strength of the light.

    Light can hurt her with her aura off, but it needs to be super powerful(like all the lights Alicia was casting in chapter 36)

    Her veil/aura activated is when light becomes a massive problem for her. Now light can hit the veil directly, and the veil is linked to her soul. When the Eldritch in chapter 6 blasted her it was basically hitting her soul directly, which messed up her mana flow, regen, the veil, and even her body overall became much weaker.

    She cannot use any abilities or enhance herself while her aura is up, and deactivating her aura sends out a pulse to any living creatures nearby that terrifies them, revealing her location in the process. It''s best if she remains at least 15 feet away when she removes her aura. She can enhance herself and then turn invisible, but after that the only thing she can do is release the enhancements, she can''t power them up.

    She steals abilities from any souls she devours, but it''s not guaranteed, and any upgrades the person had with the ability are also randomized.

    These stolen abilities only work until the devoured soul is completely drained of energy.

    Artifact Weapons/Armor

    Equipment created using an Eldritch''s soul. The equipment leeches the souls of the dead to empower itself, getting stronger over time. So the more you kill, the better your artifact gear is. Artifact weapons are almost a necessity for those gifted in defense, as they struggle to harm others without a weapon that enhances itself.

    It''s unknown whether Demon or Xerathian souls have been used.

    THE WORLD

    Mother

    The "Planet" in the center of the images above(#1 is more accurate) is Mother. All the moons/planets surrounding her are locked to Mother, but none of them rotate. Instead, they have day/night cycles depending on where they are in relation to the sun and whether Mother is currently lit up. Mother conveniently gives off nearly the same amount of light/heat that the sun gives despite the vast distance between the two.

    The Dark lands of every moon/planet are the areas at the bottom of their spheres. The parts facing the vortex of clouds emanating from Mother.

    Gaia

    A beam of light that people believe goes through the entire universe(although no one has been able to prove this). There are multiple ways to enter Gaia, but the only known way at this point of the story is to take a portal to Mother and enter Gaia through her since Gaia goes straight through her(image above).

    Gaia is a realm with its own set of rules. There are crystals in each region that everyone attunes to, and everything they do contributes to the crystal, which influences everything in the region. If all humanoid creatures attune to the crystal, then the region is normally one like Earth a few thousand miles from the equator(not always, some are tropical, some are snow landscapes, etc.)

    However, if an Eldritch is made of rock that uses lightning for all its abilities/spells, then the region it controls will be entirely made of rock and have a constant barrage of thunder in the region. Regions can have multiple owners, which makes for some weird mishmashes.

    So long as you can protect the crystal your soul is attuned, you''re technically immortal in Gaia. But if you fail, and someone or something else takes over the crystal, then you lose all of the crystal''s benefits. Immunity to disease/viruses/aging, and you can no longer respawn at the crystal. Battles for crystals take ages because the defending force can keep coming back to life, but it''s not infinite. It drains the crystal doing this, so sieges are the best way to wipe out a nation and take the area for yourself.

    Also, Eldritch/Demons/Xerath cannot create portals into Gaia. They also can''t influence people''s minds so long as they are attuned to a crystal. This is the biggest selling point of Gaia. Chaos magic/rituals don''t work either. They can still enter the normal way like everyone else(and do), but it requires them to be much more crafty, and without sacrifices, Demons lose a large amount of their power.

    Honestly, explaining Gaia would take ages, so for now I''ll leave it at this. At the very least this shows why Rei and her unit were so hellbent on escaping to Gaia.

    The Xerath

    First set of images are of the land as it becomes corrupted by a Xerathian Broodling.

    The next two are after the Broodling evolves to a god. The corruption throughout the land becomes alive.

    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.The Corrupted boats talked about in chapter 11.

    And lastly, a Xerathian god. The image features a nester type that never moves and only engages in combat when it needs to defend itself. The nesters core strength lies in its ability to create powerful spawn at a higher rate than other Xerath can. They also spread their corruption over a much larger area.

    Viktor''s Xerath

    Ghorak

    Gheist

    Shoth

    Eldritch

    The Eldritch fall into several different categories.

    Some Eldritch create their own nations. They do this by corrupting humans, which alters the humans forms until they begin to look like the Eldritch corrupting them. Example: The Kitsune god was a massive fox-like monster.

    Most Eldritch however, are mindless.

    Eldritch also have the ability to spread a "Domain". Spreading their domain will result in the land around them becoming corrupted in an image that matches that specific Eldritch. Example: An ice-based Eldritch will alter the landscape around him until it is completely frozen over. The time it takes for this change to take place is based around the Eldritch''s strength, and where he''s spreading his domain. Changing a desert would take far longer than a chilly swamp would.

    Map of Urza:

    Um, yeah... It''s not very good rofl. IT''S THE FREE VERSION ;-;, THIS IS AS GOOD AS I COULD DO WITH IT! But it should give you an idea of where everything is at least, which is good enough for now. One day I hope to make a better map, but that requires money, of which I have none. Aetheria will desperately need one too, and not one that looks like this.

    Urza was originally designed for my older version of Shadowbane, which was called something else entirely(I uploaded it in the November 2022 writathon). In that version, the Urza arc lasted much longer and all of those cities had names. However, in this version, Urza is just a small part of the story.

    Races:

    Nei''lah

    All hybrids through the Nei''lah god have black demonic wings. Some humanoid creatures also have long canines.

    Crotia

    Humanoid crocodiles that were exiled from Urza for their constant warmongering. After Xelba fell, it was inevitable that Urza would turn their eyes toward the Crotia next(as the Xelba nation was very close to where the Crotia lived). Most of the Crotia use to worship the Nei''lah god, and as a result over sixty percent of Crotia have the Nei''lahs'' iconic black wings.

    Elves

    Hybrids to an unknown Eldritch who live in the largest known structure in all of the moons and planets surrounding Mother. Their main city is one giant building that is powered through means that only those in charge understand. However, everyone suspects it''s related to the machines, as machine parts sell for a very high price, especially their power cores.

    They live in the frozen wastes on the southeastern end of Aetheria''s most northern continent. Travelers come from all around hoping to find relics in the ruins that will make them filthy rich, while there are others who come to kill the machines and sell their cores. However, only the best of the best are able to retire from gathering power cores. After all, most of them die on the job.

    CHARACTERS:

    Reimia

    I have an endless amount of Rei images, but I''ll stop myself from posting more than this.

    The main character of Shadowbane. As a young girl all she ever did was watch TV, play with her toys, and sit in her Father''s garage listening to him and her Uncle argue as they worked on their next shipments. Her Mother was normally in there too, as it was a family business, but her sister Sera was usually absent, as she was training to be a Mech-pilot.

    After she was sacrificed, she spent many years in the Xerath''s realm just trying to survive. While there she changed into a strange hybrid creature that no one had ever seen before. But without this, she never would have escaped that realm. Instead, she would have slowly died alone in that small cave she called home.

    For those who want more backstory(everything that occurred before the start of Shadowbane):

    TLDR version: Rei grew up in the nation of Xelba as a soldier who investigated monsters, crimes, etc. While also helping her unit capture Humans and Kitsune as sacrifices for Viktor''s broodling. Her friends died while she was trying to free them from their curses. She also ended up dying in an attempt to get revenge on Viktor.

    Full Version: She escaped the Xerath''s realm by stealthing into a ritual that the Satyr were doing in conjunction with Viktor. The very same ritual and man who had sent her to that realm. Except this time she was returning back to our realm. From there on out she lived in the underground beneath Xelba; Viktor''s nation. However, she was caught one day as she attempted to absorb the soul of a few people leaving a bar. Fortunately or unfortunately for her, Viktor and his brother(Bear, his nickname since he was massive. Rei never found out his real name) were the ones who saw it happen. They had an area they would hide in to discuss their plans going forward, and it was in an area where they could spy on most of the city through a spell his brother controlled. At first, Viktor was going to just sacrifice her to the Xerathian broodling he was feeding, but Bear convinced him to leave her in his care.

    From there on out, Bear raised her and trained her as best he could in the hopes she''d become an inquisitor of Xelba. Inquisitors were elite fighters who took on many roles. Combatants who took care of monsters or captured people to sacrifice to the Xelba''s ''God''(the broodling). They also investigated any other problems that may have arose in the nation. She entered the trials, and succeeded quite easily, but there was a problem. She couldn''t be cursed because of what she was. Xelba requires all of its citizens to be cursed, so there were plenty of people in power who opposed not only her as an inquisitor, but they saw her very existence as a slight against the country. Viktor forced it through though, as he realized there and then that he could make use of her. Rei, who had been alone since her family was killed, was starved for any sort of attention or Father figure, so she had begun to see Bear(who she called ''Master'') as someone she could look up to. So when Bear suggested she join one of the inquisitors units instead of going purely solo, she agreed. And that''s where she met all of her new friends.

    Most of them were believers in Viktor''s great dream of conquering Urza and all of the nearby planets and moons with the help of Viktor''s ''God''. However, over the years, they began to really be disillusioned by the nation as a whole. They slowly realized just how fucked up Xelba was, and really wanted to escape to a place where they could live in peace. It just so happened, that Viktor had promised inquisitors that once they served their nation for long enough, their curses would be removed and they''d be sent to Gaia, so they could spread his nation there. But no one had any proof that the inquisitors who left, had actually made it to Gaia, and at one point Bear insinuated that the suspicions they were harboring were much closer to the truth. Which meant that any inquisitors who ''retired'' to Gaia, were actually being fed to the broodling(who was now a God, but Viktor was keeping it dormant while still feeding it).

    Since she wasn''t cursed and could turn invisible, Rei was given the task of figuring out how to remove their curses so they could all flee to Gaia together. But in the middle of her investigation, Bear went missing. His old watch he kep was found at the bottom of the temple where the Xerathian God was kept. Viktor knew the other faction was responsible, and it was made even more obvious after the other faction brought charges onto Rei for conspiring to remove her units curses. Only Bear knew she was doing that, so the party responsible outed themselves just so they could get rid of Rei too while they were at it. Viktor swore he''d help get the curses removed if Rei helped him get rid of the opposing faction, but she didn''t put her full trust into that and was looking for other options on the side.

    As a side-note. The curse-creators(Lords) and spawn in Xelba are from a long-dead Eldritch God. They work with the other faction inside of Xelba. A faction that wants to keep control of Viktor and the Xerathian God.

    Viktor stood firm and refused to allow the opposite side to banish or kill Rei. But sometime later Rei had been informed that her unit had been gathered up and they were all being sacrificed to the God. She got there just in time to save the last two, but when she arrived, she found it was Viktor and his right-hand man Ash who were doing the sacrificing, not the other faction. She fled, sending her remaining two friends who were still cursed through a portal to another world. The curse allowed the Lords to track those two indefinitely, and if they should be away from the Lords for too long, the curse would slowly kill them. Rei told them not to worry though, for she would be killing the Lords soon, and that''s exactly what she did. When the armies of Urza approached Xelba, she used that as an opportunity to create an army of skeletons and raze Xelba''s capital city to the ground. Unfortunately, she died while trying to kill Viktor.

    Aresa

    AND THEN SUPER CUTE VERSIONS

    The current owner of Shiva''s chateau in Viseux. A seemingly young and naive girl who has a large number of worshipers who pray to her in the hopes that one day Shiva will return and take her rightful place as the ruler of Viseux.

    After a lifetime alone in the chateau, she''s desperate for friends or any kind of connection with others, which leads to her becoming good friends with Reimia.

    Chapter 20 spoilers about Aresa below, with one added part and an image tying into the spoiler.

    Aresa is an Eldritch Lord of Shiva who was placed inside the body of a devout follower of hers. This is not how Shiva''s Lords are meant to be created, but she had no choice as she was mortally wounded and Aresa still hadn''t fully formed inside of her. The human girl was mute and had refused treatment. Because of this, Aresa can''t bring herself to heal her throat, as she has always felt guilty for taking the girls body.

    This is what she was going to look like if she had fully developed inside of Shiva.

    Ishar

    A Crotian warrior who has devoted his life to Lord Terra''ka, an Eldritch being at the top one percent of the hierarchy that is hellbent on rooting out all corruption in the galaxy. Ishar is sent with Aresa to Viseux to relay Terra''ka''s terms to the leaders there.

    He is one of the Crotia-Nei''lah hybrids that make up a large portion of his clan''s population.

    Alicia

    Originally a typical college girl who had an easy life up until the day of her awakening. Terra''ka periodically reaches out to the worlds around Mother, looking for anyone who might have an Eldritch soul parasitizing their own. Alicia was one such person. Terra''ka turned that parasite into her own strength and left a path for her to follow the day she turned twenty-two.

    While her awakening was predetermined, the choice to serve Terra''ka or return to her old life was up to her. Terra''ka has no interest in those who don''t share in his dream to rid the universe of Demons and Xerath.

    Shana

    Shana was brought to Viseux when she was barely three years old. Her Grandfather is the only relative she''s ever known. He taught her all of his abilities/spells, and how to fight/stealth just like him. She was never told where she came from, only that she was a "Kunoichi" while her grandfather was a "Ninja". Any hope of knowing her origins disappeared when her Grandfather died on her thirteenth birthday.

    After that, she sold her services to any and all, but quickly became disgusted with those in positions of power, leading to her no longer being hired for high-paying jobs. From there on out she would do odd jobs around Urza while assisting the Guardians Guild whenever Godwin asked for her help. She has always been alone, and friends weren''t even a consideration for her. She only approached Aresa when she heard the nobles were trying to gain her favor. It was a small misunderstanding, as Cera was the only one reaching out to her, and not for sinister reasons.

    Thanks to this, however, Shana was finally able to obtain a friend, which made her quite happy, much to her surprise. This all happened one year before Rei appeared.

    Cera

    Born in Viseux to a prostitute. Through some stroke of luck, her mother was able to graduate to that of a noble''s wife. Cera was quite happy with her lot in life, until one night when her Mother told her in a drunken stupor that she was a refuge from Xelba; the nation of cultists that the nobles laugh about at parties from time to time.

    Cera''s Father and Brother were warriors who had died thanks to a specific individual, ''A freak of nature named Reimia''. Her Mother says the girl was quite nice to her, and even visited her shop for over five years at least once a week, until suddenly one day she created an army of skeletons and began killing everyone inside of Xelba.

    Seeing her Mother cry about her Father and Brother, hit her quite deeply. From there on out she knew Reimia as a disgusting individual from the past whom she wished she could punish.

    Euphemia

    Princess to the nation of Kellog. Her family wanted the best for her so they removed her from politics and gave her a village to govern and all of the land to the east of it. While this made her happy, she was still sheltered and struggled to form connections. Thanks to this, she and Aresa became friends rather quickly.

    Tyra

    Euphemia''s head guard and someone she looks at like a mother figure. Tyra has looked after Euphie ever since she was a child after all.

    Long ago Tyra served the King directly, but as a reward for preventing the crown from being killed(by her very own brother), she was given the honor of being the princess''s head guard.

    Seifer

    Born to the top merchant in Kellog. Over time he decided to serve the crown directly instead of following in his Father''s footsteps.

    He is also a shockingly powerful warrior, with abilities that few others posses. Only the royal family and Tyra know the reason why.

    Viktor

    The Elven ruler of Xelba, and the man responsible for all of Rei''s misfortune. All that''s known of him is his ability to control the Xerath and his absolute hatred for all other Elves. Current location is unknown.

    Ash

    Viktor''s right-hand man and confidant. Ash despised Reimia more than anyone else.

    Rai''ga (Struggling to get a good image of him)

    An Eldritch with an unfathomable amount of power. Rai''ga is shrouded in mystery as no one knows what his abilities are other than his ability to find anything or anyone inside his domain. And his domain is shockingly large, but unlike most Eldritch domains, his does not alter the environment.

    Rai''ga has the body of a lion with three distinct heads.

    The head on the right is a mantis with human teeth.

    The middle head is a lynx with seven eyes on its forehead and no mouth.

    And the last head is a reptilian bear with a black tattoo-like swirl going around its face in a circle.

    The Tengu (Images below are of Lords)

    An Eldritch being who strikes terror into the hearts of anyone who knows of his existence. The last known sighting of the Tengu god himself was during the assault on the Kitsune kingdom, which resulted in the Kitsune''s God dying. The few Kitsune who survived the assault said that their god managed to destroy the Tengu''s legs while also heavily damaging his soul, so it''s theorized he''s hiding somewhere while attempting to repair it.

    All Tengu Lords are given full autonomy, and they don''t all follow their God''s doctrine, which is unknown to all but the Tengu themselves. Even if his children rebel against him and choose their own path, the God doesn''t care, he''ll still retrieve their souls upon death and revive them.

    Tengu spawn are humanoid creatures that have given their souls over to the Tengu. The Tengu does this by seeking out those who have recently lost everything or those with a burning passion for revenge. He uses their instability to take control of them. Despite the fact that Urza is teeming with such people, only a few are chosen. The reasons for this are only known to the God himself. Not even the Lords know the reason why.

    Book 2 character previews

    All book 2 images

    Book 3 previews

    Book 4 previews

    Over time I''ll edit and add more to this. Right now I know I need to add Demons, and portals.

 Chapter 1 - Awakening

    The sound of two men laughing to my left startled me awake. I opened my eyes, and the first thing I noticed is that I was inside a jail cell. The men who woke me up are sitting next to a small table outside of the cell playing cards.

    What the hell...? Where is this? The last thing I remember is being crushed by a massive amount of rubble...

    "I''m telling you, this turned out way better than I was expecting." One man said.

    "Don''t let the others hear you saying that, they''re already freaking out over what we did earlier. The last thing they''ll want to hear is how much you''re enjoying this." The other replied.

    "Idiot, their eyes still work, they saw what we did back there. Despite what those pussies said at first, none of them had the balls to go through with it in the end. They were forced to rely on us to finish it, the only logical ones in the group."

    "Logical...? Can''t believe you just said that with a straight face."

    ... No time to think about my situation it seems. That conversation had all sorts of red flags in it. It''s not the first time I''ve been captured, so that''s not what worries me. The real problem is something else entirely.

    I''m weak.

    I can''t even remember the last time I felt this pathetic... Probably back when I was a child.

    But then what does that leave me with? I apparently lost all of my abilities too, I can''t sense a single one of them. There''s no way I''ll break open those thick-looking bars as I am now. All that leaves me with is turning invisible and hope they''ll come in to investigate after they see me missing. That also has complications though...

    I looked around with my eyes barely open, making sure not to move my head at all.

    Torches... Damnable light everywhere.

    I could stay invisible where I am for maybe a minute, but that''s nowhere near enough. If I create a sound to make them look in my direction so no time is wasted, it''s still too risky. Between the initial surprise, the fumbling of that massive keyring, and entering the room far enough to leave me space to sneak out; a minute just isn''t enough. In that scenario I''ll be forced to fight them barehanded with my pittance of mana. Barehanded wouldn''t be a problem if I had the strength to enhance myself right now...

    I see one last option in the corner. I''d recognize that red strip signifying a barrel of oil paints anywhere. When in doubt, just light everything on fire. I''ll survive, and thanks to the fire being natural they won''t be able to guard against it with their barriers.

    That in itself comes with problems... The time to heal is going to be way too long with how weak I am right now. I''ll need to find a very dark area to hide in before I lose the ability to move.

    The man on the right looked back at me.

    "Alright... I''m dying to know what this thing is." He threw down his cards and stood up.

    "You out of your mind asshole? Sit back down, you got enough of that earlier with the beastmen. And of all things to cut up, why the hell do you want to touch that... Thing?

    "What can I say, I''ve always wanted to see an Elf. Think about it, when is the last time an Elf has even been seen in our world?" The man responded.

    "That ain''t no Elf you fool! Pointy ears it has, but look at that creepy pale skin and pure white hair. We lifted her lids earlier, the thing has red eyes. Never seen red eyes in my life... I''m pleading here Gaz, leave it be."

    "Was that supposed to deter me? Idiot, all you did was make me more interested!"

    The other man stood up, drawing his sword.

    Gaz looked him up and down, "... Looks like you''re the one who lost their damned mind. Since when were you in a position to tell me what to do? More than that, SINCE WHEN DID YOU THINK YOU COULD BEAT ME?!"

    "I-It ain''t right, that thing... Leave it in there, please Gaz..." The man responded as his teeth began to chatter.

    Now there is a surprise... It''s been a while since I''ve seen someone freak out like that around me. In very rare cases my aura strongly afflicts people with one particular emotion.

    Fear.

    Unless he leaves, he''ll die before he lets the man known as Gaz into my cell. Which is rather annoying, Gaz coming to dissect me was the biggest possible gift to me in this situation. If I can get his head within reaching distance while he''s still unwary of me...

    Gaz seemed taken aback by his friend''s condition. Eventually, he relaxed his shoulders and sighed.

    "Gods damnit all Peter..."

    A long silence drifted between them.

    Gaz finally said, "Peter, can''t you go do something else for now? Come on brother, there''s nobody left but this girl now. The rest are gone!"

    Gone?

    Another long pause ensued.

    "... You changed after picking up that sword. All you ever want to do is cut people up now." Peter sighed, "Fine. I''ll wait on the other side of the door." Peter said, sheathing his sword.

    "Good man! It won''t take me long, then we''ll go join up with the others."

    "What? We can''t just leave the creature unattended."

    From thing to creature. I can''t tell if he upgraded or downgraded me.

    "You planned on actually watching this thing? Get a grip moron, it''s dead already. No way in hell we''re going to sit here guarding this body because Keith said the Demon wants it for later."

    Demon...

    I could hear Peter walking towards the door, followed by the sound of a door opening and closing.

    "That was one hell of a smile he had after I mentioned leaving here. He really wants nothing to do with you, eh girl?" Gaz said.

    I could hear the jingling of keys as Gaz tried to figure out which one worked on the cell. There was a small click followed by the sound of rusty hinges grinding soon after. Gaz walked to the side of the bed, leaning down close to my face.

    "Bah, I don''t see what he''s so scared abo--"

    I reached up with both my hands, my right hand on his chin and left on the top of his head. I quickly snapped his head to the right with all the force I could muster. A loud pop followed as his body went limp on top of me.

    ''Luck is a skill too'' a friend told me long ago. Moments like this make me feel like he was right.

    I crawled out from underneath his body, gently laying him down to not make too much noise. Peter is going to get suspicious if he doesn''t start hearing a lot of noise soon, so I need to make this quick.

    I stood up from the side of the bed and surveyed the small room I had skimmed earlier. This has to be the smallest damned room I''ve ever seen. Only one way out, and Peter is diligently standing on the other side of it.

    Alright... What''s the plan? Slam the door open and try to catch him off guard with Gaz''s weapon? Too risky. I don''t know what abilities Peter has nor his reaction time.

    Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.Douse the torches and turn invisible by the door? Same plan as earlier in a way. I''d make a loud noise to get him to enter and either sneak past him or attack him from behind with Gaz''s sword.

    ... But I really want to make sure Peter is dead before I leave here. He''ll let the others know about me if I leave him alive. Plus, more than anything, I need his soul. As I am now, a regular guard could probably kill me. Not that human souls will make a massive difference, but any boost is necessary right now. The sword is still not an option though. Any veteran would activate his barrier when he feels something is off. Very few can deflect physical attacks with it, but if that slight possibility comes true, then there is a one hundred percent chance I''ll die after my initial blow bounces off of him.

    That leaves...

    I looked back at the barrel.

    ... Even I feel a little bad for what I''m about to do.

    I walked over to the barrel and peered inside the already open lid. About one-fourth left, more than enough.

    I picked the barrel up and carried it over to the door before dropping it down silently. After that I took a moment to steady myself before turning the handle and slamming the door open.

    Peter yelled "The fuck?!" as he fell forward. He barely caught himself with his elbows and knees. I grabbed the handles of the barrel on one side and quickly emptied it onto him just as he flipped over. It only drenched him from the chest down, but that was more than enough.

    I had planned to grab one of the many torches lining the walls, but in his initial panic Peter had lowered the torch in his right hand toward his stomach to see what I threw on him. Which rang the death knell for him. He went up like a bonfire. Screams erupted as he flailed around trying to put the fire out. I could see his barrier flickering on and off as he pointlessly tried to protect himself with it. It''s too late to stop the screams from alerting the others, but at the very least I can put the man out of his misery. Plus, I need to eat.

    I plunged the sword directly into his heart while his barrier was up.

    As expected, a stealth kill would''ve been possible, but I don''t regret taking the safer option. On another note, it''s a little strange that he had a torch in his hand... This wretched place is already lined with them after all. Maybe it was because of the fear he felt from me? Carrying some personal light of his own probably made him feel better. Regardless, I need to eat these two and get the hell out of here. I don''t hear boots stomping this way yet, but it''s probably only a matter of time.

    I placed my hand over his chest and reached deep inside with part of my own soul. I could feel the erratic pulse of his soul severing from his body now that he was dead. I slowly pulled at it, gathering it into the central part of his chest before it eventually formed into a sphere in my hand.

    Don''t worry Peter, you never had any chance of reincarnating to begin with. If I didn''t eat your soul, she would have. At least with me, you won''t be trapped in a literal living hell for all of eternity.

    After I placed the beautiful blue sphere into my mouth, an unnatural force hungrily sucked it down into my core.

    Oh my god...

    Souls have always been the most delicious thing in the universe ever since I became... this. But eating one when I''m this weak... This starved? I wish I could lay here and savor this feeling until it goes away...

    Sadly, there''s no time for that. Gaz the creep is next, and then it''s time to get the hell out of this place.

    <hr>

    ~Nisha''s POV~

    ... I was completely stunned. It was already surprising enough when Gaz''s soul started decoupling itself from his body, which meant that he had died, but soon after that Peter died as well just as I was asking him why Gaz was dead. However, what shook me the most, was when his soul was ripped out of his body. I could feel my mark disappear into something deep... something dark. It sent shivers down my spine at how gross and disturbing it felt.

    I reached out to all of my marks, readying communications.

    "Keith, we have a problem! Both Gaz and Peter are dead! Also, Peter had his soul eaten soon aft... Ah, I can feel Gaz''s soul being ripped out right now as well."

    "What?! What the hell is happening over there?! Jason, are you still near the both of them?" Keith said.

    "Yes boss, I heard screams off in the direction of the jail. I''ve been waiting for orders."

    "Good, hold your position for now, keep watch and tell us when you see or hear anything. Nisha, keep communications open between you two and your brother''s group and inform us immediately if anything happens. Me and Lindon are watching the spider right now so we can''t move. Brian and Albel, you two stay near the gate and prepare to assist Jason in case anything happens. Nisha, if it''s necessary, bring Jason to you. We can always reclaim the arena later on from any monsters that arrived in our absence."

    "Okay, will do."

    Everyone but Jason cut off.

    ... I understand why he did that. Even Keith would need a long time to break through Jason''s shield, but I''m still worried. There''s only one way out from where Jason is, and it exits to the same hallway that leads to the jail.

    Wait... the jail. Didn''t they put that weird Elven girl in there? Earlier Gaz and Peter fell into a hole in the woods and found her at the bottom of it. With everything going on it probably slipped Keith''s mind. Well, everyone''s mind apparently... After all, the girl was clearly dead. She had no heartbeat or anything. We figured someone was trying to bury her before the blackout started and wasn''t able to finish in time. The only reason they brought her back and jailed her was because that''s what the Demon wanted us to do. It was very interested in her after Gaz described her appearance... It wanted to make sure no monsters ate her.

    "Anything Jason?"

    "Nothing. I''ve got my barrier on full guard in front of me. Not even the Demon could hurt me right now." Jason replied.

    "Still, please be careful, I think it''s the girl they put in the jail," I said.

    "The dead Elf? Normally I wouldn''t consider it, but.... Right, there''s really nobody else it could be. If there was an intruder, I or Albel''s group would''ve been the first to be attacked. Also, you''ve got your surveillance net up, right? The problem is that I checked her myself, and she was definitely dead. So if it really is her..." Jason trailed off, clearly unsure of how to even finish that sentence.

    "Don''t worry, my brother''s group will take care of her. I''ve already placed traps in their area as a precaution. Want me to place one in front and behind you as well, just in case?"

    Jason sighed, "Please do. Gaz and Peter were the weakest among us, but they weren''t weak in a general sense. I''d like to be more safe than sorry."

    I chuckled, "No worries, I got you. It will only take a few minutes."

    I feel like I should be sad that Gaz and Peter died... But I''m not. Absolutely vile human beings, the both of them. Thinking about what they did earlier makes me sick. Not that we''re any better now... none of us stopped what happened. If anything, this was our idea.

    I could hear Jason sniffling again.

    ... We really shouldn''t have brought him. He''s barely an adult and honestly a really sweet kid. And now we forced him to take part in something so messed up that I''m still having a hard time believing that it actually happened.

    ... All those Kitsune wanted was a home to belong to, and we promised to protect them while they rebuilt their old abandoned villages. Instead, we sacrificed them like cattle. When I agreed to this plan I thought it would be maybe fifteen people tops. Instead, the whole damned village got sacrificed. There were at least five hundred people...

    Brian and I looked on in abject horror when Keith suggested the idea to us. Gaz and Peter didn''t believe him until it got to the point where all the villagers were trapped in the seal, and my brother just stood there making no comment at all. I don''t know what he was thinking, but my mind was a complete mess. I get that Keith is trying to save the group, but surely there was a better wa---

    I screamed in surprise as a sword pierced through the back of Jason''s neck, exiting cleanly through the front. After the sword was pulled out, Jason''s body crumpled to the floor lifelessly.

    <hr>

    ~Reimia''s POV~

    Well, that was unfortunate... For him anyway. When I peeked around the corner, my initial thought was to run away. The barrier he was projecting in front of him was ridiculous, and I''d bet anything that it also deflected physical attacks.

    However, the barrier was a bit too strong. I had an idea as to why that might be, so I circled around him, and that''s when I saw his unguarded back. I had a really hard time not laughing when I saw that. After he heard the screaming, he apparently responded by concentrating his barrier forward, which normally would be the best course of action. But doing that against me? He ended up turning an impossible battle into a free victory. Still though, it''s hard to blame him for such a natural response... After all, I''ve yet to meet anything else that could turn invisible like me. In this realm anyway...

    With that said, there is now one other thing bothering me. The only reason I even came down this way is because of the mana line I saw going in this direction. I thought I was seeing things with Peter when I spotted a small line of mana poking through the wall towards his side. After all, in the heat of the moment, it''s not rare to see things that don''t actually exist or to remember things wrong. However, that clearly wasn''t the case here, since this man also had one connected to his soul shortly before I showed up. I''ve seen it before in cursed victims but... This guy sure as hell didn''t look cursed.

    I reached down and pulled this man''s soul out too. As delicious as these are, I really need monsters or Eldritch souls right now.

    ... Hmm. Those mana lines were both coming from the same direction, I should be able to find the source if I want to. For now though, I want to see what this guy was guarding.

    After walking for about a minute down a steep hallway, I entered an arena that was at least four hundred meters in circumference. The top was also completely open. It revealed a pitch-black sky that I''ve only seen in one other location before now.

    ...It can''t be for the same reasons the sky was blotted out over there. But if it is, then this moon is done for. This does however explain why they went overboard with the torches, even the arena is well-lit. On top of how comforting it must be for them, there is no way these humans can see anything with how dark it currently is.

    The wall at the far end of the arena was completely collapsed. That was probably the main entrance?

    The last thing I noticed was a large pattern painted on the ground. A very familiar pattern that I could never forget even if I wanted to.

    "... The fuckers summoned a Satyr," I mumbled.

    Merely saying the name of that creature was filling me with an indescribable amount of disgust. I was debating whether to follow those mana lines or leave and take my time figuring out where the hell I am. Not anymore. Now I''m only interested in killing the people who conducted the ritual here.

 Chapter 2 - Regret

    So it was a Satyr...

    I know I just vowed to kill everyone involved, but I''m going to have to be very careful here. I have no idea of how many enemies I''m dealing with, nor how strong they are. Most importantly though, if the Satyr sees me, that will be it for me. From here on out I''m going to take my time scouting around... Information is what I need the most right now.

    I looked up at the highest point of the Arena.

    Nope, not possible for me to jump that high right now. I see no way to climb either, as there''s nothing to grab onto. I suppose I could use all three souls to enhance myself, that''d give me enough strength to jump that high, but I''d rather not waste the only source of power I have right now. Odds are I''m going to need them in the future. Although there is a slight chance I could get caught in a trap somewhere in the village, there''s no denying that.

    I called this arena strange at first, but honestly, it''s quite beautiful if you ignore the fact that it looks like it has been abandoned for several decades. A shame that I didn''t get to see this place in its prime. Sadly that only applies to the arena itself, the rest of it is disgusting thanks to what took place here. The conversation between those two men back in the jail makes a lot more sense now. I can see bloodied appendages strewn throughout the grassy dirt, all around the chaos circle. You can''t force others to go through the ritual after all, they need to voluntarily accept it. It''s a nightmarish process. They''re bound by ether chains, forced to watch as their loved ones are tortured... It continues like that until they concede to willingly go through with the transfer. They probably believed a quick end awaited them in the other realm, but only a lucky few are awarded such a luxury.

    Hmm... One other thing does bother me. How did they move all the civilians into here? The gate is destroyed after all. I suppose it''s possible to make them all march in pairs through that tiny corridor behind me... But there had to of been at least three hundred or more people, maybe even a thousand would be required to bring over one Satyr. Warping is also a possibility... Teleportation abilities are rare, and those versed in teleportation magic are even more rare. Still, I don''t want to rule that possibility out. Someone with the ability to teleport a group of people paired with a Satyr is something I refuse to allow to exist.

    A light shower of rain began to fall on me. It was slowly ramping up in density.

    I love rain most of the time, but out in the open anything with good instincts or eyesight will see the rain bouncing off of nothing instead of hitting the ground. A Satyr is one such being.

    ... I''m also just now realizing that I''m naked. I''m about one hundred and eighty centimeters tall, while Gaz and that guy I killed from behind were around two hundred or more. Baggy armor is not an option, and Peter''s was completely burned up.

    ... It can''t be helped, I''ll make my own.

    I walked to a location where I could keep an eye on the entrance while staying out of sight. I then quickly used Gaz''s sword to cut a long gash along my forearm. Black blood began to ooze out, slowly shifting from a liquid to a cloth-like substance as I pulled on it.

    No time to make anything nice, I''ll stick with a makeshift one-piece for now. Also, Gaz''s sword is honestly ridiculous. It went through that guy''s spine as if it was tissue paper, and yet it looks like an ordinary dull sword you can find anywhere? If they''re carrying around weapons like these then it''s all the more reason I need to be careful.

    About ten minutes later I was fully ''clothed'' in a near-weightless simple black cloth.

    Against this sword, it won''t do anything, but non-elemental abilities will be partly blocked. Better than nothing for now.

    I activated my veil(turned invisible) and began to make my way back towards the corridor.

    It''s really annoying that I can''t get over these walls... It''d be much safer since the person connected to the three I just killed is aware of my existence and probably waiting to ambush me. I was hoping those three would have a utility-based ability, but nope. Neither Gaz nor Peter had a single ability. The last guy had one, but when I try testing it nothing happens. This happens in rare cases. It''s probably something related to barriers, which is sadly something I don''t have.

    I jogged up the ramp and circled around the body before I reached the three-way branch I was at earlier. I peeked around the corner I saw nothing in either direction. There are about twelve magic torches between me and the door far down the tunnel to my right. I turned my aura off, because it''s too damn painful around all these torches, and began running at full speed toward the exit. Along the way I grabbed all the torches near the door and brought them back to where I originally was before dropping them on the ground. When I approached the door again, I could hear rain hitting it.

    So it leads outside, thank god. I''ll still have to deal with torches but at least they won''t be nearby.

    I put my veil back up as I neared the door. I tensed up as I grabbed the handle.

    ... This is the dangerous part. The most likely spot for me to get ambushed is right here.

    I pulled the door open and sprinted outside. The first thing I saw was a group of barrels near a house on my left. I quickly dove behind them and did a quick scan of my surroundings.

    Hmm... This area appears to be a back alley filled with homes in the design of the Kitsune''s culture. I did see a lot of their ears back there so it''s not a huge surprise.

    I looked into the nearby open window and saw six jail cells inside with a small desk near the window. This must be where they kept slaves before moving them to the arena.

    I then peeked out down the street I saw nothing moving at all besides the rain. There are large magic torches latched onto the ends of every roof, lighting up the area a little, but not enough to hurt me.

    Keeping still, I stared ahead looking for any kind of movement. Aside from rickety doors and signs swaying in the wind, I saw nothing else.

    ... Is there truly nobody here? If those mana lines weren''t for beneficial reasons but instead curses, that would still put whoever was using them on guard. There is also a chance they fled after three of their group members died so quickly...

    I carefully made my way around the barrels, staying near the dilapidated homes on the left as I continued forward while scanning the area with my enhanced vision for anything out of the ordinary. One thing that stuck out was the lack of footprints in the dirt. The chances of a warper being present have gone way up.

    Upon reaching the end of the road, the area opened up to what used to be a market square. Twice the size of the arena, but I''m still picking up no movement.

    ... I can see the entrance to the village past the square. Ambush spot number two, not going through there. Fortunately, this time I have many other ways to exit this place.

    Keeping to the left, I continued advancing forward while glancing between the homes next to me and the market on the right.

    If they''re hiding in the homes then so be it. I don''t plan on inspecting over four hundred abandoned homes. It''s much quicker to just find the Satyr, who is nowhere near small enough to enter these homes.

    Arriving near the fork, I slid up to the edge of the last house and checked the street on the left. It''s also empty... However, I do see what I was hoping to find, a bunch of crates stacked against the wall fifty meters up next to a large-looking building. It''s probably a warehouse.

    Looks like I found my way out of here. Next is to find the Satyr, which will be more of a waiting game than anything else. I don''t know what they''re currently doing, but eventually the Satyr will begin casting magic, lighting up the area around him in the process. Regardless of what element he uses, catching sight of it in this pure darkness will be unbelievably easy. Plus, the humans with him are definitely carrying a light source of some kind, so there''s a chance I''ll stumble upon them before he even begins casting magic.

    Proceeding toward the crates I finally saw something out of the ordinary down a back alley.

    A lava hound...? What is this doing here?

    The hound stands up on its hind legs, moving its head from side to side.

    Seeing that strange movement I realized I forgot something. When chaos magic is used for a summoning, it pushes the two realms together for only a brief moment, but that''s enough to corrupt the local area for a long time. The air is going to become very dense with ether, which is going to lead to this area swarming with monsters. That hound is looking for the densest place, which would be the arena.

    Good thing I got out of there when I did. Forget multiple monsters, even that lava hound would cripple me. This sword could kill it with ease... but then it''d explode, leaving me as a husk till something else comes along to finish me off.

    I did find it strange that the third guy I killed was guarding an area they no longer had a use for. They left him there, and possibly the other two, to kill any monsters that came along. The only conclusion I can come to is that they plan on using it again... They''re either out there gathering up more sacrifices or killing an Eldritch. Only a soul of that level would be equivalent to so many sacrifices. Why in God''s name would they help a Satyr bring over another one though? As much as I hate the creatures, they are surprisingly fair. Even an extravagant wish would be granted for what they offered. Just how greedy are these people?

    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

    While I was lost in thought the hound dashed off in the direction I just left.

    Good luck little buddy, make sure to call your friends. An entire arena full of you would be a nice surprise for the Satyr if I can''t stop them.

    My objective is the same but slightly different now. If it''s possible I still want to kill everyone involved with the ritual, but the ones around the Satyr were always going to prove extremely difficult to touch without getting myself killed.

    ... I''ll have to take the risk and try to kill the person with the most utility. The Satyr brings enough firepower on its own, so he probably has humans around him that''ll be good at crowd control or defense. If I take the best one out, he might give up on fighting an Eldritch. Assuming that truly is what they''re doing, and not gathering more sacrifices. I''m positive they''re not though. Satyr never suggest sacrificing others. I don''t know why that is the case, but it''s a weird fact about them that I know is true. And Peter said that the others were ''really freaked out'' after the sacrifice. I severely doubt they will do it again. They''ll prefer to kill an Eldritch if possible, and Satyr are experts at locating them.

    I continued my walk to the crates without any more surprises. However, looking at the crates I suddenly felt really uneasy.

    ....................

    How long would it take to get on the roof of that house, and then find a way up to the warehouse''s roof? From there I could jump outside of the village. Or I could do the same damn thing with these easily found crates that are conveniently stacked to be climbed onto... This is the kind of location that I would trap if I were them. Getting caught in a trap right now is game over, and I have no abilities to scan for them.

    On the other hand, I won''t be able to prevent those creaky boards from making lots of noise, drawing monsters like that lava hound and others to where I am. The hound will hear me through the rain, and then when it starts making noise my position will be given away on top of the fact that more monsters will be drawn there. This is all assuming the boards on the warehouse don''t give out completely. It''s so decayed that it''s literally leaning to one side...

    ... Whatever I do, it needs to be soon.

    <hr>

    ~Brian POV~

    "No I will not calm down!! Even Jason was killed in one hit! Please honey, I''m begging you, grab that worthless brother of mine and go join up with Keith..." Nisha said.

    "Stop screeching, it''s too late for us to be relocating. There are at least a dozen different A-rank monsters in the area now, slowly making their way towards Kikyou. For now, Brian''s net is keeping them away from us. So shut the hell up and keep your focus on scanning the area around us."

    This back-and-forth has been going on for a while. I love her, I really do, but these two are a complete pain in the ass to deal with sometimes. Although this time they both have a point, even I am worried about what kind of monster could take Jason down in one hit.

    Jason...

    He may have been a newer member, but his death still hit me hard. It was obvious he wanted nothing to do with any of this. Barely an adult, still walking around with a naturally pure heart in this bleak world. Yet we brought someone like him out here to help us...

    "Your brother is right, we can''t move right now. The current plan is the best we''ve got. All we can do is pray that the monster, or Elf girl? Whatever the hell it is, gets caught in one of your traps. Either that or nothing happens until Keith returns with the Demon."

    ....................

    Oh? I wasn''t expecting her to go sile--

    "It''s there..." Nisha whispered.

    "What? The Elf?" Albel replied.

    "Yes, I can feel a hand on the outer edge of my trap that we placed on the crates near that warehouse. Only a hand though, nothing else yet."

    Both me and Albel tensed up, preparing to attack at any moment.

    The second she activates it we''re going to have to bombard her. Here''s hoping it''s enough...

    We passed the time in silence, every second feeling like an eternity.

    To my right I could see Albel waiting with his hands interlocked, leaving a big gap in the middle.

    As I thought, he''s planning on incinerating her.

    "A foot just hit my mark, she''s climbing up!!"

    I canceled my wooden net, turning it into a massive spear. I could hear Albel sucking in as much air as his lungs will allow.

    The blue exit mark on the tree in front of us began to shine.

    I launched the spear forward with as much mana as it could handle while Albel exhaled a long stream of fire, both aimed directly at the mark.

    The spear smashed into the tree, piercing it straight through. A short scream could be heard as the fire engulfed the tree.

    With no time to celebrate, we both turn to flee the area, knowing full well that we''re about to be swarmed by monsters. I won''t be able to reform that spear to a net for several minutes after all.

    However, what happened next stopped us both in our tracks.

    "The monsters are running away...?" Albel said, clearly confused.

    "Looks like it? Calling this strange would be an understatement."

    That''s not the only part that could be called strange. I swear before my spear landed I couldn''t see anything on the tree we attacked. The girl should''ve appeared there one second after the mark lit up... Yet I saw nothing until after I pierced her.

    "Did you get her?!" Nisha asked.

    "Yeah... Yeah, we got her." Albel replied, still looking around for monsters.

    "Truly?!! Well done you two!! Now hurry back to where we are! I won''t feel completely relieved until we''re all together again."

    "I can''t, remember? I need to wait till I can retrieve the spear." I said.

    "Oh... right. Okay well, hurry back after, alright?"

    I couldn''t help but laugh. "Don''t worry beautiful, it''s over. Stop being so worried, we''ll be back by your side soon." Speaking aloud this time, I continued. "Your sister is just too damn cute. I suppose there was no need for me to tell you that though. I''m sure you already know that better than anyone."

    I turned to look at Albel, but he wasn''t there. I looked around and spotted him on the branch of a tree ten yards behind me, holding a thin spear of fire.

    "When the hell did you get up there? I only looked away for a second."

    "I''m going to keep watch here while you get your spear back. Now hurry up."

    "I can''t hurry up when it comes to this, but alright sure."

    I felt slightly apprehensive as I approached the tree. Seriously, what was this girl? I''m positive she was dead when we found her...

    Upon reaching her, I''m surprised to see the blood around the spear was completely black. The trap mark is still lit up so I can see it clearly, her blood really is black... What the hell? I can''t think of a single living being I''ve ever seen with black blood.

    In any event, that''s all I can tell about her at this point. Albel completely crisped her.

    Wait... There''s no smell.

    "Holy shit, ALBEL! This girl has no smell at all even after being cooked by you!"

    "That''s not possible. Please see a doctor after we return to Viseux."

    "Fuck you too. I''m serious here, I smell nothing from her right now. This is wild..."

    "......................."

    Even if I can''t see his expression, I know the little bastard is intrigued.

    I laughed and turned back around to prepare to detract my spear, as it should be ready soon. And that''s when a hand grabbed my throat, squeezing with enough force to crush it.

    "Grrggggghh?!"

    W-What is this?!

    In a panic I grasped at the hand choking me, immediately realizing that it was charred.

    My eyes went wide. I looked up at the girl to see two red eyes staring back at me.

    Somewhere in the back of my mind, I could hear Nisha screaming, followed by her brother yelling something as well.

    I couldn''t hear anything they were saying, nor was I listening. All I could hear was the sound of heavy rain blaring in my head as two red eyes glared at me unblinking.

    Kicking her or punching her face did nothing, she merely kept staring at me, completely unfazed.

    Every now and then she moved me to the right or the left, using my body to guard against Albel''s spear. Because of the mark, I could tell he was changing tactics and running in this direction to attack her directly.

    The world around me began to fade, and my strength to fight back went with it. I tried to tell Nisha one last time that I loved her, but I was unable to focus enough to communicate with her.

    I could see my whole life play out in front of me as everything slowly went black.

    The day an inquisitor saved my family''s caravan from a monster attack. How cool he looked as he cut that Werebear in two despite the overwhelming size of the beast.

    All the years of training in the temple, preparing for an entrance exam that almost nobody passes, especially rookies like me. After dozens of tries, I finally succeeded and became an inquisitor. Not only that, I was incorporated into a newly formed unit under the number one rookie, Keith. Within seven years we were one of the top three units on the entire moon. We traveled around completing every mission we were given with ease. Everywhere we went, there was nothing but pure happiness on the faces of people when they saw us coming. The greatest joy of my life was found in that group as well, Nisha.

    Those were the best years of my life... However, they didn''t last.

    Nobody knows why, but suddenly the amount of Eldritch appearing around Urza had quadrupled. And not only that, they were also becoming progressively stronger as time went on. We''d lose on average one to three of our comrades on every mission.

    The Tengu also reappeared, destroying every village he could. Lord Rai''ga was suddenly unable to assist in anything else as he was forced to focus solely on keeping the Tengu at bay.

    This repeated for many years. Before we knew it, most of our unit was replaced with new members. Even former bandits like Gaz were being admitted into our force now.

    We had already served our time and more, so it was our right to request permission to retire, which included access to the portals as well. However, time and time again we were denied; always told the same thing, ''Now is not the time to be selfish''. To a degree, I understood. Honestly, I knew what kind of trouble we were all in. It felt like every other month there was news of another village falling to the corruption of a new Eldritch. Even so, had we not done enough? We''d put our time in and more.

    Regardless, we pushed on like that for another year before Keith reached his breaking point when his sister Rachel died. She had been with us from the start, and it wouldn''t be a stretch to say her abilities were a major reason we survived as long as we did. Unfortunately, the Eldritch we were sent to investigate turned out to be a Demon, who also noticed how important she was. One minute she was there, the next she was gone. At the time we thought that it might be using a higher-tier version of Nisha''s warp.

    What happened to her next was something no one should have to experience. That fucking abomination surrounded itself in the strongest barrier we had ever seen, all for the purpose of making us watch. It slowly ate her piece by piece, then used her own ability against her to restore her body parts. We did all we could to pierce the barrier, but it still took hours. When it was finally breaking, the Demon laughed and swallowed her whole before warping away to god knows where. We searched in vain, knowing full well that both the Demon and Rachel were gone.

    After that, Keith disappeared for almost two months. We thought he was gone for good. But one day he returned and marched straight to our commander''s office, demanding access to a portal for all of us. He was rejected as usual of course, but Keith didn''t look surprised or annoyed in the least. Instead, he gathered all of us up and told us his plans to summon a Demon. He said had no illusions about it being okay for us to sacrifice others for our own good, especially not the Kitsune of all races. No one has had it worse than them.

    Nobody said anything, which Keith took as affirmation. This was how our meetings always went, but this time it was a little different. It wouldn''t be a stretch to say we were all shocked to hear him say he''d be summoning a Demon. We had only recently lost Rachel in the most horrific way possible to a god damned Demon, yet here he was suggesting we summon another one? He noticed our confusion and went on to explain in great detail that what we''d be summoning was of a completely different species that honored their deals. I wanted to ask how he even knew this, or how to summon the Demon at all, but from Keith''s attitude we could all tell he was going to do this regardless of whether we were there or not. Again, nobody said a word, which was taken as a silent affirmation of the mission. Did I want to send roughly five hundred innocents to their deaths? Absolutely not. But the image of Rachel screaming while being eaten alive wouldn''t leave my mind. It kept leading back to the same question.

    What if that happens to Nisha?

    Now here I am two weeks later, dying at the hands of an unknown elf. Surprisingly, I don''t hate her. This is merely Karma coming back around my way.

    I don''t regret trying to save my girl, but I do regret killing all those Kitsune...

    This entire night was a farce.

    This is not why I joined the inquisitors.

    I only wanted to help people...

 Chapter 3 - Reset

    The man in my hand finally went limp. I pulled him close, peeking over his shoulder at the fire caster behind him.

    Heh... Pure rage would be a good description of the emotion flaring across his face.

    "Wuunc---", Shit, I can''t speak. I must have breathed in some fire on accident... So much for bluffing my way out of this. I was going to tell him ''Once I absorb this man''s soul, his spear is going to disappear and I''m going to kill you next''. Which is complete and utter nonsense. I had to absorb all three of the souls from earlier to enhance myself enough to kill the guy in my hand. Not only would I have failed at crushing his throat, but his punches would have pulverized my head.

    There''s no mana left to heal my lungs and it''s also not possible to absorb this guy right in front of his friend. It takes way too much time while giving off an eerie light. Whoever marked their unit would certainly have told him about his friend''s souls being eaten, he''ll know right away what I''m doing. Honestly, I''m not sure how to get out of this...

    A blue aura appeared around the man glaring at me, making him immediately shift to a confused expression.

    "Sis no!!" The man yelled.

    A second later he phased out of existence, leading to an imperceptibly fast blue light shooting off deeper into the woods.

    I... Assume she did that to save him? Probably panicked after I killed one of them, forcing a return warp on her brother to get him away from me.

    I wish I could consider this another stroke of luck, but does it even matter? The spear disappearing was part of the bluff. If I use his soul to enhance my strength enough to rip the spear out, I''ll have nothing left to heal myself with. This forest looks completely dead, not a single biological around for me to consume. Likewise, if I use the soul to heal up, which will take a long time, I''ll still be stuck to this fucking tree until the mana runs out on this spear and it starts to break down into ether. I assume he pumped it to the max to make sure it pierced me, so that isn''t happening anytime soon.

    ............ Rip the stake out, then crawl and hide... I guess.

    The sound of heavy rain pouring down around me is all I could hear. Droning on, dulling my already weakened senses.

    What a pathetic state I''m in. Completely charred with a log-sized spear stuck through my chest. No mana left to do anything. Pretending to be dead won''t work again... Not that it matters since the Satyr will eat me when it comes back anyway.

    I bit my lip as I clenched my fists.

    ... What the hell am I even doing here? Now that I''m given time to think, I feel like I''m about to cry or scream in rage... I''m positive I died trying to kill Viktor before he escaped through a portal. An absolutely pointless act of desperation. There were several unknown powerful Eldritch there, with a legion of their own Lords as well. They would have absorbed me if the entire city wasn''t collapsing down onto us. There is no way I survived that... Plus, these people are conducting rituals at a Kitsune village. I was buried in Xelba, a place located over a hundred miles from the Kitsune. I can''t imagine they found me deep underground in the mountains on the way to a village far away from there.

    The other option is that I revived the same way Eldritch do, parasitizing off human souls until I was powerful enough to be reborn. That might be possible... But I''m caught on one glaring issue.

    The Satyr.

    I just so happened to revive as a Satyr was summoned nearby? Me? The one person who wants to kill Satyr more than anyone else? This feels... Directed. Like there''s an obvious purpose behind bringing me back here. Either that or it was the most unbelievable coincidence ever. However, if it was on purpose, then the being responsible only knows about me on a superficial level. No way in hell I''m anywhere near strong enough to kill one right now. Even if I manage to kill all his little human helpers, I''ll still be forced to let the Satyr go. Assuming I still had the three souls from earlier and this new soul, combining them into one punch might make the Satyr stumble a little before he swatted me away into a tree.

    I need to eat some monsters damnit, I can''t keep going like this. An Eldritch would be preferable but that''s not even an option.

    ... Wait, weren''t they hunting an Eldritch? There''s a chance they''re getting more sacrifices, but my instincts are telling me they are hunting bigger game. Stealthing up after they kill an Eldritch to steal the soul within sight of the Satyr is an absolutely ridiculous idea... And yet.

    I looked at the blue sphere in my hand.

    ... It''s not enough. I would attempt it if I could, but it''s not an option right now. Pathetically crawling into a bush while slowly healing is all I''ve got.

    I tossed the sphere into my mouth.

    I want to sigh that I''m about to use this soul just to get off this stupid tree, but I can''t even do tha---

    Everything went black.

    I flipped over while activating my veil and heightening my night vision simultaneously.

    Wait, flip over? I''m also underwater for some reason...? I''m on my hands and knees right now, which means I was lying down? D-Did I forget moving to wherever this is? That... Shouldn''t be possible. But after the night I''ve had I really don''t know what to think anymore.

    I quickly glanced around, taking stock of my location.

    ... It looks like I''m inside a deep hole in the ground that''s strangely illuminated by a bright blue light. Hmm... it appears to be about fifteen yards deep? I did say I wanted to hide somewhere, and this is a great spot for me since I don''t need to breathe. Which is why I''m still annoyed that I scorched my lungs earlier. They''re only used for talking, so there''s no reason for me to be breathing in fire like that.

    Still though... I''ve been in worse positions and never once lost my memory. Something is off here. Especially the fact that I''m fully healed despite still owning the soul from the spear user. That''s by far the strangest part.

    Standing up, I grabbed the dirt in front of me and climbed to the top, peeking up only enough to see above ground. Ceasing to move for a minute, I scanned the area around me. Two things of value entered my vision. First, I see some type of dog monster looking away from me, sniffing vigorously with its snout against the mud.

    Tracking something in this weather? Impressive if possible, but I''m going to have to interrupt it.

    Next is the strange blue flora everywhere. Blue flowers, and blue mushrooms, all emitting enough light to reach up to about six feet on the surrounding trees. Everything above that would still be pitch black to human eyes. I didn''t see anything like this back on the tree I was pinned to...

    Crawling up onto the ground, I kept low on all fours as I slowly advanced toward the creature.

    Standing up would be a pointless risk. Even a moron like Gaz would find it odd seeing rain bounce off of nothing within ten feet of him.

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    A creaking sound comes from high up in the trees, making the dog whip its head up. Seeing this, I kicked off toward the creature, removing my veil and enhancing my fist right before it landed on the creature''s head. A loud crack emitted as I drove my fist into its skull. The dog smashed into the mud, sliding several yards forward before stopping.

    Reactivating my aura, I immediately dodged to the right and laid down. Looking up, I saw a medium-sized owl staring at me.

    ... Just an owl.

    Standing back up, I walked over to the dog and ripped its soul out.

    Finally... Something of actual value. It''s not much, but it''s better than human souls.

    After absorbing it I could feel my vessel fill up almost an imperceptible amount.

    Eh, better than nothing.

    Fortunately, I already know what I need to do next. The person who warped me is in for a world of pain. If you''re going to do something so extravagant like taking control of my soul in that way, even if it was only for a second, then you better make sure I''m dead. I can still sense the general area where it came from.

    After remaking my armor and sprinting off in the direction of the aura, I finally realized how cold it was.

    Is this really Urza? Only the backside of the moon is frozen, and there is obviously nobody living there or anywhere near it. Xelba was probably the closest nation on the other side of the mountains, but it was never cold there... I need to find somebody to talk to after this is all over. At the very least I would like to know where the hell I am.

    <hr>

    Fifteen to twenty minutes later I came to an abrupt halt.

    I''m close but... There''s something else here too. Spiders. They''re about my height, and maybe ten feet in width? This entire area of the woods is webbed up, with small openings here and there at the top of the canopy. So that''s how they get in and out? All the spiders running back and forth are probably spawn, and considering how well-fortified this place is, I''d bet the Eldritch is here as well. Which means...

    Focusing my vision to see far off proved pointless, I couldn''t see past all the webbing and trees. I''m going to have to go around.

    Before leaving, I grabbed a stick and threw it far off to my left onto some webbing. As it landed, three spiders bolted toward the disturbance, moving at speeds that shocked even me.

    Holy shit... They were at least thirty yards away and pounced on the stick within two seconds. Alright well, definitely need to make sure I don''t lose my veil around these spiders.

    I slowly backed away, distancing myself far enough away to where I could just barely see the webbing. I settled into a light jog towards my destination this time, keeping any sound I created to a minimum.

    ... They''re close. The warper is somewhere on the other side of this hive. Strangely enough, the blue flora is nowhere to be seen past the hive. It abruptly stops directly before the hive. There are however tiny little magical lights connected to random trees along this path. Either the humans or the Satyr did that since they''d be blind here otherwise.

    After a few minutes, the edge of the hive came into view. I slowed down while scanning in all directions. The others are most likely near the warper after all.

    I caught sight of a large horn far off to the left. I immediately stopped and snuck up to a nearby tree, peering out from behind it in the direction of the horn.

    Ahh... There you are fucker.

    There are a few trees blocking half of his body between me and him, but I can still make out that towering physique. Around twenty-five feet tall, eyes closed as if in a trance, arms positioned in a carrying pose with its palms skyward. Basic channeling pose. My best guess is that it plans on wiping out the entire hive with ancient magic, but that could take half a day or longer to cast depending on the spell it''s going to use. There''s no way of knowing how much time is left, which isn''t a big deal, I can wait for weeks in the same spot if need be. For now though, I have one last problem to deal with before I try stealing part of the Eldritch''s soul away from them.

    I began walking again, past the Satyr and the couple of humans I saw around him. They''re guarding to make sure nothing interrupts him I''m sure, which is something I would have happily done if I had the strength for it.

    Thankfully, what I''m looking for appears to be much further in this direction. I can see several tiny blue lines connected to the people surrounding the Satyr.

    That''s right idiot, keep your connections live for me. I''ll be seeing you shortly.

    <hr>

    ~Nisha''s POV~

    "Don''t blame yourself so much kiddo, there was nothing you could do. You know he... He wouldn''t hold it against you." Keith said.

    "... I know," Albel replied.

    Keith has it rough as the leader. They were best friends from the moment Brian joined the unit, and that was so very long ago... Long before me and my brother joined. Meanwhile, I''m...

    "Sis, I''m sorry."

    Stop. Just stop... None of this matters anymore. I only went along with this because Brian seemed determined to get us out of here. Not that I''m pushing blame onto any of them. They would have called it off if I ever said no. It... It just doesn''t matter anymore.

    "Sis Are yo--"

    I cut all the connections.

    I don''t want to hear it, nor am I interested in the first Satyr warping us to the Elven planet. Especially after my first Elven encounter went like this.

    No, what I really want to do is kill the higher-ups, but that''s a death sentence considering they never leave Viseux. Those fat fucks sit around giving orders while the rest of us sacrifice ourselves. Have they even seen an Eldritch before? I wonder if pacts can change... It would be nice if I could get the first Satyr to cast some of his wide-scale destruction magic on the capital.

    I suddenly felt someone grip the top of my hair and yank me above the soil.

    "Found you~!" The Elf said, smiling.

    "H-How?!"

    "Surprising huh? I can see your connections when you access your marks. It was as simple as following the..." The Elf paused, looking down at my chest, "Whoa... You must''ve been a saintess in your past life."

    In a panic I quickly opened communications to everyone.

    "SHE''S HERE, HELP!! QUICKLY!!!"

    "Hmm? One, two, three, four... Five? That''s two more than I expected. Are there two more on the other side of the hive?"

    She really can see them?!

    "Now then, until I catch sight of your friends, I have some questions for you. Don''t worry, I''ll see them long before they become a threat to me." The Elf said, laughing.

    "You... IF IT WASN''T FOR YOU HE''D STILL BE ALIVE!!"

    "Which one has you so upset? I assume not the first two, they were obviously scum. You should''ve heard how proud they were of their role in the ritual."

    ... She''s obviously talking about Gaz and Peter. Keith planned on killing them once we were done, so she actually did us a favor there. Bringing them with us to start a new life? Give me a break. They would have immediately reverted to their old ways, shining the rest of us in a bad light.

    "The last one... He, he was..."

    Ah, I can feel tears welling up again. Please not now, not in front of the one who killed him.

    I glared at the Elf, hoping my anger would subside the tears.

    "What a cute way of trying to close yourself off..." The Elf said, then continued, "However, if you were that concerned with your loved ones dying, maybe you shouldn''t have sacrificed an entire village for your own purposes? You realize that whatever happens to you after that is fair game, right?"

    "... You''re not wrong. Still, that doesn''t change how much I loved and needed him." I smirked, "I''m going to enjoy watching Keith cut you into pieces."

    Canceling my marks earlier was the biggest blunder of my life. I need to be connected for a few minutes before I''m fully tuned to their souls, which allows me to warp them to the exit marks near me. It wouldn''t be an issue if I had placed some entrance marks around the others, but Keith said the Demon didn''t want any around it.

    "I thought you''d warp them to you like you did earlier, but you''re not doing that for some reason? I wanted to kill you while they were in transit, hoping it''d backfire in some way and kill them too. If you''re not going to warp them, then I suppose it''s time to get rid of you. Sadly, there''s no time left for questions, I can see one of them off in the distance now. Don''t worry girl, you''ll be joining your lover shortly."

    I let out a short whimper as the Elf pulled her right fist back. I didn''t even realize I was peeing myself.

    I was always the safest one... Having imminent death in my face is scarier than I thought it would be. I''m sorry brother, looks like I''m going first...

    The Elf''s fist looked like it was moving in slow motion, but right before it connected with my face the world turned black.

    .......................................???

    ... Did I die?

    ... No, this is dirt. Judging from the ether around me, this is the area I was hiding in moments ago. Wait... There''s only one thing that could have saved me in that situation. Oh god... What are the odds of the reset saving me right before she killed me? T-Thank you so much Lord Arkaios!! I know that timing was pure coincidence, but thank you all the same!!!

    I connected to all my marks, informing the others about what just happened.

    <hr>

    ~Reimia''s POV~

    ... Alright, seriously, what the hell is this? I''m back in this hole underwater. I was inches away from killing that girl too... I assume that means she''s still alive? What an annoying turn of events, but at least I know exactly where she is now. No talking this time, I''m going to punch straight through the ground and crush her skull.

    I pulled myself up onto the ground and looked around the area, finding that everything was the same, including the dead dog.

    ... It''s still lying there with a crushed skull.

    "This night keeps getting stranger by the minute..."

 Chapter 4 - The Spiders

    The air pushing across my face as I run back towards the hive feels damn near freezing. If I didn''t know any better, I''d say it has dropped at least fifteen degrees from the time I was in the arena. Is it normal for temperatures to drop this fast? I''m having a hard time remembering if it used to fluctuate like this back on the Elven continent, the only cold climate I''ve ever known.

    Catching sight of webbing in the distance, I immediately hard pivot to the right.

    This far off I shouldn''t need to worry about sound, and even with their speed, it won''t matter unless they somehow remove my aura. I severely doubt spider spawn is going to have light-based abilities. During my run, I''ve come to a ridiculous idea as to what might be happening, but it truly is insane. Even the most powerful of Eldritch wouldn''t be able to rewind time. At least... Not the ones born here. Then again, I''ve also encountered something else that doesn''t belong here...

    Looking up I''m once again reminded of the faceless one''s realm; a realm of horrors that I was unfortunate enough to grow up in. The sky there looked exactly like this, but there was also a point where it stopped being pitch black, for reasons I never uncovered as I was too afraid to even try. When I first saw this sky, I thought I had found the perfect area to survive in. That is, until I neared the landscape it was overshadowing. Immediately, all of my instincts were telling me not to go under that sky, so I never did...

    With the edge of the hive coming into view, I slow down again, but this time I move silently.

    I need to make sure everything is exactly as it was last time before I try approaching the girl again. There are way too many unknowns, but assuming my insane rewind theory is true, and they all remember what happened earlier... Well, things would not end very well for me. Dying itself doesn''t sound like a big deal if it''s just going to reset, but that dog won''t leave my mind. I think it''s because I ate its soul... I need to test it on something or somebody else to know for certain though. Also, I have no idea when this rewind is going to stop, so no point in taking the approach that ''death is okay'' when it could stop rewinding at any point without my knowledge. More than that, they could feed me to the Satyr and none of it would matter anyway.

    The Satyr comes into view again, still in his meditation pose.

    One, two... That''s it. Only two humans here. The one who burned me is missing. I arrived here much sooner than before so it''s possible he came later, so I''ll wait here for a bit and see what happens.

    <hr>

    Roughly thirty minutes have passed and he''s still nowhere to be seen. They must be retaining their memories, not that I ever had any reason to suspect they wouldn''t. Still though, would''ve been really convenient if they didn''t.

    ... This is too risky now. I want to kill that girl, but I''ll have to save it for another day when they aren''t expecting me. From now on I''ll start every reset dashing towards the hive to see if the Satyr is obliterating it. It would never finish casting the spell hours in and risk losing it because time rewound. I have no idea if the spell would stay manifested in the world if it resets, but I do know that his channeling of ether is not being deterred if it really is rewinding. I kept the soul from that spear user, while the dog remained a soulless corpse, probably because I ate both of them and they now belong to my soul. Most telling of all, however, is the weather. The weather keeps advancing, completely unaffected by what is happening down below. The spell must be targeting souls and resetting them to their previous locations... Which seems oddly specific? I''m very curious as to what the purpose of such a spell is...

    I guess for now I''ll run some tests on the spear ability while I wait to see if it resets? Seems pointless to run back considering how long it''s been.

    Putting some more distance between me and the Satyr, I sit down behind a tree, focusing inwards to enter my soul realm. Before long a new landscape appears before my eyes. A desolate landscape, mired in absolute corruption, with faceless abominations growing directly out of the very land itself. Far off in the distance, a deep pitch-black set of clouds can be seen.

    "Heh... As disgusting as ever. Home sweet home."

    Wasting no time, I raise my hand and call forth the ability. Instantly a wooden sphere appears in my hand.

    "An orb huh? He hit me with a spear so that means..."

    Focusing on the sphere, I try imagining it in the appearance of a spear. Moments later it shifts into the spear that pierced me earlier.

    "Interesting..."

    I don''t have the mana required to make use of this right now, but hopefully I won''t need to absorb his soul in a pinch. I''d like to keep a multi-purpose ability like this around as long as possible.

    After playing with the wood ability for a while, I see my real body on the wide-screen television relocate to somewhere underwater.

    Well that settles it, something is resetting the locations of people there, or maybe the entire moon? Which is complete madness to me... If it stays like this forever, what the hell am I going to do then? Absorb everyone within an hour of me until it''s just me and Satyr playing catch with this wooden sphere to pass the time? Sounds worse than any nightmare I can imagine.

    Upon exiting my realm, I leap out of the water and dash off towards the hive again. Catching sight of the webbing intact makes me realize I don''t really have anything else to do besides wait for these creatures to die.

    Guess I''ll try and find some weak monsters to hunt while I wait?

    Circling around the left side of the hive this time, I eventually reach this side''s corner. Out of pure curiosity, I keep walking parallel to the hive until I see something I didn''t expect. Far off to the left, I catch sight of a legion of spider spawn returning from somewhere. There is also one massive spider covered in an armored carapace. Immediately, I knew what this new creature was.

    A Lord huh... It looks strong enough to withstand most attacks. Honestly, it looks like it might even survive a non-directed ancient magic attack. There are plenty of cases of a Lord having a completely different set of abilities and attributes compared to the God itself. They usually make up for each other''s weaknesses after all. Even so, I''m going to be disappointed while also finding it hilarious if the Satyr''s spell only kills the spawn, leaving a God and who knows how many Lords barreling down onto them.

    As the legion passes by me, I see about forty human-sized webbing being dragged behind the Lord.

    Ah shit... It''s painfully obvious what those are. I''m sorry people, but it''s impossible for me to save you right now.

    Spawn on the other side of the hive rip open a massive doorway, allowing the Lord and its spoils inside.

    So it was a raiding party... That means there are humans somewhere in that direction. I''ll try looking for it in a minute. But first, I want to see if they put their captives somewhere for consumption later, or maybe...

    Almost on cue, the earth deep inside the hive can be seen blasting upwards as something slowly pulls itself onto the ground.

    You never know what to expect when first witnessing an Eldritch... Their spawns and Lords could look like something else entirely.

    The Eldritch is about forty feet tall at the height of its joints, with its whole body taking on an almost mechanical look. Neither its body nor legs look solid in design. Instead, its legs are all a mishmash of hardened cartilage with an eerie red light emanating from every part of its body. The mouth also looks nothing like you''d expect out of a spider. It''s circular, filled with ultra-thin sharp teeth lining its entire mouth. How it uses such a mouth was unveiled immediately.

    A massive force of air sucked me off my feet, almost pulling me into the webbing. I barely stopped myself in time by smashing my fists deep into the earth to hold still. Looking up, I see the Eldritch sucking down all the bodies into its razor-sharp mouth. A sickening display of blood explodes each time a victim smashes into its teeth.

    ... I really hope it''s eating those people''s souls. Eldritch almost always do, but if those people are only physically being eaten, that means each reset they are living through this nightmare.

    After it was finished, the Eldritch tried going back underground, but it looked like it didn''t quite know how to. After several minutes of trial and error, the Lords and spawn were able to dig up a hole big enough for it to crawl down into, before covering him back up. The Lords then sat down on top of where their god was resting, bunching up in such a way that only their armored carapace could be seen.

    That was... Bizarre. They didn''t look used to doing that at all. For even the god itself to appear confused is new to me. Looking at this scene though, with six massive armored spiders guarding their god from a skyward attack, one answer does come to mind.

    The Eldritch knows what the Satyr is doing. Satyrs are very intelligent, there''s no way it didn''t scout this place out before deciding on a plan. But the issue is, it was most likely unable to have humans keep surveillance over the hive, because of how fast the spiders are. As a result the Eldritch was left to its own devices. The only thing it can''t do is leave, since the Satyr will feel its soul moving away.

    The Satyr probably made the same mistake I did upon seeing these spiders. I assumed it was one of the multiple different types of mindless Eldritch you can find anywhere that are basically stronger versions of monsters. Unfortunately for him, this one is smarter than it appears... What happens after the Satyr launches its attack is going to be very interesting. I might not get to absorb the Eldritch, but I can see another plan forming in my mind now... Looks like I might get to kill those people after all.

    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    A large contingent of spawn with one Lord rushes out of the entrance, running by me off into the woods.

    That is not the same direction the last party came from... There must be lots of settlements around here. Hmm... I think I''m going to follow this group.

    As I get ready to chase after them, another large wave runs out of the hive in the same direction.

    Yeah... Probably much safer if I keep them barely in vision range by running parallel to them. The Lords are covered in the blue flora, so it''d be impossible to lose sight of them. They look like those weird wavy light lamps my sister had back home, completely lighting up the area around them in a singular color.

    Glancing back into the hive one last time before leaving, I can see several spiders carrying flora and placing it on the Lords.

    <hr>

    Barely ten minutes into the sprint I see a faint aura of light in the distance, along with what sounds like a bell ringing nonstop. A warning bell for obvious reasons.

    Eventually, the sounds of combat mixed with yells and screaming could also be heard from ahead.

    It''s not exactly a welcoming sound, but I guess I''d be crying in terror too if man-sized spiders were attacking me.

    After a little more time, I reach the end of the tree line, revealing a surprisingly large settlement with torches and crystal lights lit up all along the walls. Also, one of their tall buildings behind the walls is currently on fire.

    I... can''t imagine spiders doing that.

    There is a gate far off to the left that is closed with no spiders around, with some men up in a few towers along the way. Most of them appear to be standing around watching, but the ones closest to where the battle is taking place are shooting at the spiders.

    The battle itself seems to be centered around the gate around the right corner, that''s where all the spiders are congregating. On this side of the corner the spiders are climbing up the walls, but mostly over their own paralyzed or dead brethren while the soldiers up top shoot arrows down at them. It doesn''t matter where they hit the spider, if one sinks into its body, it slows down over the next twenty seconds before going completely still. On the gate side, there are three Lords taking turns smashing into it. Maybe they''re unable to climb like other spiders? They do look unbelievably heavy... The sound that emits when they hit the gate is so loud that I can feel my body vibrating way over here.

    Honestly, watching this battle is rather entertaining. But if the Eldritch is eating souls, and he probably is, then I better try and get some information out of these people before they get dragged away in webs. But this appear to be a large well-fortified settlement, so I''ll be surprised if they lose that easily. The only glaring issue I see is that tall building on fire, but people do strange things when in stressful situations like this, even burning down their own home is an option.

    Grudgingly pulling away, I begin running to the other side of the settlement.

    If this side is under siege, they''re more likely to let me in through the other end. The way I look isn''t exactly inviting though... I probably wouldn''t open the gate for a girl like me who appears alone out of these woods. I wonder if I can turn the wood ability into a ladder? I''ll try that as a last option. I could also absorb enough of the soul to do an enhanced jump over the wall but that''d be a complete waste.

    After reaching the other side of the wall I realize that getting inside is apparently not going to be a problem. A massive portion of the wall is gone, big enough to fit the Eldritch spider easily. Looks like the wall was blasted from the outside, I can see pieces of stone, granite, and wood scattered all over the inside. There was also a home on the other side that was completely obliterated. Lastly, I see four people standing over a monster''s corpse talking, so whatever blew this wall down clearly didn''t enter and kill everyone.

    They had cleared a path through the rubble so walking in was easy, the problem is all the crystal lights shining brightly further in where the homes are lined up. On this side, they left the flora to keep the area well-lit, which I''m realizing way too late that they don''t appear to hurt me at all.

    I''ve never came across a light source that didn''t hurt me... I''m having a hard time believing it. I need to study these flowers when I get a chance.

    Creeping up to the end of the ruined home, I stop within twenty feet of the party ahead, hiding behind a half-destroyed pillar. They appear to be listening to the large woman complain about the lack of action from the higher-ups.

    Alright, which way should I approach this... Reveal myself and see what happens, or stick to the right side of the wall which seems devoid of light? I can see a large makeshift barrier further in blocking this part of the village off from the other half, and judging from the lack of people around here I''m guessing they left a contingent to safeguard this side from whatever blew this wall down and any other monsters that might show up. Speaking of which, I recognize the monster at their feet. It''s a somewhat powerful creature known as a Wendigo. I need to try and eat it before the reset, which is impossible right now with them standing around talking near it.

    ...And now the damned tall woman just sat down on it.

    Screw it, option one works. If they attack me after I reveal myself then I can just run away to the dark wall nearby.

    Dropping my aura, I come out from behind the pillar and the red-headed female wearing some kind of military outfit draws her sword instantly.

    "Wow, that was a shockingly fast reaction. You''re obviously well-trained."

    The girl raises an eyebrow, "... I''ve spent my life in the Guardians, yes."

    She and the other girl exchange looks, while the three men seem to be confused at this situation.

    ... I can understand someone well-trained drawing their weapon like that, but that knowing look those two just gave each other is making my instinct to run flare up. The men are giving a more natural reaction, while the women are reacting like they... Ah.

    "I remember now, there were two extra lines of communication opened in this direction. That warper girl was talking to you two, wasn''t she?"

    The tall woman kicks off from the Wendigo, launching herself at me while swinging a one-handed axe backward from the ground up towards my face.

    I lean my upper body backward, avoiding the axe. Bringing my right foot up I stomp down on the side of her ankle, which resounds in a loud crack. As she buckles I snap a punch onto her nose, barely dodging backwards in time to avoid the redhead''s piercing attack.

    "AAGHH!! FUCKING CUNT BROKE MY LEG AND NOSE!!!"

    I laugh while jumping backward to create some space.

    "What did you expect? That attack was full of openings. I see you are able to block physical attacks with your barrier, but it means nothing when you firmly plant your feet like that. Don''t forget that you still take partial impact damage even if your barrier blocks an attack. I''m guessing you''re another low-level scumbag like Gaz?"

    The redhead smirked at that, but it didn''t last long. She followed up with another barrage of attacks that I was barely able to keep up with.

    This has been fun but I think it''s time to bail. Glancing over at the men I see they still aren''t sure how to react. From their point of view, that girl did attack me first, and if they aren''t part of the group from earlier, then this whole situation must seem strange.

    The redhead unsheathes her other sword. "I see. It appears I have no choice."

    Don''t think I want to stick around to see what she means by that.

    I turn and run towards the dark side of the wall while keeping an eye on her. Both of her swords begin glowing as the girl throws them into the air, where they immediately shoot towards me at a ridiculously high speed.

    Ducking them at the last second only gives me a quick reprieve, they quickly turn around for another attack. Enhancing my feet I sprint towards the nearest home and smash through the wall, quickly running to a corner and turning invisible.

    "You lot, stop standing around and go find her!" The tall woman yells.

    "Since when are you in charge?" One man replied.

    "You two want to explain why you attacked that girl, or what she was talking about?" Another man said.

    "Did you not see her appearance?! She''s obviously part of whatever destroyed the wall!"

    "The hell kind of logic is that... Go clean yourself up, blood is pouring out of your nose." The third man said, then continued, "Elven girl, if you can hear me we won''t attack you. Neither of these two girls will either. Isn''t that right, Hera?"

    The redhead who was entering the home through the broken wall stops, turning to look at the man with a forlorn face. "... No Captain, it won''t happen again."

    "WHAT?!"

    More back-and-forth yelling ensues while I''m moving deeper into the village. These homes are conveniently pushed up against one another, one door literally leads to another home, and so on. The occasional crystal light through a window hitting me hurts like hell, but I can take it. It has to be resetting soon and I only plan on exploring from here on out.

    Upon reaching the last home in the row I come across something I didn''t expect.

    There''s a headless body on the ground wearing an outfit I swear was tailor-made for me. The entire outfit is black so it won''t stick out. A little past the waist-length coat, form-fitting gloves, boots, underwear... The material is incredible as well. I feel like if I sold this outfit I could feed a family of three for a whole year.

    Removing it from the body and equipping it myself takes no time at all. After it was on I flicked my aura off and on real quick, so it didn''t treat the clothing as external, leaving it visible.

    Oh yeah, this is perfect. Once this reset business is over I''m definitely coming back here to steal this. I mean, the owner is dead so it''s technically not stealing, but the person who put her in here certainly didn''t plan on leaving the armor here unless they''re dumb as hell.

    Prowling up to the window, I peek outside to see what''s on this end. The makeshift wall to the right has three guards standing around talking, while the tent in front of me has two heavily armored men in front of it.

    That''s some fancy-looking armor... They look more like ceremonial armor than ones designed for combat.

    Crawling out of the window, I sneak past the two guards into the tent.

    Whoa, there are way more people in here than I expected. There''s at least twenty-five gruff men in here.

    I move out of the way to the back-right side of the tent, ducking low near some supplies.

    "Then what is your plan, Sir?"

    "I do not have one. IS THAT A PROBLEM?!" The old man built like a brick wall said.

    "N-No sir, I apologize..."

    "HA! I''m just messing with you Yuri, no need to curl up in a ball like that." The old man looks back at the map, "Boy we really fucked ourselves in the asses with this one, huh?"

    "... Not quite the way I would phrase it Father, but it is indeed not going well. Also, please watch your language around our guest." The man in a long green-hooded cloak said, standing to his father''s right.

    "Ooh, that''s right! Apologies my lady, this old man isn''t used to being around high-class ladies such as yourself. Including my lovely wife of course."

    A girl seated to the back left of the table waves him off. She puts her book down, reaching for a green board that she begins writing on with chalk. Once finished she turns it to the old man.

    {It''s okay Godwin. I''m sorry I haven''t been of use to you at all.}

    "NONSENSE! It is us who haven''t done a damn thing. When is this blasted reset going to end? We need assistance from Keith''s group, pronto. I refuse to lose another scout damnit, but I don''t want to just keep sitting here doing nothing."

    "That''s the plan then? Join up with Keith and charge out towards the abandoned village together?" His son said.

    "Got a better one?"

    "No, I''m only asking for confirmation. I''ll go and tell Hera to inform Nisha about our plans."

    "As expected of my son. Quick on the uptake, even if I did make you by mistake." Godwin said.

    His son shakes his head, walking around the table and heading straight outside.

    The girl puts the book up to her mouth, silently chuckling.

    Who is this girl? She looks completely out of place in this den of bears.

    I stand and walk up behind her.

    She looks like something out of a fairy tale... About one hundred and fifty-five centimeters tall. Deep blue hair with gold streaks. Two medium-length horns that are also blue with gold streaks. Her white dress makes my newly acquired outfit look cheap in comparison. There''s also the fact that she''s calmly reading a book in this environment.

    The girl turns her head, looking up in my direction.

    ... No way. No one should be able to see me. Only abnormally powerful beings have sensed me with my aura up.

    The girl continues staring in my direction for a few more seconds before turning back to her book.

    ... Well that was interesti---

    Water appears around me.

    Ahh, times up it seems. I''m also naked again damnit. I barely wore that equipment and I''m already missing it.

    ... Also, that girl has me intrigued. After checking out the hive I''m going to bolt over there and try to talk to her. If I can''t, then I''ll at least absorb the Wendigo. Or even better, those two girls who attacked me.

 Chapter 5 - Pursuit

    A loud crunch resounds as I step out of the hole. Looking down I see that some of the rain from earlier is starting to freeze.

    It''s that cold...? If the temperature keeps plummeting like this, the humans here are in for one hell of a rough time. Only the people in that tent looked like they were ready for freezing temps. In the corner, there was a bunch of equipment made mostly out of fur. Did they know this was going to happen?

    As I begin my usual sprint to the hive I pray that I don''t slip and smash my head into something.

    The last thing I need is to waste my limited resources on healing... So far it feels like it''s only pieces here and there turning to ice, but what about in the future? If it gets so cold that the water in that hole freezes over, I''m... Honestly not sure what will happen to me when I am forced back during the reset. It didn''t matter till now since I can''t feel the cold, but I might have to drain that hole if I want to play it safe.

    Upon seeing the hive intact, I immediately pivot towards the village.

    A shame I couldn''t get a full read on those two girls. The redhead is clearly not gifted in enhancing speed or she would have sped up, resulting in me either losing limbs or wasting a lot of soul protecting myself. Escaping would''ve been even more difficult as well. She''s either talented at strength or ability, hard to tell with how her ability works. They were shimmering in a blue aura but that tells me nothing, nor does it matter I guess? Either way, if they hit me I doubt I can defend myself. The tall girl had the gift of defense since her barrier was blocking physical attacks, and that''s all I know. Her attack didn''t land nor did I see her ability, so that''s it for information regarding her.

    A loud boom resounds in the distance, making the ground shake beneath my feet. Both I and the spiders to my right halted their charge in surprise.

    What the hell was that? I''m still too far off to see the lights from the village, nor can I hear the bell, but whatever exploded shook me and the spiders to our core.

    Together, both I and the spiders begin running again.

    Maybe whatever blasted the wall had launched another attack? It would need to be on par with the Satyr to be releasing explosions that large though.

    <hr>

    At first glance, the siege is almost playing out exactly the same as last time. The only difference is that both the gate far off to the left and the tower nearby full of archers is now empty. Something must''ve happened elsewhere that required the assistance of anyone not taking part in repelling the spiders.

    Running around back to the other side I spot some tracks in the mud, running out of the broken wall towards the village far off in the distance.

    Hmm... The person fleeing has a very large stride.

    They''re bleeding, or they are carrying something that is bleeding.

    And the most surprising of all is that the blood is blue.

    Blue blood huh... That''s new. Not that I should be commenting on how strange someone else''s blood is.

    Walking through the hole in the wall, it instantly becomes clear where that explosion came from. The area near the makeshift barrier is completely obliterated.

    There are homes in the way so I''m not certain yet, but I''d bet anything that it originated from where the tent was. So much for talking to that girl...

    Upon reaching the annoyingly well-lit street, I see multiple people in priest garbs channeling on someone on the ground. Looks like some homes on the right side were also blown up from the inside.

    The person being healed is the redhead from before. Both her legs are gone, along with her right arm. I can hear her crying out from here...

    Also, it appears I was right, everything around the tent is gone and a large crater replaced it.

    The tracks head into the crater, then come back out this way... I think I know who the tracks belong to, but the blue blood? That girl had blue hair, horns, and eyes. So it''s most likely her. Does that mean the large woman somehow caused this explosion so she could kidnap the noble girl? She didn''t give off the vibe of being that powerful though... I disabled her as easily as I would a civilian. She could be solely relying on her ability... That would explain why she attacked me with the grace of a grandma.

    I may not know the girl with horns, but since I''m here I might as well try saving her. That''s also what my master would want me to do.

    Before that though...

    I walk over to the Wendigo, leaning down over it while removing my aura.

    It doesn''t matter if they see me. They''re busy trying to save the redhead anyway.

    Devouring the soul, I reactivate my aura and sprint through the wall, following the tracks. Enhancing my right foot I launch myself forward, landing twenty-five yards ahead.

    Thank god, that soul gave me enough maximum mana to do a quick speed jump every thirty or so seconds. It may not seem like much but it''s going to help a lot considering how much ground I need to cover each reset.

    The tracks quickly divert to the left.

    Oh? I thought they were going to that pitch-black village over there, but apparently not.

    Upon reaching the tree line they turn back to the right, running in the same direction as before.

    Instead of going to the village, she actively avoided it huh? I''m curious about what''s in there, but that''s for another time.

    After a few minutes, I came upon a long mark in the mud as if somebody dove into it and slid for several feet. To the side, there is a small human-sized shape sunk deep into the ground, along with a small puddle of blue blood around it.

    ... The moron slipped, dropping the girl in the process. But she has a good ten-minute head-start on me, so I''ll happily accept any fuck-ups like these.

    Restarting my pursuit, I finally catch a glimpse of her in the distance about five minutes later. I do one last blast forward.

    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    From here on out I can''t risk her hearing me...

    Summoning the wooden sphere, I quickly shape it into a sword while imagining it as sharp as possible.

    Someone with the gift of defense will always have their barrier activated in a situation like this, so there''s that to contend with. If I can''t pierce it, then I''ll have to try hobbling her again.

    Slowly but surely I catch up to her, to the point I can hear her gasping for breath.

    That''s actually understandable. Running in mud is by no means easy, and she''s been doing it for at least twenty minutes while carrying someone.

    Fifteen yards between us.

    Twelve.

    Eight.

    Four.

    I raise my sword, leveling it up towards her heart. It isn''t easy while running and with her swaying all over, but I should at least be close...

    She steadies herself. Seeing this I remove my aura, pushing the sword forward towards her heart. In response, the woman''s whole body flies to the right, in the most unnatural way possible.

    "What?!" We both say in unison.

    It''s the large woman as I expected, and she''s staring up at me with a dumbfounded look. Probably the same look I have on my face.

    A large thud resounds from ahead. About one hundred and fifty yards out a massive forty-foot-tall raven-like monster steps out of the trees. It''s standing on two long feet, holding a staff in its right hand. It also appears to be wearing armor.

    What the hell is this thing..?

    "O-Oooh thank you, Lord Tengu!! I was wondering what just happened. You saved me from this harlot, didn''t you?!" The woman says, face lighting up like a firework.

    The Tengu raises its staff at me.

    Oh shit... not good.

    I activate my aura, preparing to run, but the Tengu lowers its staff back to where it was while looking into the sky.

    "What''s wrong my Lord?! Kill her already before she gets away!"

    This action is indeed strange, but if the opportunity presents itself...

    Dashing back over towards the girl, I stab yet again at her heart from behind, but it only smashes the woman''s barrier into her back. A cracking sound popped out, so it at least did some damage.

    "Agghh! Y-You mother..."

    She stands up, throwing one of the slowest most pathetic kicks possible at me.

    ... Seriously?

    I grab her leg with my right hand, punching down on her knee with an enhanced left fist, shattering her knee completely.

    Screams erupt from the woman as she falls down.

    "Enhance the barrier on your knee next time idiot. It wasn''t even a fast punch, you could''ve easily blocked that with your gift..."

    The woman whimpers a little, then starts whispering. "He...Heh...Hehehehe... Fine. If the Lord is going to abandon me then so be it."

    She raises her hands, palm up in the channeling pose. One purple fleshy sphere appears in each hand. Behind her I see the blue-haired girl sit up, looking at me wide-eyed as she shakes her head back and forth. The intention behind her action is clear. I pick the sword back up, enhancing it this time, charging at the woman''s chest again. If I have to burn through some of this soul then so be it.

    "SEE YOU IN THE NEXT RESET BIT--!" The woman yells as the sword cleanly breaks her barrier and pierces through her chest.

    The two spheres she''s holding light up while expanding.

    Ahh... So this is what blew up the tent and redhead.

    The spheres launch high into the air, exploding deep into the dark sky.

    What the?

    Looking back at the Tengu, I see its left hand raised high above its head.

    It saved us...?

    Choosing not to wait to see if this Tengu creature is friendly now, I rip the woman''s soul out and toss it down my throat while I dash over to the girl. I then pick her up and run back the way I came as fast as I can.

    Shortly afterwards I hear a strange clinking noise behind me. Looking back I see a giant icicle ball forming in front of the Tengu.

    Stopping, I put the girl on my knee and grab the wooden sword, tossing it slightly into the air behind us while imagining it as a wooden barrier. A seven-meter wide barrier appears, much to my great surprise.

    There is no way in hell I have enough mana for that!

    That''s when I noticed the strange comforting sensation on my hand. The girl placed her right hand on my left, channeling her mana through me into the barrier.

    Clever girl... Right, come to think of it, she did survive that explosion back in town. She must have some amazing defenses to have come out of that alive... But unfortunately she is caked in dried blood from her left shoulder down to her feet, so she couldn''t defend against it all. The explosion must have come from below the tent. Those purple spheres gave off a massive mana signature though... So how the hell did she hide them?

    My thoughts are interrupted by another explosion behind me. The land around us for hundreds of meters turns to ice, leading to the temperature spiking down even more. The girl in my arms starts to shiver.

    "Hang on a little bit longer, it should be resetting soon."

    The girl nods.

    Leaving the barrier behind, I run towards the ice and put as much power as possible into my right foot, launching us straight forward onto the ice. As we land I drop to my knees, so we begin sliding over the ice.

    Without permission not even a god can use telekinesis on someone, so he''ll have to stop us with something else. Thinking about it now, ice was a rather surprising choice. Instead of killing us, he apparently wants to lock us down? Then again I guess it''s not so strange when I consider the fact that he had that woman bring this girl to him alive.

    Little bolts of lightning streak across my vision.

    Uh oh, that is not good. Lightning is what I''m most resistant against, but I don''t know if the girl can handle it.

    The air itself starts to feel electrified, to the point where the girl''s hair is beginning to look a little wild. Mine is probably the same.

    A chorus of snapping, crackles, and pops resounds as the Tengu finishes casting the spell. Unfazed from the attack, I kick off the end of the ice and begin dashing through the mud again. While I''m sure that surprised the Tengu, I''m more surprised that this girl''s barrier fended it off completely.

    Reactivating my aura, I turn right heading straight into the trees.

    Running out here in this long open stretch is a death sentence. If he loses his patience and blasts me with something like a meteor, there won''t be anything I can do. He doesn''t appear to want us dead, but why risk it?

    I see the girl out of the corner of my eye staring at me wide-eyed.

    "What''s wrong?"

    She mouths, {How?}

    "Oh, the lightning? Yeah, I don''t know why, but it''s never really harmed me. You would need to strike me directly with a bolt to do some damage. But electrifying the air? Walk in the park."

    For a few seconds, she just stares at me, before laughing and mouthing something else. It looked like she said {Weird girl}.

    I keep running for about five minutes before diving behind a tree and peering out behind it to see if the Tengu is following us.

    .....................

    ... Nothing? Is it really letting us go?

    I have no illusions about that escape back there. If it wanted to stop us, it could have. It was purposely choosing non-lethal spells. And that lightning spell might have stopped the heart of a normal person but it was still very weak. Normally that kind of spell would have shattered the trees or ignited them, but they were completely fine. The intention was clear, the Tengu only wanted to stop me from moving. Sending shocks through my muscles was a good choice, it just chose the wrong opponent to use it on.

    Oh, that reminds me.

    "Is that an Eldritch god back there?"

    The girl shakes her head.

    "Seriously...?" Now that is very surprising. I wonder if it''s a Demon then? Demons have a certain aesthetic shared between them all though... And it''s not whatever the hell that was.

    I feel a tap on my chest.

    Looking at the girl, I see her mouth the word {Lord}.

    "Are you serious...? That was a Lord?" Have I ever encountered a Lord that powerful? That looked more like a god... And I bet it could wipe out the spider hive easily, including the Satyr. I did hear that crazy woman back there call it ''Lord Tengu'', but I thought that was just the usual formalities. As confusing as it is, Eldritch gods that people worship are always called ''Lord'' for whatever reason.

    Sitting down, I rest the girl''s head against my chest.

    "Rest for now, it shouldn''t be much longer."

    The girl nods, closing her eyes.

    She''s probably in a lot of pain, but isn''t showing any of it outwardly.

    We sat in silence for much longer than I expected. Water appeared around me about twenty minutes later.

    My internal clock is either way off or the reset doesn''t have a set time... I wonder if that girl knows.

    Only the top of the water is frozen. I punch my way through, climbing out like usual.

    With the bomber gone forever, there should be no more problems over there except the redhead. But didn''t her friend blow her up too? I''ll sneak past her and try asking the people in the tent. They''re bound to have a lot of the answers I''ve been craving. I''m sure they''d also like to know what their dear colleague Keith is up to...

 Chapter 6 - Gathering

    A horrible realization came upon me on the way back to the hive.

    "Are the people in that tent going to be alive again...?"

    Whenever a human or a monster dies, I have anywhere between five to twenty minutes to eat their soul. If I don''t, Meizha''thul takes it for herself. Those people were definitely dead for way more than twenty minutes...

    Reaching the hive, I see it''s intact as usual.

    The suspense is starting to kill me, I really want to know what the Satyr is casting. I''ve only seen ancient magic a few times so it''s hard to know what to expect. Master told me long ago that you never know what they''re going to cast, since every Demon creates their own spells. Generally though, they all have some commonality with one another. A thunderstorm is still a thunderstorm at the end of the day, regardless of what they add to it.

    Off in the distance, I see three spiders piled together, sliding forward over a thin sheet of ice. The spider in front slams into a tree, making a sharp shrieking sound before turning around and attacking the other two. Absentmindedly I watch the brawl between spawns, wondering if the temperature is ever going to stop plummeting.

    <hr>

    Entering the broken wall, I spot the redhead and a few soldiers standing over two corpses. The tall woman, and the Wendigo.

    Removing my aura, I walk directly up to them. At first, only the men react, while the redhead keeps staring at the dead woman.

    "... Father''s waiting for you." She says, walking towards the makeshift wall currently being repaired.

    Following after her, it doesn''t take long for me to see a new tent has been set up behind the crater.

    She turns towards the tent but I stop and call out to her, "Hang on, I should probably get clothed first."

    Turning, she looks me up and down, "You''re naked...? Why?"

    "I decided there was no point in making armor this time. I''m coming here after all, so I want to equip something much better."

    Heading into the home opposite the tent, the girl follows me. She enters as I''m undressing the dead woman on the ground.

    "You''re taking this? My brother is going to be furious. Do you know how much these clothes are? Do you even know what these clothes are?"

    "I don''t know what the material is called, but I know it can be infused with mana. He can bill me later."

    The redhead sighed. "... I''m sure a naked girl from the woods is loaded with money."

    "Eh, I can steal any amount I need. Only the most expensive of homes have defenses that see through my aura."

    The girl goes silent while I finish re-equipping myself.

    "Ahh... Much better! How do I look?"

    "You look as if that outfit was made for you. Very convenient, isn''t it?" She said, exiting the home.

    Every word she says is laced with venom. I don''t know how she feels about me killing the woman who blew her up, but I imagine she''s not happy about what I did to Keith''s group. Not that I care about her feelings in the least.

    Walking toward the tent behind her, I''m surprised to see the two ceremonial guards nod to me as I approach.

    The redhead strides past them into the tent, with me following shortly after.

    My eyes go wide when I see everyone inside the tent. "How is this possible...? You''re all alive?"

    "Huh? Obviously we are. I thought you knew about the reset?" The redhead said.

    "Yes I know about it, but they were dead for far too long. There''s no way your souls were..."

    The girl stared at me in confusion, then turned to her ''father'' who was apparently the old grandpa from before.

    "Don''t worry about that, I''ll explain later when we have time. For now, allow me to thank you for saving our esteemed guest! It was a hell of a blunder allowing my daughter to bring someone here who responded in kind by killing everyone here." The old man glares at his daughter, who hangs her head down in response. "... Be that as it may, I thank you again, Lady Reimia."

    Reimia... Hearing that name put me on full alert.

    "How do you know my name?"

    The old man laughs, "Forgive me, my lady! Only dying old men like me would know that name I''m afraid. I had a hard time believing my ears when Lady Aresa described what you look like. There has only been one person in the history of Urza who looked like that. Whether you''ll consider it a blessing or an insult, nobody remembers you or much of Xelba for that matter. Only my wonderful children you see here will even know the name Xelba."

    "Xelba... I''m going to need a refresher course on that. You told us about that place when we were kids, Father." Jasper said.

    The old man blinks, turning to the redhead who looks away from him in response.

    "... You little fuckers. I know neither Viseux nor Khan Uluhm are concerned with history, but you should at least remember the important bits I taught you!!"

    Seeing both his kids hang their heads down in shame I can''t help but laugh. "Honestly, it''s fine, mister...?"

    "Godwin, my lady."

    "Now then, Godwin, please stop with the ''my lady, my lady'' phrase. I''ve never been anywhere near a position where someone should be calling me that. Everyone here just call me Rei. Also, it''s probably for the best that nobody remembers Xelba. Very few good things came out of that place."

    "Forgive me again but, I''m surprised to hear that anything good came out of Xelba," Godwin replies.

    ... He''s not wrong to think that. The good thing I referred to were my friends... My new family. We planned to move to Gaia together, living there forever as one unit. That is until they... were...

    Multiple images flood my mind. Large rows of teeth gnashing at meat. An endless cacophony of screams as the sound of bones being crushed plays out around me. Viktor stared down at us with his usual blank unreadable expression. A half-dozen Satyrs reinforced the barrier, allowing no one to escape. While I... I was...

    A soft hand touches mine, pushing a light stream of mana into my soul.

    Looking down, I see the girl with blue hair with golden streaks glancing up at me, concern written all over her face.

    "Would you like to sit down?" Godwin said, making no mention of the state I''m in.

    "Eh? Ahh... Right, sorry. I was... Thinking about something." Something I''ve adamantly been avoiding... Don''t think about it, don''t think about it...

    A seat is placed opposite Godwin, and the girl leads me to it.

    I can walk on my own, but if a cute girl is going to escort me then I have no reason to object.

    Sitting down, Godwin immediately speaks up, "Soooo... Mind telling us in your own words what happened? I''m having a hard time believing my daughter''s words at this point concerning her friend."

    The redhead scoffed when she heard the word ''friend''.

    "Didn''t the blue-haired girl here tell you? I''d rather not waste time on this reset reiterating things."

    "Indeed she did! Even so..." Godwin glares behind me.

    Well, I guess I don''t blame him. His daughter brought in someone who killed everyone here and almost succeeded in kidnapping their guest for some kind of Eldritch.

    I gave them a quick rundown of what happened yesterday, starting from the beginning.

    "While I have many questions about this hive and Satyr, your account is the same as Lady Aresa''s. I thank you for saving her and purging that bug in our midst." Godwin said.

    "Sir, I must interject with one question." A large man with a neatly trimmed beard sitting to Godwin''s left speaks up.

    "The hell you asking permission for? Since when is that how we do things?" Godwin replied.

    "A-Ahem, I would like to ask La... Reimia, you said that you ate her soul?"

    Ahh... I forgot how much that creeps out regular people. The group I was with had long since gotten used to it, and even found it useful.

    "Yes, that is what I did. Same for the Wendigo out there too."

    Only Godwin, Aresa, and the man who asked the question had no reaction. Jasper looked... Happy?

    "Disgusting indeed," Godwin said without emotion, clearly not caring at all. "Anyway, what was that about a Satyr? There are only two ways a Demon like that would appear. Either through a portal from another moon, or someone summoned it here from a different realm."

    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    "Considering what a member of Keith''s group just did to us, I believe the answer is obvious." Jasper cut in before I could respond.

    Behind me, I could hear the redhead suck in air sharply. "W-Wait! You can''t possibly believe Keith''s group summoned a Demon! Janet was surely acting on her own. I was only told to look after her, she''s been acting crazy ever since her kids were eaten... They weren''t sure what to do with her."

    That sounds like a pretty good reason to go crazy. I don''t feel bad for killing her, but I understand her behavior better now. It''s truly a shame she couldn''t be reincarnated with her kids... Regardless of what I did, it would have been impossible. Her kids'' souls were eaten soon after they died after all, assuming whatever ate them didn''t take the souls too. This is why my unit was trying to flee to Gaia... This galaxy is completely fucked, there''s no hope to be found here.

    Godwin looks at me, urging me to continue.

    "They summoned a Satyr by sacrificing all the villagers over there. It was a little weird though, the village looked abandoned. Were those people really living there?"

    "It was a relocation project to help the Kitsune finally settle into their own place after thirty years. This was the starting phase and why two of our best groups were sent to make sure they were able to rebuild in peace until a branch of our guild could be established here. Looks like that plan backfired immediately... What a fucking joke." Godwin said, clear rage in his eyes.

    "So you believe her Father? For the record, you know I do." Jasper said.

    "I know you do son. You were the only one saying something was off with Keith, and I dismissed your concerns entirely... It appears this old man was the failure this time. Fucking hell, I''m going to lop that limpdicks head off when I see him next."

    My instincts began flaring up again, telling me something was off. Looking back, I immediately see why.

    "Hey!! Redhead, I can see the communication line connected with your mark. What are you telling that big-breasted girl?"

    "Huh...? Are you talking about Nisha?" She replied, bewildered.

    She''s either an amazing actress, or...

    "Rei, are you saying that Nisha is connected to her right now? Nisha is a girl with large breasts as you say. She is about one hundred and sixty centimeters tall, with long brown hair and green eyes. Is that her?" Jasper asked.

    "Yes that was her, I can see mana-lines connected to people when she reaches out to her marks. There''s one on your sister right now."

    *tap tap*

    We all look towards Aresa.

    {I can see it as well. The connection was established soon after she spoke about Janet.}

    "... Hmm. While I only know the basics of Nisha''s ability, I do however know my daughter. Rei, she truly is surprised right now." Godwin looks at Jasper. "Any reason she''d be connected to Hera but not speaking?"

    "From what I remember, she can feel what''s around her marks, it''s how she figures out where to place her traps. Perhaps she is only doing reconnaissance to see who is all in this room? Which would mean she knows about our new guest." Jasper said.

    "Not necessarily. My soul is completely shrouded, she would need to have an unbelievably powerful scanning ability to pierce the veil guarding me."

    "Even so, after Janet''s soul disappeared I believe her objective was to keep tabs on you. The only difference is that she now believes you aren''t here in the tent with us. I really would like to know what they planned on doing with us in the event we learned of their plans." Jasper said, then looked at me. "Can you go into detail about what you witnessed? Did you actually see the ritual?"

    "No. I woke up in a jail cell where two low-lives were guarding my supposed dead body. Gaz and Peter were their names."

    "They were guarding you while believing you were dead? Why...?" Hera asked.

    "Oh my foolish daughter, did you also forget what I taught you about Demons? They would never let go of such an interesting find. A rare hybrid appearing out of nowhere? That''s a dream come true for them."

    I proceeded to explain everything that happened up till the last reset, this time in full detail.

    "Kind of unrelated, but the reason Gaz wanted to cut you up was because that sword is cursed. As a result, it''s extremely sharp, which entices the untalented to want to wield it. We learned he had stolen it from the original owner and planned on retrieving it after the mission. However, retrieving the sword right now would be... Difficult." Jasper said.

    Oh, that explains why such a boring sword was ridiculously sharp.

    *tap tap*

    We all look to Aresa again.

    {Hera, what did Nisha tell you about Rei?}

    "Oh, good question. I didn''t even consider that." Jasper said.

    "She said that an Elven girl with long white hair and red eyes had killed Gaz, Peter, Jason, and Brian. I was told we should kill her on sight because the Elf said she was hunting everyone here for their souls to perform a Demonic ritual."

    Pfft...

    "Brian, Jason..." Godwin said with his head in his hands.

    "You may find this hard to believe after what they did Rei, but those two truly were good people... Or so we believed. The idea of those two sacrificing five hundred people for themselves is a little..." Jasper trailed off.

    "I don''t find it hard to believe. I saw way worse things done in Xelba every week by ''good people''." I continued, "Regardless of how ''good'' those two were, they needed to die. The question is, what are all of you going to do."

    "Hang on, one last question. Were you hibernating in that hole?" Jasper asked.

    "Huh? Hibernating?"

    "I am asking why you were in that hole. If it wasn''t hibernation due to whatever hybrid you are, then why were you there?"

    "I''m not sure... I died while trying to kill one of the higher-ups in Xelba. He brought the whole city down on top of us while he fled through the portal underneath the capital."

    "That''s the last thing you remember? Dying in Xelba?" Jasper asked.

    "Yes. Speaking of which, where the hell is this?"

    "This is an abandoned region where the Kitsune used to live. The town where you woke up is the capital, Kikyou." Jasper replied.

    Kikyou... I feel like I heard that name before. I think I even raided it at one point?

    "Rei, I don''t know how you''re going to take this, but Xelba fell a long time ago," Godwin said.

    What...?

    "How long are we talking here?"

    "I may be off by a year or two, but Xelba fell about forty-two years ago."

    "Forty-two?!"

    Forty-two years... How is that possible? Despite how miserable I feel when thinking about the past, reviving like this was still a blessing. I was ecstatic that I might get another chance to kill Viktor or meet up with the only two friends of mine that managed to escape to the Elven planet. Forty-two years later though? Who the hell knows where they are now. And if nobody stopped Viktor, then his plans would probably be nearing completion by now... Making him untouchable by the likes of me.

    Suddenly everything feels pointless... What am I supposed to do from here on out?

    "Rei, I know you aren''t feeling too good after hearing that, but we need to take care of things here first before discussing the future, alright?" Jasper said.

    "... Yeah, you''re right." I''ll put it out of my mind for now until I deal with this Keith asshole.

    "Excellent! Then I need to ask a favor of you, my friend from the past." Godwin said.

    A friend from the past huh? Hah... I will admit it feels good that at least one person knows who I was.

    "What do you need?"

    "A scout. I need to know what fucking monstrosity is in the village back there killing my men. We believe it''s also responsible for bringing down the wall."

    "A request designed for me, I''ll happily accept. The reset has to be happening soon so I''ll run over there and see what I can find."

    I stand up, but as I''m turning around Jasper stops me.

    "Wait! Those clothes... Did you take them from the assassin we killed?"

    "Yes. Your sister said I could have them."

    "Lies, she said she''ll pay for them, brother. I heard her say it." Hera said.

    "Bah fine, I''ll pay you later. Consider this request as part of the payment."

    "It was my Father''s request..." Jasper mumbled as I stepped out of the tent.

    I run through the main street, heading straight out of the broken wall while activating my aura.

    The road is barely visible at this point, nobody has used it in ages after all. Still, it''s slightly less congested than everywhere else so I''ll take it.

    Running till I''m about halfway there, I switch to a light jog, before settling into a sneaking stance as I near the village.

    The closer I get, the more I''m surprised at how deathly silent it is here. All I can hear is the far-off sounds of combat in the settlement behind me. Strangely, there is no sound at all besides the occasional burst of wind. No insects, no sounds of movement... It''s entirely devoid of life. Not that I''d expect an abandoned village to be emitting a myriad of different sounds, but I was expecting something. Whatever is responsible for the wall crumbling is also silent.

    Walking through the entrance, I come into what appears to be the town square. There is a very large empty space here with all the homes further in.

    This open space is much larger than the supposed capital Kikyou had. The only thing I can see is some type of elevated platform in the middle of the square. I think it''s a gallows...? Directly behind it is a weird-looking tree covered in flora. Although calling it a tree might be a bit much, it looks like a stump that''s about ten meters tall? Behind it is a massive ball of wood attached to it that''s even bigger. It looks to be twenty meters across in all directions, including height.

    ... It didn''t take long for me to find something suspicious. That ball is even larger than the Tengu. It''s most likely a god.

    After scanning the area, I spot a bunch of other large stumps with balls of wood attached to them from behind. However, these ones are much smaller in size. I''d say they''re about the same height as a human male? I''d bet anything that these are the spawn.

    Alright... Let''s try waking this thing up.

    I look around for a decent-sized rock, and once I find one I carry it over to the gallows. Whipping my arm forward, I throw the rock at the gigantic ball of wood. However, instead of bouncing off of it, it goes inside one of the holes on its body, bouncing around inside several times before going quiet.

    After about ten seconds, a loud snapping sound erupts from the creature. The large ball of wood behind the stump starts to lift high into the air, slowly making its way above the stump. After it reached its zenith, the top of the ball started to light up a bright white, making it look like the top of a moon.

    While I was fascinated by the unique appearance of this Eldritch, two yellow-orangish eyes opened up near the bottom of the ball, looking to and fro, obviously scanning the area for whatever had just thrown something at it.

    Well, I got what I came here for.

    I climbed down from the gallows and began making my way to the exit of the village. Glancing over my shoulder a few times, I could see the moon monster still scanning the area. However, the last time I glanced back, both the eyes and top of the monster slowly glowed brighter over the span of a few seconds, before finally flashing a brilliant white light that lit up the entire square. The light purged my aura completely, causing me to hit the ground screaming.

    All at once I heard the snapping of wood from different parts of the plaza. The spawn was rising to finish the job.

    S-Shit! The pain is out of this world but I need to run, quickly!

    Forcing myself to stand, I fumble towards the gate, using my hands to stop myself from face-planting several times.

    I don''t know what this sound is behind me, but it''s not the sound of wood rolling on the ground. Whatever it is, it''s coming up fast.

    Tsk, this is going to make the pain far worse, but I have no choice.

    I completely devour the wooden soul, enhancing my feet and running straight out of the gate. On the outside I immediately pivot to the left and jump as far as I can toward the embankment. After landing I roll down the hill while reactivating my aura. I begin crawling toward a welded-up drain pipe just as I see a bunch of light shining brightly from the village entrance.

    I want to writhe around on the ground in pain so bad... Forcing my aura back up while I was still reeling from the previous damage is something I never want to experience again.

    Several of the spawn come into view with their spheres shining brightly, but they''re fortunately nowhere near me yet.

    Please don''t come over here...

    Now I see what that sound was... They''re floating a few feet above the ground and it''s causing some type of weird reverberation sound to emit.

    They are spread throughout the entire field, so I couldn''t run out of here even if I wanted to. Jumping over the wall isn''t an option either, I can see a very bright light shining over the village. The god is still lighting up the plaza apparently.

    One of the spheres heads this way.

    Oh god damnit...

    It comes right up to the drain pipe and begins scanning it. I don''t see eyes on the spawn so I don''t know how they''re searching for me.

    On the way to the pipe it hit me directly with the light a little, forcing me to stifle a scream, but I didn''t lose my aura this time. Eventually, the sphere floats back the other way.

    One more of those and I think that''s it for me. Reset already damnit...

    <hr>

    I have no idea of how long I hid there, but eventually water appeared around me.

    I hope the Satyr isn''t choosing this reset to attack, because I''m going to need some time to rest this reset...

    Sitting down, I begin meditating.

    Once I''m finished healing, I''m heading straight for Godwin. If the Satyr attacks the spiders I''ll hear it while I''m down here, so if I don''t, then I want to rush to Godwin and tell them what I found. Sadly, I didn''t get to witness any of the Eldritch''s offensive abilities... Which is kind of a problem, but there''s nothing more I can do past this. That kind of Eldritch is the bane of my existence after all.

 Chapter 7 - The Siege

    I knew it wouldn''t be easy, but it ended up taking almost fifty minutes to heal my soul. There were no large booming sounds erupting near the hive, so I didn''t miss out on that battle thankfully.

    Exiting the hole, I sprint directly for the village.

    It may be the same empty forest, but this is still fresh in a way. There is way more flora here too since the spiders are picking them all up along the path they take. After the reset, all the flora they take is left behind, leading to an enormous amount of them littering the area around the eastern gate. Speaking of which, I can''t believe that gate is still standing... There must be some powerful abilities at play over there.

    <hr>

    After entering the settlement I spot a present someone left for me.

    "I''ll take this as a sign that Jasper is allowing me to buy it from him."

    On the wooden floorboards of this demolished home, is the assassin outfit neatly folded. After putting it on I head straight for the tent, finding even more guards in white armor out front. The newly arrived ones are nowhere near as fancy though.

    "Increasing security?"

    "Welcome back Miss. No, this lot here is with the church. Master Godwin called for them to assist in the Eldritch hunt. They''re waiting for you inside."

    Thanking the man, I duck into the tent to find five new entries. The man sitting in my seat is completely bald, and roughly the same age as Godwin. There are also four young adults standing behind him; two women and two men. They''re all wearing extravagant white robes, although nowhere near as intricate as Aresa''s is.

    "There you are! We had a feeling you''d be late after what you went through. Jasper was using his ability so we could watch you from afar." Godwin said.

    "Wait, then couldn''t you have watched your scouts as well? You''d have all the information you need then."

    Jasper shook his head, "I can only create a window that looks far into the distance. It does not penetrate objects, so we are unaware of what happened to you inside of the village. We did however hear your... Screams?"

    Aresa held up her board. {It sounded like the dying throes of several abominations. You scream weird.}

    "... Yeah, I know."

    Godwin slammed the table. "Where did my manners go?! Devon, this is an old friend of mine, Reimia. She saved Lady Aresa earlier and is now assisting us."

    Devon''s eyes went wide upon hearing my name.

    "... As I thought, you''re ''The Demon of Xelba''. I wasn''t positive till I heard that name."

    "The what? I''ve never been called that though?"

    "Oh right, I forgot about that," Godwin said, then continued. "Sorry Rei, it slipped my mind earlier. It''s been a long time after all. They called you ''The Demon of Xelba'' after you slaughtered the entire city. Not that anyone condemned you. If anything, you received widespread praise, especially from the Dwarves! They built a giant statue of you... Somewhere? Hard to remember since they''re all dead now."

    "How did... No, hang on. How did anyone find out what I did? I made sure that..."

    "That no one survived?" Devon said, narrowing his eyes at me.

    "Exactly. Also, you''re not exactly hiding your feelings on the matter, so I''ll tell you straight out. That place deserved to burn. I will never apologize for what I did."

    Devon sighs, "... I do not request an apology for you destroying that vile place. The city was quite literally under siege as you destroyed it from the inside, so it''s not as if they weren''t going to die either way. What I do condemn is you killing your own allies. The very citizens you were supposed to protect."

    "My... Allies? Ha...hahahah.....hahahahaha!!!"

    Protect those... Things?! Those creatures masquerading as humans?!

    No... It''s far worse than that. They were definitely human, and that''s what disturbed me the most. The citizens were given wonderfully luscious lives, so they were willing to commit any amount of atrocities if their god requested it of them. I was also participating in raids, bringing back captives to be sacrificed ''For the greater good''. Even if we were at war, there''s no denying how big of a hypocrite I am...

    Godwin scoffed, "Enough of that Devon, you never even left Viseux for most of your life. I had entered Xelba once before, so I saw the madness firsthand. There was no saving that place. Now let''s get back to the matter at hand, okay?"

    "You entered the city, Father? I tried refreshing myself on the subject by reading my notes from your lessons, but there was no mention of first-hand accounts from you?" Jasper asked.

    "... Another time, not now."

    To my surprise, Devon looked like he wanted to apologize after Godwin said that. I... Think I know why. Only one fate awaited intruders who dared step foot into our capital. It''s truly a miracle he managed to escape before the Lords found him.

    Hera leaned over, whispering, "I''ve never seen Father make that face before."

    Yeah... I''m not surprised that Xelba gave him memories so horrible that he doesn''t want to talk about them.

    Devon shook his head, "You''re right Godwin, let us discuss what actually matters right now. The Eldritch hiding out in Fudo."

    So that village is named Fudo.

    "Rei, if you would?" Godwin said.

    "Alright. It''s a unique Eldritch that is in the shape of a massive ball of wood. It''s connected to another large piece of wood but this one is kind of humanoid in design? It looks like a human sitting down on its knees. The ball in the back is roughly twenty meters diameter in size. When I woke it up, the ball raised high above the front portion; probably another fifteen meters? Then two eyes appeared a little below its mid-section, scanning the area trying to locate me. Eventually, the top of the ball lit up so brightly that it blasted the plaza in a brilliant white light. Unfortunately, that''s all I was able to see the Eldritch do. The spawn chased me after that, emitting the same light."

    "Only emitting light? There has to be way more to it than that. I''d like to know how it killed our scouts..." Jasper said.

    "I didn''t see any bodies there."

    "Not a single one? Strange..." Godwin said, then looked to Devon, "I say we try to slay it at the start of the next reset. The prayer should be completed soon, so let us take advantage of the reset while we can."

    Devon raised an eyebrow. "What''s the point? You already know that even if we kill it, it''ll be right back where it started the next reset. After that it will flee every reset until it gets away, coming back later on much stronger and far more prepared. The five of us can''t purge the abomination''s soul Godwin."

    Godwin glances at me, then turns his attention back to Devon, "We''ll deal with it when the time comes. Now come on, we only need your group to maintain the barrier. We''re going for a demolition attack."

    He''s probably hoping I can eat the soul, and he''s not wrong. A full Eldritch soul... Now that would make a world of difference. I wouldn''t have to burn through all these human souls just to make simple attacks or evasions. I''ve been fortunate so far, but without the reset, I would have most likely died that first night. My core was destroyed and even if I did manage to crawl somewhere to hide, it would have taken weeks to heal enough to walk properly. The Satyr definitely would have found me before then... Once the reset is over I won''t have some magical bullshit reset to bail me out if I screw up like that again.

    "... Very curious. Why are you rushing this?" Devon paused, then continued, "Actually, ignore that. It doesn''t matter why. This is your problem to deal with regardless of how this ends up. We''re going to be busy elsewhere."

    "The sky?" Hera asked.

    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Devon sighed, "If it''s not one thing it''s another... Maybe the North is right when they say Urza is beyond saving."

    "Have you been told anything else? Besides to start an investigation I mean." Jasper asked.

    "Nothing. There is a disconnect between the people of Viseux and everywhere else. All the followers of Rai''ga who travel the moon, staying in villages for long periods of time, and assisting all in need, know how truly dire things are right now. But to the lives of everyone in Viseux? Business as usual."

    "There is a tremendous difference between experiencing something first-hand and reading about it in a report. Viseux will be the last city to fall. Even now they are sleeping peacefully with full bellies, therefore they won''t comprehend the danger until it is too late. Honestly, I''m surprised a Demon hasn''t slipped in yet with how lax the city is." Jasper said.

    Devon chuckled. "A Demon within the domain of Lord Rai''ga going unnoticed? Such a thing is impossible... Or it should be impossible. However, at this point, I really don''t know what to expect anymore."

    I''m suddenly submerged underwater.

    You know, this hole is actually kind of nice. When I reach a point where I can meditate into my soul realm to train, I''m going to create another hole just like this one to hide in. As strange as it sounds, I feel really safe down here... But, I can''t say here forever sadly.

    I burst out of the ice, rushing towards the hive.

    They''re probably going to siege the Eldritch before I get there. Not that I''ll be much good right now against such a being. Nevertheless, I want to be there. I''m beyond excited at the idea of finally regaining some of my former strength.

    <hr>

    It''s just as I thought. Once I reached the broken wall I could see multiple lights moving around at the abandoned village. Fujo? Funo? Whatever the name is.

    After getting dressed, I begin sprinting toward the village in the distance, reaching the group within five minutes.

    "Now this is an interesting strategy. I see why Godwin called it a demolition attack."

    Hera, with a mana line attached to her, turns around, "You''re here already? That was fast. Father isn''t a huge fan of this kind of attack, but he won''t let his personal feelings interfere with the best tactic for the situation."

    They''re at the entrance to the village, with a massive barrier in front of them that''s blocking off the entire entrance. However, the barrier keeps going for quite a while to both the left and the right, forcing the spawn to go all the way around to reach us. Unfortunately for them, there is a large group of warriors waiting for them at the end of each side of the barrier.

    Meanwhile, the ''demolition'' group consists of about ten people. Jasper is at the front, casting the smallest fireball I''ve ever seen in my life... It''s about the size of my thumb, and he placed it on the other side of the barrier. There are two people next to him channeling onto the fireball and not onto him directly, which is something I''ll have to ask about because I''ve never seen anyone do that before. Aresa is behind them, with her hands on Jasper''s back. Lastly, the four priests around her all have one hand on her, and the other stretched out toward the barrier.

    "Is she supplying mana to all of them?"

    "Amazing, isn''t it? Father, Devon, and Lady Aresa herself all said she could handle it. The rest of us doubted her, but look at her go..." Hera said.

    Doubting her is a normal reaction to such a suggestion... It must be related to whatever she is a hybrid of. It''s not often you see a human with horns.

    "You the backup? Also, what are those two near your brother doing?"

    "I''m here in case they fly over the barrier. And those two are compressing the fireball, that''s why it''s so small. If you''re wondering why they are doing such a thing, then too bad because I''m not going to tell you~!" Hera giggled, then continued, "You''re going to love how this ends. Trust me... It''s beautiful."

    The light on top of the Eldritch and all of its spawn shines a bright orange at the same time, leading to a large explosion of fire expanding around the spawn but not the Eldritch. Barriers on all the warriors flare up, with a couple of them shattering. The warriors without barriers retreat a little to meditate, while the others gifted in defense guard them.

    "... Ahh, now I see why you forced the spawn to move so far away from the main group. Keeping the barrier up would be impossible with thirty or so explosions like that hitting it. If they do it often that is."

    Hera sighed. "The pricks do. Our first barrier was shattered, which led to a very dangerous escape as they started to light up again, almost blowing us all up. After they returned, we came back and tried the current strategy. Devon is the one who proposed it, and then Father said he''d eat his boots if it worked."

    Looks like he''ll be eating his boots. I get why he said that though. Only a simple Eldritch would fall for such a dumb strategy, or he has no control over his spawn which are in fact the simple-minded ones.

    ... Hmm, I guess I''ll also wait here? I''d go help one of the sides if they needed me, but from the looks of it they''re killing the spawn at a slightly higher rate than the Eldritch is creating them. Plus, the only ability I have right now is the explosion one that I haven''t tested yet. I can''t imagine they''d be very pleased with me if I accidentally blew a few of their allies up.

    Wait, this does give me some time to check on something that I''ve been curious about for a while now.

    I sit down and pick up one of the blue flowers, tossing it into my mouth.

    "Uhh... Hungry Rei?"

    "I''m dying of starvation actually, but that''s not why I''m doing this. I wanted to know what all the blue flora around here was, and apparently, all I had to do was eat one to know."

    "Oh come on, it couldn''t have been that easy... Brother said he was going to bring them back for research. ''No one has ever seen flowers like these before'' according to him."

    "They''re ether. Pure ether and nothing more."

    "... What? How is that possible?" Hera asked.

    "No idea. It melted in my mouth and I immediately felt a massive surge of mana in my soul. Well, it was excess past my max, so it disappeared soon after since I had no use for it."

    Hera stared at me, contemplating something. Eventually, she bent down to pick up a flower.

    "Hang on, don''t eat that you simple-minded fool. I''ve been listening to your conversation, and while I believe Rei wouldn''t lie about such a thing, it doesn''t necessarily mean it''s safe for you to eat. What''s fine for her, might not be fine for us." Jasper said, not turning around.

    Hera dropped the flower while making a disgruntled face at her brother.

    Now I know why the spiders were collecting these, and why this Eldritch is covered in them. The spider lords are probably reinforcing their armor with the extra ether while sending the rest to their god. It''s looking more and more like the Satyr is going to be on the losing side.

    ... Hmm. Thousands of ether flowers surrounding a village that just so happens to have at least two different Eldritch nearby? Considering how important ether is to Eldritch, this whole situation is extremely suspicious. I''ll ask the others what their thoughts are on this later.

    The next group of newly created spawn heads straight for the barrier in front of the main group, but every single one of them burst into flames as they neared the tiny fireball.

    Whoa, what the hell?

    "Hahahahaha you see that?! I knew I''d have no purpose here!" Hera said while laughing.

    Upon seeing this, the Eldritch creates a much larger batch of spawn, sending two groups of forty further into the village.

    Looks like they''re heading for the side gates? Planning on going all the way around huh...

    Honestly, this was a good time to kill this Eldritch. The fact that it has zero lords tells me it''s young, maybe even a newborn... But what if this Eldritch was allowed to grow up and build an army that copies the spells it casts? It would be a massive pain in the ass to deal with.

    The top of the Eldritch turns a bright green.

    "That''s a new color..." Hera said.

    We didn''t have to wait long to find out what that color meant. The spawn we saw earlier came blazing around both sides of the village. They tried to go around both groups of warriors but it didn''t quite go as planned. Godwin did an overhead slash with his greatsword into the ground, creating some kind of fissure with a hazy red glow above it. The haze transmitted to the spawn when they tried running through it, slowing them down to a crawl. While on Devon''s side, he had cast some type of web spell made of light. The webs stuck to each of the spawn for a few seconds before pulling them all into the same spot, turning into a heavy net as it wrapped around them. The warriors on both sides quickly cleaned them up.

    I was wondering what Devon was channeling this whole time. He had been sitting in the same spot not moving ever since I arrived.

    "Now then, I''m dying to see what its next move is. This battle is going horrible for it after all." Hera said.

    No denying that, these guys definitely know what they''re doing. Even if the Eldritch is young, this is still going surprisingly well.

    The Eldritch, apparently out of options, and not even considering retreat, began moving toward the main group.

    "... Well, he could definitely crush us under that massive ball. Barrier or no barrier." Hera looks at her brother, "You done yet? You''re out of time."

    "I''m not, but it''s close so this should be enough. Make sure to pour everything you have into the barrier when the fireball lands or we''re all dead!" Jasper yelled.

    Without waiting for confirmation, Jasper fires the ball directly at the middle of the sphere. A few seconds later it flies inside one of the myriad of holes on the Eldritch, leading to one of the fastest explosions I''ve ever seen. I''ve seen plenty of big explosions over the years, but none of them were quite like this one. There was nothing there one moment, and in the next moment this entire side of the village was instantly obliterated.

    A large wave of fire expands over the barrier as burning pieces of wood fly every which way.

    I stood there watching the village burn for a little while before I felt a tug on my sleeve. Glancing in that direction, I see Aresa mouthing the word {Tired}.

    I laughed, "I bet you are. One day I''d like to find out just how much mana you have. I can''t believe you were supplying all of them..."

    Aresa puts her pointer finger up, shaking her head left and right while smirking.

    "Never gonna tell me eh? You say that because you haven''t seen how persuasive I am yet."

    Godwin walks up to us, "Good work everyone!! We put that fucker down easily."

    Before anyone could respond, Devon rushed past us towards where Godwin''s group was before, kneeling down in the dirt. Initially, everyone was confused, but then the other four priests ran after him, kneeling down next to him. Looking past them I see something I missed before because of all the smoke obstructing my view. There''s a somewhat large congregation of fifty or so people looking in our direction. Most of them are knights in quite possibly the most impressive white armor I''ve seen yet, and in the center of the convoy there are ten people in the same robes Devon is wearing. They appear to be more fanciful in design, but it''s hard to tell the difference considering that Devon''s is already quite flashy.

    Jasper sighed, "It''s time."

    "Looks like this blasted reset is finally coming to an end..." Godwin said.

    It is? Because those people are here?

    "The Templars are impressive looking no matter how many times I see them," Hera said.

    Templars huh? I heard that name long ago, but I never had the chance to fight one.

    "You never did ask what the reset was about, Rei. I thought you would. This might be better though... When it resets, chase after that group there and witness for yourself why they are here. I was blessed to see it once in my life a few years ago. It''s truly an experience like no other..." Godwin said, eyes glazing over.

    I planned on doing that anyway, but for now, I need to quickly go eat that Eldritch''s soul. I''m finally going to be more than a near-empty vessel...

 Chapter 8 - Old Gods

    The warriors over here begin doing a one-armed salute, pounding their chest several times with their left hand. The Templars stomp their feet in response. They must be enhancing their feet because it''s reverberating through the ground, and it actually sounds kind of nice.

    As this is happening, I activate my aura behind Godwin''s large frame and then begin running towards what is left of the plaza.

    It didn''t take long to find it, floating right where the Eldritch died, surrounded by smoke as the creature''s remains were still burning. The soul looks like a glass orb with a sickly purple mist swirling around inside of it.

    Such a disgusting sight... I''ll never understand why these are the souls I need. It''s a question I may never find an answer to sadly.

    I grab the soul, putting it into my mouth, where it is hungrily devoured by the entity inside. Immediately I run far into the back of the village and enter one of the few homes still mostly intact. After walking to the back of the stairs I quickly sit down underneath them and enter my soul realm.

    A desolate landscape appears before me again, corrupted beyond repair. Almost on cue, the soul is shattered inside my vessel. I begin the long work of reforming the soul into my own source of ether.

    This is going to take a while, but it''s a good problem to have. If I miss either the Satyr attack or whatever the Templars are doing, then so be it. This is far more important. I can always find Keith''s group later.

    <hr>

    Slowly opening my eyes, I exhale as an indescribable calm comes down over me.

    Whole at last... I may have only filled the first tier of the vessel, but honestly, this is the most important step.

    If there is one thing I''m grateful for above all else, it''s the ability to turn invisible. Generally speaking, unless something rare happens, like the Eldritch blasting me with light earlier, I''m normally given plenty of time to plan ahead or escape. Not that any plan ever goes perfectly, but compared to others I''d say I''m in one hell of a great position. I have yet to see or hear of anyone else having such an ability. I saw creatures in the other realm that were able to hide themselves, but not only were they rare, they were also slightly visible. When you looked at them, the area they occupied was... Shimmering? Hazy? Whatever the term is, it was a limitation that I do not have. They had no issues with light though, so it''s not all pros on my end.

    Looking at the screen showing my real body, I see it''s back underwater again. Well, I''d be surprised if it wasn''t there considering how long it took me to absorb that soul.

    Exiting my soul realm, I jump through the ice, rushing off towards the village. I need to pick up my clothes before I go chasing after the Templars.

    So they''re about to do something related to a power that can dominate thousands of souls? I honestly can''t even imagine how they pulled that off. I''m excited to find out though...

    <hr>

    Through the trees I can see the torches from the village.

    It feels so damn good being able to enhance my speed again... I''m up to about twenty-five miles an hour now. I reached the village so much faster this time.

    Turning the corner I see Hera putting down my clothes in the usual spot. As soon as I remove my aura she draws her sword.

    I put up my hands, "Whoa now, it''s just me."

    "H-Holy shit, that scared me Rei!" Hera sheaths her sword, "You got here really fast this time. Is this related to, uh..." She glances back towards the now-destroyed village.

    "Yes! You have no idea of how happy I am right now. Thanks to you guys killing that thing I''m back to my old self, and I also prevented it from coming back. Nothing but good news for everyone."

    As I begin getting dressed again, Hera looks away while speaking.

    "Except now we have to deal with the worst part... I can''t fight them. Nisha is the only friend I''ve ever had. Father is in there chopping the heads off of training dummies with the name ''Keith'' written on their faces. But I, I just..."

    Well, that explains why I can hear Godwin off in the distance screaming something about Justice.

    "You don''t have to take part in what comes next if you don''t want to. Is your brother planning to join? He must be completely tapped out of mana, and receiving more from Aresa would be a bad idea. Temporary ether or mana transfers should be limited or you''ll end up harming yourself badly. He seems smart though, so I''m sure he knows this."

    "Yeah he knows, and he has no interest in what happens to Keith''s group. ''It''s the consequences of their own actions, now leave me be'', is what he said as he went back to studying the blue flowers. And, well... I''m not entirely sure if any of us are going anyway?" Hera said.

    Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    "What do you mean? Did something happen?"

    "We told Devon about what Keith did, and while he was disgusted, he also told us not to bother dealing with them. He didn''t go into specifics... All he said was that he had to go contact someone immediately, and then assured us that they would not escape Lord Rai''ga. He sounded very certain of this."

    "That''s good if true... But uh, does he truly have someone powerful enough on call to take on a Satyr and the group over there? I don''t have a full grasp of their strength, but that Brian guy''s ability was enhanced with enough mana to pierce any god I''ve ever met."

    "From what Nisha told me, that''s a major reason they lost Rachel. Nobody blamed him, but Brian had a bad habit of blasting potential threats with his maximum strength, which left him with nothing when the Demon appeared. He was supposed to be the one to bring down the barrier, yet he couldn''t. The group had been providing him with infusions of mana throughout the entire mission, but at that point, he couldn''t handle any more mana from outside sources."

    "That explains why his attacks to fend me off were so weak after I grabbed him. Those three human souls should never have been enough to hold off a man of his strength." That explains one part of it anyway. But I have no idea who this Rachel is nor why she thinks I would know?

    Hera winced, going silent.

    "Right... Not something you want to hear. Well, if Devon truly has allies like that, then at least you don''t have to fight them. Is that why your father is back there attacking dummies?"

    Hera sighed, "Yeah, he''s not happy about being told to sit this one out. Don''t worry, he won''t risk his men for his own satisfaction. Whether he''ll run out there alone though... That I''m not sure about. Blackwall is watching over him to make sure that doesn''t happen."

    "Blackwall?"

    "The man sitting to his left, the one who asked you about eating souls."

    Ahh, that one. Must be his right-hand man.

    "Alright, thanks for the heads up. I''m going to chase after the Templars now. I want to see how this ends with my own eyes."

    "Tell me how it goes. Father only tells us that ''it''s beautiful'' and refuses to elaborate further."

    "Will do, see ya later."

    I waved to Hera as I turned around, reactivating my aura and sprinting off towards the Templars.

    They''re traveling the same way as I did while chasing after Aresa before. There''s only one thing of note in this direction, but did they really reset everything here so they could prevent that massive raven Lord from fleeing?

    <hr>

    As the Templars come into view, my theory turns into conviction. Their group has stopped in a very familiar spot. They''re about twenty-five yards ahead of a wooden barrier that''s sitting at the end of a field of ice.

    I no longer have Brian''s soul so I can''t take it back, but it''s shocking to see that it still hasn''t disintegrated... Aresa must have really pumped that wall full of mana.

    I leap up onto the barrier, sitting down with my legs dangling over the side. This spot will make for a great view of what''s to come.

    The templars aren''t moving at all while the people in robes are in a circle holding hands, channeling into something between them that I can''t see. Eventually they let go of each other, slowly raising their hands to the sky, and just as their hands are straight above their heads, they whip them back down towards the object between them. Immediately, with no time lag whatsoever, The Tengu Lord appears before them.

    I''ve seen warps plenty of times... But none of them looked like that. One second he wasn''t there, and then a millisecond later he was. Did they reset the Lord? Only the Lord? They must have... I''m still here after all.

    A bright white light flashes in front of me, forcing my eyes shut. By the time I re-open them the entire area has been reconstructed into something else entirely.

    I''ve never thought of fog as ''beautiful'' until this very moment. A dense white fog surrounds us, but it doesn''t feel like it''s dark here, not even a little. Large rays of light beam down through the fog, making the Templars almost look godly. Dozens of pure white birds fly around the area, leaving streaks of pure ether behind them.

    I don''t know when it happened, but The Tengu''s face is being pushed into the ground by a hard contraption around its neck. Its legs are also pinned to the Earth, while there are chains from the sky wrapped around its arms, lifting them high in the air.

    The Templars all draw their swords at the same time, holding them skyward in front of their masks. Bells start ringing from somewhere as their swords shine in a light white aura, slowly ramping up to a blinding white light. All at once, they raise the swords above their heads, firing off a white ether blast deep into the sky past the fog. Moments later, a wave of energy falls from the sky directly onto The Tengu. It begins screaming as the energy surrounding it slowly disintegrates its body bit by bit. The first thing to go is its feathers, as they quickly break apart into nothing. Then its limbs, its beak, and finally the rest of its body is vaporized.

    The scene playing out in front of me had left me completely stunned, because I know what this is. We weren''t transported to another world... No, the being responsible had moved its realm here. And yet, we''re still on Urza... Only the old gods are capable of such a feat. There are two known old gods, or at least I thought there were. Apparently one more popped up while I was dead.

    The first old god is Meizha''thul The Celebrated, first among the ancient ones. She is where the Eldritch come from. With the other being Eremnon The All-Seeing, the god of Demons who created beings like the Satyr. They''re against each other just as much as they''re against us. However, an old god that is directly assisting humans? I''ve never heard of such a god before, but it does explain a lot. The reset is definitely possible if such a being is on your side. I''ve been inside Eremnon''s domain before, it made me fucking sick being stuck under his Eye. Yet, this area makes me feel... Wonderful. While it''s not speaking, the intentions of the god are made clear to all here, and apparently, even I am accepted. There is one other message it is conveying as well, one I am more than happy to accept.

    {Purge the Demon}

    The Templars begin marching back the other way, stomping past me with nary a glance. There is no need after all, our acceptance of the mission was known to all, and now it is time to fulfill the duty. It''s not as if I became a worshiper, it merely understood that I wanted to kill the Satyr, just as it does, so it brought us together for this one mission. However, they will need time to reach the hive, and according to the god, the Satyr is preparing to unleash its attack soon. And to that end...

    I feel a mark connecting to my soul from the artifact that the robed men are channeling mana into. As they lower their hands in unison again, I appear underwater inside of my reset hole.

    I''m a little sad that it''s finally time to say goodbye to this place, but it needs to be done. My job is to prevent the Satyr from fleeing before the Templars arrive. Easier said than done obviously...

    I burst out of the ice one last time, sprinting off towards the hive. Barely a minute later I see a dark red vortex appearing in the sky.

    The long wait is over, it''s finally time. Hopefully the spider Eldritch survives... I''m going to need all the help I can get.

 Chapter 9 - The Satyr

    The vortex begins swirling faster and faster until it eventually begins forming into a large liquid sphere. As soon as it formed into a sphere, it launched towards the ground so fast that even with my eyes I could barely keep track of it. A sonic boom rang out, shattering my ears as the shock wave that followed it knocked me back several yards right onto the ice, sliding for several more meters before stopping.

    Shit, I can feel my ears healing but it''s going to take time. Time I don''t have.

    Attempting to put my hands on the ice to stand up, they instead sink deep into a soft muddy surface. At the same time, I feel my butt fall through the ice into a puddle of mud as well. It didn''t take long to understand why this was happening. The ground went from cold, to warm, to very hot at an alarming rate. The water evaporated soon after, leading to my new boots starting to smoke.

    Enhancing my feet, I begin jumping between trees towards my destination, avoiding the ground as I go since it''s now a hazard zone apparently.

    I don''t know what that spell was, but maybe the Satyr did know what the Eldritch was doing. Anything on or under the ground is going to be incinerated soon. That Eldritch didn''t look like the kind that could climb webs or trees, nor did the Lords for that matter. If the spawn are going to be my only allies then I already know how this fight is going to end.

    The sky lit up a bright orange as large fireballs began falling indiscriminately over a vast area.

    "Hellfire?! Why?!!"

    This is a spell they use when destroying large cities. The hive was a well-designed but compact place. It was not the kind of target Satyrs would use hellfire against... I don''t understand it, but what''s done is done. While I''m surprised it was dual-casting, I''m more annoyed that my advantage in darkness is now gone. Maybe that''s why it cast hellfire? I''m sure they told the Satyr about me... Knowing that I guess it''s not the worst choice in the end. Now they''ll have natural light as this whole forest goes up in a blaze, and it will cause massive problems for any spiders that survived the other spell. The Satyr wouldn''t have left itself tapped out after this, but I''m sure it''s much lower on ether than it originally would have been. So there''s a good side to all this at least.

    <hr>

    ~Albel''s POV~

    As a fire ability user, I''m beyond jealous of the scene playing out in front of me. How many normal people would be necessary to cast the hellfire spell alone? Probably a hundred meditating for a day... Yet this Demon did both spells alone in less than a day. All the trainees are told that Satyrs are the most dangerous demonic casters, and it''s painfully clear to me now that the veterans weren''t lying. If demonic casters are this powerful, then it''s not much of a surprise that we stood no chance against the one who took Rachel... Not that I ever wanted this kind of clarity on the subject.

    "You think they''re all dead?" Lindon asked.

    "No. Most were taken out, but I can feel something heading our way. However, It''s hard to tell whether it was the spawn or Lords that survived with how infused the air is with ether right now." Keith continued, "Albel, keep an eye on your sister as we planned. We''ll handle the front."

    "Sure thing," I replied.

    My job is to keep that Elf from killing Nisha or attacking us from behind. The stress of not knowing when or where an invisible enemy is going to attack you has honestly driven me to the brink. The reset puts you back to the state your body was in at the start, and I was rather well rested at the time. Not anymore though... I''m going to pass out for a week straight after this shit is over. And what''s with that ''prevent back attacks'' order? How the hell am I supposed to stop that? Any counter I can think of for the Elf went out the window when Hera and Janet told us about her invisibility spell.

    ... This ''hellfire'' is doing a good job of burning the area, but I''d just be wasting my mana if I started burning the area around me. For now, Lindon put his ability barrier on Nisha, so she''s the hardest to kill among us. Which is a relief, don''t get me wrong, but I''d much rather be back in the days when I had to deal with in-your-face threats instead of dealing with this invisibility nonsense. Fighting the Satyr might be preferable at this point.

    A fireball falls into the ground nearby, causing the tree I''m currently hiding on to fall over. As it nears the ground I roll off the side, barely avoiding the limbs of another tree from crushing me.

    Well, this is just fucking fantastic. It keeps getting better and better...

    Standing up, I look around for another tree full of foliage that isn''t on fire yet.

    A pointless endeavor. All these trees are going to be ignited soon, and since I''m a pure fire ability user my barrier is very good at dealing with that element. And yet...

    Glancing around, I see a bunch of fire that I can''t approach at all.

    I spent years in my soul realm trying to upgrade my barrier to nullify both ability and real fire, but the only upgrade I received was completely negating my own fire, which is obviously nice, but it doesn''t help me at all in situations like this. My barrier still takes massive damage being hit by natural fire, so I''m forced to avoid the fire just like the damned Elf has to. This is assuming she even needs to avoid it at all... I did incinerate her after all, yet she still managed to crush Brian''s throat.

    Sighing, I turn to look for another vantage point, only to see a fist coming directly at my face, barely a foot away already.

    The world slows down, I push all the mana necessary to my right foot as I raise it slightly towards the Elf, casting my burnout spell, a directed explosion from where I will it. A loud explosion occurs from outside my foot, propelling me backward as I barely avoid the burning tree, rolling over the ground behind it. Looking up, I don''t see the girl anywhere.

    T-That was way too close... And I have no idea if I hurt her at all.

    "The Elf is here!! She just attacked me, but I''ve lost sight of her. Be careful everyone!"

    I did learn something though. She apparently needs to be visible to attack someone. That''s better, but not by much.

    Off to my left, a loud rumbling could be heard approaching this area as the ground began to shake. Soon after, the Eldritch Spider came into view, smashing through any tree in its way. It''s also completely engulfed in flames, which should be a good thing. Yet...

    "Bad news everyone. It looks like the spider was of the fire element." Keith said.

    Upon hearing that, I knew I had to fend for myself. I can also see one Lord had survived, so the Eldritch isn''t even alone. Although it looks like the end of the Eldritch''s legs are melted? The lava spell must have worked at least.

    Now then... The best course of action should be to stall as best I can.

    Channeling outwards, a ten-meter area around me turns into a sea of flames.

    If she can walk through this, then I''m doomed either way. I can''t maintain it for long, but odds are she''ll attack Nisha after seeing me inside this inferno.

    I summon a fire javelin, preparing for her to appear again, most likely near my sister''s hiding spot which is still within my line of sight.

    Off to the left, I can see the Satyr put two fingers up to its forehead. As the Eldritch gets within twenty meters of it, the Satyr points those fingers directly at the Eldritch. An explosive cracking sound emanates as a bolt of lightning strikes the Eldritch right in its face. The spider is blown back a little, but immediately the fire engulfing the spider turns to an electrified aura. The end of the Eldritch''s limbs begin healing, quickly reforming from the melted tips.

    "You must be joking..." Lindon mumbles.

    I''d wager that everyone in the group is feeling the same exasperation upon seeing that. Fucking Eldritch... You never really know what to expect till you fight them. A spider that absorbs magic, turning the mana that hit it into regeneration, while also attuning to the last element it was hit by? As if anyone expected this to happen... Even the Satyr looks surprised.

    Two large axes appear in the Satyr''s hands. It slowly begins moving forward to meet the spider''s charge head-on.

    I hope it''s as powerful in physical combat as it is in magic.

    Nearby, Lindon and Keith have already entered into combat with the Lord. At first glance, I can already tell that the Lord is designed to overpower combatants who can''t penetrate its powerful defenses. Sadly for the Lord, Keith will not have that issue.

    The Lord tries to crush Lindon with one of its legs, but he dodges backward as Keith slices the leg off at the joint. The Lord screeches as it tries swiping in retaliation with two other legs, which are also promptly lost as Keith cuts them off.

    Yeah... Defense like that means nothing in front of him. He has no abilities. He can''t enhance his speed much, nor is his barrier very good. What he is good at is...

    A large blue aura extends from Keith''s sword, causing the Lord to attempt a retreat, but it''s already too late. Keith makes two swift attacks, one vertical, and one horizontal. The Lord splits apart into four pieces, falling to the ground soon after.

    The Elf appears to the right of Keith mid-attack, kicking his ankle in such a way that I could hear the loud pop from here. I threw my javelin as Keith buckled to the ground, slashing his still-enhanced sword in her direction. The Elf grabbed his wrist, stopping the attack while pulling him in as she punched him directly in the face with her other hand. Keith flew back at least seven meters, sliding into one of the Lord''s limbs he had just sliced off. After punching Keith, the Elf hit the ground on all fours, evading my javelin by a hair. She disappeared immediately after that.

    "Keith, are you alright?!" Nisha said through the marks.

    "Yeah... Lindon saved me at the last second." Keith responded.

    Oh shit, it looks like he really did. I was expecting Keith''s face to be a complete mess since he''s not the greatest at enhancing his defense, but he''s completely fine. It takes time for Lindon to remove his ability from one person and apply it to someone else, he must have barely made it in time. Which is great, except now my sister is completely exposed. He can''t re-apply it without a line of sight on her, but... It should be fine. She''s way deeper underground this time.

    As all this is going on, an unending zapping sound is blaring from the Eldritch as it attacks the Satyr relentlessly. It looks like the Satyr has put the element of Earth on its blades, which is a first for me, but it makes sense. He must''ve been getting shocked through his weapons every time he connected with the spider. Watching a little of the battle, I can see large sparks lighting up every time one of the spider''s limbs is blocked by the Satyr''s axes.

    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    The sound of earth being crushed sounds out behind me. Turning around, I see the Elf pull her foot out of the ground, apparently having stomped as deep as she could above where my sister is hiding. Knowing that it was nowhere near deep enough to reach her, I prepared to scorch the entire area in front of me. However, as I''m preparing the spell, a fleshy purple sphere appears in the Elf''s hand, and she drops it down towards the hole she created.

    T-That''s!! No way, how?!

    Obviously, I know what that is. Before she went mad, Janet was an excellent member of our unit. Despite the fact that she was only good at one thing, those bombs. All she ever did between missions, was spend time with her family and upgrade her bombs. Making them stronger and stronger every year. If one of those bombs detonates in the ground above Nisha...!!

    A blue light shoots past me, turning into Lindon directly in front of the Elf. He tries to grab the bomb, but the Elf kicks his hand out of the way. In a panic, Lindon dives forward while grabbing the bomb, rolling a little forward into a ball. A muffled explosion could be heard from Lindon as his barrier flared up and shook, however... It didn''t shatter. The Elf had disappeared, but I was already carpeting the entire area left of Lindon in flames so hot they were almost plasma.

    "Fucking Hell... I could see my life flashing before me on that one." Lindon said, standing up.

    "Thank you Lindon... I panicked and brought you to me when I felt the all-too-familiar signature of Janet''s bombs above me." Nisha said.

    "Eh, you made the right call. Still though, we need to deal with this Elf bitch now. She can''t be allowed to keep harassing us like this. I don''t know if the Satyr will lose, but the fact that it''s a possibility means we really should be helping it." Lindon replied.

    "Agreed. I''m ready for another attack and heading towards the Eldritch right now. You three stay together while I deal with this." Keith said through the marks, limping towards the Eldritch.

    The Eldritch turned, unleashing a massive vacuum in his direction, sucking Keith into the air directly towards its mouth. In response, Keith poured all that was left of his mana into his blade, resulting in a twenty-yard-long aura extending outwards. Just as he got into range, he slashed downwards right at the spider''s face, but the creature stopped the vacuum and evaded to the right. Keith chased the Eldritch with his blade, missing the spider''s head by inches. However, he cut two limbs off instead. Keith turned into a blue sphere directly after the attack, being pulled back to our group by Nisha.

    The spider could have jumped backward to avoid taking damage entirely, but it probably wasn''t sure if the blade could extend even more, which would have resulted in the Eldritch dying outright. Not that this outcome was much better for it, after all...

    The spider tips forward, barely catching itself from falling down as two large axes plant themselves firmly into the spider''s skull, hitting it with such force the spider''s face smashes straight into the ground. The Satyr releases its grip on the axes, standing tall in triumph over its now slain enemy. As we were about to cheer, a large explosion occurs behind the Satyr''s upper body, blasting it down onto the Eldritch who is still densely electrified. Roars of rage and pain erupt from the Satyr as it is hit with so much electricity that its very own body has small bolts launching off of it into the ground. Eventually, the Satyr manages to pull itself free, but it''s heavily damaged, looking around with bloodshot eyes for the perpetrator that harmed it.

    "Fucking Elf!!" Lindon yelled.

    Keith sighed, "Don''t worry, this is a slight delay and nothing more. With the Eldritch dead we have already won. Nisha saved as much mana as possible so the Satyr could be warped back to the arena. We don''t even need it at this point, but soon there will be two Satyrs here. That Elf can''t stop us now with her pseudo-allies dead."

    Stop us? Right... I didn''t even think about that. Why is she attacking us? I can understand why someone from Viseux or the North would, but why would this strange girl we found in a hole attack us? Did Gaz or Peter do something to her, making her hostile towards us? It''s not a far-fetched theory knowing those two assholes...

    The sound of bells ringing radiates from one part of the forest. We all look in that direction, catching sight of a white aura moving in our direction as the fires near it are extinguished one after another.

    "Ah..." Nisha whispers, her voice laced with fear.

    "God damnit... " Lindon said.

    Keith said nothing, and the reason is obvious. Even if Nisha warps all of us to her exit marks in the Arena, she can''t warp herself. We''ll have to abandon her, and since we would never do that...

    "What are the odds, honestly?" I said.

    Seriously, come on... We knew once the gift of reset(or curse depending on how you view it) had hit us, that a Tengu Lord had appeared somewhere in this direction from Viseux. Even so, that''s a massive area to cover considering how far away from Viseux we are. We weren''t too worried until Janet psychotically blew up Godwin''s group, including Hera. There was no guarantee she had fallen to the influence of the Tengu, but with how unstable she''s been for a while now, it was definitely a possibility.

    The Satyr, either unaware of how pointless its actions were, or refusing to give up without a fight, attempts to stand up. It wobbles a little, but eventually settles into a channeling pose as it awaits our new visitors.

    A few minutes later the Templars are standing thirty meters away, in groups of ten shoulder-to-shoulder facing the Satyr, with the Bishops in the back.

    They''re going to allow it to attack first huh? Might as well, they''re still exuding the aura of their god so it''s not like it makes a difference who attacks first...

    The Satyr raises both its hands into the air, producing a large line of spheres floating twenty meters above it. After it throws its hands forward, the balls shoot diagonally toward the ground, exploding in front of the Satyr. Every half a second later, another set of explosions would occur closer to the Templars, with each explosion being larger than the last.

    I see... I''ve never seen this spell before but it''s an interesting wave attack. By the time the explosions reach the Templars they should be massive in size. Are they eating ether in the air as they go?

    As I thought, by the time they hit the Templars, the explosions were each three times bigger than one of Janet''s purple bombs.

    In response, the Templars entered their usual stance, holding their radiant swords up in front of their faces to channel. A barrier forms over the entire group as they are engulfed in a wave of explosions.

    As the dust settles, the barrier is seen to hold firm above the Templars. As I was wondering what the Satyr was going to do next, it rips the bead off its necklace, crushing it.

    "Now this I wanted to see! At least I''ll get something positive out of this before I die." Lindon said.

    Not sure I wanted to die to see this, but I''m definitely interested in this so-called ''final attack'' that Satyrs do when backed into a corner. I''ve heard of it casting ice storms so powerful even The Satyr ended up encased in ice before it could get away.

    A large ether aura appears around the Satyr as it raises both its hands into the air again.

    It''s not casting the same spell again, is it? Obviously it''ll be way more powerful, but...

    However, up above, far into the sky this time, a large blue object begins approaching the ground.

    A plasma ball...?

    Soon after, I realized I was only half right. This was in fact a rock encased in plasma.

    "A meteor surrounded by plasma... It''s kind of beautiful in a way." Keith said.

    He''s not wrong, but I was focused on something else. Abilities are the only way to create Earth. With magic it takes an astronomical amount of mana if you don''t use existing earth nearby, making the whole spell pointless. Yet this Demon created a rock that size and it was also that far into the sky? I can''t even begin to imagine how much ether was inside the bead it broke, nor how its soul didn''t shatter instantly upon taking it in.

    The Templars, clearly aware that a barrier will not be able to stop such a force, switch to an offensive stance with the Bishops in front channeling onto their god''s artifact. As both the Templars and Bishops channel, a small ball of light appears above it. Within half a minute it was slightly bigger than the average human. The unit raises the ball in the air until it''s angled toward the meteor. Once in place, they launch the ball at the meteor, which is now three-fourths of the way toward the ground. The ball of light goes straight through the surface of the meteor, exploding in a bright white light that blinds everyone present. I only vaguely understood that Lindon had brought his ability barrier up around all of us.

    The sound of large rocks falling onto the ground echoes around us for over a minute. After the first explosions erupted, all I could hear was the sound of ringing in my ears. I''m sure the others are just as deaf as I am right now.

    As the explosions came to a close, I slowly regained my sight, and the first thing I saw was the Satyr with its face mushed into the ground by a radiant clasp around its neck digging into the dirt. Likewise, its legs were also pinned down, with its arms hanging into the air by bright white chains that appeared to come from nowhere.

    ... It''s over. I''ve only heard of this through second-hand accounts before, but I know the Satyr isn''t getting out of this.

    The Templars had already encircled the Satyr, raising their swords high as a pure white mana wrapped around them. The Templars then aimed their swords directly at the Satyr, whereas it was engulfed in a large pillar of white energy, melting it piece by piece.

    This is a little different from what I was told would happen, but I think I know why. They''re not connected directly to their gods'' domain anymore. They only have remnants of his ether left, so they are blasting him directly instead of sending it up into the heavens where it is sent back in the purest form of energy possible. However, they clearly don''t need that level of damage here. The Satyr is dying quite easily from this, showing just how screwed we are as their next targets.

    The Satyr was technically an ally for a while there, so even if it was a Demon... I''m not quite sure how to feel watching the final parts of it disintegrate.

    As the light fades, signifying the end of the purge, the Templars all turn to face us together.

    "Alright then... Time to find out what our sentence is going to be. Purged? Imprisonment? Slavery? Any guesses from you lot?" Lindon said.

    At this point I really don''t care what happens, I''ve been mentally tapped out ever since Rachel died. I was in love with her for the longest time... and yet I never worked up the courage to make a move. Truly pathetic.

    If the Templars purge us, I''d honestly welcome it...

    <hr>

    ~Reimia''s POV~

    That was close, extremely close. It''s damn near a miracle that I wasn''t hit by any of those mini-meteors, but it was worth it in the end... The joy I felt from seeing that fucking Demon incinerated was indescribable. And during that fight I discovered something else that put an even bigger smile on my face.

    Looking down at my outfit, which is now in the form of a black dress, I can''t help but wonder if this is a dream.

    Honestly, I should''ve realized something was off when the clothes kept resetting when nothing else in material form was resetting except everyone''s gear that was already attached to their body at the start of the reset. Hell, nobody in Godwin''s group realized it either. There''s only one reason why these clothes would reset to their original location when that spell only targets souls.

    "I can''t believe I have my own set of artifact armor..."

    I reacted way too late when that fire user had incinerated the area around his friend, and just as I was about to be torched again, a spindly black limb stretched out from the outfit, launching me high onto a nearby tree. I was stunned for a few moments as I tried to figure out what the hell had just happened to me.

    I guess I can''t blame them for thinking this was just another set of high-quality weaves designed to absorb mana. Which is still amazing, that''s an extra lifeline if you fill it with mana, it''ll negate attacks until it''s completely drained. However, artifact equipment is made by using Eldritch or Demons souls, an art that was created in Viseux by uh... Shit, I can''t remember. I think the race had horns?

    ... Well whatever, this outfit is amazing regardless of who made it. It wasn''t activated though, which is probably why nobody knew what it really was. Thankfully the Old God had activated it for me when I accepted the mission. I just didn''t realize it till the armor saved me.

    I wish I had a mirror nearby, I''ve never worn a dress before... I only imagined myself wearing one to see if it would reform and it did. It feels weird to say it myself, but I think I look pretty good? I really need a mirror damnit. Maybe I''ll go show this to Aresa later to see what she thinks. I was only testing out its transformation ability, but I think I''ll leave it like this for now. Unlike that assassin, I don''t need the extra coverage to deal with the cold or any other weather-related issues.

    A clinking sound to my left interrupts my thoughts. Looking in that direction, I see the Templars chaining Keith''s unit together as another one of the Templars pulls Nisha out of the ground by her hair.

    So they''re capturing them huh? I suppose I''m fine with imprisonment or whatever else they have planned. Once the Satyr died I lost interest in anything else going on here. It''s time for me to move on.

    As the last vestiges of the Old God''s aura dissipate, I enter a praying pose, thanking the god for its assistance. I may or may not become a believer, but I''m eternally grateful just knowing there is an Old God assisting humans. Maybe it has ulterior motives, maybe it doesn''t? It doesn''t matter right now either way. If they''re killing Demons and Eldritch, I''ll work with them anytime they ask for assistance. Plus, I''ll be getting souls out of it sometimes. The issue with that purge is that it completely destroys the soul too. I would''ve loved to eat the Tengu, Eldritch, or the Satyr...

    Speaking of which, why the hell is the Eldritch soul gone too? While I understand the Tengu and Satyr dissipating because they were directly hit by the blast, I''m at a loss as to why the Spider''s soul disappeared along with the Satyr''s.

    It''s really disappointing... But at least they''re dead.

    As the Templars begin marching in the direction of Godwin''s village, I remove my aura and line up with them. A few of the people chained up make a disgusted face as I re-appear, but it only makes me chuckle. Whatever feelings they harbor towards me won''t matter for much longer.

    We had to take a slight detour thanks to that first Satyr spell turning the ground around the hive into lava. Despite that, we eventually exited the treeline near the village, signaling the end of the saga here.

    For now, I need to decide what to do from here on out. Godwin''s group will probably assist me if I ask for a place to stay for a while as I get settled into this new world. If they don''t, then it''s not a big deal. I''ll just punch another hole out into the ground somewhere and hunt monsters from there till I''m powerful enough to leave Urza and make my way back to the Elven planet, Aetheria. Either way works for me.

 Chapter 10 - Origins

    "Is it over?" Hera asked as we near the broken wall.

    I walk up to her while pointing towards the back with my thumb. Eventually, her friend comes into view as she''s dragged along behind the Templars in chains.

    "N-Nisha..." Hera said, almost a whisper.

    Nisha looked at Hera wide-eyed, then quickly turned the other way.

    The unit marched on down the street, stopping outside the tent in the distance.

    I thought they''d go into the main area of town, but I guess they''re going to see Godwin first?

    Glancing left at Hera, I begin to feel awkward since it looks like she''s about to cry.

    Ugh... Why did I stop here? I''m not good at these kinds of situations.

    "... So what happened?" Hera asked.

    Oh thank god.

    "Let''s go to the tent, odds are they''re going to ask me the same thing. I was watching Keith''s group for about twenty minutes before the spider showed up. Not that I have much to report since they were just standing around waiting like I was. But I also fought them first, so I assume they''ll want to hear about that."

    I begin walking towards the tent. Hera meekly nods as she follows after me. We arrive as Keith''s group is forced to kneel near the crater.

    "My disappointment at seeing your head attached to your shoulders is immense. Unless..." Godwin looks at the Templar in the front, continuing, "You saved him for me?! It warms an old man''s heart that you would be so generous, Markus."

    The Templar pulls back his hood, removing his helmet shortly after, revealing a gruff older man with long mutton chops grinning at Godwin.

    "Not happening you fool and you know it. Arkaios has declared that they will be branded." Markus said.

    "Bran...ded...?"

    I''ve never heard that word before now, but the horror in Nisha''s voice just now coupled with the look on the rest of the group''s face has honestly shaken me a little. This ''brand'' must be truly horrific for them to look like torture would be a nice alternative.

    "... I see," Godwin said, glancing at Keith for a moment with what looked like pity, before returning to his usual stoic face.

    Jasper sidles up next to me, whispering, "They are bound to eternal servitude until Arkaios decides they''ve redeemed themselves. If they die, they are then basked in energy waves of light if it was deemed an unnecessary death, burning their soul until a new body is prepared for them. If they decline to work or get lazy in any way, they are once again brought back to be purged for days, weeks, or months on end. At the end of the purge, they are sent back to this world to work. There is no means of escape. They are now slaves until Arkaios lets them go, which could be never."

    ... Now I understand why Godwin''s attitude reversed completely. Cutting their heads off would be unbelievably kind in comparison.

    "N-No!!! NOOOO!!!!"

    Nisha begins thrashing around, screaming incoherently for several minutes before finally petering out, hanging her head down as tears drip off her face. Everyone silently watched, while the rest of her group had the faces of men who had given up all hope.

    "Please... Uncle Markus, please..."

    Opposed to his grinning face earlier, Templar Markus looked especially pained as he watched the girl appear to break before his eyes. To my right I can see Hera crying, unable to hold back anymore after seeing her friend''s appearance.

    "... You brought this on yourselves. Being my niece will assist you naught, I am merely the servant. May the god of dawn Arkaios declare you free after one hundred years of servitude..." Markus said.

    "Five hundred and seventy-two," Jasper said, making everyone look at him. "The amount of Kitsune that were sacrificed. A hundred years would be quite kind of Arkaios."

    "... We don''t know what happened to them, they could be alive." The fire ability user said.

    "Most are, but soon they''ll all be changed, and none of them will ever be free."

    "SHUT THE FUCK UP ELF! WHAT WOULD YOU KNOW?!" Nisha screams.

    "I know because I spent most of my life in the realm you sent the Kitsune to. I know exactly what is happening to them right now."

    Naturally, that caused quite a stir. After all, nobody has ever been in the other realms before and returned. Well, as far as I know anyway... Maybe things are different now. The only other person I know of is Viktor. He also transferred over and returned safely.

    "You''ve lived in Eremnon''s realm...? How is this possible?" Markus asked.

    "It''s not the Demon''s realm. I don''t know why, but anyone who travels to other realms has to go through another realm first, including the Demons and Eldritch. I don''t know the name of the faceless creatures there, but I''m sure you''ve seen them before. The Demons bring them here for reasons I never discerned."

    "The term ''faceless creatures'' describes lots of monsters. How are we to narrow that down? We''ll need more information." Jasper said.

    Two Templars walk through the makeshift barrier with a large group of men carrying tools. One Templar guides the men towards the wall, while the other tells Markus ''It''s ready''.

    "Put this on hold for now, they have a large hall ready for us. We''ll eat and discuss this further in there." Markus said.

    The prisoners were yanked back to their feet as the rest of us made our way towards the main part of town. I looked around for a certain someone.

    "Where is Aresa?"

    "She''s with the Kitsune right now. They are her oldest allies, so she''s staying near them during what turned out to be yet another horrible event involving them." Jasper replied.

    Upon walking through the barrier, I noticed that the residential area behind us wasn''t the only one blocked off from the rest of the town.

    "What a strange design, but I kind of like it?"

    "It is unique, that is for certain. While there are always residential areas, I have yet to see one built in such a way that half the town is sequestered into six different residential zones filled with similar homes built in a way that they connect to one another. Apparently, it was districts restricted to family trees. Six large influential families lived here in the past. While those homes seem simple, they apparently cannot be burned, so that''s why it was okay to build them together like that." Jasper said.

    "Interesting, thanks for the explanation. I was just saying that out loud... I didn''t expect anyone to actually know why the village is designed this way."

    "I only know because of the Kitsune we brought here, they are their descendants. You can see some of them here and there right now, but they''re uh..." Jasper said, trailing off.

    Looking around, I see that there are quite a lot of Kitsune loitering around, and they''re making faces similar to Keith''s group earlier. Most of them are filling up caravans full of their belongings. A few of them begin scowling as they catch sight of Keith''s unit being dragged through the town in chains.

    "They already heard about their brethren being sacrificed?"

    "Yes. See the ones packing as well? The relocation project is scrapped. They lost everything because of Keith." Jasper continued. "Well, the sky played a part as well. At this point we don''t know what to expect down here in the south, so it''s too risky to try and build up this area."

    The Templars enter the tallest building in town. The very same building I saw before that was on fire... Except it''s completely intact?

    After following the Templars inside, an extravagant hall fills my view. The design is something I''ve only seen on TV back when I was a child. What was it called again? ... Oriental, I think.

    There is one other part sticking out to me as well.

    "Jasper, parts of the wall are on fire."

    "Indeed."

    .................

    "That''s all you have to say??"

    Jasper raises an eyebrow at me, "... You were being serious? Have you never been inside a Kitsune temple, or at least heard about them before?"

    "No... I think? I''ve never been inside one, but I can''t rule out the possibility of someone telling me and I forgot."

    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

    "Well, the whole building can ignite. The Kitsune god is long gone but there is speculation they have an old god watching over them. Speculation I deny, mind you. There is no proof whatsoever. It''s all based on the temples still burning to give off warmth or supplying ether to nearby allies. While I may not know how it''s done, that doesn''t mean an old god is responsible. And if there is one looking out for them, why is this the only help it''s providing? It is a fool''s wish to tie this building to such a being."

    Jasper looked thoughtful for a second, then said. "Ahh, but... I suppose I cannot blame the Kitsune for wishing for such an outcome. There are barely any of them left now with the Tengu relentlessly hunting them down."

    We sit down in the middle of a long table. Off to the side, I see the prisoners being placed near the wall. They are sitting down with a large cloth draped over their heads.

    "The Tengu is that Raven thing I saw trying to kidnap Aresa, right?"

    "Wow, you really are from a different time period if you don''t know about that abomination. Strange though... I swear the Kitsune god was killed by the Tengu forty or fifty years ago. That''s when the records first mention it. For some reason it''s always been obsessed with completely eradicating the Kitsune." Jasper said.

    "I kind of remember the Kitsune god dying? Eh, try not to expect me to understand history from my time in Xelba. Everyone else was merely... objects, that happened to exist on the same moon as Xelba. That''s how the people there viewed the rest of you."

    "Did you as well?" Godwin asked.

    Looking around, I see everyone is now seated, looking in this direction. Devon had also joined at some point.

    "... Yes, but not to fuel the creature living there. I was working with my friends to move to Gaia. That dream obviously ended in failure."

    "While I am curious of the reason for Xelba''s madness and this Viktor you speak of. Right now however, I want to hear about this ''other realm''." Markus cut in.

    "It actually involves Xelba, which may or may not surprise you. Do any of you happen to remember the Elf merchant group named Navi Incorporated? It used to travel to Viseux twice a year."

    Devon''s hand shot up. "I do! Not once have I ever forgotten Lady Sera''s beauty..."

    "That embarrassing behavior of yours has reminded me of the merchants as well. Devon was in love with the group leader''s daughter and stupidly believed he''d marry her one day. The other hilarious part I remember is that her father was not your greatest fan. Some bum priest from this dull moon marrying his daughter? IT WAS NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN LOSER!!" Godwin said, laughing loudly.

    "... Sera''s mother, Nel, had agreed to take me back with them, but I couldn''t join them on that return trip of theirs. I needed time to say my goodbyes and get permission from Lord Rai''ga to leave. I was to leave with them on their next trip six months later, but they never returned. It was supposed to be the last time they came here because of how unstable Urza was becoming at the time, and the fact that the portal to the Elf world was so close to... Xelba..."

    Devon looked over at me, realization dawning on his face. "... I remember now. Sera said her family wasn''t going to be doing any more trips to other moons or planets after the next one. As a result, all of the houseguards were coming with them, and they were bringing her little sister with them this time so she could experience the world. I forgot all about that until just now, but I remember her name... It was Reimia, right?"

    Slowly, I could see the dots connecting in everyone''s minds, until Markus eventually spoke up first.

    "You were sacrificed...?"

    "... Yes, we all were. My family was well guarded with men fitted in high-tech armor and weapons, but an edge over the average person is only an edge at the end of the day, especially since Viktor had Demons assisting him. I was only six at the time so it''s kind of a blur, but I don''t remember the battle lasting very long. The next thing I knew, Viktor was kindly explaining to me how to tell my soul to accept the transfer while everyone around me was being chained up and tortured."

    Devon looked at me like the world was ending.

    "Sorry Devon, just know that my family, including Sera, had all died peacefully. They were under the influence of one of those faceless creature''s gods. They were... Changed. Something about them wanted to obey the creature. I managed to kill it, which was a miracle when I think back on it, but it happened, and in doing so everyone connected to the god had their lifeline cut. Apparently, once the god they are connected to dies, the souls of its followers decouple from their bodies, and... Well, I''m not sure where they go. Hopefully reincarnated but I have no idea." I explained matter-of-factly.

    It''s not easy explaining this... It''s taking everything I have to not get emotional. That day was the worst day of my life. I thought I had saved them, but instead I could see their souls becoming increasingly unstable, making it clear that I had killed them instead... It is good that I removed them from that hell, but I''ve always wondered if there was another way to save them.

    Markus rubbed his chin, "Now I understand what you meant by the Kitsune not dying. ''Most of them'', was the phrasing you used? What happens to the others then, do they all die?"

    "Yes. When I woke up in the other realm, we were all in a pit, and there were faceless creatures embedded in the wall everywhere. They were like worms with hardened black shells, coming out of the walls to eat someone, and then immediately returning to their holes. I don''t know how long it went on. I was... I was just a little girl, and I couldn''t find my family, so when I saw a small hole in the wall just barely big enough to fit into, I ran over to it and crawled inside trying to run away. After that, tiny plant-like creatures bit at me as I crawled through, until I eventually fell through another hole and landed in an underground cave. There was no one around, including monsters, and it was dimly lit by the vegetation there so I could see what was around me. There were weird plants that I could eat and a stream to drink from, so I was able to live comfortably there for many years. Eventually though, I stealthed into a Satyr transfer without them knowing, where I found myself in a city known as ''Xelba''. There is way more to the story, but this is the short version."

    Markus leaned back, thinking about what I said for roughly a minute before responding, "Are these faceless beings responsible for why you changed as well?"

    "I don''t know, I slowly transformed while hiding in that cave. After I had completely changed, I needed more than plants to survive, so I had no choice but to venture outside. Not once did I see a hybrid who looked like me, not even vaguely. Also, none of the people within the domain of those creatures had their bodies altered. Yet here I am now, pale with white hair and red eyes. Their minds were influenced, while my body was altered. I was obviously influenced by something else there, but I have no way of knowing what it was. The cave was completely empty after all." My soul was changed too, which I''m sure they know by now.

    Everyone went silent, digesting this new information, but just then an idea occurred to me.

    "Oh! How about I show you with my soul realm?"

    "I was going to ask if you would do that Rei, but I wasn''t quite sure when to interject." Jasper said.

    "I would love to see this other realm if you are truly okay with it? This generally isn''t something that people offer so freely after all." Markus said.

    Yeah, I can understand why. Having others come into your most personal space doesn''t feel the greatest. But it won''t be a problem for me, my master trained me to get used to it.

    "It''s fine, I''m ready anytime you are."

    Godwin nodded, holding his hands out to those beside him. Eventually the whole table''s hands were linked. Once I saw that, I removed the veil surrounding my soul, so the others could probe it. Once I felt the connections, I dove deep inside, bringing the others with me. The same desolate landscape appears before me, as the others join my realm one by one.

    A few minutes went by with nobody saying a word. Everyone but Jasper was fascinated with the world itself. They were studying the parts of the landscape that took on the shapes of different types of horrors.

    "Rei, what is this?" Jasper asks, pointing to the TV I use to view my real body.

    "That''s a television. Don''t ask me how it works, because I have no idea. Six-year-old me wasn''t an engineer. When my master was teaching us how to keep watch over our real bodies inside our soul realms, he said it''s one of the most difficult but important parts pertaining to your realm. It''s all for nothing if you lose your real body after all. Anyways, the others took over a year to do it, but I made that TV the same day we began training."

    Jasper''s eyes went wide hearing that. "You created a way to keep watch over your body in one day?! That... Should be impossible. This device though... It must be the cause. What does it do?"

    I made the TV show cartoons from my world.

    "It''s for watching entertainment on the Elven planet. It was one of many different types of electronics reverse-engineered from the original humans, or so my uncle told me."

    "This is beyond fascinating... but I think I get it. You already had something designed to view things from afar, so the mental idea of creating something to view your body was established from the start. I need to try creating one of these tonight when it''s time to turn in." Jasper watched for a little longer, then asked, "Why is this cat so incompetent? Killing a rodent like a rat should be easy for him."

    I burst out laughing immediately. It was just so ridiculous being asked that in this environment.

    "Y-You... Oh my god, you''re asking something that I had asked when I was five or six. Lots of kids ask that but eventually they understand it''s just the way cartoons are. They''re pure entertainment, Jasper, nothing more. If the Cat caught the Mouse and ate it in the first ten seconds of the show, then there would be no point to the show."

    Jasper, to my surprise, turned red and looked away, pretending to study the surroundings instead.

    "I believe I understand what you meant by ''faceless creatures'' now, Reimia. That is indeed the only way to really describe these creatures. The corruption they emanate is so deep and vile that the world itself is twisting into their image... How the hell did you live in this nightmarish area for years?" Markus said.

    "You get used to it... Well, for the most part. It still takes your breath away when you run into new types of the faceless ones. They''re much closer to Eldritch in design than they are Demons. You never know what to expect from these creatures. Each god is different, and eventually they ''evolve'' into something far more powerful than their original form after sapping the souls of those serving it. They take just enough so the soul heals itself, keeping the victims alive forever. These are all things Viktor told me though, so take it how you will. Personally, I believe he was telling the truth."

    "I know not this Viktor, as I said earlier, so it is hard to discern the truth from those words. But for now, I shall take your word on it." Markus replied.

    "Hang on, I''m seeing something very familiar in the distance. Rei, is that what I think it is?" Jasper said, pointing to the pitch-black clouds miles away from here.

    "I was wondering the same thing, but I''m not entirely positive. We need to see the end of the black clouds on Urza to know for sure." I said, warping everyone here to the edge of my world near the black clouds. "This is as far as I can go. I never went any farther than this in the other realm... I was too afraid to find out what''s inside here."

    "Shit, I don''t blame you. Even knowing this is all just a projection inside your soul realm, I still don''t want to go any deeper." Godwin said.

    "... I''m sorry Rei," Devon said, breaking his silence.

    "Devon?"

    "All those years, Sera''s sister was in Xelba and I could have helped her..."

    What the? Was Devon this kind of person? I saw him as an old grumpy priest you could find anywhere but... That was off the mark apparently.

    "That''s surprisingly sweet Devon, so thank you. I''m sorry you never got to say goodbye to my sister..."

    Markus clapped his gloves. "Alright, I''ve seen enough of this wretched place. With that said, thank you for showing your soul realm to us Reimia. If these clouds are in fact the same, at least now we know where they came from. It could be related to these ''faceless ones''. It is imperative that we quickly return to Viseux to discuss this with the confederation."

    "I''m assuming you''re all ready to leave then?"

    "Wait!! I want to fire some guns. Ooh, I so miss the feeling of firing those weapons of death." Godwin said.

    "Father..." Jasper sighed.

    "Another time Godwin, I''m starving right now. I''ve been devoid of food ever since I woke up in that hole."

    "Ahh shit, I didn''t know that. Alright then, next time we shall use these faceless ones as target practice." Godwin said.

    That''s actually not a bad idea, it would be a good stress reliever. I can''t believe I never thought of it before...

    "I''m late to realize this, but why are you in a dress? Where''s the outfit I gave you before?" Jasper said.

    Oh right, I still need to tell them about the artifact armor. Jasper is probably going to throw a new price at me that I''ll be paying off for many years to come.

 Chapter 11 - Pitch Black

    "Two thousand pounds worth of Lapis crystals." Jasper said.

    "... I knew you''d want a lot for it, but my god."

    "He''s going easy on you Rei, and you know it." Hera cut-in.

    She''s right, I won''t deny it, and I was even prepared for a ridiculous number like that. However, thinking about it and actually hearing the amount are completely different.

    "Is monster hunting or investigations still a thing? Even Xelba had a board that would pay out to anyone who could solve issues plaguing the area. Veterans like me made a lot of money doing monster hunts, but my personal favorites were the ones where I had to discern what was responsible and find it. Those also paid the best since most people didn''t want to do them. People generally preferred the easy ''kill this or that'' missions."

    "They do exist. If you''re planning on paying me through those, it''s going to take quite awhile." Jasper replied.

    "Well if you were hoping I was going to dump two thousand pounds of Lapis crystals onto your lap in the next few days, you''re clearly out of your mind. When I talked about stealing to pay before, that was back when this was a simple high-quality mana weave. A hundred crystals could be lost for any number of reasons, but if I go out there and steal thousands?"

    "You have a point. It''s just that there are certain circumstances on my end that won''t allow it to take years." Jasper glances at Godwin, who has been eating while listening to the negotiations.

    "You can tell her. If there was no reason to, I wouldn''t allow it. In this case though, it''s best she knows." Godwin said.

    "Tell her what?" Hera said, looking confused.

    Jasper leaned in, whispering, "We''re leaving through the northern portal. Hera doesn''t know yet, because we know she wouldn''t want to abandon Urza. Don''t tell her please, but also know this means I would need to be paid in the next couple of months."

    Well shit, that''s nowhere near enough time... Wait.

    "What about a prismatic?"

    "Surely you jest?"

    "No, I mean it... Kind of. Xelba is destroyed now, but I know there is a prismatic there. The owner was killed during the siege, so I know it is still there somewhere inside the rubble. I''ll need to uh, acquire, an ability that will help me dig through the city though. After that I can run there while staying invisible the entire way thanks to Xelba being buried in darkness right now."

    "And how do you plan on acquiring such an ability? While your ''television'' was impressive, learning new abilities and magically having them be exactly what you need in less than a month, is absolutely impossible."

    "Normally yes. I get abilities in a different way though. No I won''t say how, I''ve revealed enough as is."

    "That''s fair, and if you think it can be done, then by all means let''s complete the deal with that. A prismatic huh... I''d actually owe you something to even it out."

    We shook hands, ending the negotiations.

    Speaking of abilities, that Janet girl''s bombs had drained twenty percent of her soul and almost half my mana with each one I created. The power was worth it though, that''s for sure. But only having three left is rather disappointing... I''ll need to make sure to save them for emergencies.

    "By the way, I know we''re leaving but I think it''s worth mentioning, I don''t think that Eldritch was responsible for your missing scouts."

    "Yeah... We reached the same conclusion. There''s nothing we can do at this point though. Preserving the life of the remaining citizens comes above all else. Knowing Father, he wants to stay and discover what was responsible, but let me cut you off there, you know we don''t have time for that." Jasper replied.

    "I know that already boy. I also know that the damned wall wasn''t brought down by that Eldritch either. It was most likely The Tengu hoping the Eldritch would attack us. The scouts... Something else was responsible for killing the scouts, I can feel it."

    I''d love to look into it if I had the time. There is nothing I enjoy more than investigating mysteries like that. Although, I do kind of lose interest when I discover what was responsible, but I always finish the job regardless of my feelings on the matter.

    "Oh right, Markus, did the Templars know this was artifact armor? You reset me with the armor still attached after all."

    Markus put down his fork, "Yes, it was known to us the moment we entered the Dawn Realm together. There was a moment of surprise as we were all made aware that we had an observer watching us, but we knew you were not hostile. For starters, Arkaios would have wrapped you in chains and left you to be purged by us next. Also, he diverted some of his lent power to your armor while letting us know you were to assist us, despite not having asked you yet. Our god was certain you''d accept his offer to purge the Demon. Hearing your story, I understand why he believed so."

    I feel bad interrupting his meal, but these people are taking way too long to eat. I devoured both the meat and the stew almost instantly. Although, that''s probably because I was starving for so damn long.

    <hr>

    After Markus finished his meal, he stood up to address the room, "We will be leaving twelve hours from now. The Kitsune had barely unpacked so it won''t take them long to prepare for a return trip to Thule. Will you be staying in Thule, Godwin? Or continuing on to Viseux with the rest of us?"

    "We''re also going to Viseux. Returning Lady Aresa safe and sound was part of our orders."

    "I thought as much. In that case, be sure to stock up in Thule. After a Tengu Lord was locked down we had to leave in a hurry, as per usual for such a mission. However, we''ve never been stuck afterwards in an area that is limited in rations and in a situation where they also must flee. Not to make this sound worse, but the supply caravan that was sent out after us has not checked in yet."

    "How late are they?" Godwin said.

    "Three hours."

    Jasper sighed, "Wonderful. There is a one hundred percent chance those supplies will not be arriving. Also, I hope none of you are considering raiding Kikyou now that its residents are gone. With the amount of time that has passed since the sacrifice, that entire village has to be swarming with monsters."

    "That was never part of the plan. Unfortunately, I have no alternatives to offer up. All we can do is make haste towards Thule. Another supply caravan will be heading out tomorrow which should have a much stronger entourage. Unless something goes terribly wrong, they will meet us around the halfway point." Markus said.

    With the conversation reaching an end point, everyone stood up, filing into the rooms in the back to wash up and rest.

    Hera watched as they dragged the prisoners along towards one of the rooms, then turned to me. "Where are you going to sleep?"

    Hmm... My plan was to sleep on the roof, but it''s obvious that she doesn''t want to sleep alone right now.

    "Wherever you''re heading."

    As I thought, that seemed to brighten her up a little.

    I follow after her as she heads towards a room nobody else entered. Once inside, I see a surprisingly small room with only four beds.

    "Uhh... I saw at least ten or more men entering each room. Are they sleeping shoulder to shoulder on the floor?"

    Hera laughed, "No no, they have rooms of all sizes here. The temples here were the blueprint for the ones in Viseux, they house travelers of the Templars, Guard, or the Inquisitors."

    Inquisitors huh? I never understood why the mercenaries in Xelba were called that. They must''ve ripped the name off from Viseux. No idea why, but who knows what any of those people were thinking.

    As I sit down on the bed in the back left corner of the room, Hera sits down next to me.

    "... You planning to seduce me? This dress must look better on me than I thought."

    Hera rolls her eyes, laying down with her back to me.

    "I haven''t slept while visible in... I don''t even remember the last time. So if you wake up to find me gone, I''m probably still here." I said, laying next to her on my back.

    "You can use abilities while sleeping?"

    "The aura is a little different from how abilities work. Anyways, goodnight Hera."

    "Yeah... Goodnight."

    I was getting ready to turn my core off when Hera spoke up again.

    "... Mom died when I was very young. Dad kept talking about her like she was still there, while Jasper closed himself off completely. Being the daughter of the Guardians founder made it so nobody wanted to approach me, not that I made it any easier for them. But Nisha... She didn''t care at all. When she befriended me my whole world opened up, and she''s also why I decided to join the Guardians despite my Father''s constant whining that I should stay home."

    Hera went silent for awhile, to the point I began to wonder if she fell asleep, but then she continued talking. "We were best friends, I treated her like a sister. I don''t understand... Why wouldn''t she tell me anything? I would have helped her if she asked. I''m sure Father would have helped them out too, maybe even gave them a simple cushy job in the Guardians, or even booked them passage out of here with us. All she had to do was reach out to me..."

    "Maybe that''s why she didn''t? If you truly were that close, bringing you in would have also made you culpable for everything they did. Sounds like she''s going to be around for awhile, a long while, so you''ll have plenty of time to ask her yourself."

    "... Yeah."

    This time she really did go to sleep.

    How I sleep now is very convenient, and I do like how utilitarian it is, but...

    Looking over at Hera, I feel a slight pang of sadness. Knowing it''s something I''ve lost forever, and that with each passing day I forget more and more of what it used to feel like to sleep with a normal body.

    I don''t even dream anymore... Now all I do is tell my body to turn off like this, and it just...

    <hr>

    It is apparently very difficult to keep this body asleep next to someone else. I assume it''s because I lived alone in hostile places for so long, but every little thing wakes me up now. Every time she twitched my core would roar to life as my eyes snapped open. At least going back to sleep is easy for me now...

    "Is it time to leave? I hear quite the commotion outside."

    "Either that or we''re being attacked again, but it doesn''t sound like that at all." Hera said, already on her way out the door.

    Well, time to say goodbye to this place.

    Rolling out of bed, I follow after Hera through the door, where I''m met with an empty hall.

    Weird, it sounded like they were out here? I wonder if this place is designed to enhance sounds from outside for those within. Despite them being outside, I can understand most the conversations going on out there. It''s rather fascinating, I would like to build a home that does this if I ever find a place to settle down. A prospect that is seeming more and more unlikely as my life progresses in a continuously worse direction.

    As I exit the temple, I immediately call out to Markus who was discussing the darkness with Godwin.

    "I can spot most of the threats."

    "What?" Markus replies, baffled.

    "You were worried about the lack of visibility right? I could hear you inside the temple. If I change my eyes a little, I can see heat signatures, so I''ll be able to see anything with body heat approaching us. I won''t be able to see anything without heat obviously, but the number of monsters in that group has been very limited in my experience."

    Markus rubs his chin, "I see, that would help greatly. We were planning on channeling the artifact to release light orbs in the woods around the caravan, but that runs the risk of attracting threats for miles. If you would take the scouting position, we will use minimal lighting on the procession, which should reduce the risk by a substantial amount."

    "Perfect, now this old man will be able to relax for the trip back. Wake me if something needs to be killed." Godwin said, jumping into the nearby caravan and promptly laying down on the bedding inside.

    Markus points to the longest wagon in the group, "You''ll be on top of that one, it''s placed in the middle of the caravan. Also, we need that wagon protected more than the others, so please assist us if something goes wrong and we are occupied."

    "Okay, that won''t be a problem, but I have a request as well. Can you point the crystal lights outward so none of the light is hitting me?"

    "Ahh yes, I remember your... Condition, from our time inside Arkaios'' realm." Markus said, instructing a nearby priest to redirect the lights.

    I completely forgot that when I first entered his realm, he purged my aura with light and it didn''t hurt at all, nor drain any of my mana. I didn''t know it was possible to blast me with light in a painless way, but apparently it is? At least for an old god it''s possible.

    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    As I wait for the priest to fix the lights, I see people filing into wagons all around me. This is moving way faster than I was expecting. It makes sense though, they need to return to civilization as soon as possible... Wait, why are they so low on rations?

    I run up to Jasper, who is checking his wagon for abnormalities. "Jasper, why the hell are they so low on rations already? Didn''t you guys just get here?"

    "Most of the rations came in the Kikyou caravan, which are now lost somewhere in that monster-ridden town. I don''t think you''ve seen it yet, but there is a large partition behind the temple that is walled off, it''s almost as big as the rest of the town combined. The whole area is designed for growing food, it even has the best type of soil that is very hard to find on Urza these days. It lasts sixty to seventy years easily, so it was just waiting to be utilized. I assume you''ve figured out where I''m going with this? The caravan here was filled with farmers meant to revitalize this area, and plenty of peria dust was brought to make the first yields finish in a week. Except, well..." Jasper said, scooping up some snow with his hand.

    So that''s what happened... The weather suddenly dropping by seventy degrees had killed their crops, while removing any chance of planting more at the same time. Xelba grew all their food underground, but I assume that''s not an option here. If it was, they would''ve already done that.

    Off to the side, I see the priest dismounting my wagon, having finished readjusting the lights.

    I say goodbye to Jasper, heading towards the wagon and immediately jumping up onto its roof.

    Laying down in the center, I gaze up at the snow falling down from a pitch black sky, thinking about how the last time I saw snow I was five years old. Soon after that a much darker thought begins to occupy my mind.

    ... Forty-two years. It''s been forty-two... Years.

    Clenching my fists, I begin banging the back of my head against the wagon. My vision distorts as I remember Xelba, Viktor, my unit, and my master.

    This... This isn''t even the same world I knew. At least when I was growing up in the faceless realm, time was passing normally, and I felt like I could one day reunite with my family back on Aetheria. Surely my uncles and aunts would welcome me home with open arms, even if I do look like this now. But forty-two... FORTY-TWO YEARS?! Elves rarely make it to one-hundred years old thanks to the fucking machines, and most of my aunts and uncles were around thirty to fifty years old when I was there last. The chances of them all being dead are much higher than any of them being alive... And then there is Simon and Nera, my only two friends that escaped Xelba. They were heading to Aetheria, but are they still there after forty-two years? I don''t know... I just don''t know anything anymore and it''s maddening.

    ... I need to train. It''s what I did in Xelba to keep my mind clear. Yeah... Every time we stop I''ll train like I used to, that''ll help me. Then I''ll absorb Eldritch until I''m strong enough to go home. If there is nobody left alive when I finally make it home... Well, I''ll at least try to kill Viktor. I''ll probably fail going at it alone, but he thinks I''m dead so I''ve got the element of surprise on my side.

    About thirty excruciatingly long minutes later, The wagons up front begin moving.

    Looks like it''s time... They said it''ll take about two weeks, with us meeting the supply caravan a week from now if nothing goes wrong. The grakkas will need to rest once every three days at the rate we''re moving, so that''ll be the chance I get to recover. I could stay awake the whole two weeks, but I''d really prefer not to do that. If something happens at the end of that two weeks and my core is stressed out, that would be disastrous.

    Picking up the crystal they gave me, I test it out on nearby buildings. A massive directed light fires out from the crystal, reminding me of spotlights back in my world.

    This one is much smaller, but it''ll be perfect for pointing out threats.

    <hr>

    A few hours later, I spot the first threat. It''s small so it shouldn''t be difficult to deal with, but you never really know till the fighting starts.

    I pour a tiny bit of mana into the crystal, lighting it up in the direction of the creature. The reaction from the Guards and Templars was instant.

    "One small threat, it''s coming in fast!! Ten seconds!!" I yell out.

    Five seconds later the light shines off what appears to be armor on a wolf-like creature.

    Ew, thank god I don''t have to fight this. I hate crystal wolves... In the past I punched one so hard its head exploded, but I made a rookie mistake by keeping my eyes open when I did it. One of the shards went directly into my right eye. Even with pain being severely limited on this new body, that still hurt like hell, and it took forever to heal.

    As expected, the ''fight'' was over instantly. One crossbow bolt from a guard penetrated the armor on the creatures skull, while another guard crushed it with a giant mallet.

    Must be one hell of a crossbow to penetrate that things armor.

    I turn the light off as a small hand places itself on the roof to my left. Eventually, the person pulls themself onto the roof, revealing a small girl with pretty blue hair.

    "Isn''t it cold out here? Especially considering how small you are."

    Aresa sits down next to me, holding up her board at me.

    {Bored. Can deal with the cold.}

    She''s shivering an awful lot for someone who can ''deal with it''. There''s one other part that stuck out to me though...

    "Did you write that out before coming here, knowing what I''d ask?"

    She holds the board up again, as words seem to appear on the board out of thin air.

    {No. I can write like this too. Don''t tell the others.}

    "Well that''s new... If you''re going to learn magic like that, why not learn how to tell your soul to fix your throat, or whatever is stopping you from speaking?"

    {I can fix it anytime I want. I have... Reasons, for not doing so.}

    It''s pretty obvious that she doesn''t want to talk about it, and I see no reason to push the subject.

    I enhance my pointer finger, cutting a slit along my forearm. Pulling out a bit of blood at a time, eventually creating a very large cloth mesh with tiny holes on it as Aresa watches me with a rather confused looking face.

    {A fascinating ability, but what are you doing?}

    "Hold on princess, I''m almost finished."

    Next I create six little hardened blocks of blood, and one thin shaft. Putting the wagon with the shaft, I place it between us near my knees, then I throw the cloth on top of it. Next I put the six blocks around us a fair distance away, holding the rest of the cloth down.

    "Pretty cool right? I can change it to any color I want to so it makes for good camo on any makeshift homes I create. Not that color matters right now. Oh, also, pour some mana into the mesh."

    Aresa touches the cloth, and after a few seconds some new words appear on the board.

    {It''s becoming warm... This is amazing! Are you able to make it cold too?}

    "Yes, but I would need to create a new mesh. With this you should stay warm and not get buried in snow. Don''t worry about the lack of vision, I can still see heat through the holes in the mesh."

    Aresa scoots next to me, bringing her knees up to her chest.

    {Invisibility. Camo cloth. No need to breathe. Bodily functions non-existent from what I see, so you make no noise. And finally, no need to sleep I think? Whatever molded you in their image, was probably a predator.}

    A hunter huh... I''ve always thought that as well, so it''s interesting to hear someone else say the same thing. I also steal abilities and eat souls, which makes her guess seem all the more correct.

    {They told me about the other realm, can I see it some time? I was sad I missed out on it.}

    "Sure I don''t mind. I''ll show you the TV too, I bet you''d enjoy having one of those."

    {I would love that... Um, how many people did you see in this other realm? Not many I assume.}

    "Tens of thousands. I wouldn''t be surprised if the number of people over there is in the hundreds of millions. I have no idea of how vast that realm is, and people kept coming over the ocean in corrupted boats to kill other factions in the hopes of feeding those faceless gods to their own."

    {M-Millions?! How?! There can''t possibly be that many transfer rituals going on... And what are ''corrupted boats''?}

    "Like I said, I don''t know how vast that realm is, and I severely doubt anyone else does either. For all we know, any use of chaos magic in the universe invoking transfers could send them to that realm. I think it''s a possibility because I saw multiple races that had nothing in common with anything I''ve seen on the Elven planet nor Urza. They also spoke in languages I''ve never heard before so, I think they were aliens."

    She was horrified at first, but once I said the word ''aliens'' her eyes lit up.

    {Aliens!! I''ve always wondered if there was more life out there... That is so cool!}

    "I''ve never doubted it, but maybe that''s because I''m an Elf? Or no, maybe because of my uncle... He was always bragging about finding data in the ruins that proves humans were from a planet called Earth. So technically you and I are the aliens here. Although, my uncle did seem very... eccentric."

    {This... This is why I so desired to go to the Elven planet. I had plans to, but then, well...}

    "Considering what a friendly and welcoming place Urza is, I''m surprised something bad intervened in your plans."

    Now that made her laugh quite hard. I couldn''t hear it, but the smile on her face says it all.

    "Oh right, the corrupted boats. You first have to understand how corruption works there. Everything is slowly corrupted in a region as a god is being born, but it all goes away once the god dies. Let me explain from the beginning. If you''re in an uncorrupted part of the land, corruption will slowly start to take root, and over time you''ll start to notice the land itself taking on the form of one of the faceless creatures, which gives you a sign of how the new god is going to look, until eventually a god is born. The people in these regions are annoyingly happy when this happens. I really don''t know why, but it brings them to tears that they have their own god, and that''s when their society turns into a military based one. The boats are created through normal means, but then corrupted to take on the form of their god, becoming partly biological in matter. The whole place is rather disgusting, yet somehow I feel nostalgic for it all the time... That''s why my soul realm takes on the form of that realm."

    Aresa looks like she''s about to cry from excitement. Jeez, she is finding this much more interesting than I could have ever imagined.

    I skimmed over a few parts, like how long it takes a new god to be born. They always start off in a broodling stage that the people there need to... Feed. But she''s enjoying this way too much, I don''t want to bog it down by explaining how people under the influence of the broodling will go pillage other villages and cities so they can bring people back as sacrifices.

    {A-And what about the Elves and those ruins?! What have they found there? Do you fight monsters in them too?}

    Now I''m the one laughing, she''s like a little kid. "I was very young at the time so I really don''t know what they normally find. I know my sister was happy about some dresses they bought once from a ruin diving team? Oh, and what my uncle found was apparently a movie from Earth. I don''t remember the name or what it was about though. And finally yes, we fight monsters, but mostly machines."

    {Machines? Machines... The only ones I know are objects like the printing press or that weaving thing.}

    "Well I can guarantee you they aren''t fighting printing presses... These are monsters in mechanical form. My Dad and Uncle would argue constantly over whether they were being produced from something the Earth humans made, or aliens. Don''t ask why my dad thought it was aliens, I can''t remember."

    <hr>

    We talked like that off and on for the entire trip to Thule. Whenever I thought she''d be done asking questions, she''d barrage me with a whole new set. We also met up with the supply caravan just fine and had no major issues with monster attacks, much to everyone''s surprise. Probably because our light was so limited. However, as we got close to Thule, I heard a sound I was very used to hearing back in the village we left.

    "The warning bell huh... Hopefully it''s nothing like what we faced before."

    {They''re letting the caravan through at our usual slow pace, and we''ve heard nothing from either the Guards or Templars. It can''t be that bad.}

    Hmm, that''s true. Godwin would probably be yelling for me if it was an all-hands-on-deck kind of moment.

    Our wagon made its way through the gate, continuing on until it broke off from the rest of the caravan, heading alone towards what looked like a large temple.

    "Oh right, Markus did say this wagon was special."

    {It holds the dawn artifact. It''s what they used to purge The Tengu Lord and Satyr.}

    ... Okay, that''s a little beyond special. It shows how much faith they have in their gods judgement when he declared me an ally. Normally there''s no way in hell an outsider like me should be sitting on something this important, especially since I can turn invisible and steal it.

    "Rei, can you come down for a minute?" Jasper calls out from below.

    "They need help already? That was fast... I guess I''ll see you later for dinner?"

    {Yes I''ll be there. See you soon.} Aresa said, waving as I jump down.

    I walked up to Jasper, who is standing there with another man I don''t recognize.

    "This have something to do with the warning bells?"

    "What the hell is this?" Said the other man.

    "Nice to meet you too asshole."

    "Captain, this helped us back in Kikyou, and had an aura of trust placed on her by Arkaios. Can we continue now?" Jasper said.

    Once Arkaios'' name popped up, the ''captain'' straightened his back, looking at me uneasily.

    "I-I see. Well I''m certainly not one to doubt our savior the Dawn itself. I apologize young lady, now what do you need from us?"

    "What do I need? You two called me here."

    Jasper sighed, "Rei, I know we just arrived and you''ve been on lookout when we were in transit, but I''ll cut down the amount you owe me tremendously if you can help them find the monster wreaking havoc here. Captain, please explain."

    "... Right. Well um, about three weeks ago it turned all dark out you know? And soon after that the beast appeared. No schedule to it, it just appears randomly and eats a family or two, then takes off into the woods. Our trackers say that all the guards chasing after it are ruining the prints, but that makes no sense you know? The monster is huge! How can human feet ruin the prints? Very strange, and it just appeared again an hour ago."

    "Find it Jasper, or kill it? I may be stronger now, but fighting a ''massive'' monster is going to be difficult."

    "You only need to find it. This darkness is impeding the town guards, and apparently the monster is extremely fast for its size."

    "Too fast! So large, yet so fast? Our very own Rickert can''t keep up with it, and he can run faster than a wolf." The captain said.

    "In that case I''ll go take a look right now while the trail is somewhat fresh. Which direction?" I asked, looking at the captain.

    He points past the temple, a little to the right. I begin running down the streets in the direction he pointed. I considered turning on my aura to avoid any problems that Jasper won''t be there to solve, but there are lights everywhere. They''re out in full force right now, and I can''t really blame them. I''d be spooked too if something was hunting the town and nobody seemed to be able to stop it.

    After some time I came upon what I assume is the latest victim''s residence. The half destroyed home and all the blood are kind of a giveaway. The guards look at me sideways as I start to run along the tracks leading away from the home.

    The prints kind of look human? There is however a beastly aspect to them, as shown by the claw marks, and they are indeed quite large. Massive is definitely the right term for whatever this creature is.

    Upon reaching the woods I''m met with what appears to be a fistfight between two of the guards while the others yell at one another. I walk up to one of the men standing away from the crowd, shaking his head while mumbling curses.

    "Interesting tracking technique. Does it usually work for them?"

    "Fucking fools are only good at guarding gates and breaking up bar fights. We need the Guard or Templars to return, and soon." He looks over at me. "Who are you?"

    "If by Guard you mean Godwin''s crew, then they''re here, and so are the Templars. Jasper sent me over here to see if I could track the monster. They''ll probably be coming here soon too." Something tells me they won''t though, but he doesn''t need to know that. I think I know why Jasper was willing to drop the price on this armor, they really don''t want to stay here. I remember Godwin saying they were heading straight for Viseux and with only a few months left till they leave this place forever, they probably need to get a lot of their affairs in order. So the sooner this hunt is over, the quicker we get to move on.

    Hearing Godwin''s name brightened the man up immediately. "Good news for once! I don''t know who you are lady, but by all means, track away. God knows this lot is too busy arguing over who destroyed the tracks again."

    Waving to the man, I continue on my way past the guards who are now rolling around on the snow. It doesn''t take long for me to see why they were arguing.

    "Well this is a hell of a mess... How is this possible?"

    The trees here are unbelievably thick, easily ten to twelve meters wide. As I followed the tracks around the tree, I find a large number of human tracks, but there are no monster tracks to be found anywhere on the ground. There is also no snow here yet because the canopy is blanketing the entire forest. Even for me it''s not easy to see tracks on the hard ground in this darkness, but still, I should see something.

    Hmm... That means it either jumped, or climbed the trees?

    Scanning the tree, I see no obvious signs of damage anywhere. Reaching out to rip some bark off proves to be surprisingly difficult too.

    I still can''t rule it out, but my instincts are telling me it didn''t climb these trees. So that leaves a few other options, like warping, but that''s way too rare for me to run into again so soon.

    Also... Something about these tracks is really bugging me. They look haphazard to the point of appearing deliberate.

    Focusing hard, I can''t find a rhyme or reason to any of them. Well, I can''t deny that there are guards here who will apparently fight each other while tracking a monster. Geniuses of that level could easily create such a pointless series of tracks... Ah!

    I finally see something out of place.

    Moving around the tree, opposite of the side where I and the guards had rounded the tree, I see an almost imperceptible set of human tracks. Even I can barely make them out.

    I follow after them as they round the tree, heading back towards the village. One major difference on this side of the tree makes itself apparent immediately. There is a long row of tall bushes that would make it impossible to see anyone out here from the village side, and vice versa.

    I swear I can see something on the right heel of these prints too, but it''s too damn dark to make out.

    After walking this way for about thirty meters, they cut off into the bushes. Pushing the bushes aside, I see the backside of a home with no lights present, and a clear view of human footprints halfway to the home where snow has begun to accumulate. Lastly, I can see a small red blotch in the right heel of the snow prints.

    ... Well this just became far more interesting than I was originally expecting. Jasper better settle in, I don''t think this is the kind of hunt that will be solved in one night.

 Chapter 12 - Tempest

    Slightly turning the handle, I''m immediately met with resistance.

    As expected, the damn thing is locked. Asking those guards back there for help is not even a viable option, and smashing this door down is also something I don''t want to consider. It''s best if the killer doesn''t know that anyone is on their trail. The shutters are closed too, although that one makes sense whether a killer walked through here or not.

    Rounding around the side of the home, I''m once again met with a brightly lit street.

    Yeah... No way I''ll be able to use my aura in this town. What a pain in the ass.

    Peeking around the corner, I see there are footprints leaving the front of the home, but there are no blotches of blood anymore.

    They probably cleaned up inside. I need to talk to Jasper, someone here must have a master key to this place. Worst case scenario I could jump down through the chimney but... Ugh, I really don''t want to do that. The last time I did that I got stuck because the craftsmen made the bottom half smaller.

    A bright flash appears from far off to the other side of the village, followed by a loud boom.

    Thunder huh? I didn''t know it could thunder while snowing, but maybe I forgot that part of my childhood? I swear the first time I heard thunder was in Xelba... Eh, I must be remembering wrong.

    Also, I found it odd that nobody was around despite the fact that this place was brightly lit, but now I see the eyes peeking out at me through one pair of barely opened shutters.

    I walk up to the home across the street from this one, calling out to the lady peering out at me.

    "Miss, did you see who exited this home?"

    The shutters are instantly closed.

    "Good talk, thanks."

    That went about as well as I expected, but I guess I can''t blame her. There is a monster eating people here, and then some weird girl with white hair and red eyes appears at the edge of town asking her questions. Speaking of which, why are there no walls protecting them from the forest side of town? People like the lady living here will be the first ones attacked, and despite that obvious fact, I don''t see any watchtowers either... This is all very bizarre. Who the hell leaves their most vulnerable part of town wide open? While I really need to convene with Jasper to ask him about this, I''m going to keep following the prints for now.

    Analyzing the prints as I follow them, all I learn is that they are the same kind of medium-sized boots all villagers everywhere wear. Not that I had much hope for the killer owning a higher-quality boot with a unique tread, but that would have made things much easier if they did. At least I know the size so I can narrow it down a little... Better than nothing.

    Eventually the prints come out to one of the main streets that has both villagers and guards running around with torches in hand. Even the villagers are fully equipped, must have been a call to arms since all the true Guards were gone.

    Well, this is far as I can track him. The whole street has been stomped so much that the snow is nearly nonexistent, so no more prints. Nothing more I can do here, looks like it''s time to go meet up with Jasper.

    <hr>

    "Find anything girl?" Godwin asked as I enter the temple. He''s seated across from Jasper, with no one else in sight.

    "Just you two? Also yeah, I found something alright. Not sure you''re going to like it though."

    "Oh how fucking wonderful, more problems." Godwin throws his hands up in the air.

    "... Did something happen?"

    "The wagon''s wheels are in dire need of repairs. The ice wasn''t thick enough, so the wagons in front kept breaking through, forced to grind through it until they went back up, repeating like that until we met the supply caravan. Most of the wheels used in these parts aren''t designed for rough roads. Also, all of the good carriages that were in storage are missing." Jasper replied.

    "Missing? You mean they were stolen. Which sounds bad by itself, but can''t you just replace the wheels and keep going?"

    "Normally yes. However..." Jasper sighs.

    "Those are gone too. The carriages, the wheels, most of the fucking supplies. That prick of a mayor is responsible, I can feel it. I told you we should have cut his legs off and strung him up as a warning!" Godwin yells.

    "... That aside, what did you find?" Jasper said.

    "I followed the monster''s prints behind a tree, where they disappeared into a sea of human prints. However, I found a lone pair of human prints walking along the hedges until they entered the back of a home. Additionally, that home was one of the only places I''ve seen without any lights activated. The tracks also had a blotch of blood on their right heel."

    "You... Wait, hang on." Jasper put his head in his hands. "Are you suggesting that this reportedly massive monster turned into a human, and is hiding its presence inside of town?"

    "That''s exactly what I''m saying."

    "Now that''s a new one... Even for me." Godwin rubbed his chin.

    The doors in the back of the temple open up, revealing Markus and Aresa as they begin walking this way.

    "I heard that and all your bitching Godwin, what are your plans? This is no longer Templar business, but I''ll aid where I can until we are able to leave. The rest of my unit needs to continue praying to the artifact, so it''s only me for now."

    "Simple. I''m going to hack parts off of the Mayor till he tells us where he is hiding my wagons and supplies. Those belong to the Guardians, not that corrupt shitbag."

    "Are you certain? Such a choice will have vast ramifications. You may even lose your position as one of the three heads of the Guardians. If you''re planning to retire, then I suppose this isn''t a bad way to go out. It will help us greatly, so I''ll just pretend I didn''t see anything. Without those wagons, parts, and supplies, I think we''re stuck here till Viseux can send a procession out." Markus replied.

    I lean over, whispering to Jasper, "Guardians?"

    "The Guardian Guild, created back when Viseux was first established. They have branches in all the main towns. The Templars are trained with the Guardians in the same location. With their mana levels and abilities, they are far stronger than the average town guard. Needless to say, they are necessary for problems such as this monster. Villagers won''t be able to handle such a beast. We took all the Guardians with us to establish the Kitsune''s new home, believing Thule would be fine till we could return, but, well... That was wishful thinking apparently."

    Branches from the tree outside began scraping along the window as another blast of thunder rings out, making Aresa jump in surprise.

    "The wind is picking up hard out there... I''ve never seen branches from that tree scrape the Temple before. Nor have I ever seen snow before now for that matter. Multiple firsts in a row for a forty-eight year old man, I don''t like the implications." Markus said.

    *tap tap*

    As usual, everyone looks at Aresa.

    {I can feel something out there. Far away, where the lightning is occurring, there is... Something.}

    "Can you be a little more specific Lady Aresa?" Godwin said.

    {No, I''m sorry. All I know is that I feel the strong pulse of ether from it.}

    "Ether..." Markus said, his face taking on a grave tone.

    Only Eldritch and Demons use ether. Everyone else takes ether from the air and turns it into mana, but beings from the other realms use ether. Although a few demons like Satyrs use mana for some reason, not sure what that''s about.

    "It could be an ether storm, which would explain the lightning. I''ve never seen one before but with how crazy the weather is right now, I wouldn''t be surprised if ether is running wild on the southern parts of Urza that are buried under these dark clouds." Jasper said.

    {... Maybe.}

    Aresa held the board up, not looking convinced at all.

    "Alright, we''re heading to the guild. The branch managers office on the third floor is almost entirely glass on the side you''re sensing the ether from. We can eat there while keeping an eye on this ''storm''." Godwin said, standing up and immediately walking out of the temple.

    Everyone else followed suit, including me. Although I waited for Aresa to go ahead so I could line up behind her, it''s not safe for her to be in the back of the line right now with that unknown monster in town. It seems Markus had the same idea since he''s now walking behind me.

    Upon walking outside, I''m genuinely surprised at how strong the wind is. Everyone is pushing through it just fine, but Aresa is having a hard time with all the snow blowing into her face.

    As quick as I can, I pull some blood out and create a medium-sized cloth with it, holding it in front of her face, "Here, hold this for now. I''ll make it into an umbrella or something later."

    She grabs the cloth, holding it out in front of her as I put my hands on her shoulders to steer her. There are no holes in that cloth after all, but it''s not like she could see before, so now she''s at least not being pelted in the face with snow.

    Thankfully it didn''t take long to reach the guild, possibly because everyone was going out of their way to avoid our group.

    Once inside, Godwin headed straight for the stairs, while the rest of us shook off the snow first. The man at the counter looked quite annoyed that Godwin was getting snow everywhere, but I''m guessing he can''t say anything to him since he''s one of the guild''s leaders.

    Aresa held the board up past her nose, so I could only see her eyes. {Umbrella?}

    "Don''t worry, I''ll make it before you need to go back out there." I said, ruffling her hair to get the snow out.

    After removing all the snow, we followed after Godwin up the stairs, passing by most of the men in his unit, along with plenty of villagers drinking beer and eating dinner. These guilds must also operate as taverns? Makes sense, this is probably the safest place in town to drink and relax.

    The end of the stairs on the third floor leads directly to a door. Jasper walks inside, revealing Godwin who is already lounging on the couch in his underwear.

    "... By all means, make yourself at home Father."

    "Bah! I''m old, tired, and wet from the snow. Let me relax when I can. Besides, Lady Aresa doesn''t mind, right?"

    Aresa seemed more bothered by the question than his appearance. She looked back at me for help.

    "I''m used to it, most of my unit sat around in their underwear. It was really hot in Xelba after all, not that it meant anything to me."

    Markus scoffed, "The ladies aside, I am disgusted by this. Disgusting old fool, don''t make me witness such a sight in this already bleak environment."

    As the two begin bickering, I can''t help but marvel at everything around me.

    This room is huge... What the hell kind of benefits do you get for being a branch manager for a supposed defense force? Godwin nor Jasper seem like the corruptible type, but having an entire third floor to yourself filled with way too many expensive looking objects just screams corruption. Like that candle-holder over there, is that entirely made of gold?!

    "Where is the branch manager? Who from all appearances is five hundred times richer than anyone else I''ve seen since waking up here." I ask, sitting down in a gilded rocking chair.

    "Dead. I cut his hands off and strung his ass up to one of those giga-trees out back. He did some unsanctioned... remodeling. This third floor used to be the war room as it is in all guardian guilds. The mayor is next after we weather whatever storm is coming our way." Godwin said.

    Ahh... Well, that explains it.

    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    "Speaking of those trees, why are there no walls back there? No watchtowers either."

    "Thule was the trading post between the Kitsune and the rest of Urza, excluding the Crotia and Xelba of course. The Kitsune god created the forest for Thule as a sign of friendship. The peanuts everyone on Urza eats are made from seeds that fall off those trees. Also, no monsters dare approach the forest, for reasons unknown. You''d have to ask the creator, who has been dead for a very long time now." Jasper said.

    "I see, thank you. That answers both my questions. On another note, if something really does attack Thule, then I''m going to focus on the monster in town. It''s going to be difficult for me to take it out alone, although I''m basing this entirely off the size of the creature; it may in fact be weak but I severely doubt it will be. Anyways, it''s best I search for the beast which will most likely take advantage of all the chaos in town. It might even attack you from behind if you have to defend the town from whatever is creating that storm."

    "I agree, but in all honestly, I''m hoping it stays dormant. However, as you say, there''s a good chance it won''t." Markus said.

    Aresa sits down on the main desk next to me.

    {Need help?}

    "It would be difficult for me to protect you and fight a speedy large monster, even with you feeding me mana. People can only enhance themselves so far and it would only protect me... I know you have a powerful barrier, but I''m better off alone in this case."

    {I know. Figured I''d ask just in case.}

    "Instead, I would ask for your assistance once more Lady Aresa. If it comes to that, we''re going to need all the help we can get. None of the Templars or Bishops can assist us right now. Stopping the prayer will only be allowed if we''re all about to die. We can''t halt the chant mid-prayer, all the ether will be lost. Not to mention how exhausted all my men will be if they''re forced to stop before the artifact is full." Markus said.

    {I understand, but um, are we expecting any help?}

    "I sent a message to Viseux requesting assistance when we met up with the supply caravan a week ago. The leader of the caravan told me how bad things were in Thule, and that we should prepare for the worst. Supposedly the Ifrit Legion is coming to escort us. I have no idea why Northerners would pretend to care about us, but even if they are coming, there is no way of knowing when they''ll show up. We have no way of communicating with one of their detachments after all." Markus said.

    "The hell? Why was I not informed of this? I would have posted someone on the northern towers to watch for any approaching lights. God knows the local guard won''t notice till the legion is already inside the damned town." Godwin said.

    "You told us not to bother you under any circumstances you decrepit fool!! Can''t remember shit, can''t be bothered to even keep your clothes on. Retire already and save the rest of us from having to deal with you. Ready to become a master Jasper? I''ll put in a good word for you if your Father retires immediately upon returning to Viseux."

    "Hmm... I''ll think about it." Jasper replied.

    Yeah, that isn''t gonna happen. Well, the retiring part will, but that''s only because their whole family is leaving Urza. I guess Markus wasn''t told about that. I was probably only told because of how much money I owe Jasper.

    Thank god Aresa maxed out the mana on the armor on our way here. I have a feeling that very soon I''m going to need every advantage I can get.

    Multiple flashes of sheet lightning occur in the distance, brightening up the distant land for a few seconds.

    "... Just out of curiosity Markus, is there any way the Dawn god can assist you right now?"

    "It is impossible. The prayer must be completed first, along with the much needed rest my men will need afterward. As it is now, our god can only watch as we die in the next couple of hours."

    "Normally I''d berate you for a low-morale inducing statement like that, but..." Godwin trailed off, eyes fixated on the distant landscape.

    "I''m going to assume everyone here saw that then?" Jasper said.

    "How could we not... It was much taller than any of the trees out there. Any ideas on what it is?"

    {Its head looked like a cobra.}

    "Most likely an Eldritch, but how can one of that size appear out of nowhere? While size may not be everything, it''s still a good indicator of how powerful an Eldritch god might be. It''s impossible for one that big to remain unknown until now..." Jasper said.

    "I haven''t asked yet, but what did the ''massive'' monster in town look like? Did it look reptilian?"

    "I know where you''re going with this, but sadly, it was not lizard-like in nature. The monster in town had the appearance of a wolf standing upright with long, lanky arms." Jasper replied.

    "We also don''t know if it really is reptilian yet. That aside, I''m going to say it outright for clarity sake, we can''t beat an Eldritch that powerful with the forces at our disposal." Godwin said.

    "Rei, are you able to make others invisible as well?" Markus asked.

    "I can. However, it''s not easy. My aura is designed to wrap around my body, since it''s what my soul is attuned to. Extending it out is honestly difficult and even the tiniest amount of light can fracture it. It also begins draining my mana as well, which is something I can''t afford right now. Why do you ask?"

    "I was hoping, as a worst case scenario mind you, that you would take Lady Aresa and keep her safe somewhere else until help arrives."

    "... I don''t want to abandon you all here, but if it comes down to it I can grab her and hide in the forest, slowly making our way North to Viseux."

    {T-That''s...}

    Aresa bites her lip, clearly not happy with the direction this conversation is going.

    {... Last resort only, okay? I mean it! The last resort!!}

    One by one, lights outside are doused, leaving only the crystal lights to illuminate the village.

    "It''s looking more and more like that''s the only option I''m afraid... God damnit, I was almost free of this wretched place." Godwin said, making Markus raise an eyebrow.

    "The wind is so powerful that even the magic torches couldn''t withstand it. That another first for you, Markus?" Jasper asked.

    "Yes..." Markus sighed, then continued. "What''s the plan here leader?"

    Godwin pointed at his son, "Jasper, tell Hera to use her ability to launch some flares as far as she can in the direction of that Eldritch. Assuming this fucking town even has any left that weren''t pilfered and sold that is. Tell her to use over one hundred, pepper the open field so we can see anything coming."

    "I don''t remember flares lasting very long though? Is she going to do that every ten to fifteen minutes?"

    "Huh...? Oh, I see where you''re confused Rei. The flares we based our designs off of were bought from your parents I assume. The ones we use now are much larger and run off of the lapis crystals inside of them, packed with mana. They''ll last for hours." Jasper replied, then continued. "Alright Father, I''ll go find her now. She was asleep in the Temple so odds are she''s still there."

    Jasper turns around, heading straight out the door. The sounds of his boots hitting the stairs echo out shortly after.

    "I''m going to get to work on that wolf. Try to stay alive you three."

    "How exactly do you plan on doing that? It could be anyone here. What do you have to go on?" Godwin asked.

    "Medium-sized men''s boots with the basic tread is all for now. So I''m going to go over the victims list, see if there is something that ties them all together. It may turn into a monster, but there''s a human element to it now. I won''t deny that it could be eating whatever it can get its hands on. Alas, it''s still best to see if it had a reason for eating those specific people."

    {Can I help?!}

    "You can help out with the beginning if you want? All I''m doing is going downstairs to get records of the incident and deceased. The guild will have that information right, Godwin?"

    "... It should? Normally it would anyway. But who knows what the fucking tool of a branch manager had screwed up in my absence. The day-to-day side of things might be utterly ruined for all I know. I had planned on looking into it after the Kitsune were settled in... As you can see, I''ve had no time for such duties."

    "In that case, go ahead Lady Aresa. We''ll have to pass by the main hall on the way out the door, so if you''re still working at the time, we won''t have to go searching for you. Get some food while you''re at it. You know, the meals Godwin promised us that are nowhere to be seen." Markus said.

    "Fuck off, I ordered them as I passed the second floor. It''s not my fault they aren''t here yet."

    "And what is my last meal to be?"

    "Burger and fries for all. Not a bad last meal I''d say."

    "It''s not actually..." Markus looked over at me. "When the food arrives, we''ll have yours sent down."

    "Thank you for that." I said, walking towards the door.

    The small pitter-patter of Aresa''s feet can be heard behind me.

    "Do you not wear shoes?"

    {No need. It looks like skin, but there are small scales covering my feet.}

    "So they don''t get cold either?"

    {They didn''t, till now. It''s not that bad, but the cold outside does get to them. Although the rest of my body struggles more against the cold, so my feet are the least of my concerns out there.}

    As we reach the second floor, two servants head our way with a massive plate full of burgers and fries.

    "Perfect timing! Some of those are for us." I said, stopping the servants.

    They didn''t question it, handing us a few plates. I assume because they had seen us descend from the third floor.

    On the way to the first floor I see all the hunters here wearing apprehensive expressions as they gaze outside. Even without Godwin saying anything, they all know what is coming next, it was hard to miss that massive silhouette after all. It must have been at least three hundred feet tall.

    After reaching the ground floor, I take us to an open booth and immediately bury my food in salt. It''s caked in so many white crystals that it has Aresa staring at me open-mouthed.

    {Isn''t that too much?! Does your body need salt that badly??}

    "No idea if it needs it, I just love salt. What I do need is a lot of meat. I''m going to ask Godwin after this if I can order a few dozen burgers with some fries. With that, I won''t need to eat for about a week."

    {Glutton.}

    "I won''t deny it." I said, looking over at my plain water. "... I miss soda so much. No matter how much time passes, I always think about those delicious drinks every time I eat."

    {I read about that in one of the books your family sold to me! They were bringing a machine to ''create bubbles'' in liquid on their last trip. It''s one of the items I ordered from them.}

    "Wait, you did business with my family?"

    That was how many years ago now? Fifty? Sixty?

    {Ah...}

    Aresa looks down awkwardly.

    "Hmm... I''m guessing you didn''t want me to know that? It''s normal for hybrids to live long lives though, depending on the Eldritch god they were created from. Hell, the oldest Elf was one-hundred and fifty-seven before he died, but it wasn''t because of old age. We still don''t know how long Elves can live because of how often we die in combat with the machines."

    {No, that''s not it... I felt bad keeping it from you that I met your parents twice. When Jasper told me about where you were from, I immediately remembered your sister bragging about how she had the cutest little sister ever. They said you would be coming with next time. I was going to ask if I could leave with them when they came back, but I wouldn''t have been able to go even if they did show up. Someone betrayed me, and then I ended up in this body, so...}

    In this body?

    The door to the guild blows open, allowing a large amount of snow to blow into the hall, followed by a sharp decrease in temperature. The men in booths nearest to the door run over, slamming it closed and placing an axe through the handle so it won''t open again.

    "... An umbrella by itself isn''t going to cut it. I''m going to make you a full cloth armor with the umbrella attached to the back, that work for you?"

    {Yes!! Will the umbrella warm up too?}

    "It can if you want, but that will lead to snow turning to water and dripping on you. We had that problem back on the wagon, remember? It''s why I had to change the netting above us to be solid so it would run off elsewhere."

    {That''s fine. Please do it that way.}

    "Alright princess, then go get the papers I need while I get started on this. Ask for information regarding the slain villagers and the incident reports."

    {I-Incident reports, and information... Got it.}

    Aresa tensed up, standing from her chair and heading over towards the counter.

    I wasn''t expecting her to get that nervous over such a simple request. It''s kind of cute in a way.

    A few minutes later she returned with a whole one sheet of paper.

    "... That''s it?"

    {Yes?}

    This is off to a great start.

    "... Alright, put it in front of me please."

    Aresa placed the paper on the table, then sat down to continue her meal.

    I keep working on her outfit while reading the paper in front of me.

    Tammy Yulsif(Wife) - Deceased - April 17th, Early morning.

    Cause of Death - Lacerations to the throat. Torso was devoured after death.

    Gregory Yulsif(Husband) - Deceased - April 17th, Early morning.

    Cause of Death - Decapitation. Head was ripped off. Body crushed after death.

    -----------------------------------------------

    Sarah Frederickson(Wife) - Deceased - April 21st, Early morning.

    Cause of Death - Devoured alive.

    Vinny Frederickson(Husband) - Deceased - April 21st, Early morning.

    Cause of Death - Decapitation. Head was ripped off. Body crushed after death.

    Lina Frederickson(Daughter) - Alive.

    Victim said the Wolf had looked right at her. It immediately stopped eating her mother and fled the scene.

    -----------------------------------------------

    "A shame the deaths from earlier aren''t included, but that can''t be helped. Also, this information is too bare bones, nowhere near enough what I need... Hmm, do you happen to know where the Mayor''s building is?"

    Aresa shakes her head, taking another bite out of her burger.

    Fifteen minutes later I can see a bunch of bright red lights fly into the sky outside.

    Those are the flares huh? They''re definitely way brighter than the ones my Uncle showed me.

    One of the warriors removes the axe from the door, allowing Jasper back into the guild. Upon spotting us he walks directly up to our booth.

    "The flares are being launched now. You getting ready to leave?" Jasper said.

    "Yeah, I need to find the Mayor''s building. The information here is lacking too much, I need to know more about the victims. Family trees, known associates, etc."

    "The Town Hall? Go six streets past the Temple, you can''t miss it. It''s the biggest building in the village. I doubt it''s open, nor would they allow you entry to the records, but I assume that won''t be a problem for you."

    Indeed, it won''t be a problem at all.

    Godwin comes jogging down the steps, fully geared again. Markus trails after him. They both head to our booth.

    "Between the lightning and the flares, we''ve already caught sight of spawn heading our way. The fuckers are tall, and they look armed. This shit just keeps getting more and more confusing." Godwin said.

    Armed spawn, that is definitely not good... It shows the Eldritch has a decent level of intelligence. While the spider may have planned for the Satyr, it was still on a basic monster level of instinct. The kind of Eldritch that arms its spawn, would have enacted a way better counter strategy against the Satyr. That also gives credence to Godwin''s confusion and the conversation they were having earlier. It''s impossible for a powerful and intelligent Eldritch to have hidden away like this without trying to make itself known beforehand. They aren''t known to be passive and friendly, aside from the ones that create hybrids and try to make their own nations, like the Kitsune god.

    "I hope you lot are full, because this is going to be one hell of a long night." Godwin said.

    "I haven''t eaten yet. Give me a few, I''ll catch up to you outside." Jasper said, heading for the second floor.

    "GET READY MEN, YOU KNOW THE DRILL!! WE''RE HEADING OUT IN FIVE!!!" Godwin yelled.

    Warriors of the Guild stood up at the same time, checking their equipment one last time. To my surprise, the villagers also did the same.

    They''re going to be assisting?

    "There''s no other choice, I''m going to have to stop the prayer... I''ll meet you back in the fields in a little while." Markus said, heading for the door.

    I looked over at Aresa, who was wiping her mouth clean after finishing her meal.

    "I completed your armor, but it was made in haste so it''s not the best. It should keep you warm though. Think of it like warm chainmail... Except it''s cloth."

    Aresa excitedly stands up, pulling the one-piece over her head. The umbrella shaft is locked into the back of the dress, so it''s hovering above her head one foot up.

    "The shaft and umbrella might be a bit heavy, I needed to make something strong to withstand the wind."

    {Yeah I''m wobbling a little. Even so, I love it, thank you!!}

    "Well shit, I didn''t know you could do that? This is one hell of a lifeline for her. The Lady needs warmth more than humans do, so I was worried about her being out there."

    Oh, that explains why she was so happy about the warm cloth back on the wagon, and this new outfit as well. Honestly, I was a little weirded out that she was so excited about wearing cloth made from my blood, but now it all makes sense. She''s apparently been freezing this whole time.

    "Hang on, didn''t you say that you could ''deal with the cold'' back when you first climbed the wagon?"

    {Lied. I hate the cold. I heard about you being Nel''s daughter and wanted to talk to you sooner rather than later.}

    A series of lightning bolts streak across the sky, revealing a barely visible dome covering the village and extending outwards towards the Eldritch miles away.

    "You see that dome? It must have extended its domain to us."

    {I didn''t see it. My eyes were closed though, sorry.}

    "Me either, but I believe you with those eyes of yours. That means it''s attacking us in earnest, and not as something it felt like destroying on its way to somewhere else." Godwin said.

    Looks like that seals it, the Eldritch is coming here in full force. Godwin was right, this is going to be a very long night...

 Chapter 13 - Tracking

    "Good luck you two, if I''m able to find and kill the monster here, I''ll go scout out the Eldritch to see what we''re dealing with. Hopefully it''s not the type that can see me through my veil. Speaking of which..." I look at Aresa. "You can see me when I''m invisible, can''t you?"

    {I can... Kind of. You''re talking about before we met, in the tent, right? I only felt your presence when you were right behind me. It was this sickly ominous feeling that made me look back. I couldn''t see anything so I figured the fatigue and cold were getting to me. At least, that''s what I thought until I met you, then I recognized the eerie aura exuding from your soul.}

    Sickly ominous... I always wondered if those Eldritch from the past could straight up see me, or only vaguely sensed me. It''s nice to have some clarification on the matter. It also raises some more questions as to what Aresa is, but I''ll leave that be. Frankly, I''m not sure I even care what she is.

    "I see, thank you for telling me."

    Aresa smiles and waves at me, following after Godwin as he heads out the door. All of the guild falls in line, leaving one by one till I''m the only one left in here.

    Even the guy manning the desk and the cooks on the second floor had left as well. They were all fully equipped... This is a big culture shock for me. Half the people in Xelba just hid in their homes when I began killing everyone. Not that a measly wooden door had stopped me from making sure I ended every single one of them.

    The smell of meat from the second floor had intensified since I came down here, they must have made as many meals as they could before leaving, so there would be food waiting for those who had survived.

    ....... Hmm, should I?

    ... Yeah, I''ll go take a look and only eat enough to keep myself satiated for about a week.

    Running upstairs and into the kitchen, I see a mountain of burgers thrown haphazardly onto the main table in the center of the room.

    They were clearly in a hurry. The cheese was melted separately and just thrown onto the table as is. It''s impressive they managed to do all of this and still have enough stamina to go battle the spawn.

    I chomped down on a dozen burgers as fast as I could, then ran downstairs and out the door that had apparently blown open again. Creating a quick string of black blood, I tie the door closed in the hopes it''ll hold till this night is over.

    Assuming we even live, these people are gonna need warm places to return to.

    Looking around the large square where the guild is located, I only see a few people left, who are struggling to even stay upright. The winds are so strong that even I am having a hard time preventing myself from falling over.

    Running back towards the temple with the wind on my back, I sadly find myself face planting into the snow several times before reaching my destination.

    Holy shit it is hard to run with that much wind pushing you from behind...

    Alright, he said six streets past the temple, and from the looks of it I see one long back alley that goes straight for awhile, maybe the entire way if I''m lucky. This should be much easier with buildings on the left guarding me from the wind.

    And sure enough, running through the alleys was quite easy. aside from the intersections where I''d be hit with an avalanche of wind and snow again.

    The alley ends facing an enormous building with a tall metal fence around it.

    Well that''s convenient, this must be it.

    Wasting no time, I run up to the fence, jumping over it, and immediately punching through the doors lock, destroying it completely.

    As I walk inside, a shrill scream echoes out. Near the main counter I see a girl duck and hide beneath it.

    So there was someone left huh? That makes this easier actually.

    Dashing over to the counter, I jump over it and squat down in front of the girl.

    "Calm down beautiful, I''m not here to hurt you, I need your help with something."

    "My help...? P-Please leave!! The guards will have heard you smashing the door, they''ll be coming to help soon!!"

    "No one is coming, you know that. With an Eldritch attacking, a monster in the streets, and this crazy weather, nobody heard a fucking thing. Now stop your whining and calm yourself. I''m trying to track the monster down, so point me to where the records are on the victims of the creature."

    "... Huh? What would..."

    "I understand your confusion, but I don''t have time for this. The monster turned into a human and is somewhere inside of this village, now find the damn papers for me."

    Slowly, I could see the confusion on her face dissipate into acceptance, although she didn''t look entirely convinced, which is understandable.

    "... Okay, um, the Yulsif and Frederickson families, correct? There is also the Cedar family that was killed earlier."

    "Perfect, I didn''t know the names of the latest victims, they weren''t in the guild logs yet."

    "Y-Yes, they need a day or two to gather information. I''ll go gather their personal information now." She said.

    It''s obvious she doesn''t believe me and is only helping to get me out of here, but that''s fine. I''m not here to make friends after all.

    A few minutes later she came back from a nearby room, carrying a binder with her.

    "Here you go..." She said, placing the binder on the counter, flipping to the page concerning the Yulsifs.

    Hmm... Glancing through this, it appears Gregory had a logging business. In that ''sacred forest'' there is a grove where trees regrow once a year, and they are dried out within days of being cut down. He had the rights to half of the grove, but there were disputes from the other half, saying they should own the entire thing because of some arbitrary reasons not worth reading.

    "Okay, Fredericksons please."

    The girl flips a few pages back.

    ... This, is honestly surprising. While I had hoped there would be a connection, I can''t say I had much hope there actually would be one.

    "So the Fredericksons owned the other half of the grove huh..."

    The girl tilts her head, then looks down at the binder to read the families background. After she''s done, she flips back to the Yulsifs, skimming the info before looking up at me with the same confused face as earlier.

    "I don''t understand... I see the connection, but how could any of this be related to a monster? I''ve never heard of people turning into monsters before..."

    "I have never met one before now either, there''s a first for everything though. Now flip to the Cedar''s page please."

    A massive explosion rings out in the distance, shaking the entire building. The girl immediately screams and hides under the table, cradling her head as she rocks back and forth. I grab the girl, dragging her onto the chair and pushing her up to the counter.

    "Look, I get it, you appear to be very young so everything going on is probably terrifying you to your core, but I need you to focus! There is going to be way more explosions than just that one over the next twelve or so hours, so you''re going to have to get used to it. With that said, please find me the Cedar families papers so I can at the very least deal with the monster that''s already inside of the village."

    The girl meekly nods with tears in the corner of her eyes, then flips the binder to the very last page.

    ... And there it is, the Cedar family was the new ''owner'' of the grove. They are also a new resident that somehow got the rights to the grove within one week of moving in...?

    "Is it normal for new citizens to own very lucrative resource areas that the rest of the town would kill to have?"

    "No... Outsiders would be killed for doing such a thing. I-It''s just that... This is all very strange. I''ve only worked here six months, but I''ve never heard of this ''grove''? All business goes through this hall. My mom is the main attendant, and she also never once mentioned trees that grow to their full size in one year."

    Strange indeed. Magical trees is something people would openly brag about their village having the rights to, and yet...

    "Thanks for the help girl, I have what I need. I''d ask where this grove is, but since you didn''t even know it existed till now, I assume you also don''t know how I could find it."

    "I might? Just because the attendants don''t know of it, doesn''t mean it isn''t in the files somewhere. I would need time to find it though."

    "Time I don''t have sadly. Thanks for the offer though, now go hide in the basement if there is one, there''s no telling how this night is going to end."

    The girl nods, then runs off towards one of the side doors, which I assume leads downstairs.

    ... Okay then, it may end up being a waste of time checking out this grove, but I need to see it first to know for sure. I just need to find the prints of the loggers and it''ll be easy to locate from there.

    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    Running back outside, I turn and dash off towards the forest, doing my best not to face plant again.

    Upon passing the treeline, I feel the strange sensation of passing through to another realm.

    "So the domain ends at the treeline? Looks like it even protects against Eldritch."

    It''s also much colder outside of the Eldritch''s domain. He must be heating up the area around him to match its own climate.

    Right... They are cold-blooded. The Eldritch must be burning through ether right now just keeping the spawn warm and alive.

    A few minutes later I finally find a massive procession of tracks heading deeper into the forest. Activating my aura and enhancing my legs, I dash in the same direction the tracks are moving.

    <hr>

    Eventually I find the grove, and also something else that wasn''t mentioned in the papers. At the center of the grove there is the remnants of a village. I say remnants because what was here, is now completely charred. Here and there I see skeletons littering the ground with most of them having bones broken in different locations.

    Not hard to figure out what happened here... Also, the skulls have two little protrusions on the cranium that human skulls don''t have.

    "Kitsune again... They really can''t catch a break."

    Hmm... A monster in the shape of a wolf huh? Kitsune are hybrids from an Eldritch, so it wouldn''t surprise me if they had a few secrets that only they know. I never thought about it before now, but I never did hear what the Kitsune''s Lords were. A ''massive wolf'' sounds like it would... No wait, that''s not right at all. The Kitsune are foxes in nature, not wolves. However, I think they would have the same skull pattern for their ears, so could this be...?

    Looking around the village, I can''t tell much more besides the fact that this village was self-sustaining. It probably housed about a thousand people, who are now scattered around the village as corpses that were picked clean a long time ago. I see a few skeletons that are hugging a much smaller one, trying to defend it with their own body.

    Well... If the ''monster'' is merely out for revenge and nothing more, then I see no reason to stop him. The monster ran away once the daughter of the Frederickson''s witnessed them eating her parents. He could''ve easily killed her too, but he didn''t. So that gives me hope that I won''t have to fight him. The sooner I can help with the Eldritch, the better.

    I cut little slits along the top of my hands, clenching them into fists as blood slowly oozes out.

    Gradually the blood hardens around my hand, forming a thin layer of blackened armor.

    Perfect. These gauntlets channel mana well, so I should have enough strength to damage the creature. At max enhancement, I can probably throw out two or three punches before I need to hide. Half a minute should be enough to regain my mana, but that''s a long time with an enemy that fast. Fortunately, the torches are out in town and the crystal lights are high up on the homes, so I shouldn''t have too many problems light-wise anymore.

    <hr>

    The hope of not having to fight the creature dwindled rather fast as I neared the treeline. Off in the distance I can hear screaming, along with a long hairy arm raising high above the homes blocking my vision.

    As I run through the domains veil, the change in temperature hits me instantly.

    Oh my god, it''s already warm in here?! It takes years for an Eldritch''s domain to alter the landscape, how the hell is it changing so fast? I can already see little mushrooms growing here and there on the ground...

    Another scream rings out, one I recognize. Running in the direction of the scream, it doesn''t take me long to see the girl I was talking to earlier. She''s on the ground pushing herself away from something down a street I have no vision of yet.

    Reaching the intersection, I finally catch sight of the creature plaguing the village. A twenty foot tall bipedal wolf, with arms bent at the joints that are so long they''re nearly touching the ground. It''s surrounded by a few dozen town guards, with another ten already dead on the ground.

    The wolf bends down with one arm out to its side, it launches forward in my direction at an unbelievable speed, blitzing through thirty yards in a second. Behind him the six guards in the path of its outstretched arm fall to the ground. Blood spews out from their torsos as they split in half. The remaining guards go into a panic, looking around at each other for guidance on what to do next.

    The wolf, which is now a mere six feet in front of me, turns around to face the guards again. Seeing this, I sneak up behind its right leg. As I deactivate my aura to pump mana into my right gauntlet, I see the ears on the wolf perk up in surprise as it spins its upper torso around to see what has it spooked, but it''s too late. I smash a full force blow into its Achilles heel, making the monster yelp as its right leg flies forward, causing the monster to fall flat on its back.

    Despite the injury, the wolf flips around onto its stomach almost immediately, trying to discern what had harmed it. However, I''m already invisible again, ducking down to the ground eight feet to its side.

    Slowly it scans the area around it, watching and listening for anything out of place. Behind it the guards are now together as one unit discussing something.

    I wouldn''t be surprised if they plan on fleeing. It might be for the best, I don''t know what they could possibly do to help me besides act as disposable meat shields.

    The wolf locks its eyes onto the attendant. "WHERE?"

    "I-I don''t know! I''m sorry... I''m sorry..." The girl said, nearing tears again.

    She''s probably expecting to be killed, which I will do my best to stop if I can. The girl is not lying either, she really doesn''t know where I am since I activated my aura directly after the punch landed. Why is she here though? I thought she went to hide earlier?

    Slowly the wolf pushes itself up, standing on its left leg only. It looks down at its right leg, growling in frustration.

    I felt the crunch of bone on that punch, so it should be hobbled for awhile. Monsters are generally good at healing themselves though, so I can''t drag this out.

    "ARE YOU BETRAYING ME, GREYSON?!" The wolf yells.

    ... What? Does the wolf think someone else attacked it?

    "No... It was a girl with white hair." Said a voice from above.

    Looking up, I see another wolf on the roof of a nearby home. However, this one looks to be about six to seven feet tall, and wearing a dark green hooded cloak. Its white eyes shine brightly through the hood.

    While the appearance of a second one surprised me, that also means he knows about my invisibility. I feel like this is the only chance I''ll get to talk to them, so...

    I deactivate my aura and stand up.

    "Oh? So my eyes did not deceive me, you truly did disappear. Fascinating..." Greyson said.

    The large wolf begins growling, entering a pouncing stance.

    "Calm yourself fool. She willingly showed herself, clearly wishing for dialogue. If you cannot contain yourself, then I will abandon you." Greyson said, then continued. "Well girl? What is it you wish to discuss?"

    "I found your village in the ''grove'', so I understand why the other wolf here killed those who were responsible. I was hoping to find him so I could ask him if he planned on killing others, or just those related to the grove. If it was only the grove, I planned on leaving him be so I could help fight off the Eldritch."

    "GRRR SPINELESS GREYSON SAID IT WAS ONLY TO BE THOSE RESPONSIBLE, BUT THIS STUPID GIRL SHOWED UP AT MY HOME WITH A REGIMENT OF ARMED MEN!!" The wolf continued. "FOUND ME OUT HAD YOU?! THOUGHT YOURSELF CLEVER?! YOU WILL NOW DIE FOR YOUR REWARD!!"

    "Eh?! No! No no no!! M-Me and the white haired girl there realized the ones who bought that grove were the people dying. So I decided to see if someone else had bought it after Mr.Cedar died... I found a sale from yesterday, so I rushed there with the town guard to warn them, but you came charging out of the home instead..."

    "Hmm..." Greyson said, rubbing his chin.

    "WARN? WARN..."

    A large explosion occurs on the wolf''s back, blasting it forward into the ground.

    "Who the fuck cares about any of that?! The beast just killed my brother and several of my friends!!" One guard yells, grabbing another glass bottle from a crate. The other guards also pick up their own bottles, throwing them out towards the downed wolf. One explosion after another rings out as they land.

    So that''s where they went... I saw the guards run off a minute ago, it looks like they were procuring some alchemical bombs. I don''t know if it''s different now, but those were very expensive to create the last time I was alive, so seeing a full crate of them has me thinking back to Godwin talking about the corruption in this town. It must run deep if they have bombs like that just laying around.

    I enhance my legs and gauntlets, waiting for the barrage to end. The first one hurt the wolf bad, but it enhanced itself after that. Now they''re just pissing it off and draining its mana. Which is helpful, except they''re all dead the second they run out of bombs. Fortunately, I don''t need to worry about the female attendant, Greyson had brought her onto the roof.

    "Greyson! Is he going to stop at killing the guards, or keep going from there?!" I yell out, hoping he can hear me over the sound of all these explosions.

    "ALL OF YOU!! NO MORE, I AM DONE!!" The wolf replies instead. Up on the roof I can see Greyson shaking his head.

    Great... Looks like there''s no avoiding it at this point.

    When the last bomb is thrown out, I charge towards the downed wolf who is currently curled up into a ball. As I''m punching towards the monsters unguarded back, it flips over and chomps down on me sideways in one swift move, doing so in less than a second.

    Knowing I won''t be able to dash away in time, I pull my fist back and punch sideways with both gauntlets. Right before its teeth pierce me, the sides of my fists connect with the insides of the wolf''s mouth, hitting with such force the air ripples around the contact point.

    While the wolf had enhanced its mouth, the impact had blown its mouth open far too much, dislodging it in the process. The left punch had also rattled the wolf''s brain. In a panic the wolf pushes itself backwards, sliding along the ground for a few meters. It then tries in vain to stand up, as its vision is still blurred, spinning all over the place.

    After spending the mana on those punches with both hands, I''m down to twenty-five percent left. Just enough to create one of those and finish this.

    Holding my right gauntlet out palm up, a small fleshy purple ball appears above it. As it grows in size I dash towards the wolf who is still struggling to get off the ground. Once I reach him, I throw the bomb into the wolf''s perpetually open mouth. Diving backwards, I just barely escape the blast emanating from the beasts throat, resulting in a large spray of blood and meat bombarding the entire area.

    The guards began cheering immediately, but I looked up at Greyson, worried I''d have another fight on my hands. However, Greyson jumps down with the girl in his arms and lets her down gently next to me.

    Greyson motions towards the other wolf''s corpse. "Can you believe he used to be a farmer? Just a simple man with a family I grew up with in that village. I returned from an extended trip to another world to find the village burned down, and Charles, the werewolf there you killed, was barely alive in the basement of his home."

    "You saved him I assume?"

    "Yes, I healed him, and gave him the power to transform to enact his revenge. It hurt seeing such a simple man I had grown up with in so much pain... I thought revenge would help, but it was obvious after the second kill that the man I knew was long gone. He couldn''t bring himself to kill the little girl, so I thought there was still hope for him, but then he killed the Cedar family. I brought them in for the purposes of owning the grove on paper, while Charles would be the real owner. The fool killed em to ''teach them a lesson'' for daring to put their name on his home. At that point I had given up and was planning to secretly leave tonight."

    "I see... I''m sorry about your friend."

    "He died long ago. You merely ended his ghost." Greyson said, looking down at his friend.

    The sounds of horns and drums can be heard approaching the North side of the village.

    "Where are those drums coming from?"

    "You don''t know? That''s the Ifrit Legion marching this way, they must be your reinforcements. Sounds like they''re still a few miles off, but unless there is three hundred or more of them, you''ll never beat an Eldritch god that size. Look at how fast it''s expanding its domain... It truly is astonishing."

    I can''t deny that. I really don''t know what Godwin plans on doing, but a single highly concentrated fireball won''t be anywhere near enough this time.

    "Well, I rested up enough, I need to go assist my... Travel companions?"

    I''m not even sure what to consider them. I suppose they''re allies, but I don''t think I''ll be sticking around long after I find a way out of here. I have no intentions of dying for this moon again if I can help it.

    "Heh, you the odd one out? You sure look like you''d be. For me, I''m going to head North and see if the Northerners will let me use the portal. No way in hell I''m going south west to check out the old Kitsune portal. God only knows what is down there right now with all this madness going on."

    "Not a bad plan. I''ll probably be heading to that portal too when I''m ready. With that said, I doubt we''ll meet again. Goodbye Greyson."

    "Indeed."

    I wave to him and the girl as I begin running towards the sounds of battle in the distance.

    The first thing I want to do is get a close look at this Eldritch to see what we''re dealing with. That''s assuming the battle is going well enough that they aren''t on the verge of losing already.

    Still though, I feel like it all depends on how strong this Ifrit Legion is. At the first sign of loss, I''m going to grab Aresa and run. There''s a good chance that''s exactly how it''s will end up, but I guess we''ll see soon enough...

 Chapter 14.1 - The Hydra

    ~A city deep in the southern regions on the Elven planet.~

    ~Alicia POV~

    "I-I''m sorry Alicia, I don''t know what''s come over me today. I keep ruining your makeup..." Sarah said.

    "It''s fine! How about you go take a break for now? This past week has been so stressful, we''ve been working nonstop preparing for my wedding today. You know I would never blame you for being worn out!"

    "Yeah... Yeah, that must be it. I''m gonna go rest up a bit before the ceremony, is that okay?"

    "Of course it is! I''ll finish the makeup myself, so you go take a long rest. You deserve it bestie." I said, hugging Sarah.

    Idiot, I can see tears welling up in your eyes. Is it really that painful seeing me marry the man you love? You should have said something instead of staying silent when I began courting him.

    "Thank you, I''ll see you in the chapel..." Sarah said meekly.

    She let go of me, turning around and walking out of the room with all the energy of a ghost.

    So annoying... I always hated this part of her. Just say what''s on your mind already!!

    Sitting down in the chair, I stare at the mirror for a bit before deciding I''ll finish my makeup later.

    I''m not in the mood anymore, even on my wedding day she drags me down. I''m also at fault for remaining friends with her so it annoys me even more. Not that I have any other friends left... They all moved away after graduating college. A few even moved to the Elven continent in hopes of making it rich ruin diving.

    "They''re probably long dead by now... I hate this. Why couldn''t everyone stay here?"

    ... Speaking of ruins, what is this creepy ass temple we''re getting married in? I knew my fiance was a nerd at heart but this is beyond weird. There are all sorts of bizarre trinkets on the walls made up of teeth and bones. Strangest of all though, is the idol centered in the back of this room.

    Standing up, I walk over to the idol, finding myself weirdly captivated by the craftsmanship.

    "I believe they call this creature a ''hydra''? I''ll need to ask my fiance later, he would know."

    I''ve also felt a strange pull towards the dagger laying at the base of the idol. I don''t like weapons, they''ve always frightened me. So why... Why have I looked over at this dagger at least once a minute since I entered this room?

    I can''t help but feel mesmerized as I stare at the weapon. An intricately designed golden handle with a hydra carved into it, with a long curved blade.

    It looks like the blade is made of copper, but that doesn''t seem quite right. It''s almost... Sparkly? I feel like I can see through it... And I can''t resist this urge to use it. Use it how? I have no idea. I don''t even know why I''m so enamored with it... I''ll just pick it up for awhile, surely that will be enough. If not, I''ll steal it. Yeah, this will make a perfect wedding gift for myself.

    I reach out to pick up the dagger, wrapping my hand around the handle. As I grab the handle, the world around me changes instantly.

    "W-WHOA WHAT?!"

    Whirling around, I see I''m still in the same room, except there are cages everywhere and the idol is no longer here. Inside of the cages there are a multitude of different races I''ve never seen before, and a few I recognize. In one cage there is an Elf couple sitting next to what looks like a humanoid crocodile with black wings.

    What... What is happening right now?

    The door connecting to a hallway that leads to the main chapel bursts open as a tall lizard-like creature walks through. Upon seeing me it stops in its tracks, surprised. It then looks around at the cages, checking the locks, before looking back at me again while rubbing its chin. A few seconds later it runs out of the room, yelling in a strange tongue.

    The cages around me begin rattling as those inside scream for my attention. Looking at them, I see them pointing to a keychain on the wall.

    None of this is real. It can''t be. I''m just a secretary who was about to get married to an architect. I''m not actually here... This is nothing more than an illusion I''m sure.

    Oh right! One of the relics the Elves found was said to show you fake worlds if you put it over your eyes. I didn''t put anything on my eyes but I''m sure it''s that! The dagger must activate it, so all I need to do again is touch it to turn the relic off.

    Turning around, I quickly remember that the idol is no longer here, nor is the knife.

    But... But this isn''t...

    Behind me the Lizardman runs back into the room, dragging a taller, much older Lizard behind it who''s covered in trinkets. The same trinkets I saw back in the temple.

    "Gesha? Nufula rim disa?" The old Lizard says, pointing at me while looking at the other Lizard.

    The other Lizard shrugs, then walks over to me and picks me up, carrying me out of the room.

    "This isn''t real... Please don''t let this be real."

    The Lizard looks down at me, then begins laughing while saying something back to the old Lizard, who also begins laughing soon after.

    Upon entering the chapel, I''m met with a much different scene from the one I witnessed earlier when peeking in on my ceremony. Gone are my family members mingled together with my fiances family, and in their place is a bunch of six to eight feet tall Lizardmen who are forcing several different races to kneel in front of them.

    The Lizard carries me over to the front bench near the altar, placing me down onto it.

    "Stay." The Lizard said.

    In his place, the old Lizard sits next to me, waving towards the back.

    "Rivine Ma, gushu!!" The old Lizard said.

    Cheers erupt as another Lizardman drags his male human prisoner towards the very same altar. Atop the altar is the very same hydra idol I saw earlier, with the dagger still resting at its base.

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    Once near the altar, the Lizardman let go and stood to the prisoners side as it began clapping while saying the word "Gefa!" over and over. The rest of the Lizardmen joined in, creating a chorus of claps and Gefa''s. This was not an angry chant, the Lizardmen were very pleased with what was happening. As the human reached out for the dagger they became even more excited.

    The prisoner grabbed the handle and immediately screamed out in pain as a loud sizzling noise emanated from his hand. When he pulled his hand back, I could see a large burn mark in the shape of a handle across his palm. The Lizardmen began laughing while clapping in a different way, the kind you''d hear after a band finished singing a song.

    The Lizardman gently wrapped the mans hand in some kind of gauze that immediately made him stop crying out in pain. He looked at his hand confused before the Lizardman guided the human towards a portal near the side of the procession.

    "He go home. Not worthy." The old Lizard said to me.

    Even someone as dumb as me could understand what was happening now. There is also no denying anymore that is obviously real, the smell of his burned flesh almost made me puke.

    "So if I um, grab the handle and it burns me, you''ll send me home?"

    The old Lizard nods, then waves to the back again.

    One by one the prisoners tried to grab the dagger, and every single one of them was burned. Until eventually, I saw what happened when someone could actually grab the dagger. A young boy with purple horns and a tail, picked the dagger up and stared at it confused for a few seconds. The room went quiet as the Lizardmen stopped clapping and entered a praying pose with their hands. The boy then seemed to come to an understanding all on his own, gripping the blade backwards with it pointed at his chest, plunging it towards himself.

    I was going to scream in response, but the boy disappeared the second the dagger pierced him.

    "W-What...?"

    "He go home. Chosen, one of us now!" The old Lizard said.

    The cheers from the Lizardmen died out as a loud horn could be heard outside. Immediately the Lizardmen armed themselves, running out of the chapel in a hurry. For some strange reason I followed after them up till the exit of the chapel. The Lizardmen were fast, they were already a good distance away from the chapel, sprinting through the marsh-like environment towards the horns blaring out in the distance.

    It was very far away, but I could just barely make out what had caused the Lizards in a watchtower to call for help. There were a couple of large black creatures with spider-like legs and what appeared to be a face with no features. They had a large row of teeth I could see from here, but no eyes, nose, or ears. No hair at all either.

    Wait, this is my chance! It brought me here, surely touching it will take me back. Please let it take me back...

    I run back into the chapel, heading straight for the altar and picking up the dagger.

    My hand doesn''t burn, and I definitely feel the same sensation I had during the first event. However, the temple still looked the same. The only difference being that I hear nothing outside. No more horns blaring or sounds of combat.

    Walking back to the exit, I see with my own eyes that I was indeed transported again, but this was not the planet I grew up on.

    A long desolate landscape expands outwards in every direction. There are no hills or mountains in sight, only one giant empty world. The only thing here is a city nearby that has long since decomposed to the brutality of time. I don''t recognize the architecture at all, it doesn''t look like it was even designed to house humanoid creatures. The most surprising of all though is...

    "There is no atmosphere...".

    The ''sky'' consists of stars and brightly shining planets. One of the planets is so close I swear I can see artificial lighting on large portions of the landmass.

    "How can I breathe...?"

    None of this makes any sense. The knife, the Lizards, this planet... And yet, I don''t feel the desire to go home at all. It disappeared at some point while I was admiring the landscape. So bleak, empty, alone, devoid of anything and everything... And so very comfortable.

    Yeah... I think I''ll stay here for awhile. I can get married another day.

    <hr>

    How much time has passed since I came to this world? Many years for sure, easily well over fifty. Despite nobody being here, I never once felt lonely or despaired. I spent my days preparing for what is to come, relishing every moment of it. That much was a given, considering what happened. Soon after I made the decision to remain on this planet, he began speaking to me. No... Speaking to me is too direct. I was made to understand certain things that I was unaware of before.

    For instance, this area is my soul realm that I heard so much about from my magic-obsessed friends back home. Except mine is a little different, this area, actually exists in the real world. People from that planet can see me if they look up with a telescope. How such a thing came to be, is because it was preordained this way. From the moment I was born, I was meant to come here and serve my Lord. I am of the ''Nufula'', one whose soul was touched by Lord Terra''ka.

    He did warn me that it was possible something could have gone wrong, leading me to becoming... A career secretary? I think that''s what I was... I have a hard time remembering what I was doing before I came here. I stole a man my friend loved because... Reasons? No idea why I did that, I can''t even remember what he looks like, nor do I care anymore.

    The prisoners back at the chapel were not destined to serve, they needed to be tested first. Only those Lord Terra''ka had reached out to and touched were able to be marked as chosen ones. In my case, I had a dead Eldritch parasitizing my soul. Eventually, it would have grown strong enough to devour me and burst out, reviving somewhere in the world. Except in this case, it was a blessing. Not even the Lord can mess with our realm without assistance or a proper level of corruption taking root on the world he intends to meddle with. However, an Eldritch soul feeding off of a soul from our realm, that he was able to reach out and touch, turning the Eldritch''s soul into strength for my own.

    It''s crazy to consider how this soul realm of mine was created back when I was still in the womb... Just sitting here all these years, waiting for me to reach out and access it.

    I stand up from my meditation pose, walking back towards the temple in the distance. My temple.

    As I enter the chapel, the Lizardwoman cleaning a nearby booth looks up at me wide-eyed, running over to me and kneeling down to enter a prayer pose. I put my right hand on her head as I pass by, a sign of thanks among their kind.

    Walking straight up to the altar, I grab my dagger and feel the scar on my chest pulse.

    Between my breasts I''ve always had this long scar ever since I was a baby. Everyone always said it was a strange birthmark to be born with. If only they knew how strange it really was...

    Images of different worlds where the temple exists enter my mind. I choose the one I came from, somewhere I have not been in a very long time. Shortly afterwards, the wedding preparation room appears before me. The mirror is open and there is a set of makeup laid out next to it.

    I''m crashing a wedding huh? Strangely, that looks like the makeup I used to use.

    The door connecting to the hallway opens up, revealing a tired looking Sarah.

    "What...?" I stare at her baffled.

    How can this be? There''s no way I imagined the amount of time I spent over there. Hang on, is that my makeup kit?!

    "Where have you been?! We''ve been looking all over for you for two hours now! Jeffrey''s parents are losing their minds, they think you took off." Sarah said.

    Jeffrey? Oh... Oh right, that''s my fiances name. I think he had brown hair... Or black? Eh, either way.

    "I am in fact taking off. You can have him by the way, that man you''re in love with for reasons I can''t remember."

    "Eh...?"

    Sarah stared at me open-mouthed for a few seconds before regaining her composure.

    "You''re leaving? Wait, you''re also ditching the wedding?? I don''t understand you at all Alicia... Why are you always messing with me like this? As if taking him wasn''t enough, now you''re...!" Sarah said, glaring at me.

    "There you go, let your emotions out. This is what you should have done from the start. Now go cheer up... Jason? He''ll be distraught after learning that I''m leaving. Take advantage of that and weasel your way into his heart."

    After saying my peace, I turned around and walked towards the side door that leads outside.

    "W-Wait Alicia! Are you being serious?!"

    I will not wait, I''ve prepared a long time for this. It''s now time to return the favor to Lord Terra''ka. First, he wants me to watch and learn from the invasion of a new moon that passed the corruption levels necessary for him to create a portal there. It can only sustain so many forces at the current level, but it should be enough to capture the nearby village. One of his Lords that ascended to an Eldritch god is leading the assault. It evolved into an appearance that vaguely resembles a cobra and now has magic that is able to control the weather to a certain degree. It''s also able expand the Lords domain much faster, which I find endlessly fascinating. I assume that''s also why he was chosen.

    After the battle, I will either remain on that moon, or take the battle to the Xerath somewhere among the cosmos. Vile faceless ones that must be destroyed above all else.

 Chapter 14.2 - The Hydra

    ~Reimia POV~

    Standing atop the Western gate, the first thing that catches my attention is all the sparks lighting up over the battlefield. Watching a few of the scattered fights going on, I see that the aggressors are six to eight feet tall Lizardmen. They also appear to be the reason for all the sparks going off across the field.

    "Hmm, the blue Lizards are the six-feet tall ones, and they''re all using what looks like a flat rounded sword wrapped in lightning. In their other hand is a shield made of water."

    One of the Lizards raises his shield as a Guardian swings an enhanced greatsword down at it. The blow is caught by the shield, doing absolutely no damage as the sword bounces back harmlessly.

    I assume that''s a magic shield, but if it''s from a physical item I''d love to get my hands on one of those.

    Meanwhile, the green eight-feet tall Lizards are stabbing over their allies shoulders with long wooden-spears that are encased in ice around the tip. Any grazing blow leaves a frozen patch behind, leading to that extremity going limp soon after. The Guardians appear to be trained in the basics of elemental defense, heating up that part of their body to remove the ice, but this won''t last forever.

    So the blue Lizards shock the enemy who is then unable to respond in time to the ice attacks. The reason they are doing this is obvious from the couple of Guardians I see being dragged away towards the Eldritch far in the back.

    "They''re taking prisoners...?" Only faction-based Eldritch like the Kitsune would do such a thing. While this is a good sign, it doesn''t necessarily mean they are up for negotiations. It could just mean that the Eldritch wants a bunch of mana-trained humans for a buffet later.

    At first I wondered why the hell everyone is so spread out, but one look at the Templars situation and it becomes clear why battles are happening all over the place.

    "Markus is completely pinned down..."

    The Templars are huddled together, forming a barrier around themselves. They don''t have a choice after all. There is a barrage of large water columns being fired at them from far in the back of the battlefield. They''re being fired at an angle like arrows would be, falling down onto or near the Templars, ending in one hell of a loud explosion as they land. I''m even getting splashed way over here hundreds of meters away. The impact those things create upon landing isn''t anything to scoff at, they''ll blow through all their mana enhancing themselves just to survive a few shots.

    I see a little black umbrella sticking up in the middle of the Templars, and while it''s good to know Aresa is helping them out, it''s still only a matter of time before they run out of mana. Hopefully that''s something I can help them with. If it''s a Satyr type of creature that can both fight and cast high-tier magic, then I won''t be of much assistance, but more often than not casters are weak physically.

    Off to the right side of the battlefield another wall of Lizardmen is forming now that the Ifrit Legion is nearly here. As the Legion is about one-hundred meters away, they begin firing what appears to be fire bullets at the Lizards.

    Right away I realize that those are magical guns, not the ones generally used back on my home world. ''Why waste your own mana on bullets when physical bullets exist?'' my Uncle used to say while arguing with my Father about the pros and cons of magical guns.

    I was wondering why I haven''t seen any guns yet despite my family selling thousands of them to Viseux ages ago. I see why now, they decided to go the magical gun route. Most people stick to learning magic or enhancing physical weapons instead of guns, because once you get close, the battle is over. However, their regiment appears to have at least one-hundred people, that''s more than enough to keep up a steady barrage allowing nobody to approach unless the Lizards send most of their forces that way.

    I can already see several of the blue Lizards dropping dead, unable to block enough of the shots with their shields, leading to their barriers draining all their mana while they try to protect themselves. Once their barriers are gone, they die almost instantly. The regiments are shifting around every thirty seconds, allowing each other a turn to quickly meditate and refill their mana. While this appears to be just what the Guardians need for support right now, it means nothing once the casters begin firing those cones of water at them instead.

    Jumping off the gate, I dash forward the second I hit the ground. Weaving back and forth through the battlefield, avoiding fights and flares alike.

    Those flares hurt like hell, thank god Hera spread them out over a large area, leaving me plenty of space to avoid them.

    As I get past the last of the Lizardmen soldiers, I can finally see what the casters look like. Little blue Lizards, maybe five-feet tall, swirling staffs above their head as the spears of water form above them. They''re still really far away, and while that is easily a distance I can cover in maybe two minutes, the problem is that they are very close to the Eldritch.

    Halfway to the casters, I spot something else that looks completely out of place on this battlefield, especially so close to a bunch of Lizardmen. There is a human girl with bright orange hair wearing a tattered wedding dress, standing next to a seven-foot tall bipedal black crocodile with long black wings sprouting out of its back.

    I don''t know about the girl yet, but I know I can''t beat that Crotia. I''ve only seen a few of them before, the humanoid crocodiles that were exiled from Urza. This one is fully armored and holding a spear that I already know is an artifact merely from glancing at it. The Eldritch being within one-hundred meters was a problem by itself, but now this damned Crotia is barely twenty yards away from the casters.

    Half the casters of the pack swivel towards the right side of the battlefield, preparing a volley for the Legion.

    No time to think on this, I need to stop that volley.

    Dashing behind the Lizard at the end of the pack, I drop my aura and punch the back of the lizards head, leading to the same cranium explosion the dog experienced when I first revived here. As it slides forward through the mud, the eyes on the closest Lizard nearly burst out of its head in surprise. It cancels the spell and tries running away, but I was on top of it instantly, punching my right fist all the way through its chest.

    As I''m pulling my hand out of the Lizard, I see the Crotia eyeing me up and down. The girl is looking back and forth between the Crotia and me, apparently waiting to see how he''ll respond to my appearance.

    Before he makes his move I need to kill as many of these casters as I can. Two down, eighteen to go.

    Charging towards another caster with my arm pulled back, I hear a loud echoing roar from the Crotia right before my fist connects. What feels like a blast of sound smashes into me, but instead of blowing me away, I freeze up completely.

    Is that his ability?! Shit, I can''t move at all...!

    The Crotia leaps at me with the spear drawn back.

    With no other options, I put my aura back up hoping he''ll think I warped. While it made the Crotias'' eyes dart back and forth, it didn''t deter him from stabbing where he last saw me. Thankfully, the artifact armor shot two spears out of my torso, stabbing the ground and pushing me backwards into the air right before he pierced me.

    Regaining my movement shortly after, I flew about twenty yards backwards onto a rock, preventing him from seeing my feet splash down in the mud.

    Now what though? I can''t do anything about the casters like this. Fortunately, the group closest to me had stopped casting upon my arrival, but they look like they''re gearing up for another barrage now that the Crotia is guarding them.

    Off in the distance, I see a familiar head full of red hair being carried towards the Eldritch.

    Even Hera got captured? I thought with her ability she''d be in the best position here. She probably ran out of mana though, and the Guardians are in no position to safely regen like the Legion currently are.

    ... Hmm, I have one idea, but I really hate losing that ability so soon. However, I don''t think I have much of a choice in the matter.

    Slowly sneaking around the Crotia towards the other end of the casters, I drop my aura and create two fleshy spheres in both of my hands. The Crotia sees me instantly, but I duck low behind the caster next to me who''s currently cancelling his spell so he can run away from me.

    Sadly for them, I only needed a few seconds.

    As the spheres expand to the size I need, I throw one out near the other end of the pack, while lobbing the other to the group much closer.

    Possibly out of reflex, or maybe pure stupidity, the one I lobbed was caught by a caster, who stared at the fleshy blob curiously. The Crotia grabbed two of the closest casters and leapt away as the bombs exploded, eviscerating most of those who remained, leaving the rest injured.

    On my end, I was already invisible running off towards the Lizard carrying Hera. Halfway to the Lizard, I could feel the Eldritch probing my soul.

    ... I''m too close, it can sense me now.

    Looking up, I see that the Eldritch only vaguely resembles a cobra. Its face is covered in pure black eyes, while its hood is made up of a myriad of different colored feathers. There is also no mouth on the being at all from what I can see.

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    As I was debating on whether to turn back, I see the Lizard carrying Hera walk through a swirling purple vortex at the base of the Eldritch.

    Wait... Is that a portal? That''s how they came here?! I don''t think I''ve ever heard of an Eldritch launching an invasion through a portal before... I wonder if this would be another first for Markus? Seriously, what the hell is going on with Urza right now?

    I stare at the portal, contemplating a rather bad idea.

    ... I think I''m going to jump through that portal. I killed as many casters as I could, so the Templars should be free to go on the offensive. I don''t know if Godwin or Jasper are on the other end of this, but either way, they''d appreciate me saving Hera. I might even get Jasper to drop the fee for the artifact armor completely. Also, the Eldritch poking around at my soul is absolutely disgusting, I need to get out of here. Either forward or back, and I doubt it''ll let me go back.

    As I begin running towards the portal, the Eldritch makes no attempt to stop me.

    Not sure if that''s a good or a bad thing. Good that it''s not stopping me, bad that it thinks I won''t be a problem on the other side.

    Jumping through the portal, I land onto a marsh on the other side. There are branch-less trees all around me. No leaves whatsoever, as the tops of the trees turn into very large blue mushroom heads, the same ones I saw sprouting back in Thule. Most of the area here is water, while the small patches of land have small bright orange lights shining through the grass. While it appears to be night time, there is a bright star in the sky shining through the clouds, illuminating everything in sight.

    The world itself is honestly beautiful, I can already tell that my soul realm is going to change to the view before me. That''s just how much I love everything in front of my eyes. Of course, that is with the assumption I will survive this trip.

    The star is also shining down on something I can''t even begin to comprehend. A creature, hundreds to thousands of times larger than anything I''ve ever seen, that''s so unbelievably tall it''s blocking the light from the star behind it. If I were to guess, the top of its torso is at least five thousand meters tall.

    Is that an old god...? Or perhaps an Eldritch so old that it is about to become one?

    I believe the creature is called a ''Hydra''? It has hundreds of different heads, all branching off its enormous torso. Each one takes on the shape of a different animal or monster head. I only recognize a few, most of them are unknown to me.

    There are also thousands of Lizardmen in front of me. Some of them are near the portal, armed and waiting for something. The others appear to be relaxing around campfires. Most are talking amongst themselves, while the rest are taking turns throwing a small ball against a wooden backdrop. After it stops rolling they lean down to look at it, and then begin divvying up bones from a pile before each Lizardman throws more bones down creating another pile.

    Well, they''re obviously gambling. It seems that no matter where you go, living beings with intelligence just can''t help themselves. Even I used to gamble every now and then in Xelba.

    Lastly, there are at least thirty Eldritch gods loitering around out in the distance. While they all look different, they are still reptilian in nature.

    They could be Lords to the Hydra... Although at this point the classification means nothing. Regardless of what they are, there is no way Urza can beat even half of what I see here, and that''s not even counting the Hydra. I assume they aren''t currently supporting the invasion because the Cobra is the scouting party, and it would also explain why its so focused on spreading its domain. I didn''t know they could speed it up like that, but it''s probably burning through ether to do so. Judging from the scene in front of me, the reason it''s doing so is obvious. The Cobra is preparing the area for more Lizardmen to move over to Urza.

    Behind me a door slams shut.

    Whirling around, I see what appears to be a temple.

    That has to be where they take the prisoners, because I only see Lizardmen and Eldritch everywhere else. I''ll grab whoever I can and get the hell out of here. Hopefully with the casters dead the other side is winning enough that they''ll have leeway to retreat. The problem is that they''ll have no time to prepare for a trek North. Who knows how far the winter weather goes, nor if they''ll be able to scavenge for food while being pursued.

    Circling around the temple, I find a window that leads into a storage room on the backside of the building. To my great surprise, they are sliding glass windows.

    I haven''t seen these since the home I grew up in... Urza is still using shutters. Did the Lizards who gamble in bones truly create these windows? I have a hard time believing that.

    Pushing the window open, I jump inside and slide behind a large wooden crate. Peeking around, I find nothing noteworthy. No Lizards, only a bunch of crates filled with vegetables and fruits.

    Walking over to the door, I push it open ever-so-slightly, seeing a plain hallway that splits at the end.

    No Lizards again, but there are several annoying torches lit up.

    Removing my aura, I dash to the fork ahead, reapplying the aura as I peek to both sides....

    Still nothing, only a door waiting at the end of both sides. For now, I''ll go left since the right will lead to the main hall. I can vaguely hear talking down that way.

    Cracking the left door open I find what I''m looking for. The room is filled with cages housing all sorts of different races, while one cage holds the three people I happen to be looking for.

    A Dragonkin looks back and forth in confusion as the door seems to open and close all on its own.

    "Well done Father, we escaped Urza just like you always wanted. At least I assume that''s what your plan was when you made us try to circle around the battlefield by ourselves." Jasper said.

    "Fuck you and your sarcasm boy, someone had to kill those mages. If we got you two close enough it would have been easy as hell to kill those little peckers."

    I walk up to Godwin''s cage, removing my aura.

    "I was following Hera, but I wasn''t sure if you two would also be here."

    Hera, who was laying down rubbing her eyes, sits up hastily. "Rei?!"

    "Well shit... Looks like I don''t get to die yet." Godwin sighed.

    "Personally, I don''t think they want to kill us. Still though, it is good to see you Rei. As you can see, we are currently trapped in these cages. I don''t know what these bars are made out of, but they''re draining our mana, so we''re unable to use abilities to break out." Jasper said.

    Looking around, I see one pair of keys are stuck in a cage housing a single gorilla-like creature, while there is another one hung up on the wall. Upon closer inspection, the ''gorilla'' is armored in dark-grey armor that looks exactly like his fur.

    "Why didn''t any of you just have the gorilla here break you all out?"

    "We tried... He couldn''t get his fingers through the bars." The Dragonkin responded. The gorilla hung its head down in response.

    Grabbing the keys off the wall, I go around unlocking all the cages, and turning the gorillas keys last. Surprisingly, only the Dragonkin and gorilla left their cages.

    "You''re all going to stay here?"

    "As opposed to what? The portal to Aetheria is far away from here. We''ll never make it..." An Elf said. His wife and daughter behind him also look like they''ve given up.

    It''s been so long since I heard the name of my homeworld... I''d love to ask them how things are going there, but there is no time for that. Actually... Isn''t this a good opportunity?

    "Do you know which direction the Aetheria portal is?"

    "No? They carried us for hours, turning multiple times while walking through a forest."

    ... So much for that, I thought I found a quick way home. Although, if there is a portal there, does that mean these Lizards are also invading my world?

    "Sorry Rei, looks like you''re stuck with us for a bit longer." Jasper said, still stretching after escaping that cramped cage.

    "Seems that way... Oh, I killed most of those mages, and the Ifrit Legion showed up, so things should be looking much better out there."

    "Hell yes well done! Finally some good news for a change." Godwin said.

    "What about you two? Our portal is directly outside of this temple, so obviously that is where we are heading."

    "I shall accompany you, if that is allowed." The Dragonkin said.

    The gorilla punched its chest once and nodded.

    "Well alright then, the more the merrier! Let''s kill as many of these fucking reptiles as we can on the way out of here!" Godwin yelled.

    Isn''t the Humanoid-Dragon there also a reptile? It appears he didn''t mind though, since he''s not reacting in any way whatsoever.

    "Hang on Father, shouldn''t we leave the way Rei came in? I assume it wasn''t the front door, where I know you are planning to drag us to." Jasper said as his Father reached the door.

    "Bah, what''s the difference? She can''t make us invisible so they''re gonna see us either way."

    "Let''s at least find out how she got in here?" Hera said.

    "It was through a window out back that led to a storage room. It''s only one hallway away from here and I saw no Lizards on the way."

    "That settles it, we''re heading there." Jasper said, cutting his Father off who was undoubtedly about to suggest we take the front door anyways.

    One by one we exit into the hallway with me at the head. Turning right at the fork, I head to the storage room, opening the door to reveal a still-empty room.

    "The window right there, it''s big enough for the gorilla to get out too." I said, walking over to the window and jumping out of it.

    "Both ways around were devoid of Lizards when I came here, but I''m sure you remember how the other side is infested with them?"

    "Hard to forget that, coupled with the multi-headed abomination in the background that is bigger than Viseux, our largest city." Godwin replied after he landed outside.

    "Don''t remind me... I''m already terrified thinking about how we''ll have to run over one-hundred yards to the portal in full view of that thing." Jasper said.

    The gorilla beat its chest then gives us a thumbs up.

    That''s his way of saying we''ll be fine huh? I sure hope so...

    After everyone was outside we walked to the side of the temple, peeking out slightly to make sure the coast was clear. From inside the temple we could hear a chorus of clapping followed by cheers.

    "They having a fucking party?" Godwin said.

    "Never mind that, I want to get this over with before my legs give out. Let''s go, quickly." Jasper said, running towards the portal.

    The rest of us took off after him. Everything was fine till we passed by the temple, leading to us being revealed to everything here. Immediately, every single head on the Hydra turned toward us, freezing all of us in our tracks.

    I... I can''t move at all. This is far worse than what the Crotia did to me. An unbelievably powerful soul is crushing ours right now, making every second feel like an eternity.

    The Hydra watched us for awhile in silence. Eventually, I was forced to understand that all I have to do is go through with the ceremony, then I will be let go, whether I am chosen or not. So long as I swear to never interfere with the Lizardmens'' prime directive to end all Demons and Xerath, then no harm will come to me. They will be colonizing this moon now that it has passed the corruption threshold, proving that the residents of the moon are incapable of protecting their own home.

    Xerath... I wonder if he means the faceless ones?

    Acknowledgement was the emotion relayed to me, as the Hydra is reading my thoughts.

    Corruption... Xerath... The first thing that came to mind was Viktor and his pet faceless one.

    Suddenly, much more attention was focused onto me. An explanation was demanded.

    ... There was an Elf named Viktor, fifty-five or sixty years ago he brought over the core of a face... Xerath. I don''t know why, but the Demons are able to move him back and forth between the Xerath''s realm with much less effort than would be required for anyone else. Also, the Xerath do not attack him. If anything... They seem to listen to him.

    Alarm, confusion, shock, disgust, all sorts of emotions flared up throughout all the Eldritch listening to this exchange through the Hydra.

    Only one thought was transmitted to me through all the beings here.

    WHERE?

    I don''t know... I died trying to kill him forty-two years ago. He ended up fleeing through the portal connected to Aetheria, the Elven planet. Somehow I was revived here on Urza a few weeks ago. I want to track him down, but I''m not strong enough to do that yet.

    Their combined conscious pulls away as they begun discussing something amongst themselves. Slowly, I could feel my senses returning.

    "W-Well, on the bright side, it doesn''t seem like they are going to kill us?" Jasper said, his legs shaking so much he''s barely able to keep standing up.

    "Don''t be so certain young master. I doubt their plans to take over your homeworld will be as harmless as they claim." The Dragonkin said.

    While I understand what he''s saying, I''m personally feeling much better about this after being bombarded with emotions of utter disgust when I described Viktor to them. Anyone who sees him that way is someone I''m willing to try and be on friendly terms with. Also, I personally couldn''t care less who ''owns'' Urza.

 Chapter 15 - Invasion

    "Oh look, another failed ''chosen one''. What a waste of fucking time." Godwin scoffed.

    Both Jasper and Hera''s eyes went wide as they looked at the older Lizardman sitting to their left.

    The shaman looked back at them and smiled. "It okay! We get grumpy old men a lot. They do ceremony like everyone else, then leave."

    Judging from his demeanor, the shaman truly doesn''t mind Godwin''s constant bitching. A few of the Lizardmen are laughing, and there is even one Lizardman mocking Godwin by pretending to be him while using their native tongue, which is where most of the laughter is originating from. However, every time he opens his mouth, I see a few of the Lizardmen snarl and grab for their weapons. They always stop themselves, but it''s obvious that Godwin isn''t exactly painting us in a good picture here. If I had any skin in the game I''d knock the old fucker out. Fortunately, I have no desire whatsoever to intervene, I still consider all of this to be someone else''s business. They''ve even exempted me from the ritual. Some of the Eldritch here told the shaman that my soul is too distorted for the dagger.

    It''s been a few hours since our attempted escape. In that time, Jasper was sent through the portal with the shaman to tell the others to surrender. While the Guardians had immediately resigned upon hearing why they were surrendering, the Ifrit Legion however had apparently been outraged, turning around and leaving immediately to inform Viseux and Khan Uluhm about the Guardians ''betrayal''. The Templars were exempted from the ritual, seeing as they already pledged their soul to another god. Markus is currently outside mingling with the Lizardmen, learning everything he can about the situation. Apparently Arkaios is pleased with the Hydra''s plans to take over Urza. Because of this, Markus already considers the Lizardmen allies of his. No amount of cultural or worldly changes will affect his determination to make this co-existence work, such is the commitment of those who pledge their souls to gods.

    ... I saw the same thing back in the other realm, but it wasn''t by choice. Once a Xerathian god began taking root in your nation, you were already ''loving'' it whether you wanted to or not. The sight of my family kneeling in reverence with smiles on their faces as that thing walked through the street is one memory I wish I could erase. Fortunately, it''s offset by the memory of me killing the fucking abomination. All of the people there couldn''t decide whether to cry in terror at losing their god, or cry tears of happiness for finally being free. My family was no different.

    Ahh damnit... Don''t think about this. Every time there is a lull in my life, I end up thinking about the time I watched as my family slowly died, or all the horrible shit that went down in Xelba. Trying to think of the happy memories I created with my friends is impossible, it always leads to images of when they were eaten flashing through my mind... I wonder if Simon and Nera are still alive? Last time I saw them I was throwing them through the Elven portal. I hope they''re still alive... I really need to see them again.

    A change in the scenery around me brings me out of my daze. Apparently it was Hera''s turn, as she''s now holding the dagger up and staring at the glittery blade.

    "Oh hell no!" Godwin goes to stand up, promptly falling face flat onto the stone floor.

    Looking around, I see the Drakonian from earlier who was sitting behind Godwin has his hands interlocked in some kind of weird triangle pose.

    "You did that?"

    "Yes. I''ve been channeling my mana into Master Godwin for awhile now, just in case his family was able to retrieve the dagger. It does not require a genius to understand that he was going to turn violent if his family was ''chosen''."

    Smart move... Not that I put any thought whatsoever into such an event taking place. I was only going to watch regardless of what happened.

    Honestly, these people do seem nice, and the old me would probably be trying to make a new home for myself here. After losing everything so many times in my life though, I''m just... I don''t know. I really don''t know what I want. That''s why I''m defaulting to getting strong enough to make the journey home. I feel like I need to see Simon and Nera, or maybe my Uncles and Aunts. Just... Anyone from my past who knows me. Maybe after relaxing with them for awhile I''ll be able to figure out what to do with this new life of mine.

    With that said, I can''t deny the other part of me that is determined to hunt Viktor down and eat him alive one piece at a time. The shaman has already hinted that they want me to find him, which is something I obviously want to do as well, but... That kind of feels secondary to returning home. He''s had forty-two years to prepare, a few more won''t make a massive difference.

    Up near the altar, Jasper is now plunging the dagger into his chest.

    Looks like he was chosen too huh...

    "Family chosen together, very normal. Family be together, very important." The shaman said, looking at me.

    Oh, so Godwin is gonna be a ''chosen one'' too? I wish I had a camera for that momentous event.

    "What is the point of this exactly? Do ''chosen ones'' get anything in particular?"

    "Pledged to Lord Terra''ka they are. Live very long lives. Some humans, four-hundred years old! Also, turn magic into personal abilities much easier."

    Oh, so this whole ritual is to create worshipers? Living longer is a staple for hybrids or those who tie their souls to a god. Never heard of it making abilities easier to create though, that''s actually huge. Janet''s bombs would normally cost a massive amount of mana and take time to create, but as an ability even I could summon a few of them instantly for much cheaper.

    With the aid of a Lizardman, Jasper picks Godwin up off the floor, carrying him towards where the cages are.

    Hera walks up to me. "We''re going to lock him up for now, let him cool off after he wakes up. Once he completes the ritual, he''ll hopefully stop whining so much."

    "I don''t think anything will stop him from complaining, but for now that''s a good plan."

    At the altar, the Gorilla holds the dagger high while roaring, and then breaks out into dance. The Lizardmen cheer loudly, breaking out into dance as well.

    "More friends, always good!" The shaman said, getting up to dance.

    "If only it were that simple..." The Drakonian mumbles.

    "Got a bad feeling about this? Also, what is your name?"

    "... Call me Drak."

    Obviously a made up name, but alright that''s fine.

    "No amount of flowery language can alter the fact that they are going to conquer your home. The land will change, those in charge will change, the culture will change. This ''Ifrit Legion'' had the correct reaction as far as I''m concerned."

    "True, even if they do save Urza, it will no longer be ''Urza''. All the people who fought for it up till this point, will not be very pleased to see the land around their homes change into something alien. Trees turning to mushrooms is going to evoke a lot of violent reactions. There''s a reason people hate Eldritch and generally hate Hybrids as well."

    "Yet, you seem unconcerned by this?" Drak said.

    "Because I am. The first chance I get I''m going back to Aetheria."

    "Ahh, I did not see the pointy ears till now. They are mostly hidden by your hair." Drak continued. "In that case, why not have them take you to the Elven portal here?"

    "I planned on it, but I need to know where it leads to. Aetheria is massive after all. My mom told me that Urza is barely three percent the size of Aetheria. The Elves reside in the Northern continent where the ruins are, and because there are Elves in those cages back there, I have high hopes their portal is in the North as well. No guarantees on that though. Even though people here call it the Elven planet, we''re only a small fraction of the population there."

    "In that case, let me tell you where it leads. The portal is deep into the jungles on the main continent down south. Does the name ''Thelmarg Jungles'' sound familiar? It''s where I lived, and those Elves were runaways hiding out there."

    "No... But I do know what continent you''re talking about. Sadly, it''s very far away from where I need to be. Those Elves managed the trip though, so I''m sure I can as well."

    "I would not use them as a reference. They came in through parachute along with several other families. Also, you cannot leave the jungle through normal means if the god there does not allow it. You may end up trapped there." Drak said.

    "An Eldritch? Wait, didn''t the Hydra say corruption was necessary to create a portal... Is Aetheria that far gone as well?"

    The shaman cut-in. "No. Size matters. To corrupt big planet, much much more difficult compared to tiny moon. Jungle around dragon-man village corrupted by Eldritch, so we able to create portal there. We leave though, close portal soon. No need for access to maze with no benefits."

    "What the shaman means, is that the Eldritch messes with your perception, making it impossible to leave. He feeds off of all the souls in the jungle so, it''s in his best interest that nobody is allowed to leave. On the bright side, food and fresh water is plentiful, because it wants you to live a long life and breed a lot, creating more souls for it to feed off of."

    "Want me ask Lord Terra''ka if portal be made near Elves? He will know if corruption near." The shaman said.

    "You would do that? Then yes, by all means please do!"

    The shaman smiles, then enters deep meditation.

    I can''t believe I''m hoping there is deep corruption somewhere around my home, but it really would help me.

    A few minutes later the shaman opened his eyes.

    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

    "Bad news. Elven god no spread corruption, he different. There is corruption far west, but bad idea go there. We open portal before, everyone die very fast, including Eldritch, no one know why."

    "West... The dark lands? I don''t remember anything about that place besides the fact that nobody lives there, and it''s eternally dark because of where it''s located."

    It''s one long strip of land on Aetheria that is blocked from both sources of light. Neither the sun nor Mother shines down upon it.

    "I''m afraid I have no information on it either." Drak said.

    Well... That''s that I guess. While the dark lands sound perfect for me, there could be a bunch of powerful beings living there who can sense me through my veil. I don''t see a need to risk it, I''ll just take one of the portals here to another moon or planet. It''s slower that way, but there''s a much higher chance I''ll make it home.

    "Out of curiosity, why do you attack the places you open portals into? Whether they pass the ritual or not, you''re clearly out to make more allies than enemies."

    The shaman shakes his head. "Go through portal, wave hands, try make friends, no good. Always lead to more fighting. Show might, show power, that quiet down noisy humans for little while. Then fight again, noisy humans who tell others to fight shut up again. Dance like this till controlled humans kill noisy humans."

    ''Noisy humans'' huh? I assume he''s referring to politicians and other nobles. Xelba had their fair share of them.

    "And then it''s all over? There has to still be people lower on the food chain who don''t want you colonizing their home."

    "Oh yes, many of those. Lord Terra''ka allow them pick out land, we don''t extend domain there. They keep land, create own nation, but we crush it if they get noisy again. They also required to assist in fighting Demons. No need to help with Xerath, we take care of them."

    As the dagger burns Drak''s hand, Markus comes through the temple doors, walking up to me quickly.

    "Where is Godwin?"

    "They knocked him out, he was rather unhappy upon seeing Hera pick up the dagger."

    Markus scoffs. "Fucking fool, we don''t have time for this. Another portal is opening a few miles away from Thule. Lord Terra''ka says it''s the Demons. They also have limited access to our world now that Urza is past a certain threshold of corruption."

    "Did he tell you if that''s why the sky is pitch black as well?"

    "No, they are at a loss as to why the sky is blotted out. Now that Urza is partly connected to the Xerath''s realm, they will begin corrupting parts of the land if an Eldritch doesn''t claim the land for themselves, but there''s no way one would have become a god this quickly. Plus, they''re not even certain if a Xerathian is the one responsible."

    "Is that why the Demons bring over faceless ones, to raise the corruption level of that world? Er, I mean Xerathians. I need to get used to that name."

    "Yes. Demons need help moving between realms. Every ''faceless one'' on a world increases corruption level, based on strength. Chaos magic also raise corruption level on world by very large amount. Humans summoning Demon, worst thing that can happen." The shaman replied.

    Me and Markus look at each other.

    "Well shit, that explains a lot. Everything did change after those idiots summoned a Satyr." Markus said.

    "Satyr?! You have humans that summon powerful Demon...? It must quickly be killed! It will keep raising corruption level, it must be stopped."

    "Don''t worry Shaman, we purged it awhile ago." Markus replied.

    The shaman sighed with obvious relief.

    "What''s the plan then Markus?"

    "The Templars and I shall stay here, praying to the artifact until we are ready to destroy the portal. I''ve never done such a thing, but Lord Arkaios says it''s possible, so that''s what we shall do. In the mean time the Lizardmen and Guardians are going to kill any Demons that appear."

    "Yes. Portal strength dependent on corruption level and those who create it. It take time to recharge, each Demon that come through drain its strength. We kill all that are guarding portal, we able to encircle it, prevent Demons from digging deep, creating defenses."

    Markus looks at me. "With that said, I''d like to ask you to take Lady Aresa north to Viseux. She''s helped enough, and needs to be returned to her chateau. Being away from it for so long is harmful to her."

    "I don''t mind, but shouldn''t Devon be taking her? I thought she rode in his wagon. Speaking of which, where the hell is he?"

    "You don''t know...? He never stopped in Thule. He wanted to return to Viseux as fast as possible to hold a meeting concerning everything that happened. Their wagon is not only one of the best on Urza, but it was also in the back so it didn''t run into any ice at all."

    Oh, so that''s why I haven''t seen anyone from Aresa''s entourage.

    "I assume I''m running North while carrying her?"

    "No, you''ll take her on a wagon. She may have come with Devon, but she has her own personal wagon. Also, we want you to take the delegates Lord Terra''ka has chosen. They will be his representatives in Viseux."

    Markus pulls a coin out of his pocket. "Here, take this. This is proof that they are my guests. With this, they should be treated well. If not, well... I''ll take care of that when I return."

    "... One last thing. I don''t quite know how to word this so I''ll just be straight with you. You all look and smell like shit. I know you don''t have time to rest and clean up right now, but what about Aresa? Her hair was sparkly and beautiful when I first saw her. Now it''s uh..."

    "Trust me, I know we are in dire need of some R&R right now. After the portal is taken care of, we''re going to rest in Thule for awhile before joining you in Viseux. As for Aresa, she''ll just have to deal with it for now. It''s too much of a risk to have you and our guests cleaning up in Thule alone. Demons are tricky to deal with, there is bound to be a few who invade the town. That''s why some of the Lizardmen and Guardians are going to stay inside of Thule."

    True, it would be pretty risky to stay here.

    "Alright, guess I''m on my way then. Good luck Markus. Say goodbye to the others for me."

    Hera disappeared at some point so it''s just me and Markus in here now.

    I stand up and walk out of the temple.

    Outdoors, things have changed a little. There''s now another Eldritch waiting to enter the portal instead of a bunch of Lizard soldiers. It resembles a chameleon, except it has at least a hundred or more eggs growing out of its back.

    I swear those eggs look like they''re getting bigger every second too... Actually, they might be? They probably decided to send this Eldritch instead of more soldiers because it''s going to create a bunch of spawn the second it gets to the other side. If it spawns them here, it''ll result in a heavier load on the portal is my guess.

    As I move closer to the portal, the Eldritch stares at me with one narrowed eye.

    "... I''m supposed to leave right now. If that''s a problem, take it up with him." I point towards the Hydra.

    Not bothering to wait for a response, I jump through the portal. On the other side I can see Aresa resting on a log with the girl wearing a wedding dress, and the Crotia I battled earlier is standing nearby.

    Ugh, he''s one of the representatives? I hope he''s nothing like the Crotia I met in the past.

    As I get closer to them, the Crotia speaks first.

    "You, the one from earlier. Show me that spell again."

    Does he mean the invisibility or the bombs? Janet''s soul is gone now so he''s shit out of luck if that''s what he wants to see.

    I activate my aura, quickly sneaking up behind him before turning visible to tap him on the shoulder.

    "This what you wanted?"

    "Hmm..... Is it something you can teach?"

    "No, this is... Something like an ability I got a long time ago. And even if it was magic, I sure as hell wouldn''t spread it around."

    The Crotia grinned. "Good."

    "... I see now. You were planning to attack me if it was magic."

    "Clever girl, that''s exactly what I was going to do. I do not know what the cons are to such an ability, but on paper it is far too powerful. I did not see or hear you approach, nor did I see you circle around to the other side of our casters. If there was a chance it could be shared with others, you would need to be dealt with. Here and now."

    Both the girls looked surprised hearing that. Aresa stood up, stomping over towards the Crotia.

    {Hey asshole! Shall I tell your master that you were already about to attack one of us?}

    "Go ahead, tell him. He trusts my judgement, which is why I was chosen for this role. Now be a dear and lead us to your wagon. We have a long way to go, yes?"

    "I don''t care if the Lord supposedly trusts you, your attitude is pissing me off as well Ishar. You should not forget that we were given complete autonomy, so I would have attacked you the moment you showed any signs of aggression." The girl said.

    "Oh how very scary~. A human girl who''s trained alone in her soul realm for years? What a frightening opponent! Zero combat experience, only self-training in an isolated environment... I''d spear you on accident while I''m fighting the white haired one here." Ishar laughed, then continued. "Now enough of this, take us to the wagon."

    Aresa looked at me.

    "It''s fine, show us where your wagon is. Regardless of whatever position he thinks he has over us, our first priority is still getting you home."

    Aresa glares at Ishar, then turns around and begins walking towards the North side of Thule.

    I can''t beat him right now, that much is obvious, especially now that I''ve lost Janet''s bombs. Still though, one day I''ll be strong enough, and then I''ll consider eating him, taking that spear for myself in the process. Also, is he planning on having this attitude in the capital of Urza? They''re already going to be ready for war the second the Ifrit Legion tells the people of Viseux about an Eldritch deciding that this moon now belongs to him. If a Crotia ally of the Lizards shows up and starts picking fights, I don''t think it''s going to end well for him.

    <hr>

    "Very nice! I wasn''t sure what to expect, but this is a damn good wagon." Ishar said.

    He''s right, I can''t believe she spent most of the previous trip on top of another wagon with me when she had this wagon designed for queens waiting for her.

    Behind Aresa''s wagon, another one pulls up and the driver tips his hat to us.

    "Huh? Is there someone else coming as well?"

    {Um, Markus wants us to take Keith''s group as well. He doesn''t want to risk leaving them in Thule chained up, especially now that they''ve proven they''ll work with Demons. He wants us to take them so they can be branded as soon as possible. ''More soldiers for the work to come'', he said.}

    Ishar winced. "Branded huh... Got some crazy ass criminals back there eh?"

    Aresa takes off the black mesh and umbrella I made her, handing them to her driver who places them in a storage compartment near the back.

    {No need for now. The temperature is controlled inside the wagon.}

    Aresa climbs into the wagon, followed by Ishar, and then the orange-haired girl. Except allowing her to go first led me to seeing something I really shouldn''t have.

    After climbing inside and sitting next to Aresa, I point at the girl. "You really need some clothes. Your ass was in full view just now."

    "T-That can''t be helped! I was in such a hurry to reach the battlefield, that I forgot to change after using the dagger to attune my home to the temple. I''ll warp back after we are assigned homes in this ''Viseux'' of yours, I promise."

    "Admittedly, even I found it a little strange when you showed up in a tattered dress and panties for your bottom half. I wondered if it was a cultural thing from your world." Ishar said.

    {You can''t meet dignitaries with those clothes, and you look as dirty as I do. So you were going to need to clean up regardless of what you dressed in before coming here.}

    The wagon began moving, but it was barely shaking at all.

    "And it gets even better! Now this is luxury..." Ishar said.

    Aresa pokes my arm to get my attention.

    {This is thanks to your family. They are the ones who showed us how to create wagons that wouldn''t bounce everywhere. It was very expensive though!}

    "Oh? You''re a family of craftsmen? I didn''t expect that." Ishar said.

    "They were merchants actually. Although I guess in my world, there isn''t much difference between the two professions."

    {Why is that?}

    "Lots of competition for merchants over there... I think? I just remember that we had a massive garage where my family would tinker with everything they planned to sell, making sure it all worked."

    {What happens to your home and all their valuables, are they yours now?}

    "Pfft no, they would have picked my family clean the second we were declared missing. Unless... Wait, maybe my uncle was able to claim everything?"

    That would mean it''s all still there... I really hope that''s what happened.

    A loud rumbling erupts from far off in the distance.

    "What''s that? It sounds like an avalanche."

    "That''s probably the Demons'' first wave of invaders breaking through. At least, I assume that''s what it is." Ishar replied.

    Outside the window from the direction of the portal, I can see multiple balls of fire spouting into the air along with a long plume of black smoke.

    "Forget avalanche, that looks like a volcano erupting."

    "It might actually be one? Demons are too clever for their own good, and more patient than one would expect. I wouldn''t put it past them to somehow send an entire volcano through the portal. Not that I would know how that''s even possible." Ishar said.

    {If the area is covered in lava, will they be able to purge the portal? Or even kill anything that comes out from it?}

    "... Unlikely, which may be their intended purpose." Ishar replied.

    "Hang on, I thought volcanoes erupted because of some kind of phenomenon related to the planet? There is no way they altered Urza that far down." The girl said.

    "Your thinking is too linear. Those are volcanoes from our realm, understand?" Ishar replied.

    ... I see. There''s no guarantee that the Demons landscape operates the same way.

    {I hope everyone survives...}

    I want to reassure her, but I''d be lying if I said that I know everyone will be fine.

    Poor Markus, it looks like he is gonna have to delay that R&R even more.

 Chapter 16 - Viseux

    "I completely forgot to ask till now, but who was the assassin that owned this armor? I found her headless in the home across from Godwin''s tent. Was she there to kill you?"

    {Tengu... His ''spawn'' is unique. He turns humans into spawn. We just call them worshipers or cultists though, since that''s basically what they are. Why they are so powerful or so well equipped is also because of the Tengu, somehow he has his own supply of artifacts. Also, the Tengu only creates worshipers from those whose mind is on the verge of breaking. Those who lost the most important thing in the world to them, those kinds of people.}

    He sounds more like a Demon than an Eldritch then.

    Aresa continued. {We didn''t know who she was after, since Jasper located her with his ability beforehand, which allowed Hera to chop her head off without the girl being able to defend herself. Although, it''s kind of obvious why she was there after Janet kidnapped me, right?}

    "Hmm, you guys did tell me that she had lost her entire family, and it was clear to me that she was on the verge of a mental breakdown."

    {Yep. Like I said before, the Tengu targets those who are... Unwell.}

    "What is this ''Tengu''?" Ishar asked.

    {The plague of Urza. He won''t die, nor leave me or the Kitsune alone. This was the first time I left my chateau in many years, and he immediately sent one of his Lords to capture me. I''m so sick and tired of having to deal with him...}

    "That leads me to yet another question I forgot to ask. How the hell did Janet hide her bombs beneath your tent? The mana signature those things gave off is insane. When I tried throwing one down into a hole above that Nisha girl, I saw both the spider Eldritch and the Satyr turn to look at me for a second because of how threatening an aura the bombs were giving off. There''s no way in hell she hid dozens of those right under your feet and nobody noticed..."

    {I''m... Not sure? Maybe she unlocked an upgrade to the bombs which hides them or puts them in stasis. Do you only take the base level of abilities, or also all the upgrades as well?}

    "Right... That could be it, any upgrades I get are completely random after all. Either that or the assassin is the one who hid them. Yet another soul I forgot to eat. If I had done that, I would know what her ability is if she had one. Unless she used magic, in that case we''ll never know."

    "Eat her soul...?" The orange-haired girl mumbled.

    {I''m surprised you forgot, isn''t it important for you? That body is... Not exactly alive in a general sense.}

    "It''s complicated. Technically I only need souls for mana and to increase my strength, but if I am unable to eat regular food, I end up burning through my cores power, which begins to drain my strength to keep me alive. I was dangerously close to that during the end of the Satyr battle... Honestly, I''m so out of form right now, it''s starting to really annoy me. In Xelba I had to let most of the humans we ''killed'' go, so I''ve been conditioned to ignore anything I kill, leaving the soul for the creature back in Xelba. Hell I even forgot to eat that werewolf, I can''t keep doing this..."

    {It feels weird encouraging you on this, but I''m sure you''ll get used to eating people again... Ugh.}

    I laughed. "You can help. Put my next victim in a full-nelson for me, try to keep him still while I remove him from the cycle of life."

    {No thanks... Oh, it''s been awhile since we ate, want something right now?}

    "I''m fine, I stole a bunch of burgers before hunting down that werewolf. I won''t need food for at least another week."

    "Well I would love some food. What you got?" Ishar said.

    "Um, me too please. Besides new clothes, I also forgot to eat after leaving my ceremony." The girl said.

    "Your ceremony huh... It looks like he couldn''t wait to get that dress off of you. Also, what is your name?"

    "Alicia, and nobody ripped the dress up. I''ve just been wearing it off and on for... Awhile."

    I don''t even know where to start with that, so I''m just gonna ignore it. I got enough to deal with as it is.

    Aresa reaches behind our seats, opening a compartment filled with chilled sandwiches and cookies.

    "Dear god, you even have cookies... I changed my mind, I''ll have a few of those, then I''m gonna shut down for a few days."

    "Keh, awfully complacent aren''t you? Not worried something might happen?" Ishar replied.

    "Don''t worry, I''m sure our overconfident Crotia will protect everyone."

    Ishar was readying another reply when a towel filled with sandwiches and cookies was dropped on his lap. He rightly chose to focus on the food instead.

    After scarfing down a few cookies, I brought my legs up onto the seat, crossing both my legs and arms.

    "Alright, I''m out. Wake me up when you plan on... Wait, this is the opposite of what I was doing before. Is it really okay for me to not be on lookout?"

    {It''s okay, no monsters below a certain level of strength will approach my wagon. When we pull over to let the Grakka''s sleep, I''d like you to go back to being on the lookout.}

    "Okay, that works for me then." I said.

    Closing my eyes, I reach deep into my core, telling it to shut off. My body enters a form of stasis immediately.

    <hr>

    About two weeks later Viseux is finally in view. It was almost a week ago when the black clouds ended, allowing the sun to illuminate the land finally. Thanks to this, the other three are in much higher spirits.

    "I forgot how much living beings depend on the sun. It was amazing seeing how happy you three became the second you saw the world being lit up again."

    "Shit, you''re the weird one here girl. I could never survive in a cold dark world like that. I asked Terra''ka to keep me relegated to the parts of Urza that the sun reaches, and he agreed thank god. Anything dark will be passed to the rookie here."

    "Thanks Ishar, I really appreciate it..." Alicia said.

    Aresa holds her board up to me. {You hate the sun?}

    "Hate... No, I''m just not good with the light. The suns light hurts me a little but I can handle it. After all, even I like a bright sunny day every now and then. No denying I vastly prefer bad weather though."

    Putting my aura up on a bright day like this hurts a hell of a lot more, but I''d rather these two don''t know that. The Lizardmen aren''t my enemy, however... They may be one day. I realized on the way here that if they decided to colonize the Elven continent then I would be doing the same thing the Ifrit Legion is doing right now. Even if everything the Lizards say is true, and I really do believe them, there''s still this feeling of absolute revulsion at the idea of someone else showing up and taking your home from you, regardless of their intentions.

    Not that I would even need to do that. The people of Urza have a hell of a fight ahead of them, but if it were the Elves being invaded? One of their spider mechs could probably devastate the Lizardmen''s initial invading force all by itself.

    ... It really makes me wonder if Viktor went back to Aetheria. He hated other Elves, the sight of my ears annoyed him for years, but he got used to them over time. He''s way too smart to think he could take them on though, not without major preparations. Even so, he wasn''t exactly hiding his desire to kill the Elven Eldritch ''and all of his pets'' as he would put it. Yet another reason I need to go home.

    For awhile now we''ve been riding in the middle of the street with other wagons as we pass by people walking to Viseux, but as we neared the gate, the wagon went off to the side towards a much smaller gate.

    "I should''ve known you''d get special treatment. Do only the nobles get to use that door?"

    {... Yes. Please don''t lump me in with those people though. I hate what they''ve turned my city into.}

    A man in the same white ceremonial armor I saw outside of Godwin''s tent runs up to the wagon, knocking on the window immediately.

    Aresa sighs, reaching out to open the window.

    "Lady Aresa! You have no idea of how relieved Lord Rai''ga is going to be upon hearing you have returned. Why didn''t you tell him you were leaving? We would have prepared a much larger escort for you."

    {And that''s exactly why I didn''t tell you. Now please have your men stand aside, I want to go home and rest. It''s been a long couple of months.}

    "Of course! We will inform Lord Rai''ga of your return in the meantime. Please do not fret, you know he won''t call for you. Still... It''s best if you visit him at least once. It''s been many years and he misses you dearly."

    {I promise I''ll visit him soon.}

    The knight smiles and nods, waving at his men to open the small side-gate.

    As we move through the gate I look at Aresa. "Lord Rai''ga, I''ve heard that name before... Wasn''t that the Eldritch who built a city near the south-western portal? Xelba gave up on attacking that region because he always saw us coming when we tried before."

    {He owns Viseux now. Made himself nice and comfortable after the Eldritch who built this city died...}

    "Hmm, I can''t remember who created this place. Actually... I think it''s the first time I was told an Eldritch had built Viseux."

    {You wouldn''t know them. They''re dead and gone, old history now. I''ll tell you another time if you''re curious though.}

    Looking out the window as the wagon rolls through town, I''m shocked at how beautiful the city is. The sides of each street are lined with tall stone homes that were obviously designed with a high degree of aesthetics in mind.

    "Oh wow, this place looks like old images I''d find from my homeland. We used to have old Victorian homes just like these! Honestly, I thought you''d all be living in huts. Seeing a city like this gives me hope for this place." Alicia said.

    "So Victorian was the name... How did you know that? Are you from Aetheria?"

    "Hmm? Did I not say that yet? Maybe I didn''t... Anyways yes, I lived in Termia, the largest nation in the south. The best nation on Aetheria as far as I''m concerned. I''ll never understand why half my friends went to that frozen wasteland you call home, just so a bunch of vile robots could rip them apart."

    {Why didn''t you say you were from the Elven planet! Rei was too young the last time she was there, so she only has random knowledge about things.}

    "So it''s all the same then? Elves are still a bunch of ruin divers fighting machines?"

    "You really have been gone awhile if you''re asking such a basic question... Yes, everything is mostly the same. Recently though, the far western town went completely dark. I only saw it in passing on the news while I was preparing my apartment to warp here. Basically the news was saying that the city of Rykers went silent, nobody can contact them at all. There is around thirty-thousand people there that are now presumed dead." Alicia looked at Aresa. "I''ll be more than happy to tell you about my home later on after we clean up."

    "Western town...? There were no ''western towns'' the last time I was home. All of Elven civilization was centered at the bottom-right corner of the continent."

    "Whoa, being gone ''awhile'' is an understatement if your knowledge goes that far back. Your nation has slowly been building massive fortress cities out west along the coast. This is the first time one has gone ''missing'' though, so something major must be going down."

    "What are ''machines'', or ''robots''?" Ishar asked.

    "They''re uh... Metallic monsters, created by... Well, nobody knows actually. People? Aliens? Other machines?" Alicia replied.

    "... Strange."

    I guess that''s all he can say on the matter. The whole concept has to be alien to him if he''s from Urza.

    "Oh right, if you''re a Crotia, you must originally be from Urza."

    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    "Close, but no. I was born soon after my people were exiled. Although I still have quite a lot of knowledge about Urza thanks to my elders never shutting up about it. You can imagine how they felt after being forced to choose between extermination and exile. Personally, I don''t have any feelings on the matter one way or the other. This is just another corrupted moon Terra''ka is trying to colonize as far as I''m concerned."

    Well at least he''s honest about the colonize part.

    After a little while longer, we pulled up to a rather large building atop a hill. There is a large gate out front, with a wrought-iron fence circling the building about fifty meters away.

    "Wow, this is where you live? Look at that gazebo... Everything here is amazing!" Alicia said.

    "It feels a little strange here... Something is off, but I can''t quite put my finger on what it is."

    {It should feel odd. You''re inside my domain now after all.}

    Me, Ishar, and Alicia all looked at each other.

    Domain? I could understand if she said realm, some people are powerful enough to extend their soul realm into the real world. Domain though...? Only one kind of being uses that word. Should I ask her? It might have been a slip of the tongue... Looking at the other two, they seem intent on pretending they didn''t hear it, so I might as well follow suit.

    After the wagon stops, Aresa opens the door, exiting the wagon. The rest of us follow out after her, with me making sure I go before Alicia this time. On the outside, the driver bows to Aresa, disappearing shortly after.

    "What...?" Ishar said.

    {The attendants are created through my chateau. After the other one delivers Keith''s group to the prison, it''ll return here where it will also evaporate into its real form.}

    "She came across as a childish teenage noble to me... But now I''m starting to wonder if I''m dealing with something else entirely." Alicia whispered to me.

    I also thought the same after our conversations on the wagon, although there were a few odd parts sticking out here and there. Her seemingly infinite mana-pool is one such example. Meanwhile on the other side, looking that young despite her age is normal for hybrids so I paid it no mind.

    The large doors open seemingly on their own as Aresa approaches them, while the three of us follow her inside the chateau.

    Ishar was the first to speak. "What is this madness? How is the inside so much bigger than it appeared on the outside?"

    I was also shocked seeing how big this place is on the inside. There are three stories all full of bookshelves on the outer half of the interior. In the center is a wide open area with a myriad of different couches, reclining chairs, beds, tables with chairs, and most surprising of all, a refrigerator. There are also magic crystals lit-up all over, basking everything in a beautiful golden light.

    {Make yourself at home! The bathrooms are in the back, follow me. That includes you Rei.}

    "What? Why me? I don''t mind taking a soak, but it''s unnecessary. You saw the grime come off of me when I slept."

    "Yeah, we know... Thanks for that by the way." Alicia said.

    When I turned my core off the first time, my body went to work cleaning itself, removing dirt and whatever else got stuck to me since the last time I rested with Hera weeks before. I can do it while I''m awake, but I don''t always remember or care enough to. The problem is that it all slid off of me into the wagon, even Aresa was a little unhappy about that. The attendant had to clean it all up later on.

    "Alright fine, I admit I''m a little interested in taking a bath again."

    I haven''t had one since before I attacked Xelba after all, and that feels like a completely different life at this point.

    Aresa''s attendants appear again, this time with one female in the mix. They begin walking in a straight line past the center area, leading us through a few bookshelves towards a large door-shaped opening in the wall. Once inside, the male attendants lead Ishar to the right, and the female took us to the left.

    "Oh you have no idea of how bad I needed this..." Alicia said, clearly in awe.

    The bath is as luxurious as I expected it to be, already filled up with hot water. As I near it, the artifact armor transforms into that of a small loose bracelet on my arm.

    "Wow, I''m beyond jealous after seeing that."

    "I do have an amazing body, thank you for noticing."

    "You ass, that''s not what I meant and you know it." Alicia smirked.

    The two of them begin undressing as I walk into the pool.

    It''s a pool after all, not a bath. This thing is fucking huge.

    Laying down under the water, I close my eyes and empty my mind, letting the silent shifting of water take over.

    <hr>

    I''m glad she invited me, I really needed that. I don''t know when they got out, but everyone is all dried off already, sitting around in the center of the room.

    As I walk over to them Ishar yells out at me. "Bah, what the hell happened in there? We got out hours ago and have been waiting for you."

    "Will you quit your bitching already? It''s only been twenty minutes since the attendant told us it''s time to meet up with the ambassador here." Alicia said, pointing to the large clock on the shelf nearby.

    "Why''d you guys wait for me? This sounds like your problem, not mine."

    "The hell? The lady here said you''d want to go."

    Aresa nods. {I assumed you''d want to be there. Do you not?}

    "Well now that I''m here I''ll go. However, if you had left without me I''d have just relaxed and read a book."

    Ishar throws his hands up into the air.

    {Oh, maybe I don''t know what you plan on doing here then? You can stay in my chateau as long as you want, I don''t mind! I just felt like you had something you needed to do.}

    "I do, it involves absorbing Eldritch. Since the forces here are going to be stretched thin, this is the perfect opportunity for me to invite myself into some Guardian groups. They apparently don''t do anything with the souls, so it''s perfect for me."

    {That''s good then, because soon they''re going to need all the help they can get.}

    Aresa stands up from the couch and begins walking towards the entrance. Leading to the three of us following behind her yet again.

    <hr>

    After exiting the wagon, I immediately feel like like going back inside and turning my core off.

    "... Please tell me we have business elsewhere?"

    "No? This is the spot we are to meet them." Ishar said.

    We''re currently standing above a large open theater hall, where there is a commander giving a speech to hundreds of well-dressed soldiers standing at ease.

    "Remember men, there is no such thing as a ''friendly invasion''. Outsiders are the enemy, period. No matter what pretty words they use, no matter what they offer you, always respond with one simple action. AND WHAT IS THAT ACTION?!"

    "KILL THEM ALL!!"

    "Heh....hehe...hahahaha...."

    Aresa looked back at me.

    {Rei...?}

    Oh god, this is bringing back so many bad memories. I can see myself down there right now saluting Xelba''s higher ups...

    "CORRECT!! Now this is what I like to see... No pussies from the Guardian corps or Templars speaking of holding hands and fighting for a better tomorrow with a bunch of god damned invaders."

    The men down below laugh.

    "I wish this were a better time. I wish I could tell you men that on this day, your very own graduation day, you could go get some much needed rest before your nation needs you. However, there are barbarians at the gate, so I must ask you fine gentlemen to take up arms for your brothers and sisters this very moment. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?"

    "NO SIR!! WE ARE HONORED SIR!!"

    ... Unreal, we were told almost the exact same thing at our graduation. It was called a knighting in Xelba though.

    "Duty comes easy, honor comes later. Listen to your leaders, never compromise with the enemy, protect your home above all else, and honor will come to you. You''ll know it when it''s there. I look forward to the day you men turn from graduates, to honorable veterans like the men behind you."

    The graduates turn around in one swift motion, saluting the veterans, before turning back around.

    Honor... Duty... Again, like clockwork.

    "What a beautiful time to be alive. The forces of Viseux truly are on another level, I couldn''t be more proud..." The commander said.

    Is it like this everywhere? A lot of the ruin divers were soldiers who went MIA. When you partake in ruin diving, no country is allowed to go after you anymore. I was a kid so those stories meant nothing to me, but now that I think of it from the mind of an adult who served a nation at one point, the whole situation back home is very suspicious. MIA soldiers from all over Aetheria, fighting ruthless deadly machines all in the hopes of making it rich... They deserted for that? I saw a video of a group of divers being assaulted by a machine once, I had nightmares for months. I was a kid but still, even as an adult I don''t like to remember it.

    "These primal Reptiles think they can come here and ''save us''. Let me ask all of you a question, and that includes the veterans in the back. DO WE NEED TO BE SAVED?!"

    "NO SIR!!!"

    Here it comes, the ''we''re still here so that means we don''t need help'' speech.

    "Damn right we don''t! We''ve been fighting for this land long before those beasts showed up. We didn''t need them then, and we sure as hell don''t need them now." The commander said.

    I wonder how many of them are like the me of old... I had just spent all of my childhood in a realm infested with monsters, all alone. I had slowly grown close to everyone there after training with the unit for a few years, finding myself smiling again for the first time in years. I was... Happy. Happy to be knighted with them, ready to serve with the others. While the men down there obviously don''t share the same backstory with me, I''m sure they''re all happy to be knighted into service for their nation.

    "Khan Uluhm has always had a shaky relationship with us to say the least. None of that matters now. Soon we''ll be making a joint attack on both the Lizards and the Demons. WE WILL SHOW THEM BOTH THAT THEY ARE NOT WELCOME HERE!! DO YOU AGREE SOLDIERS?!"

    "YES SIR!!!"

    I sighed. "They''re going to help the Demons if this continues."

    "You know that at a glance? Impressive, for a merchant." Ishar smirked.

    "And you know exactly why I''m saying that. These idiots know nothing about Demons, that much is clear."

    {How will they help the Demons?}

    "Obviously I''m not doubting that the soldiers here want to attack the Demons too, but the Demons are on the other side of where the Lizards portal is. The Lizards will have to pull away from the Demons to protect themselves, otherwise they''ll get pincered."

    "Leaving Lord Terra''ka no choice but to relent on assaulting the Demons so he can defend against this worlds forces." Alicia added.

    "The Lizards knew it would come to that the moment the portal opened behind them. Terra''ka closing his portal and opening another isn''t an option, it doesn''t work like that. So this world will just have to deal with the fallout of letting a bunch of Demons escape the portal while the Lizards defend themselves." Ishar said.

    "Interesting opinion Crotia." A female knight in reddish black armor approaches us.

    Aresa grimaces upon seeing the girl, holding her board up to me.

    {This is Freya, she is one of the Ifrit Legion''s platoon leaders}

    "Opinion huh? Mind telling me where we went wrong, oh wise one?" Ishar said.

    "Wrong? No, it was correct. However, your blatant pro-invader attitude is what sickens me. Not that it comes as much of a surprise from one of those very same invaders, who just so happens to be from the only race that was ever exiled from Urza."

    {You don''t know what it''s like down there Freya! The whole bottom half of Urza is pitch black and freezing cold. The Lizards said Urza is now corrupted to a level that Eldritch and Demons can now open doorways here. Also, some strange faceless creatures are going to start popping up everywhere.}

    "''The Lizards said''... Apologies Lady Aresa, but I do not believe anything these ''Lizards'' say. Even if it were true, they are still planning to take control of our home, making us the guests here."

    "Look, I already know it''s pointless, but I''ll try speaking on this once. Some of the Demons will use this opportunity to flee, escaping to other parts of Urza where they will become an absolute menace. It will all be thanks to this ''alliance'' forcing the Lizards to retreat and defend themselves, giving the Demons a reprieve they must not be allowed to have."

    "... I''ve heard of you, the one known as ''Reimia''. Unlike the fools in Viseux, we are actually required to read up on history. Urza matters to us after all. Because of this, I know quite a bit about your Xelba, at least what had leaked out from it. There are a few accounts of your actions as well, most of them bad, and a single good one. The Dwarves even worshiped you as a goddess before they died, but they were all mad by the end anyways."

    That aligns with what I remember of Dwarves. They got their hands on a book that turned their culture into something else entirely in only one generation. Obsessed with dying in battle, always looking for a new enemy. I can''t remember why, but Xelba became their number one target, despite the fact that Xelba was literally on the other side of the moon from their nation.

    Freya sighed, "Anyways, you make a point that we had already figured out on our own. We''re going to do our best to wrap around the area before hitting the Lizards, making sure we hit the Demons too. If some escape, then it can''t be helped, we''ll deal with them later. However, allowing either side to build up forces through the portal is not an option. We are hitting them both, and soon, end of story."

    "So it''s the usual response we receive upon our arrival. I''ll say it now for posterity sake, you are going to lose." Ishar said.

    Freya smirked. "Sadly for you, we have no intentions of losing."

    "There is one part I don''t understand, how are you planning on dealing with the Templars? A man named Markus told us that his old god is willing to work with us." Alicia asked.

    "We do not have ''Templars'' in Khan Uluhm. However, I have been told that the ones here in Viseux are on house arrest, pending a trial about conspiring to cause a coup." Freya replied.

    {Freya, you... Are you going to kill Markus?}

    "... If he stands against us, we will have no choice. That includes Godwin''s family too, as I see they are not here. I can only assume they picked the wrong side."

    For the first time yet, I saw what looked like pure anger appear on Aresa''s face.

    Freya looked at Aresa softly, "It can''t be helped Lady Aresa, please understand... If they meet us on the field, we have no other options."

    Aresa glared at Freya for what felt like ages, before turning her board towards us.

    {I''m leaving. You coming with?}

    The three of us nodded, following after Aresa as she stomps off towards her wagon. After we climbed inside, I called out to Ishar.

    "Is that truly it for you? Just one quick meeting and that''s that?"

    "That''s that indeed. Can''t do anything else past this... For now anyway. Don''t worry, I always end up relaxing for a while until the world we''re invading can''t keep up a protracted war anymore. They''ll come to me with ''terms'' that I''ll tell them to shove up their asses. That will continue for a few months until they can''t delay a peaceful resolution anymore, which leads to a temporary truce. That''s only phase one, but you get the gist of it."

    The wagon began moving again. None of us spoke the whole ride back to the chateau. Once we were inside, the silence remained, as Aresa had immediately grabbed a book and laid down on a couch, burying herself in it.

    Ishar looked at us and shrugged. He then sat down on a recliner, pushing it all the way back as his wings expanded over the back. Closing his eyes shortly after, preparing to sleep.

    Well... Guess I''ll read a book too? Nothing else to do for now. Aresa said her attendants informed the Guardians Guild to send me a missive the next time they are sent out to take care of an Eldritch or Demon.

    Looking through the same bookcase Aresa took her book from, I find something so familiar that I have a hard time believing it''s real.

    "Irvine C. Velrune..."

    My Uncle''s name. I know Aresa said she bought things from my family, I just didn''t expect to see things that are literally made by them. This book is about all the pros and cons of every type of gun. I saw the cover as a kid, but obviously I had no interest in reading it.

    Picking the book up, I take it over to a recliner, kicking it all the way back like Ishar has his.

    Now then, let''s see how good of a writer my Uncle is.

    <hr>

    Eight days later, I finally get word that the Guardians are setting out soon.

    "Good luck, hopefully we''ll see you again." Alicia said.

    "See you in forty-two years if I die."

    Alicia raises an eyebrow at me before going back to her book.

    I still got some time before the meeting, so I''m reading a newspaper right now which is making me laugh way more than it should.

    "Hey Ishar, listen to this. ''The ten feet tall Lizardmen claim they are our saviors, but are they really? This seasoned writer knows otherwise. All signs point to the heartless cold-blooded Lizards bringing the Demons with them, hellbent on stopping our warm-blooded compassionate hearts, no matter who they need to ally with to see their vile ambitions come to pass''."

    Ishar grabbed his stomach, laughing so hard he had trouble breathing.

    "Isn''t propaganda great?"

    Ishar wiped a tear from his eye, "Fucking hell, I''ve never invaded a world that had such an easy means of spreading word to the masses. At first I found it impressive, but after reading a few of those ''newspapers'', I''m starting to think that ''printing press'' was one giant mistake."

    {It''s been great! I love all my books, but... Yeah, Viseux is only using it to control people.}

    Aresa looks at me.

    {By the way, what did the note say? An Eldritch hunt, or Demon?}

    "They''re not sure. They aren''t even sure if there is only one or two."

    "So in other words, they know nothing." Ishar said.

    "Sure seems like it."

    {Ah, the attendants told me it''s time. They will take you there, um... Be safe, okay?}

    "Don''t worry, I''m very good at escaping when I need to."

    "Shit, I don''t doubt that." Ishar said, still relaxing in his chair.

    Standing up from my chair, I begin walking towards the exit.

    Honestly, I''m excited. I loved this little downtime, but I''m also dying to get stronger right now. Hopefully whatever is waiting for me isn''t something I can''t handle at my current level.

 Chapter 17 - Calm Before The Storm

    Stepping out of the wagon, I find myself in front of a familiar looking building.

    "It looks exactly like the building back in Thule... Do all of the Guardian Guilds look like this? It does have a nice simple design, so there really is no reason to change it up."

    "Yes, it was decided long ago when the order was established that our guild hall would be used as a symbol." A voice from my right said.

    To my right there is a large man with a neatly-trimmed black beard. He bows down as I look at him.

    "Lady Reimia, good to see you again."

    Ah shit, I thought he looked familiar, but I don''t remember who he is.

    The man notices my hesitation and smiles. "We met briefly in the residential district of Fudo, my name is Blackwall. I was in the tent sitting next to Godwin. I''m his right-hand man, or... I was. You''re looking at the person who ''succeeded'' him, but not by choice."

    "Oh that''s right! Sorry, I do remember you now." I continued. "Did the guild force Godwin out?"

    "No... Viseux and Khan Uluhm made that decision for us. We''ve always been autonomous, never getting involved in politics, but after Godwin supposedly defected to a foreign Eldritch... Honestly, I was really hoping you could enlighten the guild on what happened Rei. We''re all having a really hard time believing that old asshole would suddenly turn traitor. Especially me, since I knew his entire family was scheduled to leave Urza."

    "You knew about that? He must have trusted you quite a bit."

    "I was one of the first recruits to the Guild when he formed it. Anyways, please come inside, and uh, please don''t attack our new recruits."

    Attack...? Why would he say that, are they Demons?

    After following him inside, I immediately understood why he was worried I might attack them.

    "Branded already huh? That was fast, but shouldn''t you be in the Templars possession?"

    Keith scrunched up his face, looking at Blackwall instead of responding to me.

    "They are now property of the Guardians Guild. The Templars are currently... Unavailable."

    Oh right, they''re being treated as traitors right now.

    "When you said we were waiting on our final member, did you mean...?" Nisha said.

    "She is to join you, but not as a member of the unit. Lady Reimia will only be there to assist you as she chooses, and to... Finish, the Eldritch or Demon off."

    They want me to absorb the soul basically. That way they don''t need to worry about it reviving fifty to two hundred years later.

    Looking at Keith''s group I can''t help but remember the ritual site and the fucking Satyr...

    "... Honestly, I was fine with letting the Templars do whatever they wanted with you, and this does seem like a fitting punishment, but seeing your stupid faces is really making me regret not killing you when I had the chance."

    "The feeling is mutual bitch." Said one of the men. A tall man with a cleanly shaven head.

    I point towards Keith and Nisha. "I know your names, but not those two. Speak."

    "The one who is dangerously close to being reminded of what his position is, is Lindon. The other is Albel." Blackwall said.

    Lindon, who was raising both his middle fingers at me, puts them down quickly as a brief flash of horror appears on his face.

    They must have already been given a slight taste of what it feels like to be purged, so it shouldn''t be too difficult to work with them. If it is, then I''ll take it in stride knowing that they''ll be sent to purgatory for awhile afterwards. Whatever Arkaios is doing to them is far worse than anything I could ever achieve.

    "I don''t want to connect to her soul... I''m the one who could feel her devouring the others while I was connected to them." Nisha said.

    "Hmm..." Blackwall narrows his eyes at Nisha.

    "It''s fine Blackwall. I really didn''t want her connected to me anyways."

    "... The choice is yours. With that said, I suggest you reconsider. Nisha''s support abilities should not be looked down upon."

    "I''m not looking down on her abilities, I remember how annoying she was. Even so, I shall abstain."

    It would be useful to be able to talk to everyone at any time, or warp to Nisha when need be, but I still refuse to let her place a mark on my soul. The veil is there for a reason, it''s to prevent anyone or anything from tinkering with my soul. Who knows what else she can do... I sure as hell don''t want to find out.

    "Then I will not bring it up again. Now please, sit down." Blackwall motions towards a chair next to Keith.

    After taking my seat, Blackwall sits down to my right.

    "Now then, I''d like to say I have a lot of information for you, but at this point all I have for you is to say ''good luck''."

    "Surely you have more than that? You must have brought us in for a reason?" Keith asked.

    "Basically, when the black sky rolled in all the villages went into lockdown, protecting themselves the best they could while everyone tried to discern what the cause was. For awhile they thought the only problem associated with the sky was the high uptake in monster attacks. That is, until the lockdown was resolved and they found something else."

    Blackwall points to an area south-east of Viseux, directly east about one-hundred miles from where the Lizardmen currently are.

    "Kellog''s fortress, heard of it?"

    "Hmm, from what I remember it was created as a bastion against the Crotia. The mountains run all the way to the east, and quite far to the west, so the only way for them to reach us was through that fortress." Keith said.

    "A textbook answer, and mostly correct. All the villages are spread out on the Northern side of the fortress, connected to each other by well-maintained dirt roads. After the lockdown was released, regiments were sent out to each village to make sure everything was okay. Each village has large crystal lights on top of a tower to direct at other villages in case they need help, but it was still necessary to get a first-hand account on anything that may have happened."

    "No communicators?" Nisha asked.

    "None, this is why I said Keith was mostly correct. You all apparently forgot the part where Kellog fortress is technically its own nation. After the Crotia were exiled, the people of Kellog refused to leave, nor were they allowing anyone to move in. Rai''ga allowed them to secede right before war broke out, under the condition that trade continued as normal. He knew they''d never turn on us, so it mattered little to him. Also, it''s only a matter of time before they rejoin Viseux regardless."

    "What does this have to do with there being no communicators?" Nisha said.

    "Kellog has communicators for the fortress, soldiers, outposts, and each village, but the village ones are only used in case of emergencies. The people living there really love their freedom, so having a constant line of communication between your village and the fortress was a deal breaker for them. Surprisingly the fortress was fine with it."

    "Viseux would march its soldiers straight to any village that wanted to cut all surveillance. There''s no way in hell that would be allowed." Albel said.

    "I see... I have a pretty good grasp of the area now, please continue." Keith said.

    "As to why such a guarded nation is reaching out to us, it''s because of two reasons. One, they are stretched thin dealing with all the monster attacks. Two, because once the lockdown was over, they discovered four of their villages had been wiped out. Two of them were completely deserted with no signs of bodies or fighting anywhere, while the other two had been burned to the ground. Charred bodies littered the dirt everywhere."

    "Burned? If crystal lights can reach other villages in the dark, how did they not see an entire village burning?" Albel asked.

    "Quite the mystery, isn''t it? In either case the local municipality is at a complete loss. Hence, they are reaching out to us."

    "When did they release the lockdown?"

    "Two weeks ago."

    "So whatever is responsible could be long gone." Keith said.

    "True, but is this any different from other investigations?" Blackwall said.

    He''s right after all. If it was an imminent threat everyone could see, then they''d handle it themselves or be calling for Viseux''s troops, not a unit from the Guardians Guild.

    "Any other questions?"

    "I see the villages in question are paired up in different areas of the region. One burned village, next to an empty village. Was there anything at all that might tell them where the beings responsible had gone? Tracks, scents, and so on?"

    "None. Like I said, quite the mystery. For now they have units camping out between villages, all within view of each other. This is unsustainable though, they already have enough trouble fighting off all the monsters. Most of them are coming from the north, and not south of the fortress. There is a large wooden palisade going around the whole region, which is honestly impressive given its size, but it''s obviously not the type of barrier to hold off a constant stream of monsters."

    "Looking at this map, the villages that were destroyed are all in the area surrounded by forests. Are they focusing on watching those?" Albel said.

    "No, all villages are being watched, and this is because a lot of villagers helping out. For the most part the retired citizens are taking up watch in the non-forested areas. While this helps the soldiers out, it''s still going to be a massive hit to morale if the old-timers are killed because those in charge couldn''t protect them. People are already freaked out enough being engulfed in total darkness. The Kellog region venerates its old who had served the region in the past, so if a large amount of them die in a monster attack or whatever the hell this is... Well, let''s hope you find the culprit before it comes to that."

    "In that case, where are you sending us?" Keith asked.

    "Your unit is heading right here, to a village near the tree-line. Personally I think you should be deeper in the woods than this since that''s where all the attacks have been, but the higher-ups in Kellog want you straddling the line between both sides."

    "So we can respond to attacks on either side... Eh, it''s a safe approach, but I can''t say I like it." Lindon said.

    "Where is she going?" Albel points at me.

    "Leaving that up to her. With that said, I''d like you to investigate two of the four villages."

    "One charred village, and one empty village, right? That''s what I was planning on doing. I had a case like this in Xelba."

    "How''d that one go?"

    "The shortened version is that one of the nobles in Xelba wanted a girl from a village he saw. She was already married, and one of the good things about Xelba was how it treated those currently serving and their families. Her husband was a carrier, basically grunt work, but that didn''t matter. By law the noble was not allowed to lay a hand on any of them. That doesn''t always stop them, as you can imagine. He burned the entire place to the ground. I found some evidence in the village that led me through multiple places before I finally found the end of the trail, the girl. She was... You don''t want to know. Basically I dragged him before the high inquisitors with the girl and all the other evidence, where they promptly disposed of him."

    "Humans were the culprits huh... Think it could be the same here?" Blackwall asked.

    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    "Possible, but... It would have to be something that ran deep for any of the higher ups to destroy two villages, and disappear two others. Most importantly though, if this is an inside job, then the people responsible are not going to be pleased with the fact that we will be there investigating it."

    I motion towards Keith''s group. "You guys should make your own food just in case."

    Keith nods. "We''re used to it, so that''s fine. Blackwall?"

    "It''ll be prepared. You''re taking the Longbow, so you''ll have plenty of room for supplies."

    "Longbow? The hell is that?"

    "Godwins naming sense at work. It''s our biggest wagon, there is three in total all reserved for the top three in the guild. Godwin never used his, and since it''s mine now, I''m letting you take it. Better than it just sitting there collecting dust." Blackwall said.

    The door to the guild opens as a girl wearing a long decorated white kimono enters. Spotting Blackwall, she walks over to him in an annoyingly refined gait that makes me narrow my eyes.

    She''s obviously just an attendant, I need to stop getting mad at seeing even the slightest hint of nobility... Although, I didn''t get mad at Aresa, did I? Something about her felt off from the start, that''s probably why.

    The girl bows down, holding out a letter with both hands.

    Blackwall grabs the letter and folds it open. Not long after that he closes the letter and sighs.

    "... Is this already certified? Going to happen no matter what?"

    The girl nods.

    Blackwall hands the letter back to the girl, then looks at me.

    "You are friendly with Lady Aresa, correct? I heard you''re living with her, and she even let you use one of her wagons."

    "I am. I assume that note is related to her?"

    "Yes... Apparently, she''s going to be coming with you. They are on their way to inform her now."

    "What the hell, why?"

    "It doesn''t say, but I have a suspicion as to why Lord Rai''ga would request her to leave again. She always said no before, however..." Blackwall looks at me.

    "You''re thinking she''ll say yes now that I''m here. Tell me what your suspicion---" I stop, looking at the attendant who is still here for some reason.

    "It''s fine, she can hear it. There''s only one possible reason, he wants to draw out another Tengu Lord."

    "He''s using Lady Aresa as bait...?" Nisha said.

    "Strange, I heard she had special powers here in Viseux, and even Lord Rai''ga couldn''t tell her what to do." Lindon said.

    "He can''t, but she''ll agree anyways. Fortunately this time she''ll have a proper entourage. Devon is strong, but he''s... Not quite the man I''d want guarding me. He''s more of a support character."

    "Wait, how are they going to purge the Lord this time? All the Templars are under house arrest."

    "Oh shit, that''s true Blackwall. Is Aresa''s entourage strong enough to beat one of the Tengu Lords? They can''t possibly be expecting us to kill it..." Lindon said.

    "The entourage, including me, will be the ones to kill it. We''ll be on standby in a village near you lot, waiting for the Lord to appear. Don''t ask us for help with your own mission unless absolutely necessary."

    "Hang on, will it really appear again? My knowledge on this ''Tengu'' is limited, but if Aresa leaves again so soon, won''t it be way too obvious?"

    "Normally you''d be right, but he has spies everywhere, I''m sure he knows about the Templars being locked down. He''ll take the risk, since he knows we''ll have to kill the Lord through normal means... Honestly, it''s still a gamble. Far from us helping you, you may need to help us if you''re able to."

    Blackwall leans over and whispers. "Don''t expect to absorb its soul. The Tengu retrieves his Lords souls the second they die."

    Well that''s disappointing... An Eldritch that powerful would be a huge boost to my mana pool.

    "When do we leave"? Keith asked.

    "Before the change in plans I was going to have you head out immediately. Now though, you might as well wait till the others are here, and then we''ll set out together. It will take about fifteen days to get there."

    I kicked back, putting my feet on the table.

    This is turning into a bigger deal than I expected it to be. I can''t for the life of me think of a single way I could assist against one of those Tengu Lords... I''ll need to find some good abilities between now and the fight. Best case scenario I won''t have to fight it at all, but that''s probably wishful thinking.

    <hr>

    An hour later the door to the guild slams open. Ishar, Alicia, Aresa, and two other women walk inside.

    "You two are coming as well?"

    "Keh, I''m not much of a reader. Relaxing is a privilege I will happily indulge in, but I''d much rather be fighting right now. Also, I can''t let my little host here run off and die to this ''Tengu'' you two were talking about before." Ishar replied.

    "I also can''t stay there alone while these two are out there fighting." Alicia said.

    Aresa holds her board up to my face.

    {Looks like we''re heading out again.}

    "Are you sure about this? You know you''re bait, right?"

    {It''s okay. You''ll save me again if it comes to that. Also, Rai''ga promised me something I need.}

    "I appreciate the vote of confidence, but it wasn''t attacking us in full that time. If it wasn''t pulling its punches, we wouldn''t be here."

    One of the new arrivals walks up to me.

    "Now now, what''s important is that you made it back! Allow me to thank you for assisting my friend in her time of need." The woman bows.

    Hmm, noble mannerisms again. This lady must be the attendants employer. High quality clothes, medium length black hair, but most noticeable of all is the long canines and black wings behind her.

    "A Nei''lah huh... Rare to see one of you."

    "Yes, we are quite rare on Urza these days. A shame, but what can we do? Our god chose to leave with the Crotia after all."

    "Girl, you are the last person who should be talking about how ''rare'' someone is." Ishar said.

    ... I can''t deny that.

    Glancing at the other woman, I see her wearing a tight oriental black one-piece I''m unfamiliar with. I may have seen clothes like that many times in the past and just forgot about it. After all, I only went to Kitsune villages to raid them, never to visit or learn their culture.

    ... My god, I really am fucked up. I recalled those memories as if thinking of a time I watered a field or watched a sunset. Kidnapping, theft, murder, it was all just so... Normal.

    "Can you move properly in that?" I said to the woman, hoping to distract myself.

    The woman smiled and nodded.

    She also has long red hair all the way down to her waist, I''m surprised it doesn''t hinder her in a fight. She''s here to fight the Tengu though, so I doubt she''s an amateur.

    Aresa points to the lady with wings first, then the Kitsune next.

    {Cera, Shana.}

    Blackwall claps his hands. "Alright! Now that everyone is here, let''s get going. We have a long way to go and I''d like to get this trip over with."

    {Riding with us, Rei?}

    "Is there going to be room? Your wagon is nice but six people with that giant crocodile is a bit too much."

    {No no, Cera and Shana are riding in the Longbow.}

    "Oh, in that case I''ll definitely ride with you three again, unless they need me on lookout?"

    "No need my dear, we''ll take care of that." Cera said.

    Works for me, I''d rather relax the whole way if I can.

    <hr>

    "... I''m missing my chair. Never had one that comfortable before."

    "We know already Ishar. You''ve been whining about that chair for awhile now..." Alicia said.

    "It''s called a recliner, I assume she got it from my family? Or at the very least she got the blueprints from them."

    {Blueprints! My mom had them made for me.}

    Mom huh... I haven''t seen anyone resembling a family around her.

    "Oh Ishar, there''s one thing I''ve been meaning to ask. Lord Terra''ka was going to send me back to the Elven continent if he could open a portal there, but the Elven Eldritch doesn''t spread corruption apparently. Anyways my question is, can powerful Eldritch really just open portals anywhere they want if the destination has sufficient corruption present?"

    "Not all Eldritch can, also, there is lots of drawbacks. Let''s assume your god really did spread corruption, and Terra''ka opened a portal for you to go home. Once the portal is closed, it still technically remains. The world of Aetheria will have that warp mark on it for many years, allowing anything to recreate the portal and gain access to Terra''kas'' realm. If something like a Satyr discovered that portal, it could be catastrophic. It would take a long time, but he could turn that gate into a three-way gate back home, allowing Demons free access into our realm. You have to understand what kind of risk Terra''ka was taking by offering to send you home."

    Wow... I didn''t think it was that big of a deal at the time, but now I see that the Lizardmen were offering me something that is surprisingly risky. Except, hang on...

    "They can''t be that worried, the shaman told me that they opened a portal into the dark lands on Aetheria. No one goes there besides a few idiots every year who hope to record their ''adventures'', probably thinking they''ll be rich if they make it back, but they never do."

    "I don''t know what your dark lands are like, but I can''t deny that Terra''ka takes unnecessary risks. The result is a large amount of portal marks left on way too many planets and moons. Every now and then a portal will re-open, shortly followed by a large swarm of Xerath. Very rarely do Eldritch attack us, and only once have Demons hit us."

    Aresa taps on my leg.

    {Are you okay working with Keith?}

    "... Maybe, we''ll see. For now I''m more confused that Nisha didn''t try to bite my throat out. I killed her lover after all."

    Ishar laughed. "Well well, look at you~! More heartless than I gave you credit for."

    {Hmm, maybe Arkaios put the fear of god into her?}

    "It felt different from that, but I guess we''ll find out soon enough."

    She doesn''t have the strength to attack me, so any outbursts should be verbal. I''m used to people yelling at me though, so that won''t be a problem.

    "Rei, a few days ago I found a book on Xelba when I was looking for something to read. I don''t know how much of it was true, so I''d like to ask... Were you a cultist?" Alicia asked.

    "No, only one person in my unit believed in the higher ups nonsense about some unknown creature making all of us into immortal beings. Supposedly we were all going to become immortal and live together in Gaia, creating our own utopia there. The rest of us were just going along with it because... Ugh, honestly? Life was good in Xelba. I hated the fucking guy, but there is no denying that Viktor knew how to treat people. He knew exactly what to do to inspire loyalty. You ever seen normal everyday people feed living humans to a monster while talking about mundane things, like how their relationships are going? That place... It really showed you just how far people will go if they can lead rich fulfilling lives as a result."

    Alicia blanched, "You... You fed people to a monster? And not only that, they were alive?"

    "Me? No, we only captured people. Somehow Viktor had a large amount of daggers on hand that would completely paralyze a person if their mana was near empty. For civilians all it took was a single stab and they were done, they''d go straight into a wagon for transport. Soldiers we''d have to fight for awhile before they were exhausted enough to stab, and then, well... Another body for the wagon. However, I did see people feed the creature a couple of times. Those were the times I... I just wished we could flee to Gaia ourselves, but that wasn''t possible. Everyone but me had a cursed mark on them from the Eldritch Lords allied with Viktor. Their god had died and somehow they ended up working with him instead. Because of them, every citizens location was always known. You needed to report why you were leaving the province and when you''d be back. If they thought you were fleeing, the mark would activate, forcing you into the same stasis that the daggers put people into."

    The two girls looked at each other awkwardly, unsure of what to say. Ishar stared at me for awhile before talking.

    "You could have fled alone though, correct? So you stayed for your comrades."

    "Yes, they are why I stayed. They are why I sacrificed god knows how many people for Viktor''s stupid ambitions."

    "I''m sure there is way more to it than that, but you made the right call. I thought you''d be a coward because of that ability of yours... But it seems I was wrong." Ishar said, turning to look outside the window.

    Alicia whipped her head toward Ishar. "It doesn''t sound right at all to me though?! I can understand fighting for her friends, but what she was doing as a result is just so vile..."

    "Foolish girl, this is why I call you a rookie. Training alone in your soul realm for five decades may have made you strong, but your brain has not advanced at all. While I have a limited understanding of this ''Xelba'', I do remember Reimia mentioning in the last wagon ride that they were at war with everyone. All of Urza knew Xelba was the enemy, and yet they allowed their evil to reign. Likewise, there are probably good reasons why Urza was unable to ally together and grind the fucking cultists into dust. Your way of thinking is currently too straightforward and naive, but you''ll get there with time."

    "I''ll understand why she pillaged neighboring nations for human sacrifices?! You''re insane... You''re both insane. Saying ''they were at war'' as if it''s a good excuse for what she or anyone in that nation did... You sound like the politicians from my country."

    {I like you Rei, but that made me pull back a little too you know? I mean I always knew what Xelba had done, it''s in my books after all, but to hear you explain it so nonchalantly as if you were explaining the weather...}

    "It''s... It''s very hard to explain. There are things about others you won''t understand unless you literally live that persons life. For instance, I can''t believe nobody has asked me why I served Viktor after he sacrificed me and my family."

    Ishar looks at me, "Ahh... I did pick up on that. Truthfully, I wasn''t quite sure what to make of it."

    Aresa nods in agreement.

    "... It was soon after I lost my family. I had already spent my entire life in that hellish world alone, but finding them and having them taken from me by my own actions, that... That really fucked me up. I remember one day I was in my den like usual, and I just suddenly stood up, looked around, and said goodbye to it all. In my heart, I was done. I went looking for a Satyr, fully intending to die trying to kill it. I wanted to kill one, just one before I died and then I''d be satisfied."

    The others patiently waited for me to continue as I sat there in silence, digging up memories I try to never think about.

    "I found a Satyr about three days later. Unfortunately, there were four of them. My damnable curiosity got the better of me, so I followed them for almost a full day watching them. The first thing they did was pluck a Xerath broodling out of the ground and carry it off towards the nearest capital. The people were outraged at how the Satyrs'' were handling their new ''master'', but there was nothing they could do about it. There was also nothing they could do about the ensuing bloodbath. The Satyr killed everyone there, taking out their souls and placing them in some weird fleshy contraption. Afterwards they entered a sitting meditation pose for over a day, until finally I could see the air around the plaza they were in change completely. I recognized it, it had the same look and feel as when my family was sacrificed. I rushed over and crouched silently next to a Satyr, making no noise at all until the air around us sounded like it had exploded. Next thing I knew, I was in a temple with body parts and blood everywhere."

    {You joined the transfer? I thought you had to accept it. That''s what you said about the Kitsune.}

    "Oh I did, but only the spell is monitoring it. I doubt the Demons even considered the idea of people stealing a place in their warps. After all, who would do that?"

    Aresa silently chuckled. {Only you I bet! But sorry for interrupting, please continue.}

    "Um, one of the people there could sense me. I learned later he had a ridiculously powerful scanning ability. Anyways I ran and ran through the town, until eventually I found myself in their sewage system. I uh..." I sighed. "Can we continue this another time? The next part involves my friends and I really don''t want to think about this while I''m trapped in this fucking wagon. After the mission I''ll tell everything, that okay? Just know that I''m not going to harm you Alicia."

    "... I know you''re not Rei, that wasn''t what I was worried about. But yeah you''re right, we can talk about this another time. I''d also like to give my wonderful senior here a piece of my mind, but I''ll save that for later too."

    Ishar went to reply but a knock on the window interrupted him.

    Apparently the wagon had stopped while we were talking. I didn''t even notice.

    Aresa reaches out and opens the door.

    "Good evening you three~! We''re going to stay at the outpost here for the night. Also! This outpost marks the halfway point to Kellog. Only a little bit more before things get hectic, so try and enjoy this downtime." Cera said, then turn and walked off.

    "Keh, relax? As if I can relax under this fucking sky." Ishar said, climbing out of the wagon.

    Yesterday we had re-entered the ''blackout'' zone. I was fine with it, but everyone else had quickly undergone a transformation. They went from relaxed and happy, to anxious and quickly annoyed. It doesn''t take much to set them off now.

    {Sleeping inside?}

    "Sure, might as well. It might be a long time before I get to rest on a bed like this again."

    {We''ll be fine! You''ll understand when you see Cera and Shana fight. Plus Ishar, Alicia, Blackwall, and Keith''s group are here.}

    We do have some good allies here, and Blackwall told us a few days ago that a group of Guardians were sent out ahead of us. Plus the people of Kellog are going to be helping us as well. On paper it sounds like we''re in a great position... We''ll find out for sure soon enough.

 Chapter 18 - Harbinger

    ~One month ago, as the group is fleeing north towards Thule. Godwin POV~

    Looking out my wagon window, I can see Rei doing her martial arts exercises.

    "Rei, where did you learn those moves?! I''ve never seen anyone using such clean hand-to-hand techniques before." Hera asked.

    "I learned them from something that no longer exists thankfully," Rei answered while doing a high kick, making the air snap.

    It''s no surprise that my daughter does not recognize those attacks; it''s half a miracle I remember those moves. I only saw them once when I was barely an adult, infiltrating a location no human should have ever gone.

    Fucking Xelba. All spies that were sent in stopped contacting their superiors soon after their first missive, while some didn''t even get to send a single one. Because of this, we were never able to get any information on what was happening inside their capital, and even spies in the small villages would be killed off in the same manner. There were skirmish battles here and there, but it was mostly Xelba''s elites destroying supply lines, razing farms, kidnapping people... Making life hell for everyone else. There were monsters that accompanied the younger elite groups which told us an Eldritch was running Xelba, and hopefully there was only one.

    They were a constant source of frustration for everyone. The never-ending attacks on supply caravans, merchants, and kidnappings all around... it got to the point that a temporary truce was given through lifelong enemies for the sole purpose of destroying Xelba. Before that happened though, I made the biggest mistake of my life.

    Me, my brother Dave, and our best friend Jeffrey had all decided to sneak into Xelba. Being young and brave, with nothing but victories under our belt, we believed there was no way we could fail. It was further exacerbated by how easily we infiltrated Xelba. We got inside with ease, sneaking in through one of the drainage pipes.

    I can''t believe how naive we were...

    There we were, bragging about how we had broke into the ''impenetrable Xelba'', not knowing that it was all based on design. Xelba had no one guarding the underground. There was no need.

    Upon exiting the sewage system, we could hear what sounded like a party a few blocks away. Walking in that direction, we entered a square where a very large crowd was celebrating. The citizens were cheering while women held up their babies to what I assume were the Eldritch''s Lords. I remember thinking it was all very bizarre and nothing more, till I saw the look on my brother''s face.

    Calling my brother a genius would be putting it mildly. He was only 19 and had one of the best scanning abilities around.

    <hr>

    "What''s going on Dave?"

    "T-They''re all cursed... Every single one of em. The Lord over there is placing curses on the babies." He whispered back.

    All of them are cursed?! Why the hell are these people cheering then?!

    Curses come in many varieties, so there''s no way to know what it''s doing to them, but I can say with certainty that none of the options are good. They''re sure as hell nothing you would cheer for. It also takes a long time to place a curse; you can''t just touch a person and be done... And yet, that appears to be exactly what they''re doing. Even without that, I can tell why my brother knew it was a Lord at only a glance. The sickly aura emanating from the creature made me want to either curl up in a ball or flee, never to return. The fact that they''re dressed head to toe in a light black cloak that is concealing their features entirely is making them look even more dreadful.

    It was then that I noticed the Lords all looking at us.

    The crowd went silent.

    One by one, they turned to look at us.

    Through the snickering, I heard someone mumble, "Again? They never learn..."

    At that moment, I knew we were dead. My brother saying ''They''re all cursed'' rang through my head.

    All the citizens of Xelba are cursed.

    The cursemakers are forty feet from us.

    And here we are, three non-cursed fools.

    Why no infiltrator ever lives. Why it was so easy to get inside of Xelba. So many questions, all answered in one single instant. Cursegivers have better soul detection and soul magic by default. It''s impossible to use curses without that level of skill after all. So the fact that we aren''t cursed was probably evident to them the second we exited the sewage system.

    This entire town is a prison...

    To my right, I saw a long-clawed finger tap Jeffrey''s shoulder. It was the Lord who was cursing the babies a mere moment ago. I only took my eyes off him for a second, and in that gap, he had appeared behind my friend. What happened next is a memory that haunts me to this day. His shoulder began expanding first, then it spread to his forearm and face. The screams that erupted sounded like the dying throes of a pig. The fear and sickness that hit me as he exploded I''ll never forget... However, there was no time to calm myself down. The spawn were walking up to us.

    My brother fell to his knees, emptying the contents of his stomach onto the street. Unable to help him, I readied myself for whatever dark magic these creatures were going to use, except what happened next took me completely by surprise. The two who came up to me began assaulting me with their fists and feet.

    Up till this point, I''ve always thought of myself as a good brawler. In fact, no one had ever stood a chance against me when it came to fistfights. But calling what was happening now a ''brawl'' would be ridiculous. Their attacks were fast, clean, and under normal circumstances, I''d even dare to call them beautiful. It must have taken them decades to learn these moves...

    It soon became apparent why they were attacking with their fists instead of weapons or magic. Every punch or kick they landed left that part of my body feeling completely numb. Even though my barrier was blocking their attacks, they were somehow still damaging me. Since I was gifted in defense, blocking their attacks with my barrier while freeing up my hands to attack was the most obvious choice, and yet that common knowledge is why I lost so pathetically. Barely fifteen seconds in and I was already on the ground, unable to move. One hit to my arms and legs was all it took; I lost control of them instantly.

    I passed out as they began dragging me along the ground. The last thing I heard was my brother screaming.

    <hr>

    I awoke in my soul realm, something that had never happened to me before. The reason I was here became apparent immediately. Looking up into the sky, I saw a massive raven-like head turned sideways, staring down at me with one large golden eyeball. It reached out with its two human-like arms, grabbing the ground around me as its claws stabbed deep into the earth. Before I could process any of this, dreadful unspeakable scenes played out in front of me. The most horrific fact of all was I knew that these weren''t merely fictions of my imagination. The Raven made sure I knew it was all real.

    {GIVE THEM SHELTER...}. Images of well-built homes within and around Xelba appeared before me.

    {GIVE THEM FOOD...}. Families eating a hearty meal near an open fire.

    {GIVE THEM JOY...}. Multiple overlapping images of children growing into young teens, finding love, and being at peace in a safe domain to enjoy their lives.

    {GIVE THEM PURPOSE...}. Merchant wagons toppled. Villages raided. Cities sacked. No torture, no rape... Nothing but a singular objective to capture every living being. After each enemy is felled in battle, they are stabbed with a small dagger that freezes them in place while making their bodies glow blue. Afterward, they are loaded onto a creature in the shape of a wagon.

    One by one, the ''wagons'' are emptied over a deep chasm within a tall beautiful building. The people laugh while congratulating each other on another job well done. They leave the building, heading to the town center where a banquet is held in honor of the ''heroes'' who have recently returned with the spoils of their victories. Their friends and families swarm them, offering praise and thanks for their hard work.

    {SHELTER... FOOD... JOY... PURPOSE...}

    As the Raven speaks, I see hordes of bodies falling through the black chasm. Humans, Crotia, Fox-kin, Nei''lah, Dwarves...

    {GIVE THEM THESE THINGS...}

    Elderly, adults, children... no discrimination, all are offered equally.

    A mouth as wide as the chasm appears before me. Tens of thousands of teeth line up and down the insides of the fleshy being.

    {AND THEY WILL DO ANYTHING...}

    The bodies fall into the being''s mouth as it snaps shut onto them. The gnashing of teeth creates a crescendo louder than anything I have ever heard before. Meat, blood, and body parts fly every which way as the mouth chomps down over and over. But the eyes... they''re looking at me. The world slows to a crawl as hundreds of eyes from the victims appear to be looking right at me. Judgment, hatred, disgust, jealousy, envy... Emotions of all types bombard me.

    My soul itself starts to shake, aching in a pain I''ve never felt before when suddenly I feel a hard slap across my right cheek. A man is standing over me. His name was Viktor. He wanted me to take a letter to Rai''ga and Lord Shiva. There was no time to answer any of my questions. He apologized for being unable to save my brother, quickly turning around and running back toward Xelba as fast as he could.

    Oh... he must have somehow saved me before I was fed to that... Thing.

    He removed a good deal of the poison from my limbs, but I was still stuck there for several days before I could walk properly. Every second I lay there felt like an eternity. As I sat there crying, all I wanted to do was run home to my parents, back to normalcy...

    At the same time, I also hated Viktor for saving me. I wished with all my heart that I had died with Dave and Jeffrey... All the while fearing the end that those two must have also faced at the bottom of that chasm.

    Eventually, I was able to start walking, and for the first time in a while, I had some good luck. I ran into a caravan soon after I reached the main road that was conveniently heading for Viseux.

    Whatever was in that letter must have been important. Soon after I delivered it the peace agreements were signed and all-out war was waged on Xelba. The Dwarves were already at war with them because of something that happened during one of their meetings, yet another detail that was never released. However, all of it was for naught. By the time the armies had finally reached the city, most of the people inside were dead. The few that survived said one of their leaders who went by the name of ''Viktor'', and his underling a freakishly pale monster girl with red eyes, had slaughtered everyone inside. No one actually witnessed Viktor killing anyone, but they knew that the girl had worked for him for many years.

    <hr>

    It wasn''t till much later in life that I learned that the ''Tengu'' Eldritch I had heard of before, was the creature who invaded my soul realm outside Xelba. After learning this, it became obvious that it was trying to turn me into a spawn of his, making me hell-bent on getting revenge on Xelba. I would have done it too... Had Viktor not snapped me out of it. Why the Tengu did not drag me back into my soul realm and continue the conversion, I''ll never know. Possibly it saw what Viktor had planned and decided that was more beneficial to it? Either way, I really should tell Reimia about this... Hell, my family deserves to know too. I''ve never talked about what went down there though... I couldn''t even bring myself to tell my parents about what had happened to their only other son. I lied and said he died in a fight with bandits. I''ve regretted that decision for my entire life.

    In front of me, Reimia continues to ''shadow box'' as she calls it.

    How is it possible that she is here? After forty-two years she just suddenly re-emerges? There''s also a very good chance she''s responsible for all the skeletons that were running amok in Xelba killing people. After the siege, the alliance found large amounts of skeletons with blackened bones littered amongst what was left of the town. Two refugees said they watched her turn the corpses of people into walking skeletons. It was assumed she had either died or fled with Viktor when the city collapsed... yet, here she is over forty years later.

    So far she seems friendly enough, and she did tell us about her origins, but there''s no getting around just how bleak her history is. If it wasn''t for Arkaios saying to leave her be, I would have distanced my family from her after the Satyr was slain. Arkaios is not exactly known for doling out knowledge like that, so it was shocking when Markus told me what he said.

    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ... Or maybe I wouldn''t have. All things considered, she is much more amiable than I would have expected from someone who lived in Xelba. Plus, I need to stop trying to control my kids. I think it''s because of what happened to my brother, but I''ve always been very domineering in my families lives. Jasper wanted to become a spell researcher, and yet here he is, a damned Guardian because I forced him to be. If they think Rei is safe to be around, then so be it. I''m too old at this point, I think it''s time to just let it all go...

    <hr>

    A long line of light approaches from far off in the distance, accompanied by the rhythmic sounds of drums and horns.

    "Fucking idiots..."

    I knew they would do this. I knew those fucking stupid war-hungry pigs would empty the garrisons when they heard someone was daring to threaten their authority over Urza. Did they think about what would happen if something were to assault Viseux right now? Of course not. They already mapped out the tunnels heading north, leading straight to the portal they control up there. Both countries higher-ups will disappear through the portal to the nation they are allied with if things were to ever go south here.

    Looking back in the other direction, I swear I can see the Harbinger smiling.

    For over one week after Lady Aresa left, nothing had come out of the Demon portal. The volcano raged on, and the Lizardmen were unable to cool it down with water attacks. The Lizards warned us that they were letting the portal gather enough strength to burst through all at once, blitzing us with a massive wave of Demons.

    However, what appeared first was instead a single Demon about four hundred meters tall holding a chain with a large bright-orange mallet head at the end of it. Wasting no time, it performed a large overhead swing, hurling the mallet through the sky in our direction. When it connected with the ground near the Lizardmen''s portal, the earth wasn''t disrupted at all. Instead, a massive one-kilometer-wide explosion of fire erupted from the mallet, incinerating all Lizardmen inside the blast zone. The mallet lost all of its color after the explosion, but as the Demon dragged the mallet back, it slowly became tinted orange. Once the Demon retrieved the mallet, it began spinning it around in the air, which led to the mallet shining a bright orange again within about ten minutes.

    One day later Markus had finally arrived with the artifact fully charged, ready to purge the portal. Unfortunately, the Lizardmen casters had been bombarding the Demon for an entire day, and it was nowhere near enough. No longer needing to save up strength, Demons slowly trickled out from the portal, and they were clearly prioritizing casters. Most of the new arrivals were Imps who were taking turns infusing a barrier over the massive Demon. At this point the Demon had stopped using its mallet, instead choosing to stare at Markus, waiting for him to try and purge the portal. It was no surprise that it had been put on the defensive considering how threatening of an aura the artifact gives off when it is fully charged. Thanks to this the Lizardmen were able to approach from the back, and they were slowly gaining ground against the Demonic foot soldiers(a type of Demon I''ve never seen or heard of before). It seems ''new and unknown Demons'' is going to be a running theme from here on out now that they finally have direct access to Urza. No longer needing humans to bring them over with chaos magic.

    "Do not worry. Plan has been made. We deal with lava first, then Harbinger." The Shaman said.

    Shortly after, one of the Lizardmens'' Eldritch appeared through the portal. The Demon picked its mallet up, looking between the Eldritch and Markus, unable to decide whether to kill the Eldritch or keep Markus locked down.

    All the Lizardmen hanging back now began to spread out. As I was watching them, out of the corner of my eye something large dashed out of the portal and jumped over the lava straight into the volcano. From the moment it exited the portal to when it landed in the volcano hole maybe two seconds had passed. It was so fast that none of the Demons had time to respond. Both the volcano and the lava froze almost instantly upon contact, followed by one of the largest explosions I had ever witnessed. The shockwave knocked down all that were present, including the Harbinger. As large pieces of rubble fell from the sky, the best I could do was charge my barrier and enhance myself to the max, not that it would help much against a massive chunk of earth falling from that height.

    After the dust settled, I could see the portal was now floating in mid-air above a one-hundred-yard-wide crater. At that moment, another Demon came through the portal, subsequently falling down into the crater. Normally that would make me laugh, but at that moment I had a sinking feeling in my gut. Sure enough, the Demon jumping out from the crater was one such creature nobody ever wants to see.

    "Satyr..." The shaman said, practically snarling.

    While the Harbinger is obviously much bigger and technically more powerful, the Satyr is an all-rounder Demon that is a nightmare to get rid of once they are in your world. Thinking back on it, we truly were lucky that Markus was able to purge the other Satyr before it hid itself deeply underground somewhere.

    A wide earthen walkway extends out from the Satyr towards the portal.

    "As usual, the damned thing works fast."

    From there, a very long protracted battle took place. With a Satyr present, the Harbinger was now free to exterminate any Eldritch coming through the portal. When the Harbinger spent its attack, the Templars tried advancing, which resulted in the Satyr pinning them down until the Harbinger was able to attack again. With all the Lizardmen and several Eldritch joining the fight now that the volcano was gone, we had managed to eventually kill the Satyr, but by the time we had done that, another had come through the portal taking its place.

    Also, unlike other Demons, apparently the fucking Harbinger doesn''t need to sleep. Not once during this month had it needed to rest.

    All of it came to an end with the sounds of Urza''s armies approaching. Jasper had seen them with his ability long before they came into view, but it changed nothing, we were still unable to overcome the Demons. Another week tops is all we needed... But that is obviously no longer an option. As the armies neared us, they began spreading out, apparently planning to encircle everything here, but that''s the moment the Demons all turned and fled.

    The Harbinger stayed behind, attempting to prevent any Lizardmen from chasing the Demons. Further back past the Harbinger, a long line of lights appeared directly in front of the fleeing Demons. Hundreds of magical guns began firing into the Demons'' ranks.

    "Honestly, I was a little worried they''d just plow ahead in one direction, consequences be damned, but it looks like they actually planned ahead," Jasper said.

    More like the Ifrit Legion cut off their retreat, while Viseux only thought of killing the Lizardmen. The horns and drums back there must''ve been the Legion trying to keep the Demons attention on this side so they wouldn''t notice the flank in the back.

    "Leave Harbinger, attack humans behind us!" The shaman said.

    As Markus moves towards the now unguarded portal, I can see the Satyr break the necklace around its neck. Instead of a powerful offensive spell appearing like I expected, it instead created a bright white circle in front of itself, angled up toward the sky. The Satyr jumps through the ring and is immediately launched into the air so fast that I barely saw the motion blur it left behind.

    The shaman hissed. "It need long time to heal after using crystal. It hide, we find it! Very important!"

    I don''t know why he''s certain we''ll have enough leeway to find the damned thing...

    I can see multiple types of Demons successfully escaping in different directions, including a unique Demon that was proving more difficult to bring down than the Satyr''s were. We''re lucky the Harbinger is focused on the Legion now, but they''ll eventually bring him down too, leaving us surrounded and alone...

    <hr>

    ~Rei POV~

    "Uh Ishar, you doing okay there?"

    "N-No... What is with the temperature down here?!"

    "From what Aresa told us, it''s about to get much colder you know?" Alicia said.

    "Crotia adapt to the climate around them, I just need time... About a week."

    {But you don''t have a week? Unless you stay outside the whole time.}

    Ishar looked around in horror, before seemingly giving up.

    "... I''ll stay inside the outpost for a while to eat, but I''ll sleep outside. Also, I will be riding on top of the wagon the rest of the way."

    I could make him a heated cloth mesh too, but eh... He''ll be fine. In the event he loses my armor, it''s best he acclimates so he doesn''t freeze to death.

    Following Cera into the outpost, we''re met with a single large room full of tables and a line of beds in the back.

    "This is new. Are all outposts like this?"

    "No doors or bedrooms, just one large room? Yeah, they''re all like this. Oh, there is a door over there though, see? It''s to the bathrooms." Cera replied.

    One of the guards coming to greet us takes one look at me and runs away towards the bathroom.

    Ahh... She''s one of those.

    "Did you do something to her just now?" Cera asked.

    "No. Some people have an unnatural fear of me when my aura hits them. So long as she stays about twenty feet away from me she should be fine."

    "Hmm..."

    "Don''t think about it much Cera. Arkaios vouched for her, as I believe I already told you." Blackwall said.

    "Yeah yeah, I won''t do anything. I''m still allowed to find what happened just now very strange though."

    "Um, welcome to the border between Kellog and Viseux! We''ve been expecting you. The food will be ready soon. Commander Yulsif said to make it a feast." The remaining soldier said.

    "A feast eh? Good thing I came inside." Ishar said.

    Everyone sat down at the two center tables. Keith''s group is on one table, and everyone else is on this side. As I sit down I can see Nisha glaring at me.

    "How about her? You did something to her, right?" Cera asked.

    "That''s just sexual frustration, a lot of people feel that way after looking at me. Beauty of this level should be considered a crime..."

    "Wait a minute, why did you ask that Cera? You can''t possibly be unaware of what Keith''s group did." Blackwall said.

    "Of course I know what they did, and that Markus stopped them. What''s that have to do with our self-proclaimed ''beautiful'' girl here who scares off trained guards?"

    "... Before I answer, can you give me a rundown of the reports you read on the incident?"

    Cera recites the incident, not mentioning me even once.

    Blackwall looks down, "Strange, that is not what I submitted. Was Rei scrubbed from the report? Why would the keepers do that?"

    "Useless corrupt bums. They should be exterminated." Shana said.

    Okay... That is not the personality I was expecting out of her.

    "Ahem, Miss Shana, you really shouldn''t be saying things like that. The keepers log and hold all the history of Urza, therefore they are considered important individuals who cannot be threatened openly in such a manner. If someone were to report this..." Blackwall said.

    "Important individuals who scrub reports to their liking, always changing history to favor Viseux and the nobles above all else. They should be hung. They should be tied to Grakka''s on each side, who will rip them apart at their torsos. Money and power-obsessed guts splaying all over Viseux''s cold unwelcoming stone road---"

    "Okay sweety please stop before this poor local guard has a heart attack," Cera said, cutting her off.

    I''m liking her way more than I originally thought I would.

    Aresa holds the board up to her mouth, trying to hide her laughter, which only makes Blackwall shake his head.

    "We''ll be there in about a week?" Alicia asked.

    "Normally it would be five to six more days, but you all say we''re about to encounter snow and ice so... Also, as a side note, I''ve never seen snow before so I''m kind of excited." Cera said.

    {It''s exciting for about a minute. Then you realize how bad it hurts when you''re that cold.}

    Cera winced, "It''s that bad...?"

    "One other question, is Kellog really going to accommodate us? Or is their ''help'' basically just going to be surveillance." Alicia asked.

    Ishar grinned, "Look at you, actually asking a good question. It makes me proud."

    Alicia raises a middle finger at Ishar without looking at him.

    "Honestly? Your guess is as good as mine. I''ve only been there one time as part of a trade convoy. We never got further than the meeting hall past the main gate. We were welcomed in and things seemed friendly enough, but there was this threatening atmosphere hanging in the air. It felt like they were daring us to do something to slight them, almost like they were hoping for it."

    "I''ll kill them if they try that with me. Then I''ll go to their homes and help their families join them in the afterlife. It would be cruel to send them alone."

    "Dear god Shana please stop..." Cera sighed.

    "One last question. Regarding the ''Tengu'', how hard is this fight going to be."

    Blackwall laughed, "Saved the most difficult question for last huh? Well, it''s hard to say. Each Tengu Lord specializes in an element of magic, while also being proficient in all schools of magic. You''ll know which one it specializes in. It''ll not only use that element the most, but it''ll be the most devastating magic it uses."

    "Do not forget, they are masters of evasion. Those wings are not just for show. The wings store ether over time, allowing them to quickly reposition about once a minute. It''s probably the most difficult part of fighting them. That''s why Templars were given the duty to slay them, they can lock the Lord down instantly after resetting it." Blackwall added.

    "That will not be an issue with me here. I have yet to see an opponent my shout cannot lock down, but you''ll only have a slight window to attack it before it''s free." Ishar said.

    "Oh? You have an ability like that? Now that is great news! Although, it''s going to focus you after your first time stunning it. How good is your barrier at defending against magic?" Cera said.

    "They always do. Nothing likes having their movement restricted. As for my defenses, they''re relatively high compared to the average person. Sounds like this ''Tengu'' is going to test my limits though."

    "Have you been there before Rei? Xelba was only about a hundred miles away right?" Cera asked.

    Behind Aresa, I could hear Keith ask "Xelba?" to his companions.

    "No, we only hit the trade routes nearby, framing the scene to make it look like the Crotia did it."

    "Was that necessary? They were already at war with Viseux and Kellog, while you were at war with literally everyone." Cera said.

    "More animosity between those two was good for us. It made things much easier in the region. Also, I thought you knew nothing about me? How do you know about me being from Xelba?"

    "My mom was a refugee from Xelba, of course I''d know about you!"

    What?

    Staring at Cera, I try to remember all the Nei''lah I met.

    "Riva, she ran the bakery near your home. She talked about you a lot you know? A real shame she got away huh..." Cera smiled, but her eyes were glaring right at me.

    ... This bitch, her friendly attitude up till now was apparently a front. I could feel a strong pulse of energy escape her for a moment there.

    "I remember her, I bought sandwiches from her for many years. Honestly, I did like her quite a bit, but it''s as you''re suspecting, she didn''t get away because of my actions."

    The message was clear. If I could have killed her, I would have. That whole place needed to be purged, with no exceptions.

    A deep scowl appears on Cera''s face.

    "So the plan was to kill everyone, while only you survived?"

    "Yep, that was the plan." I said nonchalantly.

    "Enough Cera, go sit at the other table if you can''t contain yourself," Blackwall said.

    To my surprise, Shana was nodding along. Cera saw this and sighed.

    "Why am I not surprised you''re on her side..."

    Cera stood up, letting Shana slide over and take her place. Cera then sat down to her right.

    Shana looks at me. "Want to do the same to Viseux? I''ll help."

    Blackwall apparently having given up, instead chooses to pay attention to the food being brought out.

    Ishar clapped his hands. "Now look at that! One hell of a feast indeed."

    As the platters are laid out in front of us, I see Aresa holding her board up at me.

    {Don''t worry, she won''t attack you.}

    I hope she''s right... There are already enough enemies waiting for us at our destination.

 Chapter 19 - Arrival - Act 2

    "About damn time." Ishar said as we passed the main gate.

    It did feel unnecessarily long this time, maybe because the trip to Viseux had nothing of importance tied to it. Here, every day wasted traveling meant whatever is happening in the nation of Kellog is only getting worse.

    "... Something feels off."

    "We''ve barely passed the main gate, how are you sensing something already?" Alicia asked.

    "I don''t know what it is, it just feels very... Familiar. I can''t quite place it though, it''s a very vague feeling at this point."

    Ishar narrows his eyes at me. "Then this is worse than we expected if you''re already sensing something is off."

    "You believe her? Are you sure she isn''t imagining it?"

    "My fight with her proved she has experience, and after hearing her backstory I''ve chosen to put more weight behind her words. Think about it girl, she could have lied or downplayed her part in that nation of cultists. Instead, she told us exactly what she did there. That means something in my world. So yes, I believe her. Now whether she is imagining it or not, I have no idea. I''ve been misled by my own senses before, there is also magic designed solely for that purpose as well. So always make decisions with that possibility in mind."

    I turn towards Aresa. "Where are we heading first?"

    {We were supposed to stop at one of the nobles mansions, he''s putting us up while we are here. But um, Cera told my attendant there has been a change of plans. Before any of you ask, I have no idea where we''re going now.}

    Both me and Ishar exit the vehicle at the same time. He puts some distance between himself and the wagon, walking alongside it while eyeing the surrounding. I pull myself up onto the roof of the wagon and proceed to do the same as him, keeping watch for anything out of place.

    ''Change of plans'' my ass. Aresa probably has her reasons for trusting these people, but I know nothing about them, therefore I''m not going to put blind trust into anything they decide. Apparently Ishar feels the same way. Even if they did ''call for help'', this is enemy territory now as far as I''m concerned.

    The road we are on is elevated a few feet above large open fields on both sides. In the fields I can see multiple people using wind magic to remove snow from the crops.

    I wonder what the point of that is? Can these crops grow in this climate?

    At the end of each field there is an abnormally large building that has villagers walking in and out of it at high intervals.

    Normally I''d think it''s a barn, but... That''s one hell of a fancy barn if so. They look more like noble mansions. I''m also shocked at how well-lit everything here is. Putting aside the ''noble barns'', the fields themselves have twenty-foot tall wooden poles sticking up with large crystal lights on top illuminating everything around them. Crystals that big should cost a fortune, but I can see at least one hundred in view right now. Is that what they trade for? Either that or they have their own mine.

    As we move past two villagers tending to the fields nearby, the looks on their faces says all I need to know about how we''re going to be treated here.

    Ishar bursts out laughing the second he looks at them. "KAHAHAHA LOOKS LIKE THEY''RE NOT HAPPY TO SEE US!" He yells in my direction.

    It''s about what we expected, but still, it won''t make things any easier here that''s for sure. I''d actually be hurt by their demeanor if I truly was here to save them. Fortunately I''m only here to get stronger, so anything I do here will just so happen to benefit them as well.

    Shana, who is sitting on the wagon in front of us, gives me a thumbs up as I look forward.

    ... I''ve only talked to her a few times on the way here, but I get the impression that she''s broken. Any conversation with her quickly derails into talks of murder, ways to extract information, or how to coup Viseux. Aresa would probably tell me why she ended up that way if I asked her, but I''ll wait till Shana tells me herself. Assuming such a day ever comes.

    <hr>

    We rode through three villages so far, but as we pass the gate on the fourth one, Alicia yelled up at me that this is the one we''re stopping at.

    It''s much larger than any of the other villages I''ve seen so far. Is this the capital? The fortress is looming in the background, it''s the next stop so this must be the end of the road. I also think I underestimated how many people would be in this nation. The amount of civilians walking on each side of the road is staggering, not to mention the foot traffic here from the previous village. It''s even more surprising to see how mixed the races here are. Viseux looked like it was about eighty percent humans, while here it''s probably closer to forty percent. Humans, Kitsune, Vei''lah, and shockingly there''s a few Dwarves and Crotia mixed in. I wasn''t expecting that but it makes sense that an autonomous nation wouldn''t give a shit about who Viseux bans from Urza. Also, Kellog were the ones warring the Crotia, so it''s not impossible that a few refugees ended up here.

    After about ten minutes we roll up to a building situated in the main square. Over a third of the foot traffic in the square is heading straight for this building. Cera runs up to our wagon as Aresa steps out of it.

    "Apologies dear, they are holding a town square in lieu of everything happening here to try and calm the citizens down. I figured we should be in attendance."

    Aresa nods, following after Cera towards the building.

    It''s actually not a bad idea. Before we even start we''ll get a good view into what both the citizens and higher ups are like, including their feelings on the current situation.

    I jump off the wagon next to Ishar, walking with him up the stairs. At the top we see Cera and everyone else walking to the right of the building instead of towards the main doors.

    "Going around back?"

    Ishar shrugs, following after them.

    Eventually we catch up to them as they''re talking to a couple of guards near the back-right side of the building.

    "Like I said, please wait. They''ll be here shortly." The guard said.

    A few minutes later a well-dressed man in glasses walks out of the door and bows to Cera.

    "I thank you for coming Lady Cera." He looks over at Aresa. "Oh my, you didn''t tell me you''d be bringing Lady Aresa as well!" He bends to one knee, raising her right hand and kissing the top of it.

    Ishar scoffs. "Humans, always looking for a reason to grovel before females. I''ll never understand it."

    "He''s being gentlemanly Ishar, you of all people should be trying to understand it." Alicia said.

    "A pointless suggestion. I should spear you for even saying that."

    "Well how do you treat your women then?"

    "We breed and then go back to living our own lives. The offspring are raised collectively by the colony. Actions like being ''gentlemanly'' are a complete waste of time. Both males and females would better serve themselves and their neighbors had they spent that time perfecting their crafts, or just plain working."

    The conversation in front of us wrapped up while these two were talking, as they''re all now walking into the building. The guards who were masking their emotions till now look at us three with the same level of disgust the farmers had.

    Making our way into the building, the area past the door immediately turned left into a dark hallway. At the far end of the hall a bright light can be seen accompanied by a bunch of yelling. The voices start to come into focus as we near the light.

    "So you brought in outsiders from Viseux of all places to make up for your incompetence?! Ya''ll are downright useless, hand the reigns over to someone else already!"

    The man in glasses from earlier walks up to the podium. "It was not our kings decision to bring in the outsiders. The prince offered it up as a suggestion, bearing the full weight of responsibility. If these outsiders bring more misfortune down onto us, then Parn will suffer the consequences, losing his right to inherit the crown forevermore."

    The crowd quieted down upon hearing that. A young man walks up to the podium, patting the other man on the shoulder, making way for himself.

    "As you have heard, I''m the one who called for help. I did not wish to see the people of our great nation suffer anymore than you already have. I have faith that they will aid us in our time of need. Do not forget, the Guardians Guild has existed as long as our nation has, and from what I''ve heard, they are currently being persecuted by Viseux. The Guardians have assisted us many times in the past, let us show them that we are nothing like the ungrateful people of Viseux."

    "W-Well, if the prince is saying that, and he''s even willing to take responsibility for them..."

    "Damnable Viseux, those scum wouldn''t know what gratitude is if it hit them square in their asses."

    Uhh, weren''t you screaming about ''outsiders'' like the Guardians only a moment ago? If I run into any problems here I''ll just pretend to hate Viseux, that will apparently make these people view me in a more positive light.

    Prince Parn smiles as he looks over at us, but when he sees me his eyes go wide. It only lasted a split second before he caught himself, quickly returning to his smiling face, so I barely caught it.

    "Love at first sight?" Ishar said while laughing.

    "No, that look was something else entirely and I know you agree."

    "Perhaps. It looks like no one else saw it though."

    Most of them are looking at other things after all, like the crowd or the man wearing a crown sitting against the back wall over here.

    The King himself is here huh... We really came at the perfect time.

    Almost on cue, the King stands up and walks over to his son. The hall goes silent as Parn steps aside, making room for his Father.

    "It''s as you have just heard, this was all my sons idea. However, laying the responsibility solely at his feet is unnecessary, I believe all of us who reside in the fortress should be culpable, including me, should such a future come to pass. Worry not my people, the Guardians will not betray us in our time of need!"

    The King taps the side of the podium, looking down in contemplation.

    "We''ve been through a lot this past decade. The mines ran dry, only half of our crops became viable, and now we''re enclosed in pure darkness. One obstacle after another, but I tell you now, we will overcome them all. I have yet to put it up for a vote for fear of what it would do to our people, and I know you''ve been upset, however after seeing you all here in these hellish of times, I''ve changed my mind. We are going to hold a vote one week from today on whether to create a road to the eastern mountains. It''ll be both dangerous and difficult to get those new mines up and running, but you all deserve to be the ones to make that decision, as has always been our way!!"

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Nearly everyone here began cheering.

    "Ishar, when you looked at the map, how far away did the eastern mountains appear to be? I assume he means where the mountains stop going east and turn north. It looked to be the same, if not longer than the distance to Viseux."

    "Assuming distance is correctly drawn on that map, which would be strange if it wasn''t, then yes it''s a very long trip to a land that nobody lives in. That would be difficult to accomplish even without the blackout."

    Maybe I''m just too jaded at this point, but the whole scene that played out in front of me felt contrived. ''For fear of what it would do to our people'' he says, but then he chooses to do it during the blackout? This is all very strange...

    "The people seem happy about it though?" Alicia said.

    "Perhaps the right to choose is what they are truly happy about. I don''t know anything about where you''re from girl, but always remember that most people love freedom above all else, while the remaining twenty percent love a boot on their neck, for reasons I refuse to attempt to comprehend."

    Is that true? The people of Xelba loved ''having a boot on their neck'' as he puts it. I suppose they were allowed some degree of freedom, but if anyone dared speak badly about Viktor or the creature being worshiped there, they magically ''disappeared'' shortly after, and everyone knew why. Plus, they were all cursed. Tracked like cattle, yet almost nobody cared since they were all leading wonderfully rich lives...

    "Yes, best to just kill them and be done with it." Shana said from behind us.

    Me and Ishar look at each other, surely wondering the exact same thing. ''When did she get there...?''

    I can still see her in front of us, yet she is also directly behind us, which means...

    "A clone?"

    Shana raises both her hands, pointing two fingers up on each hand.

    "Scissors? Does that signify something."

    "No, this is a ''peace pose'' according to Aresa. I like it. It also means you''re right."

    "Keeping watch over us?" Ishar asked.

    "Wrong again. Keeping eyes behind us."

    I don''t know what Cera''s abilities are yet, but assuming Shana can make multiple clones, now I see why they had no need for me to keep watch when they weren''t sleeping.

    "By the way Shana, will Cera be a problem for me? Ever since the outpost her attitude appears to be worsening when I''m around."

    "Maybe? She''s a cunt."

    "Um, aren''t you friends?" Alicia asked.

    "Nope, I don''t like cunts. No idea why Aresa likes her... Annoying woman always wearing a fake smile, masks upon masks, she should be hung."

    Definitely not what I wanted to hear. It''ll be a shame if I have to kill one of Aresa''s friends, but I will if I have to. Very unlikely I can beat her head on. She needs to sleep eventually though, so worse case scenario I''ll take her out when she''s asleep.

    The King exits through a door opposite of where we are, raising his left hand high and smiling at the crowd as he leaves. His son follows him shortly after, while the man wearing glasses walks back towards us.

    "Now then ladies and gentleman, the prince would love to have dinner with you in a few days. For now though we''ll guide you to where you''ll be staying during your time here."

    The man walks past us, leading us back outside. Once outside I can see Aresa shivering almost immediately.

    "Need another mesh suit?"

    {I still have the other in my wagon. Figured there was no need considering how close the building is.}

    "Wait, where is Keith''s group and Blackwall?" I said, looking around.

    "They were taken to where we are staying, Nisha said she has been feeling sick since earlier today. Blackwall went with them to make sure nothing happens." Cera replied.

    Earlier today... So she''s been sick since around the time I felt something was off? She has purely support abilities that require a high level of control with soul magic, so if she''s being affected by it already then something that messes with the soul is here. That basically covers everything though. Eldritch, Demons, Xerath, they all eat or change human souls in their own unique ways.

    Jumping back on top of the wagon as the others climb into it, I look around admiring the city for how well built and maintained it is.

    I was superimposing Xelba onto this place since it was also an autonomous nation, but this place is much better looking. At least from the four villages I''ve seen they''re definitely a step up from where I used to live. It''s obvious at a glance though that these people are not used to snow or super cold temperatures.

    <hr>

    A large gate opens up as the wagon rolls up to it, allowing us entry.

    Ishar exits the wagon, narrowing his eyes at the massive mansion a few hundred meters away from us.

    "Hmm..."

    Yeah, I don''t know what else to say either actually. Normally I''d believe this is the king''s palace. Who the hell does this place belong to?

    As we near the mansion, the wagons turn and park next to a dozen other wagons that normally would be considered beautiful, but lined up next to Aresa''s they look cheap in retrospect.

    A wave of maids and butlers descend onto the wagons, taking out our luggage and begin carrying it inside.

    Aresa steps out of the wagon, holding her board up at me.

    {Where are we?}

    "You''re asking me? I should be asking you that."

    Cera walks up to our wagon. "Sorry Aresa! I thought I already told you, but we''re going to be staying at Princess Euphemia''s home. She''s not tied to any of the political factions here and the people love her, so I accepted readily when she offered for us to stay here."

    A princess huh? Sounds like a pain... Maybe I''ll go sleep in a tree or punch out a hole in the ground. I can''t imagine that''d look good on our group as a whole though.

    "Good food, bath, bedding, I''ll take it. Even if this whole thing is suspicious as all hell." Ishar said.

    Right... Those things would be great for normal living beings. Although the food part does apply to me and I gotta admit I''m excited to see what kind of food is cooked in a place that looks like this.

    As I jump off the wagon, I see an extremely unhappy Shana looking up at the mansion.

    "I don''t want to hear it, and neither do they. Please don''t run your mouth off like you normally do, especially around the princess." Cera said to her.

    "Fuck off whore."

    Cera throws her hands up in the air and walks over towards one of the butlers.

    {Not happy with our lodgings?}

    "... I''m sorry, but the sight of this place makes me want to start a fire. A very big fire." Shana grimaces, then continued. "I... Will try to reserve judgement until I meet the master herself though. She might be like you after all. Right, she might be like Aresa... Think positive, positive..."

    Shana''s eyes glaze over as a male Kitsune with long brown shaggy hair walks up to us.

    "From the Guardians right? Can someone tell me what the hell is going on? Master Godwin would never turn ''traitor'' as they claim, unless there was a damned good reason."

    {None of us are actually. Did you not see Blackwall? He should be here.}

    "Blackwall is here?! Oh shit that is great news! Thank you for that I''ll go find him right now." The man said, quickly turning around and running back towards the mansion.

    "Well maintained hard leather armor, several knives and a longsword on his back. Former Guardian member? He seemed to know this ''Godwin'' you all speak of. I only saw once as he was being dragged through the portal." Alicia said.

    "Most likely." Ishar replied as the glasses man from earlier approached us again.

    "Now then, follow me and I''ll lead you to the dining room."

    "Sorry but, who are you?" Alicia asked.

    "Lady Cera did not tell you? My apologies then, I would have introduced myself earlier. My name is Seifer, I am an aid to the King. Both him and the Prince wanted me to escort you to where you''ll be staying. Sir Keith''s group was supposed to stay in a different village but that is delayed for now while one of his members recovers. It would not be wise to send them away right now to a village near the woods until they are in perfect health. The people living there are rather erratic at the moment, for obvious reasons."

    Yeah, the last thing they''ll want to see right now is outsiders when they don''t even know what is assaulting other villages situated in the forest.

    Seifer turned and headed straight for the mansion. Everyone followed after him as Shana kept one clone in the back, eyeing all the servants sweeping away snow with brooms.

    They''re doing way too good of a job with those as tools, no way regular brooms should be good at dealing with snow. I''d bet everyone who works here can enhance themselves, which makes this place all the more dangerous.

    Once inside, Seifer didn''t stop, leading us directly to a large banquet hall with plates already lined up and a table full of food. Keith''s group is already waiting in their chairs, including Nisha.

    "Ooh!" Ishar exclaims, then runs over and sits down.

    I walk over and sit down next to Keith, which seems to surprise him.

    As everyone begins sitting down I lean over to Keith, "I felt something was different for awhile now, and then I heard about Nisha, she''s sensitive to changes in her soul right?"

    "You figured that out huh? Now that I think about it, it''s probably obvious, but yes she was really sick for awhile there till she adjusted. Something is spreading a domain here, so we have a pretty good idea of what we''re dealing with. There could be more going on here, still though, it''s a good starting point."

    Knowing one Eldritch is here is a good start, but wouldn''t the nation here have people who can detect domains or sense for soul irregularities? It''s common practice after all... Or should be. I refuse to believe this nation can still exist if an Eldritch can just set up shop and nobody stops it from slowly worming its way into peoples souls. It defies all logic damnit, so why didn''t they tell us?

    "It''s just... She says it''s ''different than normal'', but can''t be more specific than that."

    Hmm, every domain feels ''different'' though, so isn''t that the normal part? I wonder what she means by that.

    Seifer sits down near the head of the table. "Please wait a little bit before you begin, Euphemia is on her way here now. Also, do not refer to her as princess or any other titles, just her name only."

    Ishar mumbles something about human etiquette as he stares at the meat before him.

    A few minutes later a girl with long black hair wearing a surprisingly simple dress walks into the room, followed by two servants.

    Shana who is sitting to my right whispers to me. "Annoyingly beautiful with big boobs, I hate her already."

    To be fair, she was obviously looking for any reason to hate the girl as soon as she walked through those doors.

    "I welcome you all to my home. It''s been ages since I''ve had visitors, so this is very exciting for me personally. I''d like to sit down and talk with you all afterwards if you have time."

    Euphemia sits down and scans the room, stopping her gaze on me. "Oh my~! Can I ask what you are a hybrid of? I''ve never seen one of your kind before."

    "I''m not a hybrid, I honestly don''t know what I am."

    "She''s not even alive. Good luck finding a pulse if you check her..." Nisha said.

    "Not a hybrid or alive...? How can that be possible?" Seifer asked.

    "I don''t mind telling you all later, but can we eat now?"

    "Yes of course, let us begin!" Euphemia said.

    I thought the difference in etiquette would have been difficult for her to deal with, but if it is then she''s doing a good job concealing it. She''s over there cutting her food up in a noble manner while the rest of the table is practically shoving food down their gullets.

    After we were finished eating, Cera spoke up first. "Now then Seifer, do you have any news for us, or has nothing changed?"

    "No changes, which is a good thing. If we lose two more villages I don''t know what the fallout will be. We''re already struggling with the new climate as it is, not to mention the ridiculous amount of mana required to keep all the lights going. However, it is necessary to make everything as bright as possible. The villager''s morale greatly improved after we installed all the new crystal lights."

    "How far away are the villages that I am to inspect?" I asked.

    "Surely you are not doing that alone...? There are so many of you here."

    Blackwall walks into the room. "Apologies for coming late, there were some... Complications. As for your question, Keith''s unit is here to assist any village under assault, while Rei is the one to investigate the villages in question. The rest are here to battle the Tengu."

    "The WHAT?!" Seifer stands up. "You are suggesting that abomination is here?! Wait, could it be related to the villages demise...?"

    Oh, now I get why they didn''t tell him. ''We brought someone here to bait a Tengu Lord out of hiding, sorry that we''re dragging you into it'' would make the people here quite enraged. Speaking of which, if the Tengu really does come for Aresa, won''t that put the princess in danger too? They really did make the correct call on not telling them, but it does have me wondering why it''s so important that they kill one of these Lords if the god takes the soul back immediately. I''ll ask Aresa later when I get a chance to.

    "Don''t worry Seifer, it should be unrelated. We just happen to have information that one of his Lords will appear here, so we decided to bring a separate force to deal with it." Blackwall said.

    "Information huh..." Seifer said as he sat back down.

    He''s not buying it, as he shouldn''t. Sadly for him though, so long as nobody here runs their mouth, they''ll never figure out the real reason why the Tengu might appear.

    Euphemia claps her hands. "Okay enough of that! I assume you''re all very tired, but is there anyone who''d like to converse with me in the living room?"

    Everyone looked around awkwardly for a few seconds before Aresa raised her hand. Seeing that I raised mine as well.

    This could be a good chance, I need more information and who better to ask than the king''s daughter?

    "Excellent! Seifer, please show them the way while I prepare. You''ll be joining us too correct?"

    "That is the plan." Seifer stands up and walks over to the door behind me.

    "So you were tempted by them, I hope they''re worth it..." Shana whispers.

    "It''s not for her boobs..."

    Cera sighed. "I would love to as well Euphemia, but I am absolutely exhausted. However, I''m on ''Tengu duty'', so I''ll have a lot of free time till he shows up."

    "Of course Cera, we shall converse another day." Euphemia stood up, exiting the room with her attendants.

    {I''m tired, but I''ve never talked with a princess before.}

    I feel like whatever you are is a higher station than a princess could ever hope to be.

    I stood up and followed Seifer to a large well furnished room with a wall made purely out of glass.

    "Beautiful isn''t it? It''s not easy to make a window that big. It''s one of the only things she ever asked for."

    It''s perfect actually, with my eyes at this height I can see anything approaching for miles in that direction. I wonder if they''ll let me sleep here? I''m definitely going to ask the princess before she goes to bed.

 Chapter 20 - The Long Night Begins

    Aresa and Seifer are conversing behind me as I stare out the window at the fortress far off in the distance.

    I know I''ve been there before... But how did I get in? If I end up needing to enter the fort, it would be really helpful if I could remember how the hell my unit gained entry to that place. I feel like someone opened a secret door for us somewhere... It was underground, I think?

    One of the doors behind me opens up, revealing the princess in a night gown.

    Is... Is that normal? Half the damn thing is see-through. Seifer is looking around awkwardly right now, so even he wasn''t expecting this.

    "Apologies for making you wait. Parn contacted me, he wanted to know if there were any problems with my guests." Euphemia said.

    "Um princess, before we begin, can I ask why I can see most of your body right now? Is this a gift for Seifer here? He can''t bring himself to look at you so I don''t think it''s working."

    Euphemia looks down at herself, then laughs as one of her attendants rushes over with a blanket. "No no, I always rest in here every night wearing a gown with a blanket over me. Seifer never joins me, but I knew he would tonight since there would be outsiders here."

    In other words, he''s here to make sure we don''t harm her. I don''t know how strong he is, but I doubt he could stop me from driving an enhanced fist through her throat at this range. Not that I have any intentions on doing that.

    {You look lovely in that gown.}

    "Thank you Lady Aresa!"

    "She''s a bit awkward and has trouble articulating what she really wants to say. That was her trying to tell you that she wants you to keep that blanket off. She prefers see-through silk on the ladies, I''ve heard her say it multiple times."

    {Noooo!! She''s messing with me Princess Euphemia I promise!}

    Euphemia''s stared at me stunned, before settling down into a smile. "No one has ever dared to joke like that around me. What a novel feeling..."

    Seifer looks over at me and smiles. "Her brother Parn suggested long ago that she be removed for the succession line, and the king agreed. Ever since then she''s been stuck here alone."

    Personally I think that sounds amazing, but I guess the average person would desire friends, love, attention, and so on.

    {So she''s just like me in a way.}

    Seifer''s expression saddened after reading her board. "Right... You''ve been alone since Lord Shiva died, haven''t you? She was such an important figure to all of us. Nothing has been the same since, even for us."

    Shiva... Shiva... Oh shit, I think I do remember that name. That is the name of the Eldritch who created Viseux! Err, they don''t have ''daughters'' though?

    Aresa looks back at me.

    {I had a suspicion when we first met, but on the wagon ride back to Viseux I knew for a fact that you had no idea of who I was. It was refreshing being in a wagon with three people who didn''t know my origins, so I decided to keep it to myself. There''s no need for that anymore though, ask your questions.}

    "Then how are you an Eldritch''s ''daughter''?"

    {Ahh... Of course you''d ask that. Right to the heart of things, as expected of an ''inquisitor''.}

    ... So she knew my title too. Only people from Xelba should have known that.

    "Inquisitor? You work for Viseux? We only asked the Guardians for help." Seifer said.

    "No, Xelba also had ''inquisitors'', but they were kind of different. They stole that title for god knows what reason. Nobody could ever tell what the higher ups there were thinking."

    "I must have misheard just now. It sounded like you said ''Xelba'', but... That couldn''t be?"

    {That''s exactly what she said Seifer. She used to be a cultist, long long ago.}

    "Well, not exactly, I mean it''s not like I believed in Viktor''s dream. I did work for him though, so I guess whatever I thought on the inside doesn''t really matter. An accomplice is an accomplice."

    "Unbelievable... To think I''d meet someone from that fabled place. I hadn''t even been born yet when it fell. In our nation it was talked about for long after its demise, probably because we were one of two nations who were most affected by that horrible place. My Father was a merchant, he used to go on mad ravings about how much he hated that nation. Having twenty to forty percent of any caravans sent south of the fort be pillaged was devastating for a trader after all. Plus, anyone who accompanied the caravan was never seen again, which eventually led to all trade to the south being closed off."

    "Oh, I remember reading about this! That''s why the Kitsune kingdom fell right? The Kitsunes were already struggling as is, so when their supplies were cut off, that was it for them. Lord Rai''ga was to the west of them and he had to flee to Viseux after the Kitsune god died to the Tengu. Then Lord Shiva died soon after that, so Viseux naturally became his." Euphemia said, clearly happy at how well she remembered the history down here.

    {Yes... When mother died, Rai''ga decided to ''save'' Viseux. By the time I was able to move he had already taken control of everything. Worthless bum.}

    Our hosts seemed taken aback at her calling the leader of the capital nation on Urza a ''worthless bum''.

    Hmm, I understand why she would personally hate Rai''ga, but despite everything my new allies have said about Viseux, I can''t help but think their current militaristic society was going to happen regardless of who was in charge. From what I read while we were in Viseux, Eldritch had began popping up at an alarming rate sometime after Xelba fell, so as a result it''s only natural that the nations of Urza would become more military focused. Obviously there is going to be people taking advantage of that to further their own agendas, but I don''t see the current Viseux in the same horrible light everyone else I''ve met seems to be.

    Aresa had her country usurped and Godwin''s guild has struggled with the new powers that be, so I also don''t necessarily blame them for hating the current system. All in all I keep my mouth shut on this situation, as I''m basically an outsider at this point. The Urza I knew is long gone, and I''m not sticking around on the new one long enough to start voicing my opinions on the local political structures. There is nothing to be gained by me telling Aresa I don''t see Viseux the same way she does. Only bad things await me down that route... With that said, I can''t deny that I seem to have a visceral disgust for militaries now. It seems my time in Xelba has left deep wounds in more ways than one.

    "Well... I can''t deny that there is plenty of reasons we refuse to allow anyone to move into our nation. The few times we allowed people from Viseux to visit, things didn''t end well. It''s just not worth the headache dealing with those Viseux supremacists."

    {Ooh that''s a good title for them Seifer! It fits the people there perfectly, well done.}

    "Sorry to interrupt, but I''d really like to know. How are you a ''daughter'' exactly? Are you a Lord who is calling herself a daughter for posterity sake?"

    {No... And yes? I was to be mother''s first Lord. She is much like the Tengu when it comes to how his Lords and spawns are designed. After years of creating me inside of her, she unfortunately died soon before I was ''born''. After the traitors fled, one of mother''s most loyal subjects offered herself as a vessel for me. It took time for our souls to meld though. A very long time. Also, because of the way the chateau is designed, mother''s soul is still there, slowly reforming her body while keeping the chateau powered and sealed.}

    "Wait, Lady Shiva will be reborn?!" Seifer yelled.

    {One day far far faaaar into the future. Until then I need to keep the chateau safe, but it''s not like Rai''ga can dare approach it. If he could, he''d have already kicked me out. Unfortunately for him I still control some parts of the city. Anything from the defenses to the plumbing for about one kilometer around the chateau I can change anytime I want. Plus, they''re low in number these days, but there is a lot of people who still worship my mother over him. Although the army is finding reasons to kick them out, which led to the few who remain living within my realm of control.}

    I want to ask what promise Rai''ga made with her which led to her coming out here to bait the Tengu. However, asking that now could lead to a line of questioning we''d both rather avoid.

    Euphemia who is detached from politics appears to be unsure of how to feel about the news of Shiva returning, while Seifer truly looks happy.

    I guess those who actually have to deal with the current Viseux will obviously be much happier if the old boss came back.

    "Oh right! Can you tell me about the Lizardmen?! I hear a lot of the Guardians have defected." Euphemia asked.

    "Defected is... Kind of correct. It''ll take awhile to explain actually."

    <hr>

    Over the course of an hour, me and Aresa took turns explaining myself, Keith''s group, and what happened in Thule.

    "So... Hang on, this is a lot to take in." Seifer said, leaning back in his chair.

    "The sky, it''s because of these faceless ''Xerath'' creatures?" Euphemia asked.

    {Most likely yes. Reimia saw the same sky in their realm.}

    "You''re immortal...? .............. Must be nice." Seifer whispered so low I almost didn''t hear him. I looked at the other two and it was clear that neither of them heard him.

    The hell was that? The way he said it was so... Menacing. These two didn''t react at all though so I''ll ignore it for now, but something about that really creeped me out...

    "Doesn''t necessarily mean it''s the Xerath. Could be an Eldritch or a Demon, they also visit that realm quite often."

    Seifer shook his head. "... I need to speak to the king. If what you are saying is true, then personally I believe we should be allying this ''hydra''. If they''ll let us stay autonomous so long as we slay Demons, then all the more reason to support them over Viseux and Khan Uluhm. If anything, the idea of taking out those power hungry warmongers feels like a breath of fresh air. I don''t expect it to be as wonderful of a relationship as you describe, but it can''t possibly be worse than the ones we currently have. Before all this happened, we had proof that Viseux was planning to attack us in a few years. That''s why the king was delaying the expansion to the east. Well, and for several other reasons."

    It makes much more sense now that I''ve heard that. It still sounds next to impossible and pointless to expand right now, but logically I understand it''s better doing it now rather than when Viseux was moments away from invading you.

    {Wait, did the Lizardmen not send an envoy to you? I drew them a map on my board showing all the nations locations and they copied it. The shaman said they''d be sending a contingent this way once they were done dealing with the Demons portal.}

    "They have not I''m afraid." Seifer said.

    "Which means the contingent ran into trouble, or they are still fighting."

    Seifer sighed, rubbing his temples. "I''m still having a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of a portal straight to the Demons realm being here... And it''s only one hundred miles west of Kellog! Are you certain the Lizards will win? If they don''t, then..."

    "Some will escape, that much is certain, but they will win according to the brown Crotia we came here with. Apparently they''ve done this many times. Every battle is different, but because Lord Terra''ka is able to open a portal much sooner than the Demons, he always gets the upper hand. Why the Demons don''t just open a portal far away from him I''m not sure, but there must be a reason to it."

    {Ask Ishar later, I''m curious too.}

    "I have a few serious inquiries Seifer, I hope you don''t mind? First, how is the situation here now that it''s freezing over?"

    "''Not good'' is putting it mildly. Thank god all the homes here have fireplaces because the nights have always been kind of chilly down here, but we have nowhere near enough wood. Between all the lights we need to keep powered and the mages we have drying out wood, almost all of our mana is going towards that alone. Not to mention the amount of extra hands we need out there chopping down trees in the forest that has recently had four villages completely wiped out. To say the men are fearful of the forest right now is an understatement. Also, as if this wasn''t all bad enough, our supply of wood from Thule still has not shown up. We have a contract with them to get a large amount of dried out wood dirt cheap, but they suddenly stopped sending it a few months ago."

    "... Ahh, I uh, got some bad news there too. Not to add more to your plate, but that supply is never coming. That wood originated from the middle of the Kitsunes'' forest, where trees grow rapidly and dry out soon after being cut down. It was apparently a place she designed for a certain race of people to hide. From what, I''m not certain, probably the Tengu? Anyways, people from Thule found it and burned the village to the ground. The survivors killed anyone connected to the logging operation, and now with the Lizardmen versus Demon war going on there, I doubt anyone is thinking about logging."

    Euphemia looked at Seifer, "Oh my! Seifer, did you know of this?"

    "No... Dear god no. However, that does explain all the strange parts of the deal, like why they were fine with the low amount we offered for the wood."

    {I was really surprised when you told me about that in the wagon. I had no idea those people existed. I wish I could find this ''Greyson'' and apologize to him.}

    Hopefully he was able to escape this miserable place.

    "Um, miss Reimia? How are you okay?" Euphemia asked.

    "Huh? What do you mean?"

    "Well... Summarizing what you told us earlier about your ''condition''. You were sacrificed, turned into something unknown, then accidentally killed your family trying to save them, then lost your new family, and died trying to avenge them. Now you''re back and somehow still fighting? It''s just... Your life is so alien to me. I spent my life staring out this window thinking about all the things I want to do, but never actually do any of it, so your life sounds like it''s from a fairy tale. If I hadn''t seen you myself, coupled with how much Lady Aresa trusts you, I''d think it was all made up."

    "................"

    When she puts it like that, my life has definitely been a little... Different.

    I walk over to the couch next to Aresa and sit down.

    "How am I okay huh... That''s hard to answer. I feel like there are two major catalysts that changed me. After I turned into this undead thing, I couldn''t survive off only vegetation anymore. I remember I was in a daze as I tried finding a way out of the secret hideout I lived in. Everything looked fuzzy as my new ''heart'', the core in my chest was pounding, begging me to feed it. When I finally found the way outside, the lights were killing me. So between that and my inability to properly focus, I had no hesitation when I finally found someone. He was the first person I killed, yet another Xerath worshiper who may or may not have had a family. Because of how it went down, it made killing people never really much of a problem for me, which was pretty important for living in that realm anyways."

    Stolen novel; please report.

    Images flash through my mind of all the people I killed. An old man missing both his legs fishing by a stream. A mother and son picking herbs at the same spot every three days, I watched and waited on four different occasions before finally striking. Two twin boys who escaped their entourage to go play in the woods, something they sorely regretted after finding me. I''ll never forget one of the boys crying as I ate his brother, not for himself, but for his brother. Makes you wonder who the real monster was in that realm... I knew the reality though, they were all from the town near my hideout. I saw those fuckers pillage and raid other areas all the time. Violating the women, capturing the men, and stealing all the valuables over and over and over. I''m sure the old man lost his legs in a pillaging expedition, and those two twins would''ve grown up to be a couple of expert pillagers as well. They were all fucking monsters, just like the people of Xelba, just like...

    Aresa holds out her board in front of my face.

    {What is the other catalyst?}

    "... Training. I was a mess when I got to Xelba. I spent months stealing food and feeding the birds near a drain pipe. Everyone hated the seagulls, but I loved em. They were the only friends I ever had up to that point. Anyways, I''m skipping a lot here, but after I joined the inquisitor training program, I opted out of the weapon training and preferred hand to hand. Up to that point the spawn there were the only ones training in hand to hand, but when I lined up next to them, the Lords looked pleased and began teaching me themselves, which surprised everyone there. Training almost all day long for years on end had really calmed my mind down. Train and then feed the birds, train and then feed the birds... Every day was like that for probably two years? It still made up a large portion of my life after I graduated, but those two years were probably the best years of my life. While I hate Xelba, I also loved it. It gave me a lot of things that made me happy, which I''m sure sounds strange to an outsider who only knows it as ''the nation of cultists''."

    "It truly is a life like none other. It makes me so..." Euphemia trails off, looking out the large glass window in a daze.

    She... She has nothing to say about me killing and eating people? It''s one thing to hear about it secondhand, but I told her myself directly... And yet, she appears to be more focused on how free I was.

    Seifer''s eyes widened. "Apologies, it''s just now hitting me why your name and appearance felt so familiar. You''re the Reimia who brought down Xelba from within during the alliance''s siege, correct? It should have been obvious when I read the reports about you, but my mind has been preoccupied with all the madness happening in our nation." Seifer continued. "... With that said, I''ll admit I''m a little disturbed by your role in Xelba. We were raised here only knowing that Kellog and the Dwarves destroyed the cultists to the south east, but those in positions like mine who can dig deeper see your name pop up several times. Excluding your role in bringing down that vile place, the rest is only accompanied by very disturbing information. Understand?" Seifer said.

    "... Yeah, I do. And I just got done telling you that I loved quite a bit about that place, so I''m sure that didn''t paint me in a very positive light. All I can tell you is that it''s in the past, and I''m here now to assist you with your problems. Admittedly, I''m doing it for selfish reasons, but I''m here to help all the same."

    Seifer stares at me for a bit, then nods.

    He doesn''t look entirely convinced, which is to be expected. I feel like Aresa being friendly with me has been doing a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to how people treat me. Arkaios too, but that was only for the Templars so far.

    "Selfish reasons?" Euphemia asked, tilting her head.

    I mentioned soul eating earlier, but maybe it was too abstract?

    {She is going to eat the souls of any monsters or Eldritch here.}

    Euphemia clapped her hands in front of her chest.

    "Oh I see! My teacher taught me that Eldritch latch onto people''s souls after they die, leeching until they are reborn correct?! But other Eldritch can sense them as they grow in strength, putting the human and them in danger. It''s all so very fascinating..."

    ... Oh, so that''s why she didn''t care about me eating souls. With her sheltered life, things like Eldritch and soul eaters are all somebody else''s problem. They''re just stories for her. I''m not even judging her for it, she''s just a product of her upbringing after all. Which also explains why she won''t leave Kellog because then all of those ''stories'' are going to become reality. They''ll go from entertaining adventures and bits of information, to tales of pure horror real fucking quick. I would struggle to leave too if I was her.

    "I hope I''m not seen as rude, but I need to change the subject. Reimia, what are your plans tomorrow?" Seifer asked.

    "I need to go to the nearest burned down village."

    "Then I will have a guide take you there."

    "No need, I will have Cid take her. Also, Tyra will go with." Euphemia cut in.

    "Princess...? Why would you send your head guard with her?"

    "It''s what I have decided. Now then, I am going to bed." Euphemia stands up, lightly bowing in our direction. "Thank you for keeping me company tonight, and informing me about the many things I know nothing about."

    As she walks out the door, I look over at Seifer''s face and can''t help but chuckle a little.

    "You look very confused right now Seifer."

    "This is very bizarre... But it is her choice so I will not interject. Shall I show you two where your rooms are?"

    "Can I sleep here? I want to make a little hideout on the ceiling near the glass. I''ll feel much better that way instead of in a bed."

    Seifer quirked an eyebrow, "On the ceiling...? What does that even mean, if I may ask?"

    I cut a quick slit on my forearm and pull out some blood, turning it into a mesh.

    "Like this, gonna make something that looks like a nest up there. Don''t worry, I''ll take it down when we leave. It won''t leave a mark."

    Seifer was clearly stunned as he looked between the mesh and my forearm. I could tell he was preparing to barrage me with questions, but apparently he changed his mind and decided to just answer me instead.

    "Hmm... I wish you had asked that before the princess left, but she did leave rather spontaneously. I suppose it''s fine if it won''t cause any trouble. Also, having something like you keeping watch during times like this sounds quite beneficial to everyone here."

    Something like you, not someone. He obviously didn''t have any ill will when he said that, and he''s not exactly wrong so it doesn''t upset me. If anything I find a slip of the tongue like that rather funny.

    {Goodnight! I hope you find something tomorrow.}

    "It''s impossible for someone as amazing as me to not find anything."

    Aresa smiles and waves as she follows Seifer out of the room.

    Wasting no time, I rip a bunch of blood out of my forearm and turn it into a large mesh cloth, leaving some blood on the ends so it''ll stick. After throwing it up onto the ceiling, I wait about a minute before jumping up and grabbing it, and sure enough it can handle my weight without falling off. Cutting a hole in the side facing the window, I crawl inside and curl up into a ball.

    Ahh, I feel so much more comfortable in here... If anything crosses my view, my core will wake me up.

    <hr>

    The first thing I heard was a maid freaking out while running away. Seifer came back with her a few minutes later.

    "You awake Rei? What a strange... Tent? Looks like a hunting blind."

    I jump down onto the floor.

    "Yeah I''m up. Sorry there little fox-maid, didn''t mean to frighten you."

    She must be a trainee, she looks like she''s barely thirteen.

    "It''ll be fine Fei, run along and help your mother."

    The girl runs out of the room, making sure to give me a wide birth.

    "This normal for you as well?" Seifer said.

    "Scaring children? Nah, that doesn''t happen too often. Anyways, are my ''guides'' ready? The sooner I can start the better."

    "Tyra is currently eating, she''ll be ready soon. Cid however is outside right now if you wanna go wait with him. He''s the Kitsune who was talking to your group yesterday."

    The one asking about Godwin? I was worried they might send a butler or someone without fighting experience, but that was an unnecessary worry it seems.

    Turning down Seifers request to eat first, I head back down the hallway, retracing my steps from yesterday.

    One of the first things I learned in the other realm was to never forget where you came from. Vastly more important there, but it''s all around useful no matter where you are really.

    Entering the main hall, I look around and see at least twenty different people in the room at all times, going back and forth preparing for the start of the day.

    Normally I''d go invisible just to avoid these people, but unless somebody blabbed, nobody here should know I can turn invisible yet. Which is going to be very important if anyone in Kellog is responsible for what happened to those villages.

    Walking down the steps towards the first floor, I practically break out into a jog when everyone turns and bows.

    This is so fucking uncomfortable, I really hate this type of attention.

    Bursting through the door, I spot Cid near a dead boar and immediately run over to him.

    The maid I scared earlier is here as well for some reason. She panics a little when she sees me running towards her.

    "That boar yours, or is it for the princess here?"

    "This one? For her. If we have plenty of food I can clean it and eat it with the workers here. Can''t this time though." Cid looks at the maid hiding behind him. "The hell is your problem Fei?"

    "S-Sorry Dad... She scared me this morning, so I''m a little... Oh, but mom said she''s a guest here so, I was in the wrong."

    "Ahh so that''s why you came running to me..."

    Now that I see them together, she definitely resembles him.

    "So you want a rundown on how to search, track, or investigate?" Cid said.

    "No I''ll be fine, this isn''t my first time."

    Probably closer to my thousandth.

    "Come on don''t worry about it, I''ll give you a refresher course. That never hurt anyone." Cid bends down and begins drawing around the boar with a piece of chalk. "Okay here is the first step. You draw around any bodies you find, this way it preserves the scene."

    ...........................................

    "You following so far? This is very important."

    "Oh fuck off, I know you''re messing with me. This is some of the dumbest shit I''ve ever seen. Is this a test? It has to be a test."

    Cid ignores me and continues. "Next you circle around the victim while talking to yourself outloud. Don''t think, just say whatever pops into your head. You never know what your brain might pick up unconsciously. This is how you dig that info out."

    "... Words cannot even begin to describe how much I hate you right now."

    Out of the corner of my eye I can see Fei trying her best to not laugh, but she''s got tears forming in her eyes.

    "And that''s it for now. I''m gonna go pick up Tyra while you mull over this expert advice I have given you."

    Cid drops the chalk as he turns around and begins walking towards the mansion. Fei sidles up to me while still giggling.

    "Forgive him! He''s actually very happy that help has arrived. Also, Dad has a blind date scheduled for tonight, so please don''t keep him too long." Fei continued. "Speaking of which... How does he look?!"

    "I think a chalk outline of him would be better looking."

    He has the same damn shaggy bed hair he had when we met yesterday... Eh, I''m out of my element here. Maybe other girls like that look?

    Fei, apparently having changed her opinion of me, chatted with me for about ten minutes before Cid walked out of the building with a nearly two-hundred centimeter tall woman in heavy armor. She has several wrinkles and her hair has already gone grey.

    She must really love her job if she''s walking around in heavy armor at that age.

    Cid speaks first after they reach us. "Reimia, this is Tyra."

    "Nice to meet you, Tyra."

    "You as well. It is out of character for Euphie to voice her desires, so when she requested that I assist you, I happily obliged. I don''t know what you said to her, but she seems to place a high amount of trust in you. No... Trust is the wrong word, yet that is what I will call it for now."

    ... Okay then, I''ll accept her ''trust'' for now.

    "The wagon is ready to go whenever you are." Cid said.

    "I''d much rather run there, a wagon will be way too slow." I look at Tyra. "Can you handle it in that armor?"

    "With ease." Tyra points off to the side. "It is that direction. Lead the way, undead one."

    "You sure that''s a good idea? We won''t be able to see at all." Cid said.

    "Got any mini-crystal lights? Attach them to my back."

    "Attach? How the hell do we do that?" Cid asked.

    "Foolish boy. If you were under my service I''d send you back to basic training. Can you not sense the presence in front of you? We''re close enough for it to be barely perceptible, but it''s not something a seasoned vet such as yourself should miss."

    "I know she''s wearing artifact armor, that much is obvious. But what does that have to do with what she just asked us? Do crystals stick to artifact armor?"

    "They''re rare, I don''t blame him for not knowing. This is a defensive based armor, but it should cling to any small objects I ask it to hold."

    "I see..." Cid said, turning around and running towards the manor.

    A few minutes later he returned with ten already lit-up pint-sized crystal lights. I turned around, letting him stick them to random parts of my back.

    "This is a good idea, we won''t lose you now, but how will you see?" Cid said.

    "Don''t worry about me, I''ll be fine."

    ... A little strange that they''d accept mini-crystals on my back instead of full blown directed crystal lights or torches. The only reason I can think of, is that they both know about my invisibility and hatred of the light. If that''s the case then information is spreading way too damn fast for my taste.

    Enhancing myself, I dash off in the direction Tyra indicated earlier, the other two catch up soon after. Before long the lights of civilization fade away. With no blue flora here, the ambient lighting is definitely much lower than last time, but I can still just barely see ahead of me. If we were another mile away from the villages to our right then even I would be blind.

    <hr>

    After about forty minutes I finally spot a village ahead that looks nothing like the others. The fact that there is only a few lights going is kind of a dead giveaway as well.

    "That''s it ahead I''m assuming?"

    "Yes. We installed a few lights to investigate the area back then, they should be powered for another couple of days. The other village in question is ahead of this one, but that one still has all of its lights available. We just need to turn them on when we arrive." Tyra said.

    Good to see that lighting won''t be a problem.

    Arriving at the ''village'' I immediately see why they struggled to find anything of value. This place was burned so badly that all of the wood turned to ash. Hell I can barely see anything above the snow at this point, the rest must have crumbled completely. Don''t need to be good at investigations to see that it''d be difficult to discover anything here, especially with how dangerous the area must have felt to mortal beings that can''t turn invisible. They''d want to leave this area as fast as possible. It doesn''t help that there is a bunch of charred bodies in the fetal position scattered amongst the snow.

    "Seeing it in person is far worse than I imagined. I knew it would be bad but my god..." Cid said.

    "Indeed. I hope we can find whatever blight is causing such destruction." Tyra replied.

    "I know this is a dumb question, especially considering what I''m looking at right now, but does anything look different from what you heard or read in the reports?"

    "Hmm..."

    The both of them look around the area for awhile before shaking their heads.

    "There is barely anything to ''see'' unfortunately." Cid said.

    "Then can either of you use wind magic?"

    "I know what you''re about to ask, allow me."

    Tyra steps forward while holding her palms out in front of her, blowing both the snow and ash away.

    I don''t want the rubble to be blown away too, but it can''t be helped. There''s no way of removing only the snow.

    Tyra eventually realizes that a slight gust is pointless, as there is nothing to save. She ramps up the spells power, clearing much more area as she goes. Eventually she discovers an open cellar and motions to the both of us to come over.

    "Just so you know, we''re going to find a lot of those. At least we''ll have something to investigate, but I''m certain the previous crews went over them incessantly weeks ago." Cid said as we walked over to Tyra.

    Jumping down into the cellar, I''m met with a small room that only has a few boxes tucked away in the corner and a single crystal light on the ceiling that lit-up when I dropped down. The boxes have clearly been searched as their insides have been emptied next to them. Just in case I scan the room for abnormalities, coming up with nothing as a result.

    With that over, we climbed out of the cellar and waited for Tyra to continue clearing away snow until she found another cellar. We continued like that for another nine or ten hours before Cid started complaining about being late for his blind date.

    "Go on then, I''ll be fine here. You can leave as well Tyra if you need to. I''m going to stay out here till I find something. I had enough food and sleep to last a few weeks, so no need to worry about me."

    "I cannot leave you here I''m afraid. My liege has sent me to help you, and that is what I shall do. I do not want to interrupt your plans, but could you not run back every day? You know the way now, surely an hour and a half won''t be too much of a drain on your time. This way the two of us can support you."

    ... Hmm, I''ll definitely lose more time clearing this snow myself. Ahh damnit all, I really don''t want to sit around doing nothing right now but I guess I have no choice.

    "Okay you''re right let''s head back... That choice is killing me by the way. I''m used to working till the job is done."

    Tyra pats me on the shoulder and smiles. "And yet you didn''t hesitate to take the better option. How about one more before we head off? That might make you feel better."

    I smiled back at her. "Sure, why not."

    Tyra looks over at Cid as she begins casting again. "Don''t worry, we''ll get you to your date on time. I can carry you if you''d prefer? We can run much faster that way."

    "Ehh I think I''ll pass... Oh?"

    Another cellar reveals itself.

    "Wait, how come the snow isn''t falling into the cellars? It''s just now hitting me." Cid said.

    "Someone told me long ago that there is a tiny barrier over any opening leading underground. If it gets too heavy, the extra is dispersed around the opening. Although, I''m not quite sure how people get boxes and things down there."

    "You do not have a cellar Cid? As someone who hunts I thought you of all people would have a cellar. Also, any inanimate objects can be brought down below so long as a soul is accompanying them." Tyra said.

    Interesting, I never knew that. Not often I get to learn something new about Urza these days.

    Jumping down below we''re met with the same small cellar that every other home had. However, as I''m scanning the area I see something extremely small jutting out of the wall across from us.

    Walking over to the wall, I reach out and try to touch it, but it''s way too small. I don''t even feel anything when my finger is pressed against it, just a cold stone wall.

    "Find something?" Cid said.

    "Yeah... Thanks to my eyes I found something sticking out of the wall, but it''s too small for me to grab it."

    They both come over and stare at the spot I''m pointing at, but they can''t see anything at all.

    "Hmm, what should we do? Forget my date, I don''t want to leave if we might have found something here. She''ll understand when I tell her why I didn''t show up. Assuming there is a next date..."

    "Bah, drop the woman if she has a problem with you doing your duty. Although I truly doubt one of our citizens would be so foolish... I have an idea, back up you two. When in doubt, resort to force."

    Me and Cid back all the way up, which admittedly isn''t much so I enhance myself just in case.

    Tyra grabs one of the large hammers attached to her side and begins smashing into the wall. About a minute later she had already destroyed half the wall, revealing a tunnel behind the wall.

    "Rei, look at this."

    I walk back to Tyra and look inside. There is a skeleton in a dark blue cloak sitting against the earth near the cellar wall. Part of his cloak appears to be going inside the wall.

    "There must be a way to open this wall that is somewhere in this room. Nice job seeing that fabric, we''d have never found this place otherwise."

    "Thank you Tyra, but now what do we do? My first thought is to keep going, however..."

    "Indeed... This just became far more complicated. It may lead to somewhere completely unrelated, but we still need to check. Still though, there is a reason nobody ever goes underground aside from their own personal cellars."

    Because the things you find underground are far more dangerous and unique than anything you''ll find above ground. There is an entirely different ecosystem down here and the monsters below almost never come above ground. So all of Urza naturally entered an unsigned pact with the abominations below. You don''t bother us, and we won''t bother you. Unfortunately, it''s looking like something may have broken that pact.

 Chapter 21 - Broodling

    Ten minutes have passed since we discovered the hole. In that time the three of us have been sitting down trying to decide what to do next.

    Cid looks up at both of us. "Hmm, the more I think about this, the less I''m convinced this has anything to do with what happened to the village."

    Tyra shakes her head. "At first glance it does seem like a stretch. First off, this tunnel couldn''t even fit two of us side by side, so anything coming through here would need to be smaller than anything I''d expect to be strong enough to incinerate the entire village while also preventing any light from leaking out. Whether it''s alone or with others, obviously a caster is necessary to accomplish that, and magic users are normally on the smaller side of things, but I''ve never once heard of the underground having casters?"

    "I''ve been down there before, but it was below Xelba. We never ran into anything that could cast magic that powerful. The most we saw was a small green creature with pointy ears casting fireballs at us, and it was also the only thing we ran into that could speak. Generally everything down there was a monster with their own race-based abilities. It wasn''t a long trip though so it''s not much of a reference."

    "Why would the cultists go underground? Wasn''t pillaging their number one priority?" Tyra asked.

    "Our unit was paired up with several others for the purposes of ''clearing a path'' to a certain area underground. Honestly I completely forgot about it till now... All I remember is how excited the higher ups were concerning the whole operation. This happened soon before the nation fell. Actually, I think it might have been my last mission?"

    "Out of curiosity, what was the ''certain area'' that they wanted clear?" Cid asked.

    "A cavern twenty times larger than your village filled to the brim with Crystals and several Omni-veins nobody had tapped yet. There was also several prismatic crystals lying about. At the time I saw that scene and immediately understood why the higher ups were so happy, but now that I think back on it, monetary gains were not something those people cared all that much about."

    Cid whistles. "Are you sure that''s not cause for celebration? You could create an entire nation off a find like that. Although it''s a little strange that they knew exactly where to find it..."

    "What they truly cared about was the creature they worshiped, correct?" Tyra asked.

    "The princess told you I take it? Also yes, that''s all that really mattered to them. How their love for the Broodling Xerath ties into a room full of crystals and moon-blood is a mystery to me. Viktor said it only needed meat and souls, but it wouldn''t be the first time he lied."

    "Broodling?"

    "Oh uh, once a Xerathian appears, it''s in its ''broodling'' stage, and people need to feed it for it to fully evolve past that stage. If the people under its influence can''t find others to kidnap, they''ll willingly throw themselves into its mouth. I saw a few evolve in the other realm, they''re far worse than any Eldritch or Demon I''ve dealt with. At least with Eldritch their corruption can be removed and there are ways to know if it''s influencing someone."

    "Wait, are you certain that Xerathian creature is dead? If they moved it to that cavern, then Xelba falling would mean nothing to it." Tyra said.

    "I know it''s not dead, Viktor took its core out before he fled Urza. I assume he evolved it into a full-fledged god somewhere else. I don''t know what kind of god it evolved into, but I''m sure by this point he already dominated another moon or planet out there somewhere. Unless a miracle happened and somebody stopped him, which I severely doubt."

    Tyra sighed with obvious relief. "Okay... That had me worried it was still here, but at the same time that means there is an even more dangerous threat out there somewhere. One problem at a time though. I suggest we take the skeleton back and discuss with the others what our next move should be. Master Seifer will have some thoughts on this I''m sure."

    "Works for me, that''s about all we can do at this point."

    I was considering going underground alone, but it''s nowhere near as dark as one would expect. The amount of light crystals protruding from the walls are endless. They''re all naturally powered by the moon too, so they never turn off.

    "Oh, what''s this?" Tyra said as she picks up the skeleton.

    Bending down further, she picks something up and brings it back towards us, placing it down onto my hands.

    "A notebook...?"

    "It fell out of his cloak. You ever seen a cover that fancy before?" Tyra said.

    Yes, it''s rather normal where I come from, but I''m far more interested in the contents of this notepad than telling her about Aetheria right now.

    I put my thumb in the middle of the notepad and flip it open to a random page.

    ''???? ????. ??? ?? ???? ??????. ??? ??? ??????.''

    "The hell are these runes? This can''t possibly be a language... It must be in code." Cid said.

    "I don''t know what I''m looking at either..."

    "No point in trying to decipher it here, we''ll figure that out back at the manor, so let us be off." Tyra said, running over to the cellar opening and jumping outside.

    Me and Cid followed after her. Once outside we made a mad dash back the way we came, going quite a bit faster now that we were more confident about the path in front of us. Plus, if we keep this up, Cid might make it in time for his date.

    <hr>

    Cid sprinted through the front door, clearly in a hurry to prepare for his date. Fei chuckled and walked up to us.

    "I''m surprised! I didn''t think you guys would be back in time." Fei took on a more serious face. "Ahem, Master Seifer knew you three were approaching, he''s waiting for you in the war room."

    Fei glances at the skeleton slung over Tyra''s shoulder before turning back around towards the front door. She walks inside, leading us through several hallways before taking us to a large set of double-doors. She steps off to the side as Tyra grabs the handle. A few seconds later a loud clicking sound could be heard.

    "Interesting... It only unlocks for certain people? I don''t see what the point is though. I could easily destroy this door if I wanted inside."

    "Very true, but that would also be a mistake." Tyra looks back at me and grins as she opens the door.

    Hmm, assuming she''s not bluffing, then there must be some sort of defensive measures that would activate if someone were to blow this door down.

    When Tyra''s hulking figure moves out of the way I''m able to get a good look at the ''war room'', and what I see is impressive, but it''s also kind of...

    "What do you think? I rarely have a reason to use this room, so I''m kind of excited right now." Euphemia asked.

    "Honestly, this just looks like a much bigger version of the living room. Which by itself is still amazing."

    {You think so as well? Not that there is anything wrong with that Euphie!}

    They must have bonded more if she''s already calling her ''Euphie''. I''ve only heard Tyra say that so far.

    Euphemia chuckles. "Of course it looks like the living room! That''s what I asked for. Except there are a few major differences. One probably won''t surprise you, but I bet the other will blow you away."

    "Oh? What are they then?"

    "You''ll understand soon enough. For now, please explain what the three of you found." Seifer said as he watched Tyra lay the skeleton down on a table in the middle of the room.

    I walk over to the table and hop up on one of the bar stools surrounding it. Tyra walks over to a section of the wall that looks like it''s fitted with a bunch of coat hangers. As she reaches them lights flare up around her armor for a few seconds before the armor appears to remove itself from Tyra, placing itself in pieces up on the ''hangers''.

    "Well that was definitely surprising..."

    "Oh no no, that wasn''t even the part I wanted to surprise you with. Have you truly never seen that before? I thought it was normal in Viseux, I heard the entire military uses armor equippers... Oh wait, never mind me. Obviously you would not know of them Rei, they were only invented about twenty years ago I think?" Euphemia said.

    "Seventeen years to be exact." Tyra said, choosing to sit down on a large chair instead of a stool.

    Seems convenient on paper. However, is it really a good idea to have warriors depend on such a thing? I can understand in case of an emergency, but what would a bunch of pampered fighters do if they needed to put their armor on in a hurry in a foreign area where they won''t have access to this magical conduit?

    Tyra points to the skeleton. "We found him inside of a tunnel leading underground. To be exact, it was behind a cellar wall. Rei had somehow seen part of the fabric on his robe poking through part of the wall. There must be a way to open the wall without destroying it, but we didn''t have the time nor need to look for such a thing."

    "Underground..." Seifer said, lifting his glasses up and rubbing his eyes.

    "Is it normal for our people to have tunnels like that under their home? I''ve never heard of such a thing." Euphemia said.

    Seifer sighed. "Of course not. I do remember reading that during the wars half a decade ago, both Crotia and units from Xelba would suddenly appear past the fortress, or even inside of it. The only obvious conclusion was that they came from underground, but the king back then neither confirmed nor denied any of it." Seifer looked at Tyra. "Anything else?"

    "A book, or a ''notepad'' as Reimia called it." Tyra said as I handed the notepad over to Seifer.

    He began flipping through the pages with a clear sign of confusion written on his face.

    "Never seen this language before. The only option is to pass it over to the scholars, however, I wouldn''t expect much from them in this regard. There''s no reference to what any of these symbols could mean."

    {Can I see it?}

    "Of course Lady Aresa." Seifer said, passing the notepad over to her.

    Aresa stares at the first page for longer than I expected before holding her board up.

    {I''ve seen this before.}

    "You''ve seen these runes before...? Where?"

    {Your family of course, it''s one of the books they sold me. They told me that lots of people from all over(including other planets) go to your continent, although I didn''t know it was because of the ruins till you told me. I guess they didn''t want to destroy the image of their home I had built up inside my head. Admittedly, I glorified it as some kind of utopia, not a frozen landscape full of robots trying to kill everyone. There were signs in some of the books they sold me that none of it was as I believed it to be, but I dismissed them till I had proof.}

    "Now this is a nice surprise that I did not expect. What was the book that had these runes in it?" Seifer asked.

    {Book of languages from another world. There are several languages that use weird symbols like this, I don''t remember which one it is. I''m gonna go to my wagon and have my attendants back at the chateau find the book and then send the information to an attendant here, they''ll transcribe it for us. It will probably take a day at the minimum.}

    "Thank you very much Lady Aresa." Seifer bows, then looks at Tyra. "Anything else?"

    "Negative sir, this was it. We decided not to go down into the tunnels before talking with everyone here."

    "That was the correct choice. Finding something on the first day is already impressive. Although, I''m not entirely certain what that actually tells us regarding the fate of the village."

    {Even I know very little about the underground. Mother said to never go there and keep the tunnels under Viseux sealed. Whether Rai''ga actually agreed to that principle or not, I have no idea.}

    "You hear about it from time to time. A city or even a small village decides they want to roll the dice. After all, if you find a small crystal cavern, you''re set for life. Even a single Omni-vein would give you everything you ever wanted. However, as you would expect, none of those stories have happy endings." Seifer said, shaking his head.

    ... I can''t put this off anymore, I need to ask them.

    "Seifer, does this nation check for Eldritch influence?"

    I felt I needed to be careful about how I asked this, so I''ve put it off for far too long. It''s important though so I can''t keep skipping over it. If we get attacked, so be it. The princess is within reaching distance, I''ll just grab her by the throat and use her as a hostage if I have to.

    "Yes? Obviously it does or we''d no longer exist. Why do you ask?"

    "Because there is obviously something here influencing the area, and yet none of you have mentioned it even once. To call this ''suspicious'' would be an understatement."

    Everyone but Aresa looked surprised after hearing this. They began looking at each other to see if the others were also confused by what I was saying.

    {I was wondering when you were going to bring that up. I thought it''d be last night.}

    "This isn''t something that you can easily broach. If it goes badly..."

    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    "We''d attack you?" Seifer sighed. "I can say with all confidence that there have been zero reports suggesting that the land or our souls are being tampered with. Well, the land is a little difficult to observe at the moment, but we''d know if a domain had extended over us."

    True, that''s not something you could miss if you''re actively scanning for such things. Tampering with people''s souls could take a little while to detect, but a domain? The Eldritch might as well shoot up a thousand flares.

    "How certain are you of this Reimia? Can you be more specific on what led you to believe there is an Eldritch here that is somehow influencing the nation without any of us knowing? This is a little hard to believe, I''m sure you understand?" Tyra said.

    {You know what I am Tyra. I can feel it, there is something strange in the air here. It feels a little different from what I''m used to though... I can''t quite explain it.}

    "And you?" Tyra said, looking at me.

    "I felt it soon after we entered your lands. It''s a familiar feeling to me that I can''t quite place, and I''ve had this nagging suspicion of what it might be. However, I wasn''t really sure since none of you are exhibiting the signs I''m used to."

    "What does that mean exactly?" Seifer asked.

    Off to the side I can see Tyra turning pale. Apparently she knows where I''m going with this.

    "A Xerath, one of the faceless ones I told you about. It''s been a long time since I''ve been in the other realm so I''m not positive, but it feels the same. The one in Xelba gave off no aura or corruption because of something Viktor or the Demons did, so that''s why it''s been many years since the last time I felt this. However, you should all be... Changing. So honestly I''m really not sure what to think."

    "T-This is becoming quite a frightening discussion, but I have to ask... Um, changing how exactly?" Euphemia asked.

    I can see her hands shaking a little as she holds them in front of her chest. Can''t really blame her after everything I told her last night regarding the Xerath.

    "You would know. People always know when a Xerathian god is being born in their area. It makes them know, and it makes them excited. You would have already bragged to me about how happy you are that one is being born here."

    "Could it be possible that this only happens in the other world?" Tyra asked.

    "Influencing people you mean? Hmm... I suppose that would explain why the one in Xelba didn''t infect the area and it barely affected the psyche of the people there. All the citizens there willingly worshiped it... If that''s the case though, then I really wouldn''t know how to tell if a Xerath is being born here."

    Tyra looked down and rubbed her eyes, "The ''broodling'' you explained before, where does it appear? Is it a random location?"

    "I''m not sure. It could have just appeared in the city centers but I really doubt it. By time I saw the creatures, they were already placed in buildings where people would come to worship and feed it. They always looked different too. The one in Xelba was quite literally just a fleshy tube filled with teeth that dug deep underground, slowly creating a bigger chasm over time. Meanwhile the one I fought in the other realm had looked like a coffin in its broodling stage. It evolved into a Xerath that had bright white slits for eyes on the side of its head, while also having two arms and feet like a person would. Sometime they evolve to not become so ''faceless'', but not by much. Only the gods though, none of the creatures it created ever had more than a mouth and teeth. It was also obsessed with candles, the whole city was filled with them."

    "Candles? Not quite what I expected from such frightening sounding abominations." Seifer said.

    "Yeah I don''t know what that was about, but regardless of any other extra curiosities they have, they are not to be underestimated. I really hope one isn''t being born here. An Eldritch would be far easier to deal with, we could at least trace the corruption back to it. I''d say we try anyways, but considering the fact that none of you can even sense the corruption at all, it must have dulled your senses to it since you live here. Only outsiders appear to be sensing it."

    "Do you have anyone who can find it? I didn''t see any bishops with you." Tyra asked.

    {I might be able to.}

    "Whoa hang on, can you give us a second?" I said, pulling Aresa far away from the others.

    "You out of your mind? Tracing the corruption leads you outside, and do you know what is waiting for you outside?"

    {The Tengu, what of it? That''s why everyone is here... Right? You''ll all just have to protect me. The Tengu won''t risk killing me, so having me there limits the amount of power he can put out.}

    "Are you certain? I''ve still never received an explanation for why everyone''s soul wasn''t eaten by Meizha''thul after Janet killed everyone in the tent. I''m thinking this sky is preventing her from taking peoples souls, and if the Tengu understands that then he won''t hesitate to blast you into nothing."

    {The reset locks everyone''s souls down to that location, she can''t override Arkaios, that''s why they stayed there. Although... I suppose I can''t exclude the idea that the sky could also be preventing her from interfering.}

    "We need to test it. I wonder if they have anyone in the prisons here they''ll let me kill?"

    {You can try asking? It doesn''t sound like something you should be asking though...}

    I walked back to the table with Aresa. Off to the side Tyra was looking through the dead mans robe for anything we might have missed.

    "All good?" Seifer asked.

    "Yes and no. This may seem like an odd question, but do you have anyone on death''s row?"

    Seifer quirked an eyebrow at that while Tyra immediately stopped shuffling through the robe.

    "... We do. It''s not often a problem in our lands, but as soon as the blackout occurred, one of our residents saw it as a prime opportunity to..." Seifer trailed off, glancing at Euphemia.

    "It''s okay Seifer, please continue. I may be sheltered but I am not a child."

    "... He killed the head of the family next door and ''assumed his place''. He was jealous of the family his neighbor had created, so he decided to just take it for himself. The wife and children weren''t pleased with their new ''father'', which as you can imagine did not sit well with him. They all died in the end. He''s scheduled to be decapitated next week, why do you ask?"

    "I need to kill him sooner, as in tomorrow. If Aresa dies tracing this corruption, we may lose her soul forever to the Eldritch queen, however, if Meizha''thul can''t interfere in lands covered by those pitch black clouds, then I can save her soul and bring it back to the chateau where she will be reborn. So I need to kill that man and see if his soul is taken."

    "Couldn''t you just go to a place where someone passed away recently?" Euphemia asked.

    "I could, but maybe there are other ways souls disappear, it''s not like we have extensive knowledge on this front since the queen bitch takes them all for herself."

    "I hate when this subject comes up... The idea that I''ll be forever trapped inside of an Eldritch fills me with absolute dread. Especially now that I''m getting up there in age." Tyra said.

    "Do the Elves have a way of saving souls, or is this something that only you can do?" Seifer said.

    "Only me. The Elves might also have a way?" I said, looking over at Aresa.

    {Nope. When anyone dies in the cities they incinerate them and dump their ashes along with everyone else''s. I don''t know what happens to those who die outside the city. I assume they''re just left there.}

    "You can see souls and touch them? What do they look like?" Euphemia asked.

    "All souls are spread throughout the entire core of every living being, but after they die they form into a sphere. Human, Kitsune, Crotia, all of our souls are the most beautiful. Radiant white with the entire color spectrum glistening inside of them. Eldritch are almost ethereal with a sick purple haze swirling around inside of them. Demons are what you would expect, burning red hot and they explode about fifteen seconds after they die."

    "Wait, that''s why dead Demons explode? This whole time we thought it was because of something in their bodies... Well I guess it still is, but we never thought it was their damned souls." Tyra said.

    "Yeah, they really don''t like it when anything tries to take the bodies of their dead. I managed to rip the soul out of an imp once and threw it away before it exploded. Spears of fire began descending on top of me as I was carrying the body away. They were scarily accurate too despite coming from miles away, almost as if the body itself was a beacon, so I had to drop it."

    Seifer continues writing everything I say into the book he always carries with him.

    I have nothing against that. The more people who know about this the better, which includes my backstory. Aresa asked me on the wagon ride here why I tell everyone about my life story, and while there are many reasons, the main one is that I see no reason to hide it. If there''s even a one-in-a-billion chance that someone will know why I changed into this invisible zombie, then I might as well spread the tale far and wide. Eventually someone has to know the reason why... That''s the hope anyway.

    Seifer put his pencil down and closed the book. "Alright, I think we''re done here. Shall we have dinner with everyone and tell them what happened? Also, you should know that Keith''s group has already moved to the village near the forest, as per the arrangement."

    "What about the guy on death row?"

    "Oh right, that shall be arranged. When Tyra and Cid are ready to join you in the morning, that scum will also be waiting for you. The king will be displeased with me for doing that, but it is also my job to assist your group in any way I can."

    So that''s why he''s still here? I expected him to leave in the morning, returning to his usual duties. I guess he''s been assigned to us indefinitely until we finish up here huh?

    Tyra picked the notepad up. "Are we taking this to your wagon, or can your attendants come inside?"

    {Wagon please.}

    Everyone walked out of the room with me behind Aresa and Euphemia.

    ... Jeez, they smell way too good. It''s not a scent I''m used to being around. The only things I smelled for most of my life have generally been dirt, blood, guts, and other horrific smells that I eventually got used to. There are a few scents in my families home that I still remember. The garage was full of different odors I''ll obviously never find here. The smell I remember the most though was in the house, but I''m not sure what it was... That''s the one I miss more than anything.

    <hr>

    "Find anything girl?" Ishar asked immediately as I sat down.

    Looking around I see he''s the only one at the table. It''s me, him, Seifer, and Euphemia right now, which feels a little strange.

    "A tunnel underground and a skeleton corpse with a notepad full of weird symbols. Aresa says it''s an actual language, she''s off to translate it now."

    "Underground huh? Nothing good down there on any of Mother''s moons or planets. You think that''s related? My initial reaction is no by the way."

    "Yeah we''ve been over all the reasons that we think it could be unrelated. Oh hang on, you''re actually someone who would know the answer to another question I had. Do the Xerath ''grow'' differently here in this realm? Do they still force nearby human-like creatures to love and obey them?"

    "They do, but it is more subtle and takes far more time. That question alone has me worried though. Are we dealing with a Xerathian here? Because even if it does take awhile, we have no idea of how long the damn thing has been gestating. These people could turn on us any second now."

    Seifer stepped forward. "Hold on a minute there sir Ishar, are you suggesting I will suddenly become hostile with your group when I saw you all as allies mere moments ago? I thought you said it was subtle?"

    "It is. People may be feeding it without even remembering that they fed it. The Lizardmen believe they try to hide their presence in this realm until they become a god. As a broodling they can barely defend themselves, so they feel the need to be more clever in this hostile environment." Ishar stared at me. "Hmm... You may actually be perfect for this. When the broodling feels threatened it may try to turn all these people against us, but if someone who can turn invisible takes it out before it realizes we are onto it..."

    "I..." Euphemia trails off. She heavily breathes in and exhales, attempting to calm herself down as she looks at Ishar. "How long do we need to be exposed to the being before it can control us?"

    "It''s hard to say, but at least half a year before it can do it safely without exposing itself or risking the subject rejecting it. Were there any reports of missing people in the area? It will have those in power erase all traces of those who go missing, but at the start when it desperately needs food, it won''t have enough power to control people to that degree. So you should see a large influx of missing people in any area that was recently infested by a new Xerathian broodling."

    "It can force people to feed themselves to it, but it also can''t control people for awhile? Did you skip something important in there? Because that makes no sense."

    "That''s because it doesn''t make sense. The Lizardmen told me many times that right after a broodling comes into existence it will command five to ten living beings to feed themselves to it, and if nobody stops them, they won''t wake up from the trance. For some reason only then is it able to command people without exposing itself or risking a backfire. After that is when it needs a large amount of time to worm its way into peoples souls. The biggest issue is that there are people who are very susceptible to its influence, and it will obviously target those individuals first. Such people are extremely rare, but in a nation this size I''d expect at least one to four people to be pawns of the broodling in the first two months of it appearing."

    Seifer stands up and practically runs out of the room.

    Off to gather data on missing people I''m sure. A shame he''ll miss dinner, but I can understand why he''d be in a hurry after hearing he might be a puppet to an abomination he didn''t even know existed till last night.

    Another door opens as the ''Tengu'' crew all files into the room, with Shana sitting next to me again.

    Shana sighed, "Boring."

    "What is?"

    "Everything. Nothing to do till the asshole shows up."

    "The Tengu? When do you think he''ll show up?"

    Shana shook her head, "I don''t know. It might not even appear... I think I''m going to send a clone with you. I need something to do."

    "Please don''t do that Shana, you know we''ll need every advantage possible to win." Cera sighed. "Splitting yourself off for ''entertainment''... You should know better."

    Shana glared at Cera. "Not only for fun. These two had a very scary conversation just now that I was eavesdropping on while waiting for the rest of you. I''ve decided that it''s best Rei has a direct line of communication to us."

    "It''s true, she had her ear pressed up against the side of the door when we arrived." Alicia said.

    "No shit, we heard her bang her head against the door. Now get to the part where you''ll explain how communication works with you. Can you see and hear everything through your clones?" Ishar asked.

    Shana nodded, "Yes. Distance won''t be a problem so long as she stays within the nation."

    "So none of you can feel something messing with your soul? Especially you Ishar, this should be a situation you''re used to. How do the Crotia normally find a newborn Xerath?"

    "There are traveling soul searchers who spend their entire lives patrolling around our planet checking for new influences on peoples souls in every place they visit. Those from the outside haven''t been there long enough for the Xerath to be able to muddle their senses. The problem is that such patrols need a lot of power to be able to force people into compliance, which sometimes breeds some very nasty groups of people. However, they are limited in number, as we hammer such groups high into the air on wooden stakes. One look at them and the other groups generally avoid misusing their power." Ishar continued. "As for why I can''t sense a disturbance on my soul, it''s because my level of soul magic is far below what a broodling has access to. You need true experts, or those gifted in soul abilities."

    Well that does explain why only me, Aresa, and Nisha sensed something was off.

    Ishar looks at Alicia. "And what about you? Are you ready?"

    "Ready as I can be. I was in my soul realm for about a month so it feels weird adjusting back to this life-threatening scenario we''re in."

    "Does time stop completely in your realm...? I can only slow it down." Cera said.

    "Almost completely." Alicia said, then looked over at Euphemia. "Thanks again for letting me attune the room I''m borrowing to my soul realm."

    "I''ll admit it was a strange request, but you''re very welcome Alicia. Can you turn a room into your soul realm, is that how it works?"

    "No, it lets me move between temples, including mine which is in my soul realm on another planet. Oh, that reminds me, I went to see the Lizardmen back on Terra''kas'' world."

    "Oh? What''s the news from the battle over there?" Ishar said.

    "About what we expected. The Demons portal was purged but a bunch of Demons were able to escape, including a type of Demon that they had never seen before. They''re currently in a losing battle with Viseux and the Legion."

    "I thought you said you were going to win Ishar?"

    "We will. Even if the fools surround the portal completely and shut us out, it means nothing. They can''t survive without us. Do you know why the Lizardmen are the only Eldritch beings invading right now despite the thousands of Eldritch who now have access to this moon? Most want nothing to do with a moon or planet past the point of no return on the corruption scale, but the others are avoiding us. Putting a portal down where Terra''ka is, is the same as giving us free access to their location. The Demons will keep coming, and now that the Xerath are beginning to pop up, it''s absolutely impossible for this moon to survive without us. The fools will need to understand this, or we will merely colonize a moon devoid of its original occupants."

    Euphemia stared at Ishar. "Are things truly that bad out there...? The ''blackout'' was scary enough by itself, but all the things I''ve learned the past few days have shown me that all of my worst fears are in fact lesser than what actually exists out there... I love my home, but this makes me want to flee far far away."

    "If a broodling has been here for over a month, then it''s already too late. Even if you manage to make it to the border, you''ll suddenly have a change of heart and decide to stay. It''ll make sure of that." Ishar said, which made Euphemia''s eyes widen even more.

    The poor girl looks like she''s about to have a heart attack. I forget way too often just how scary all of this must be to the average person. I''ve been living in this nightmare since I was a young girl, so it''s all very normal to me at this point.

    <hr>

    Seifer returned while we were eating, informing us that a large amount of people did in fact go missing weeks before the current crisis occurred that led to them calling for us.

    "That''s it then, there must be a broodling here." Ishar said.

    "Is it related to why we are here? Two of the villagers were cleared out completely after all." Cera said.

    "No, it wouldn''t be so brazen and it definitely wouldn''t have let them call for help. Although I doubt it''s strong enough to have prevented them from calling for us, it would have at least tried, and there would be clear signs of tampering that even these people could identify if it overexerted its current influence. Whatever happened to the villages is something else entirely."

    "Wow. This place is having a really bad month huh?" Shana said, making Seifer put his head into his hands.

    {Part of the translation is already done. Apparently something was chasing the skeleton you found. He''s from another planet, and no matter how far he ran, it always found him and his friend. Maybe that''s it? I don''t know when he died though.}

    "Hmm... It could be? Either way, I have a lot of work to do that''s for sure. If I don''t find anything in the empty village tomorrow, then I have no choice but to go underground. I can''t say I''m looking forward to that..."

    "I still feel it''s unrelated, but it can''t be helped. It doesn''t sound like there is a whole lot to go on." Ishar said.

    There really isn''t, so hopefully I get lucky tomorrow.

 Chapter 22 - The Disappeared

    ~Somewhere inside the nation of Kellog.~

    The young girl on my shoulder lifts her head up in a daze. She looks to and fro, trying to make sense of her current situation. When she realizes that her mouth, arms, and legs are all bound, she begins to panic, squirming back and forth trying to escape my grasp.

    "Awake are we? Don''t worry dear, we''re almost there."

    I lift the girl up and quickly bring her back down onto my shoulder, knocking the wind out of her completely. She gasps for breath as I open the final door she''ll ever go through. The master beats excitedly as he senses his food draw close. Despite her situation, the girl tries to scream as she sees my master open his mouth wide, but between her lack of air and the cloth tied around her mouth, it instead comes out as a sharp squeal.

    "There''s no need to be so frightened. While understandable, I''m not a monster. I don''t plan on feeding you to my master alive."

    Grabbing the back of the girls maid outfit, I carry her near the stone table and smash her head onto one of its sharp corners. The girl goes limp instantly.

    "See? And even if you did survive, you won''t be awake to experience the pain of being eaten alive. I told you I''m not a monster."

    Walking over to my master, I throw the girl into its now wide open mouth. Master makes short work of her, turning her into sustenance in a manner of seconds.

    I was put in a tight spot when the Guardians showed up, but I always had a backup plan in case anything went wrong, and master just ate that very backup plan. Luckily for me the young kitsune maid had an Eldritch soul parasiting her, so the amount of fuel she just supplied master is leagues higher than using hundreds of normal citizens. I originally didn''t even plan on sacrificing her, but after the Guardians showed up I had no choice. As soon as master finishes its metamorphosis, they will all understand why this was necessary.

    Masters mouth closes as it drifts back off into hibernation. While watching this I can''t help but think about the other problem that showed up in my nation.

    "The white one..."

    The book spoke of her, an abomination from another realm. It also claimed she died long ago, so imagine my surprise when I first laid eyes on her. White hair, red eyes, eerie mana aura... She was exactly as the book described. Her little tale she told in the drawing room explained nothing. While it was fascinating to hear about the origins of the master and those who came before me, it still answered nothing about how she revived, nor did it explain anything else happening in my nation.

    "Master... Should I deal with them, or leave them be?"

    Master beats a few times before returning to its dormant state.

    ... No reply as usual, which means it wants me to decide for myself. While I love that it believes I will make the correct choice, I really do need some help here. Damnable Guardians, I didn''t think they''d actually show up. Judging from the reports our spies have sent, the Guardians, Viseux, and Khan Uluhm should be way too busy to assist the ''barbaric'' nation of Kellog to the south-east. Viseux must be stretched thin if they let the Guardians travel to our lands... And that line of thinking leads me to the most confounding question of all. Why in gods name is Lady Aresa here?

    "It''s maddening... It makes no bloody sense!"

    The white one aside, I would sooner expect the king of Khan Uluhm to come down here to personally assist us before Lady Aresa would. The only ''daughter'' of the late ruler of Urza, a known shut-in who may or may not be plotting to overthrow Viseux... Here? Now? I don''t... I don''t understand. No matter how hard I think about it I don''t fucking understand. Throwing her into masters mouth would evolve it instantly, hell she''d probably push it to the next level, but there''s no way I''ll be able to pull that off. Not alone anyways... And master won''t tell me if I''m the only one working for it right now.

    "Oh right I just remembered. Master, if a large raven-like Eldritch shows up anywhere in our lands, please tell me."

    Why they think the Tengu is coming here is another mystery that I can''t be bothered to worry about. If the damned bird attacks, then so be it. Apparently that''s why most of the Guardians entourage are here so the problem should fix itself... Unless they die, which would be fortuitous but then we''d be stuck with a Tengu Lord in our nation. With how powerful they are, finding master would be easy for them, so it is still a concern, just not one I need to worry about right now. Plus, there''s nothing I could do in that situation anyways... I wonder if the Tengu is the reason Lady Aresa is here? Bah, that makes even less sense.

    I turn around, walking through the door and closing it behind me. Putting my pointer finger on the crystal embedded in the center of the door, I reactivate the trap.

    "Hopefully this is unnecessary, but who knows what might happen in the near future. With so much going on it''s hard to predict anything at this point."

    <hr>

    The door to the living room opens as Alicia walks in and calls out to me.

    "Rei, are you still up there...?"

    "Yes? Is something wrong?"

    "Hmm... Not sure yet, they said Fei volunteered to wake you up and bring you to the living room during your stay here. She didn''t show up at all?"

    "No, you''re the first one to come through here."

    Cid''s daughter seemed like a diligent young girl, so she''s either sick, or...

    Alicia sighed. "I hope nothing is wrong with her. For now I''ve done my part, everyone is waiting for you in the dining room."

    She turned around and went back the way she came. After she left I jumped out of my sleeping place, scanning the area outside the window for anything out of place.

    Not that I expect to see Fei out there, but I need to make certain she isn''t.

    After confirming that nothing is in the field stretched out before me, I lightly jog towards the living room, passing a few maids on the way.

    They look a little panicked, that''s not what I want to see right now.

    Ishar locks eyes with me as I enter the living room, motioning for me to follow him back into another hallway. Alicia is already waiting for us when we arrive.

    Ishar speaks up first. "This is a major problem. For it to will someone to take the girl, or even force the girl to feed herself to it, the situation might be more dire than I thought."

    "You''re certain it''s the broodling that took her?" Alicia asked.

    "No, but it''s a little convenient on the timing. We only discovered it was here last night, and immediately someone was disappeared?"

    "Why a young Kitsune girl? She''s a maid in training, I doubt her soul had a high capacity worth devouring." Alicia said.

    "You of all people know why, there can be only one reason. It''s why we serve Terra''ka."

    Alicia''s eyes went wide. "She had an Eldritch parasiting her soul..."

    "Does that mean the broodling will be ''full'' for awhile?"

    Ishar nodded. "Most likely, and I bet it went into deep hibernation so we can''t trace the corruption to its source anymore. In hindsight it was stupid of us to discuss it so openly, but what''s done is done. Just know that we probably got that girl killed. I assume you''re used to such situations Rei, but Alicia don''t let it interfere with your work. We need to find and kill the creature, that''s what matters right now. Plus, you played no role in the reveal anyways, so don''t act like it was your fault. A lot of new recruits like to make the mistake of blaming themselves for every little thing."

    "While that''s true, it''s hard to say it gets easier over time. I don''t know if Crotia struggle with such things, but I''m going to have a hard time facing Cid after this. She was a really sweet girl... But it''s also true that even if it doesn''t get easier, you do get used to it. Tragedies like this are the norm in our world sadly. This is just the way things are... You''ll have to get used to them eventually, whether you want to or not."

    Alicia looked between the two of us before putting her head down.

    "... I know you''re right, and I also know what I signed up for. Honestly, it''s not bothering me at the moment, probably because I barely interacted with the girl, but I''m dreading seeing her Mother. She''s the one always behind Euphemia. Cid and her are still on good terms despite being divorced."

    "Your parents still around?" Ishar asked, surprisingly.

    "Yes. I paid my apartment off for the next couple of years before I warped over. I also left a letter telling them I''m fine and that I''d be back at some point to explain. I probably should have talked to them properly, but the invasion was already taking place and I didn''t want to miss it."

    "Hang on, can you warp others as well Alicia?"

    "Yes. Oh right, you wanted to go back to Aetheria right? Sorry, it didn''t even occur to me that I could bring you back there. However, considering where my home is it''ll be a long journey back to the Elven continent if you want me to warp you. Normally I''d question why anyone would willingly go to that hellhole, but I know your story so it makes sense. I''ll give you some money for the train as well, but it''d be way too much for me to pay the entire way there, so you''ll have to figure something out after a certain point."

    Well this is a surprise... I didn''t expect to find a way home this easily, and it''d be to a safe region as well.

    "Thank you very much! That''s actually a huge relief to hear... But It''ll be awhile before I want to head back, I''d rather I didn''t go back there while I''m this weak. Especially when I consider where I''ll be heading."

    Alicia smiles. "That''s for the best. Lots of monsters up north, but there is next to no Eldritch, so you''d struggle there I''m sure. Unless your family is still around and buys you a good power armor. From what you said though, you have no way of knowing if they''re still alive. So if you arrive destitute in one of the Elven cities, the only thing awaiting you is a mercs life with no gear."

    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    "Yeah... That''s exactly why I''m waiting. Forget machines, the monsters up north would be too much for me as well."

    "That aside, I''m changing our plans. Fuck this ''Tengu'', we have far higher priorities now." Ishar said.

    "What are you proposing? I''m still planning to go to one of the empty villages today."

    Ishar motions toward Alicia, "Me and orange hair here are going to look into the disappearances that took place here when the broodling appeared. If the sacrifices all came from a specific area we might be able to track them if there wasn''t much snow back then. Honestly, I''m not expecting to find much, but it''s worth a shot. This is also assuming the one known as ''Seifer'' isn''t being controlled."

    Right, we need to worry that anyone here could currently be under that thing''s control... What a nightmare this is turning into.

    "Is that all we can do? I want to try and look around the manor, see if I can find how they took Fei." Alicia asked.

    Ishar nodded. "Not a bad idea, you do that then. I would love nothing more than to call the Lizardmen in and have the shamans trace the broodling''s location, but after speaking to Terra''ka last night, I know we''re on our own."

    "I thought you said we couldn''t trace it?"

    "None of you can, because this moon is not used to dealing with Xerath. Shamans know exactly what to look for, so no amount of subterfuge can save the broodling if it doesn''t find a way to stop the shamans from channeling, which also will just so happen to expose the broodling. Unfortunately they can''t make it here, so we''ll have to figure this out on our own. I can''t say I like our chances... Worst case scenario, we''ll need to flee before it starts affecting our minds as well."

    "W-Wait, we''d have to abandon this whole nation?! That''s..." Alicia trailed off, looking down.

    "As Rei said earlier, this is the norm in our life, you''ll need to get used to it. This won''t be the first time we have to abandon tens of thousands of people, and it certainly won''t be the last."

    "And then you kill the god after it sprouts, resulting in the whole nation dying? Or can the Lizardmen save them?"

    "Nope, it''s exactly as you say, we have scouts locate the god and we launch a full-on assault to kill the god and only the god. The meat shields will die on their own afterwards."

    Alicia shook her head. "Meat shields... I hope we can find the damned thing, I really don''t want it to come to that."

    "Me either little one, me either."

    Ishar almost sounded compassionate when he said that. I guess that shows just how serious this situation is.

    From further down the hall Aresa appears. After she spots us she begins running to our location.

    {All translated, want to read it?}

    "The skeleton''s log? Sure, hit me with it."

    Aresa hands me a fancy piece of paper.

    "... Nice embroidery. Even your paper is on another level."

    Aresa rolls her eyes. {Read it! It''s crazy.}

    "Crazy huh?" I said, lifting the paper up to read it.

    <hr>

    There is no escape. We fled to another continent... It found us. We fled to another planet... It found us. We fled to another moon and went deep underground, hiding amongst a colony of unknown creatures... It still found us. What we didn''t expect, was when it had to flee from the creature which rules this colony.

    It matters not though. It waits. We can feel it just far enough away to not provoke the creature nearby, but just close enough to let us know it is waiting. The bottle is nearly empty now, this is the last time we can flee from it. I do not remember the way back up, but Philip says he knows the way. I hope he is right, or we are lost.......

    No, we are lost. It will get us this time, I know it. I wish I could tell my wife that I am sorry... This was all my fault for being greedy. If anyone finds this notepad on this backwater moon, I know it is impossible, but in the unlikely event that you know how to get to the planet Zhegu, then tell my wife Hana Jie Young who lives in Namchong what happened to me. Bring this notepad and photo to her, and my wife will reward you handsomely. After all, me and my best friend are filthy rich now due to my actions. Not that we were given the time to enjoy such a lifestyle...

    <hr>

    "Is there any way to know how long ago this man died? If it was decades ago then this is useless, but if it is recent then I''ll need to be concerned about several things mentioned in this notepad."

    {Not without the soul, which is long gone. Oh wait, if your ''test'' later shows that the sky blocks Meizha''thul from stealing souls, then that means he died before all this started, right?}

    "Yes and no. All their problems began soon after the blackout appeared, but that doesn''t mean the beings responsible weren''t here all along. The land being blanketed in darkness could have just been a perfect opportunity for them to strike."

    {Hmm... I see.}

    "It''ll still be good to know if he died after the blackout, you''re correct about that. His corpse was picked clean but that could''ve just been the insects, there''s a ton of them underground." I handed the paper back to Aresa. "Let''s head back now that we''re done here, we need to eat and get to work."

    The others nod and follow me back into the dining room. Seifer is now present and calls out to me immediately.

    "I''m sure you heard, but Cid will not be joining you today. Tyra however is still with you, and she''s waiting outside with the criminal."

    "Perfect, thank you Seifer."

    "We can begin eating immediately. The princess is not feeling well today, or so I am told." Seifer said, glaring at the maid behind Euphemia''s empty chair.

    "Apologies Master Seifer, but she does not want to see anyone right now. She is with Mia right now and does not wish to be disturbed."

    Shana leans over and whispers. "Mia is Fei''s mother. I''ve talked with both of them a lot during my stay here."

    I see... As the head maid she is probably quite close to the princess.

    Shana stares at me mere inches from my face.

    "Uh... Is there something else?"

    "I''m... Angry. Very very very fucking angry. Cera was right, I do need to focus on the Tengu so I can protect my best friend there, but I was teaching Fei some tricks on how to use her soul realm better, and she... She was a quick learner. I think she wanted to join the Guardians when she came of age. Her Father didn''t know, but her Mother did. Are you going to be looking for her?"

    "Technically all three of us will be. Ishar, Alicia, and me. Alicia is going to be handling the direct search around the manor, so if you want to help her while you''re here I''m sure she''ll appreciate it. I''ll be doing what I originally planned, which may or may not lead me to the broodling."

    Shana pulls away and looks over at Alicia. She continues staring at her as she shoves half a pancake into her mouth.

    Is she wary of her? Both her and Ishar are outsiders so I suppose that could give her pause, but this is Shana we''re talking about here. If there''s one thing I''ve learned, it''s that this girl hates most of Urza, so anything from outside of Urza should be seen more favorably... Or so I thought. Oh well, that''s Alicia''s problem to figure out. As a new recruit I''m sure Ishar wants her to learn how to make allies herself.

    A few minutes later Cid opens the door. When he sees me, he makes the same motion Ishar did earlier.

    I assume he wants my help, and it''s not like I''m opposed to it...

    Sliding the chair back, I stand up and walk to the same place I converged with Ishar earlier.

    "How you doing Cid?"

    Dumb question, his distress couldn''t be anymore obvious.

    "Not good. You heard about Fei, right? I''ve been scouring the manor but I can''t find anything. With your eyes though... You know, maybe?"

    ... Damnit, I understand why he''s doing this, but the people here are much more knowledgeable about the manor, and Alicia will also have Shana with her. Actually she''ll probably have Cera and Blackwall as well. Although thinking back on it, I''ve only seen Blackwall one time since we arrived. Where the hell is he?

    "Stop this right now." A voice from further down the hall said.

    Looking over I see it originated from Mia. Euphemia is standing next to her as well.

    Honestly, they both look horrible right now. The reasons why couldn''t be more obvious. Between Fei and the broodling, it must feel like they''re both living in a nightmare.

    "Mia you don''t understand. This girl saw a scrap of clothing so small that neither me or Tyra could see it no matter how hard we tried! If it''s her... Yes, if it''s her!"

    "Stop... Just, stop. She has an important job to do, while we already have hundreds of people searching the area. There is nothing more she can do for us, so please leave her be and go back to looking for our daughter."

    Cid looks down while gritting his teeth. After sparing me a single glance he stomps off past the two girls towards the main entrance.

    Mia comes up to me. "I''m sorry dear please forgive him. As you can expect, he''s not thinking straight right now. He just... He just needs some time to come to terms with it."

    It seems a little odd that she is writing her daughter off already, but one look at the middle-aged Kitsune woman and I can tell that she''s on the verge of breaking down.

    "It''s okay, I don''t blame him for trying to use every advantage he can in finding his daughter. Don''t worry, the others will do the very best they can to try and find your daughter, I promise you."

    Mia smiles weakly and bows. After that she walks into the living room.

    Euphemia suddenly takes on a much more regal look as she walks over to me.

    "Be honest with me Rei. She''s gone, isn''t she?"

    "... Those ears of hers aren''t decorations you know? They can hear much better than we can."

    "That''s why I''m talking low. Besides, the dining hall is quite loud right now. She cannot hear us, so please answer the question."

    "Fine. Yes, she''s probably gone. I''d say there''s a ninety percent chance that she was fed to the broodling. Which also means that someone here is being influenced by it directly."

    Euphemia shakes a little hearing that, but fixes her stance immediately.

    She wanted honesty and that''s exactly what she got. Her training must have been impressive, she was able to mostly keep her noble posture up after hearing that. The bags under her eyes and the frightful look in them tell another story though.

    "Look princess, you wanted to know how I survived right? By doing just that, surviving. Your world just came crashing down around you, the days of looking out that glass window and dreaming of ''what could be'' are over. You want my advice? Stop being scared and get mad. Something disappeared your people, then something else incinerated your people, and now something just ate the daughter of your best friend. That very same creature is slowly worming its way into your soul, hoping to turn you into a slave. Doesn''t that just piss you off? If it doesn''t, it should. Force yourself to be angry yet coolheaded, and then think about what you can do in this situation. All of your efforts should be focused on eliminating the enemy. Anytime you get scared, override those thoughts with anger directed at the broodling. The only thought that should be in your head right now is how you''re going to kill the fucking broodling."

    I walked past her after I finished speaking. She said nothing to me, as she was quite literally stunned into silence.

    Hopefully I''ve given her something to think about. Everyone else has probably treated her like a baby, saying they''d take care of everything for her. It''s not like I expect her to be useful in this situation, but I... I just really hated seeing her like that. She reminded me of when I was young, as I sat there in my hiding spot crying day in and out, hoping someone would save me. I was only five or six at the time so obviously that''s exactly what I''d expect out of someone that age, and yet there really isn''t much difference between her and the six year old me. Because of her upbringing she''s basically still a sheltered child. The one difference being that she''s also lived a long life in a cage which probably built up a lot of resentment and sadness over the years. With everything happening right now, this might be the perfect chance for all of her pent-up emotions to erupt. She only needs a target, and I just gave her one.

    Exiting out the main doors I see Tyra waiting in the same spot as before. There''s a topless man on his knees next to her.

    "One last punishment for the road?" I asked, pointing at the mans bare chest.

    For a human to be almost nude out in this weather... It must be quite painful.

    "As he deserves." Tyra replied.

    "From what I heard it sure sounds like it."

    I enhance my right fist and drive it directly into where is heart is, but not hard enough to punch through his bones. The man convulses once and immediately stops moving afterwards. Blood dribbles out of his mouth onto the snow as his head hangs down.

    "Destroyed his heart without exposing his chest? Mighty fine control you have there."

    I hate leaving messes. My job is much easier when people just disappear, instead of the alternative which is leaving a bloody carcass on the ground. The only problem is when the body empties itself, but I usually have enough time to hide it before that happens. Although it''s probably for the best that I don''t say any of this to Tyra.

    I lay down in the snow, staring up at the blackened sky.

    "Let''s give it twenty minutes. Five is enough, but I want to be certain."

    I can hear Tyra sitting down. Looking over at her I see she''s entered a meditation pose.

    Training in her soul realm even now huh? Quite the warrior. Not for me though. I''m going to relax and take in this moment. I love these quiet moments on the job, where I get to just lay here and take it all in. The maids and butlers shuffling around outside. The muted noise from the manor. The bell ringing in the distance... I love it all, I want to make sure my soul is recording this scene with perfect clarity.

    <hr>

    "She take it?"

    "Nope... I gotta admit, this is not what I was expecting."

    Well shit, so these clouds really do block off Meizha''thul? Ever since I was young they''ve been nothing more than a curiosity of mine. I wanted to know what these clouds were and who made them, but now that I know they''re strong enough to completely block an old god... I''ll need to tell the others about this. Blocking sunlight and bad weather are probably only the tip of the iceberg.

 Chapter 23 - Beacon

    A Nei''lah butler turns the corner, leading me deeper into the manor.

    "Is this necessary? You could have told them about the soul discovery over dinner." Tyra said as she follows behind me.

    "Not that, I realized something else that may be important. Ishar and Alicia need to know now before we all start on our prospective jobs."

    The butler stops in front of a large set of double doors. He opens both doors and steps to the side.

    "Thank you sir."

    The butler smiles in response as I walk past him. Inside the room I see Ishar preparing his gear, with Alicia off to another side doing pushups while Shana sits on her back.

    ... Not sure how it came to that, but knowing Shana it really doesn''t need to make sense.

    Ishar spots me and puts his gear down, walking over to me with his arms held out to his sides.

    "The hell is this? You just left."

    "Very astute, you''d make a great investigator." I continued. "I realized something and needed to ask you about it. When Alicia said she could warp me to other attuned locations earlier, did you know about it?"

    "I did, what of it?"

    "Can Alicia bring over Shamans from Terra''kas'' moon?"

    Almost instantly Ishar tilted his head back and put one hand over his face.

    "... Unbelievable. Such an obvious solution and it didn''t occur to me even once. I''m not used to having such a handy teleporter nearby, but that is no excuse god damnit. We''re already hanging by a thread here as it is."

    Ishar walks over towards Alicia with me and Tyra following shortly behind him.

    "Ninja girl, get off her. We need to speak with her."

    Shana''s eyes go wide, she jumps off Alicia and stares at Ishar.

    "... How do you know that word?"

    "Oh shut up, you''re not that special. The planet Rei is from has an entire fucking nation of you little shadow hoppers. Hell most planets and moons do, so don''t act surprised that I know what your little group is or why you''re here."

    Shana continued staring at him, this time looking like someone punched her in the gut.

    "W-What do you mean, other planets... Other Ninjas?"

    "Huh?" Now Ishar was the one looking confused.

    The two stared at each other for a bit before Ishar shook his head.

    "... We''ll talk about this tonight, for now I need the rookie here. Get up you little shit, she couldn''t have been that heavy."

    Alicia turned her head, glaring up at Ishar.

    "Didn''t you say you were leaving? My arms and back are killing me, I need a few minutes."

    Ishar sighed. "Fucking rookies... Fine, stay on the damned ground. I need to know how many people you can warp at a time."

    "Doesn''t go by amount, it goes by strength. I can''t warp you yet, but I can warp Rei. However if I warp her, it''ll take a long time for the dagger to recover and I won''t be able to use it for awhile. Oh, and the dagger gets stronger as I increase my own strength, isn''t that awesome?!"

    "Tsk... Not what I wanted to hear, but the shamans might have a solution to this."

    "Shamans?"

    "Yes girl, shamans. When your precious arms work again go to your room and warp back to Gelrohg, and while you''re there try to bring some Shamans back with you. They''re almost on par with me in strength though so I''m not quite sure how you''ll do it, but find a way damnit. Even if it''s only one, that should be more than enough."

    Same as Ishar earlier, I could see Alicia immediately realize where he was going with this.

    "Damn... I feel stupid now. I don''t see how I''ll bring them over, but at the very least they might have an idea that can help us. I probably would have thought of it while I was there had I warped after learning of the broodling."

    Ishar shook his head. "Eh, we both had a lapse in judgement. I shouldn''t be taking this out on you." Ishar looked over at me. "That''s it I take it?"

    "Yep, hopefully they''re able to figure something out, because that would be a massive boon right now."

    "Yeah... Possibly." Ishar said, glancing at Tyra.

    I know what he''s worried about, but I couldn''t put this off. Plus, they''re all going to find out she has a shaman or two in her room quite quickly. I doubt they''ll let us keep the maids and butlers away from our rooms.

    I turned around and walked past Tyra. "Alright let''s go, I''m ready."

    "Excellent."

    The crystals were already attached, so now it''s finally time for me to check out the closest empty village. It''s next to the cindered one we were at yesterday.

    <hr>

    Upon nearing the cindered village I stopped and hit the ground. Tyra followed my lead almost instantly.

    It really is nice having a veteran by your side at times like this. Even in that clunky armor she managed to barely make a sound.

    Tyra shuffled up next to me, whispering. "Problem?"

    "I can see a group of people in the village. Hard to tell at this distance, but it looks like they''re around the cellar where we found the tunnel underground."

    Tyra''s face contorts into that of one filled with rage.

    Whoa, I knew I''d put her on alert but why is it making her this angry? I can see her considering them suspicious but... Oh! Oh shit, if word got out and a group of people decided try and strike it rich, this is exactly where we''d find them.

    "Rei, can you make me invisible too?"

    ... That was fast. I knew they''d find out eventually, but I wanted more time. It could have been one of our unit blabbing, yet I know it was most likely someone from Viseux. They had the report of what happened with Godwin''s unit, and I don''t believe Kellog for a second when they say they don''t communicate with Viseux. Seriously, give me a break... Only someone truly gullible would believe that.

    "How do you know about that?" I asked.

    "I cannot say specifically where it came from, although I''d be shocked if you believed you could hide it. I barely remember what the world was like back when you were last alive, but things are a little different now. Information is spread far and wide, which also leads to carts full of crystals finding their way into the hands of those who pass that information. Understand?"

    Yeah... About what I expected after staying in Viseux and hearing about how the records are kept there. I''m almost missing the chaos of the previous world already... I''ll give it to Xelba, they did a damn good job of locking down information. Very rarely in the old world did I meet people who knew what I could do. Meanwhile I''ve been in the new Urza a couple of months and everyone fucking knows. There is at least some silver lining though; now I know for a fact that hiding it is pointless.

    "... To answer your question, I can turn you invisible next to me, but only in this pitch blackness will it work and we''ll have to move very slowly. Once we near that light I won''t be able to hold it any longer."

    I don''t mind if people know this. Turning others invisible is a pain in the ass and something I can only do under specific conditions, so if anything I''d rather they knew not to ask me while also knowing I can''t just stealth an army up to someones front door. That should keep me off any ''high threat'' lists.

    Tyra nodded, "I see... A shame, then I shall enhance myself to the max and charge straight up to them. Not the kind of approach I want to choose in this situation, but I''ll make do with what I have. You coming?"

    "I''ll be a little behind you, I''m going to stay invisible nearby in case you need me."

    "More than I could ask for, I thank you for that."

    Tyra stands up and quite literally launches herself at the lights in the distance.

    God damn! She pushed off with so much strength the snow under and behind her feet sprayed backwards as if a bomb hit it. No way she did that with pure enhancements, she must be using magic or an internal ability as well.

    Activating my aura I stand up and run after her. The little lights on my back are making me wince but they''re not draining me all that much thankfully.

    As I shuffle around one of the villages lights I can see Tyra already has one of the suspects by the throat and another ones head is quite literally encompassed entirely by her left gauntlet.

    That was fast, she''s not fucking around.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    "NO!! THAT''S NOT WHY WE''RE HERE!!!" A woman from their group screamed.

    "Then why?" Tyra said, glaring at the woman.

    "W-We came here to pay respects to our families. Both mine and my husbands died right here." The woman kneeled down. "Please put them down Lady Tyra! Please, I''m begging you..."

    "I will, after you answer this one last question. Why is there someone hiding below in the cellar?"

    The sound of someone running away on the cellar''s stone floor echoed out towards us.

    "Damnit! Rei, can you grab him?!"

    I deactivate my aura.

    "Nope, I refuse. What I''m here to do is far more important than stopping a couple of idiots from killing themselves underground."

    Tyra paused, looking at the two men in her hands for a moment. Sighing, she dropped both of them to the ground.

    "You made the right call... I apologize for trying to rope you into this nonsense." Tyra glared at the woman. "Are you out of your mind? The sky is gone, entire villages are being incinerated, and you decide now is a good time to go underground?!"

    "I wasn''t lying! The three of us really are here to pay respects to our families. Tyler our neighbor tagged along saying he also wanted to pay respects, but then he suddenly pivoted to this place, saying he needed to grab something he left here long ago. He dropped down awhile ago and refused to come back up... We were trying to decide what to do when you showed up and attacked us."

    Tyra grimaced when the woman said ''attacked'' with as much vitriol as she could.

    "... Carry on then." Tyra said, walking away.

    I sidled up next to her. "You fine with that? I feel like she wasn''t lying, but she might have been."

    "It''s not fine. I''m gritting my teeth and forcing myself forward. It''s as you said, we have far more important matters to deal with. Losing a couple of civilians underground is not something I would normally overlook, but it can''t be helped right now. However, I need to find out how they heard about it. Do not forget, we only spoke of it in the manor. I know word is going to spread through the butlers and maids, but that was a little too fast for my taste."

    Seems pretty normal to me. In Xelba it was already a given that anything major discussed in front of civilians was going to spread by the end of the day. It''s just the way gossip works.

    Tyra stops and looks at me. "It''s straight ahead past this village."

    Enhancing myself I dash straight ahead, with Tyra following behind me like usual. Before long we''re out of the charred village and back into the empty plains near the mountain.

    "Was this area not used for growing crops? I''m only feeling snow beneath my feet. I thought this whole open plain would be filled with dead crops the first time I ran through it."

    "Correct. The fields between the villages and the mountains aren''t cut out for farming. There were a few places that crops could be grown, but the kings of past decided against it. I am no scholar, but as far as I know, growing enough food has never been a large problem for our nation, it''s one of the things we are proud of and why we were able to close ourselves off. Without that, it would have never been possible."

    I wonder if this would make a good place to fight the Tengu Lord? The fields are right behind Euphemia''s manor, so it''s either there or the town her home is situated in. I haven''t asked because it should be unrelated to me, but I have wondered where they plan on fighting the creature. I doubt it''s going to make an appearance in a distant village and wait for them to come to it. It''s obviously going to hit them hard and fast while they''re inside the manor. They must know this so... Yeah, I''m sure they have a plan. They''re the ones who have dealt with him long before I came around. I only knew of the Tengu in passing while in Xelba. I vaguely remember hearing about it attacking a village of ours once, and I think it also wiped out another unit of ours near Rai''gas'' lands? Hard to remember the finer details of something I overheard long ago.

    I''m also seeing one other glaring issue, something that didn''t jump out at me until now. There are small ''hills'' dotting the landscape and some large ''bumps'' sticking out of the mountain, but because they''re covered in snow I didn''t realize what they were until this very moment. Fucking broodling... I knew in theory that one was here and corrupting the land, but it''s still surreal to see the Xerathian landscape appearing here in Urza. It''s always been something from the land of nightmares I grew up in, and seeing that nightmare take root in our realm is sickening.

    <hr>

    Hmm? Is that it?

    I slow down and look over my shoulder at Tyra. "You said the lights are off and we need to turn them on right? How do you plan on doing that? I''m pretty sure I can see the silhouette of the town ahead but it''s completely shrouded in darkness obviously."

    "Can you spot a large tower with a bell on top of it? Actually even if you can''t now, then when we get closer I hope you can, because that''s where we need to go."

    "Right now I can''t see anything distinct, but I think we got another mile or two to go. It should come more into focus when we arrive."

    A few minutes later as we neared the village I indeed could see a very large tower in the center of the village.

    "I can''t see a bell, but there''s one tower higher than anything else in the village, so I assume that''s what you were referring to?"

    "Yes that''s it. Lead the way please, and then I''ll get all the lights turned on for us."

    Some part of me wanted to do this alone, but now that we''re entering the village I realize that was never possible. The ambient lighting from the other village just isn''t enough. I can make out vague outlines around the village, but inside? It''s near pitch black. There''s barely enough light to navigate through the streets, so I would need to turn a light on to see inside any of the buildings here, which is quite possibly one of the last things I want to be doing alone, even if I had my former strength. My entire life has revolved around hiding in corners and taking my time getting what I need. The idea of me setting off a flare alone in a pitch black environment is absolutely ridiculous on every level. Unless it''s to bait something, but that''s different of course.

    Settling down into a jog I lead Tyra through the village. More than a few times I almost ran straight into something that was left out in the street. Right before we reached the tower I barely managed to jump over something before tripping over it, but Tyra stopped following me and asked me to stop as she stood in front of whatever I had just vaulted over.

    "What''s wrong?"

    "... When you jumped, your little lights lit the thing on the ground up just enough for me to see what it was. I think it''s a body."

    What? Mini-crystals don''t work like that... They are only used like placement flares, they don''t light up anything but themselves. She''s either lying about where the light came from, or something really did light up a body below and she thought it was the crystals. Of course a third option is that I''m about to get ambushed by her and someone else, but my armor will save me from a surprise attack, giving me enough time to get away from this town before they turn on the lights... Unless they are ready to turn them on right now?

    Tyra crouched down and began feeling something in front of her.

    "Yep... This is a body. He''s wearing leather armor, a dagger on his hip, and he''s completely frozen. However... Hmm, do you remember when it snowed last? He has no snow on top of his body."

    "When I slept it wasn''t snowing, and if snow had crossed my vision it would have woken me up for a few seconds. So it had to of been before our trip to the village yesterday... I think the last time I saw snow was the first night we arrived, when I was talking with the princess and Seifer in her private living room."

    "So it was sometime in the past day and a half..."

    A blue light emits from the man''s torso for a split second.

    So she really did see something...

    "Tyra, let''s go get the lights on and then pull this guy inside. I''d rather not be outside much after we light the village up."

    It looked like Tyra nodded before standing up, which was good enough for me. I turned around and fumbled for a handle on the building in front of me. Finally finding it, I pull on it but it won''t budge an inch.

    "Tyra, It must be locked. I can''t move the handle at all."

    "Apologies, I haven''t needed to unlock doors in the villages in ages. I forgot it would even be necessary. Please place my hand on the handle."

    Tyra steps forward while taking off her gauntlet, I guide her hand to the handle. A soft click follows after she holds it for a few seconds.

    Same mechanism as before huh? Their whole nation must be built around it. I wonder what''s going to happen when I blast one of these doors down.

    Tyra steps aside, pointlessly allowing me to go first.

    "Even I can''t see anything in there. Do you know the general layout? If that''s the case then you''d have a better chance of finding your way to the room you''re looking for."

    Tyra pulls a six-inch long crystal out of her pack and hands it to me.

    "As I said earlier, I already know why you suggested mini-crystals instead of these directed lights yesterday. That doesn''t mean I wasn''t going to bring some. I''ve catered to your desires thus far by not using lights, but surely you understand the need now?"

    "Of course, thank you Tyra. I''ll admit I found it rather suspicious yesterday when you two followed me without bringing lights like these, but I appreciate the gesture."

    I turn the vile monstrosity known as a ''crystal light'' on and direct it ahead into the building. Entering the building I find nothing more than a table and a long windy staircase heading up.

    "Are you sure you want me to climb this? I''d be better off watching the door while stealthed."

    "Normally I''d agree, but I''ll keep an eye on the door as we climb. After finding that body I think it''s best we both head up top to the ether control room. I find it hard to believe the man died outside of the most important building in every village."

    The door was locked and undamaged but I understand why she''d be worried. Plenty of abilities and magic out there that can bypass a door.

    As I head up the stairs Tyra turns another light on and places it on the stairs, aiming it so the tiny room is somewhat well-lit. She begins walking up the stairs behind me while staring at the door below. Slowly but surely I advance towards the room above, keeping my eyes glued to the entrance up there to make sure nothing is moving.

    Upon nearing the entrance I stop and put my head close to Tyra, whispering. "Stay here and only direct the light up after ten seconds, okay?"

    Tyra nods, taking her crystal back from me. I activate my aura and quickly shuffle up the remaining steps. Reaching the entrance I poke my head inside and see that the room is rather barren. There''s just enough light to make out some shapes, but nothing humanoid stands out. Climbing inside, I move to the nearest wall as Tyra restarts her ascent with the light pointed up. Thanks to that I can clearly see that there aren''t any threats up here. Tyra climbs up and takes one quick look at the room before heading over towards the other side where a bunch of crystals are pointing out of the wall.

    Deactivating my aura, I walk over to the wall next to her.

    "I''ve seen a room like this before. If I remember correctly, these all connect to different lights in the area, with some of them taking care of multiple lights. You''re positive they have enough ether to run?"

    "The investigators checked, they''re practically maxed according to them. All I need to do is pour a little mana in just like... This."

    A green cloud-like substance begins moving in the crystals she is currently touching. One by one she turns them all on.

    "Alright, that should do it. I''m sure you''re aware that it won''t turn the lights on in individual homes obviously."

    "Obviously."

    We both ran down stairs, walking straight through the door to grab the dead man.

    All the lights had indeed been turned on, creating a surreal experience of a well-maintained village completely lit up with nobody around.

    Tyra bent down and picked the man up in a carrying pose while I looked around to make sure nothing was moving. After getting him inside Tyra removed his leather armor and undershirt immediately. After that we both stared at his bare chest for about a minute before a tiny blue light lit up under the left side of his upper ribs.

    Tyra rubbed her chin. "Strange... Unless you''re looking for it, you''d never notice it. Unless it''s in a very dark room of course."

    I enhance my fingers and begin ripping the man''s chest open. After about a minute of cracking bones and pulling them out of the way, I find what I''m looking for, but...

    Tyra whistled. "Now that you don''t see everyday. A heart tinged blue that''s lighting up randomly in a dead body? What do you make of this?"

    "Right now I''m wishing I had opened the chest of the girl I got this artifact armor from."

    Tyra raised her eyebrows. "Meaning?"

    "I... Only have my suspicion to base this on, but I think this is related to the Tengu."

    Ahh there it is, Tyra returned to her enraged face.

    "People usually seem scared when he is brought up. You however are instead very angry. Have a reason to hate him?"

    "Yes... A very personal reason. First though, can I ask why your unit believe that loathsome creature is meddling in our lands? It''s been ages since he last bothered us."

    "You''ll have to ask the others why they think the Tengu is coming here. With our current predicament however, I''m basing it solely off of the blue light emitting from this man''s heart. It''s the exact same hue as the flora that he scattered around where I revived, and the ether aura feels the same as well. I''ll admit though, at face value this is barely worth considering. There''s maybe a twenty percent chance it''s him if you look at it objectively."

    Tyra chuckles sardonically. "And yet, you still believe it''s him?"

    "My instincts are telling me one hundred percent."

    "One hundred huh..." Tyra smiles and closes her eyes.

    She appears to be both enraged and ecstatic right now. She must really want to kill him... I can relate to that feeling. I don''t know why she wants revenge, but it''s good to see she''s this pumped to fight him. When the Lord shows up she''ll be a huge help I''m sure.

 Chapter 24 - The Tengu

    "... I have an idea, I''m just not sure if it''s safe after the Tengu tampered with this mans soul."

    "Without hearing the rest, this already sounds like a bad idea." Tyra said.

    "Yeah... But it could be eye opening. I have an ability I rarely use that could give us some answers about the Tengu. At the very least we''ll know what the purpose of this man is and where he came from. I''m gonna take his soul in and read his memories. So long as his soul was only tampered with and not damaged, it should work."

    "Why would you rarely use such an impressive sounding ability? Because Meizha''thul takes most of the souls?"

    "No, there are... Drawbacks."

    If I speak any more on it then I''ll have to tell her it''s because I can only read their memories if I completely devour their soul for sustenance. Which means no abilities, and no human soul as a backup for mana in a pinch. Seeing memories is cool in theory, and I''ll have them forever in my soul realm, but soul energy as backup for when I''m about to die has proven far more useful.

    "I see... Well, are you going to do it then?"

    I''m worried about what might happen if I take in a soul connected to such a powerful Eldritch, but it''s way too tempting to know what that creature is doing.

    "Yeah, I am. Give me a second."

    Pulling the soul out takes no time at all, it was obviously ready to go ages ago.

    "Meizha''thul aside, it seems souls aren''t even able to enter the cycle of reincarnation while under this sky."

    "............."

    As the soul nears my mouth, the core rips it out of my hand and devours it.

    ... I must have been nearing my limit. It has been awhile since I''ve eaten after all. While I wasn''t allowed to feast to my hearts content, Viktor did have it on the books that I was allowed to take what I needed to survive, so souls were never an issue in Xelba. Thanks to that I can''t remember how long one soul lasts me... My memories of the time in the other realm are so vague at this point. I should watch some of my past memories the next time I have nothing to do in one of our wagon rides. Even if the brain forgets, the soul rarely does.

    "Alright, let''s go upstairs, I need somewhere safe to enter my soul realm. Can you watch the entrance from up there for anything suspicious?"

    "Of course, leave it to me."

    I headed up the stairs again with Tyra behind me. This time both of us were keeping an eye on the door below. We ascended halfway up in silence when suddenly Tyra spoke to me in a hushed tone.

    "... My twin brother had a lovely family. We were always together since birth, and that continued even after we joined the town guard. To our families surprise, we kept working our way up until one day we found ourselves joining the Kings Guard."

    I think I know where she''s going with this... There''s only one reason she''d bring up the past right now.

    "Life wasn''t the greatest since we were always at war, but our family made it through together. That is, until the Crotia found a way past the fortress." Tyra said with a quiver in her voice.

    "By the time we received the news it was too late. The village they appeared in was mostly devastated, which just so happened to be the village where both our family and extended families lived. I''ll never forget the sight of my parents lying there in the dirt, decapitated. And my brother, he... He just sat there cradling what was left of his six year old daughter, not moving or saying anything for hours. They had dismem..." Tyra shook her head and slapped her cheeks. Clearing her throat she continued. "Apologies, it''s still hard all these years later... Anyways, my brother buried himself in his duties. After his shift was over he''d head straight home, talking to nobody. Sometimes I could get him to chat like we used to, but then suddenly his face would cloud over and he''d go back to being completely silent."

    Reaching the top of the stairs, we entered the crystal room again. I laid down nearby while she stayed near the door, keeping her eyes on the entrance below.

    "It was a day like any other. The sun was bright outside, and it had been months since our last encounter with the Crotia, so the people were starting to smile a little again. When suddenly out of nowhere my brother cut down the prince who was set to take the crown a month from then. All hell broke loose as you can imagine, and it all ended with me punching him through the chest as he made his way towards the king. Seeing the light in his eyes go out was the death knell for the end of my old life. Ever since then I''ve been..."

    I clasped my hands over my chest and closed my eyes, preparing to enter my soul realm.

    "The Tengu?"

    "... Yes. Before the cunt took his soul, our mages were able to find clear signs of corruption. Only the Tengu could hide corruption that deep from our usual scans, and they also found the same markers that were present in other Tengu spawn." Tyra sighed, then continued. "I''ve said enough. You understand now, so rest and I will make sure nothing interferes."

    Focusing inwards, I dive deep into my soul, entering my own personal realm. Opening my eyes I find myself back in a desolate landscape mired with faceless creatures growing out of the ground.

    "Really disappointing that I can''t figure out how to switch this landscape to Terra''kas'' moon permanently. I can change it, but it always reverts back to this on subsequent visits..."

    Alright, enough of that, let''s see if I can do this again. It''s been ages since I read someones memories after all. I think the last time was when that noble burned down an entire village for a girl he wanted?

    Focusing on the soul in my core, I completely absorb it, making sure not a single bit of it is misused or left out. All it takes is a little chunk of soul torn off and the memories will come out as a jumbled incoherent mess.

    A few minutes later the soul is fully integrated into my core. Focusing around me, I try to draw forth the souls memories, replicating them onto the scenery around me. Slowly the area around me morphs from the faceless realm, into the village I was just in.

    "Ahh, perfect..."

    Pulling the view away from the mans eyes, I drag it about ten feet away, pointing it right at him. The man appears to be clutching his chest with a dead look in his eyes.

    The last memory recorded is always when the person in question died. Looks like his tainted heart gave out? No surprises there.

    Looking at the scene before me as if it were a video tape, I begin rewinding it at two-times speed. The man stumbles backwards for a little while before breaking out into a jog.

    I wonder how I''d do this if I didn''t know about televisions and video tapes? Imagining it as a movie makes controlling these scenes so easy. I''m not even sure how to move it otherwise.

    Once the man reaches the outside of the village, he puts his back up to a nearby wall and stares at the darkness for at least five minutes. I speed the rewinding up to five times so Tyra isn''t left waiting for me for too long. After that he jogs backwards towards the mountains west of the fortress. Once he reaches the mountains, he continues jogging backwards for several hours(at twenty times speed now) before stopping in the middle of nothing. Pausing it, I look around for anything of value, but come up empty.

    Hmm... I can see bootprints going through the snow into the mountain? They also come out of the mountain, going in the other direction. It must be an illusion?

    Restarting the ''video'', it doesn''t take me long to see that I was right. The man walks straight through the ''rock'' and into a long dark tunnel.

    Because this is the mans memories both the outside and this tunnel are still visible despite there being no light, so he must be using magic or an ability to see... He really didn''t want anyone to spot him going towards that village huh? Spells like that take in the ambient lighting around them to brighten the area, the same way my eyes work, but what the man is currently doing is something else entirely. He had to be burning through mana just to see the world so clearly, which means that if something had attacked him, he''d of been at a large disadvantage. All that just so he could avoid using crystal lights to light his path.

    The man walks through several long tunnels before coming out to a large underground cavern. On one side there is a lake that is both filled with and surrounded by fish-like monsters I have never seen before. However, what sticks out the most is the large whitish-black raven creature resting against the wall.

    "Tengu... So there is a Lord here, and it''s about a three hour jog away from Euphemia''s manor. I wonder if her or Tyra know about this hidden cavern?"

    When the man jogs back to the Tengu, he lays down as the Tengu points one of his clawed fingers at the mans torso. For a little less than an hour a blue light shimmers from the mans chest as the creature does something to him. Once it rewinds past this, the man appears to be looking around confused, clearly not sure where he is. When he spots the the monsters he freaks out, but the Tengu simply points at the man, which immediately makes him go limp.

    "From this, it''s obvious that he wasn''t a willing participant. I bet if I rewind this a little, we''ll see him walk---"

    I''m struck by a wave of pain so intense I hit the ground screaming. The scene crashes around me into an erratic mess of colors before slowly reforming into my usual soul realm landscape, except something gigantic is looming nearby this time.

    S-Shit... This is not good.

    {CONNECTION ESTABLISHED...} The Tengu looks down at me with its two bright-golden eyes. It reaches out with its hands, grasping the ground around me.

    {TAKING CONTROL...} Images of different scenes from my memories flash around me, before landing on a specific one that I have made an effort to never think about.

    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    "T-This is..."

    Most of my unit lay sprawled out on the ground, blue daggers jutting out of their bodies.

    "Damn... It''s been awhile since I did something in this town that I didn''t want to do." Said a man who used to teach us combat.

    He bent down, picking up a young adult male with bright blonde hair and a scar running across his cheek, tossing him down into the chasm. The man next to him does the same, choosing a girl with a long red ponytail.

    Sam... Vei...

    In the background I can see me, Simon, and Nera fighting a Satyr while Viktor''s right-hand man Ash assists it.

    No... No no no don''t you dare play this fucking memory!

    Focusing inwards I find the Tengu''s connection to my soul. Scratching, ripping, tearing... Nothing I do damages it even a little bit.

    {UNNECESSARY... POINTLESS...}

    Pointless?! This fucking...!!

    The scene suddenly stops and zooms in on the level above where the chasm is. The people up there slowly come into focus, revealing their features in greater detail. It pauses on a tall handsome elf in a long white elaborate suit and pants. His long blonde hair falls over his glasses as his sharp eyes watch the chaos below unfold.

    He looks exactly as I remember him...

    {THIS MAN...}

    "... What about Viktor?"

    {WHERE IS HE...?}

    "Hell if I know! He fled through the damned portal deep underneath Xelba into Aetheria forty-two years ago. How do you not know this? In hindsight it''s obvious that you were working with him. Back then I didn''t figure it out, but now I know that you were the one who gave him those daggers that paralyzed people so we could feed them to the Broodling."

    {TRUE... IT WAS NECESSARY... BUT A MISTAKE...}

    "A mistake? Those daggers did exactly what they were supposed to though?"

    {I LOOKED DOWN UPON THE SOUL CREATURES... VERY COSTLY... WON''T MAKE THAT MISTAKE AGAIN...}

    Soul creatures? We all have souls including him, but I assume he''s referring to Humans, Elves, Kitsune, Crotia, etc.

    {I HAVE NO REACH IN AETHERIA... YOU GO... I AM LINKED NOW...}

    He''s saying that like it''s permanent... Please don''t let that be true.

    "You''re telling me to serve you? Why would I do that?"

    The Tengu disappeared for a split second before returning in a slightly hazier form, looking like he''s going to vanish into smoke any second now.

    {DIFFICULT TO MAINTAIN... SUCH A STRANGE CREATURE... NEVER SEEN A SOUL LIKE THIS BEFORE...}

    "... Is this why your Lord didn''t kill me near Kikyou?"

    {SAW THROUGH HIS EYES... I RECOGNIZED YOU... RARE MOMENT OF SHOCK... NOSTALGIA... TOLD HIM TO CAPTURE YOU... BUT FAILED... IMPRESSIVE...}

    Thank you for the compliment...? Oh, hang on, I wonder if he''ll answer this?

    "Why are you trying to capture Aresa?"

    {SHIVA... RAI''GA... TSUKIKO... ALL MUSH PERISH...}

    "... I wanted to know why you''re trying to capture her alive. It''s already obvious that you want to kill all the other Eldritch."

    {NO TIME... WAKE UP QUICKLY... ENEMIES OUTSIDE... REMOVING CONNECTION...}

    At the mention of enemies I quickly shifted to a combat ready mindset. Once his connection was severed I exited my soul realm and immediately looked at the door, finding an empty space where Tyra was previously. Activating my aura I rushed to the door, seeing a pair of knights closing in on my location. I walked down a few steps and waited for the men to get close. When they were within a few feet of me I jumped down towards the bottom of the tower, removing my aura and enhancing my body right before I landed.

    As expected, even I couldn''t prevent noise from leaking out after landing from that height...

    The men immediately turn and look down, but I had already reactivated my aura.

    "Everything good in there Thompson?!" A man from outside yells.

    "Nothing to report sir!" Thompson turned to the other knight and shrugged.

    The two continued their climb into the crystal room.

    I sidle up to the door and peek outside, finding Tyra on her knees with her arms locked by two knights standing at each side of her. Her face is a bloody mess and her armor is broken around her chest.

    "Enough of this, you''re obviously not going to talk and we don''t have all day. We''ll see how you feel after a few weeks in the dungeons." Said a fully-armored man I don''t recognize. He then motioned to the men holding her down. "You two, drag her with us when Thompson comes back."

    "Yes sir!"

    A few minutes later Thompson comes out, shaking his head.

    "Nothing? Are you sure? There is two sets of footprints in the snow going into the damned tower."

    "Nothing sir, there is also no place for anyone to hide inside."

    "... No matter, we have enough here. We''re returning men, let us be off."

    The men began walking towards the south side of town, dragging Tyra through the snow as they went. It was only then that I noticed her legs were broken. When they were out of sight I began to follow in their footsteps, but I stopped when I heard someone whisper ''Rei?'' from behind me. Turning around I see Shana''s head slightly poking above a pile of hay inside of a cart. Sneaking over to the other side of the cart behind the tower, I disable my aura and call out to Shana.

    "I could see your clone following us earlier, but honestly, I forgot about you thanks to something that just happened in the tower... Good thing you called out for me."

    Shana gives me a peace sign, making me chuckle.

    "So what happened? Why did those men attack Tyra?"

    "Because of you. They came from the south and immediately started yelling into the tower, demanding she come down. Apparently they knew she was here. Tyra came downstairs and stood in the doorway, refusing to leave, which was smart. That way she could funnel them if necessary, but then something weird happened. The commander of the knights ''activated'' a medallion around his neck, causing Tyra to buckle at the knees. They dragged her out and proceeded to beat her until she told them where ''the white one'' was."

    "Strange... Why would they be trying to capture me? Also, Tyra told me that they bought information on me, so those men should know I can turn invisible, yet it didn''t seem like they knew that at all. Does that make sense to you?"

    "Hmm... Possibly the information was destroyed after certain people were able to read it? Certain people that Tyra has access to, like Euphemia." Shana said.

    "Maybe? We don''t have the whole picture, so for now I''m going to follow after Tyra to see where they are taking her. What are you going to do?"

    "I''m going to tell everyone what just happened here, and then continue tracking you with this clone."

    "I have a better idea, come into my soul realm for a second. I need to show you something."

    "?"

    I popped the mini-crystals off my back and crawled under the hay next to Shana. her hands while projecting my aura over both of us.

    "Oooh...!!" Shana gazes at the wispy smoke emanating off of her.

    "Thankfully there''s no light in here, so my mana won''t be drained. Now come on, close your eyes."

    Shana purses her lips, closing her eyes shortly after. I immediately drag her into my soul realm and pull up the memory I was just looking at.

    "The mountain and the man you found outside? Wait, is this...?" Shana said, studying the scene around her.

    "Yes, it''s his memory. Unfortunately I now have a connection to the Tengu because of this mans soul, but there was some silver lining, watch this." I said, putting the ''video'' in fast forward again.

    Shana''s eyes go wide as we ''enter'' the mountain, leading to her audibly growling when the Tengu Lord comes into view.

    "... Thank you for showing this to me, I''ll be sure to tell the others about this. But um... What did you mean by a connection with the Tengu?" Shana asked.

    "To be honest I''m not entirely certain. After I reached this point in the memory, the Tengu god himself appeared in my realm, assuming control of my memories. We talked a little and then he told me about the ''enemies'' outside, which led to me waking up just before those knights found me. Normally I activate my aura before entering my soul realm, but I left myself visible for Tyra''s sake... That was almost a very costly mistake."

    "Can I ask what you talked about? You have to understand Rei, the only people who have ever ''talked'' with him, have all turned up later as spawn. None of his spawn ever speak a word about him, so this is..."

    "Well I can guarantee you that he won''t be able to turn me into anything, regardless of how powerful he is. All he has is some control over my soul realm, which is very troubling by itself..."

    Shana pinched my cheek, "Why are you so positive he can''t tamper with your soul?"

    "Because Eremnon himself couldn''t do anything to my soul. If he couldn''t, there is no way the Tengu can, no matter how powerful of an Eldritch he may be. However, connections to me can be made, but they''re flimsy at best unless I personally allow it."

    "E-Eremnon?! You... No, that can''t be true... You really met the god of Demons? Can you bring this memory up right now?!" Shana asked excitedly.

    "... I can, but is that important right now? I don''t mind showing you later."

    "Right... Sorry. It''s just... This is unreal. First the Tengu, and then Eremnon? I need to see it with my own eyes to believe the latter, but I''ll trust you on the former. This way you''ll have to show me later." Shana said, smirking.

    We both pulled out of my realm after that.

    "Okay, I''m gonna tell the others about what happened and follow your footsteps after I know for certain nobody else is around."

    "Thank you Shana. I hope Euphie doesn''t take the news too hard."

    Shana sighed, "... She will. Tyra has been looking after her since she was a newborn. The king apparently put her as his daughters protector as a reward after she saved the previous king. But I was never told what she saved him from."

    Probably when she killed her brother to save the current kings father.

    I remove my aura from Shana and crawl out of the cart. I quickly follow the knights footsteps while avoiding the lights shining everywhere inside of the village now.

    The tracks leave the village and appear to head for a location somewhere near the fortress, as expected. It was either there or the Tengu Lords hidden lair, I''m just glad it was the former. But the damned fortress is almost as far away as that lair was, did those knights really walk for hours to get here? They could have taken a wagon, but they chose not to... My threat assessment of them just shot up quite a bit.

    The knights are somehow already out of eyesight, far past the villages lights. I break out into a sprint, following the tracks deeper into the lightless night.

    <hr>

    ~Ishar POV~

    For the first time in our stay here, the princess looked like she was going to strangle someone.

    "That knight is a man named Tyrell. What a sickening use of power. How dare he do that to Tyra... And for what purpose does he want Rei? My father needed only ask for a meeting with her, and I''m sure she would have approved of it. I would have as well, so this way of treating my head guard like a doll... I cannot believe he used the families medallion on her, my best friend in such a way. That is... That is!!!"

    Euphemia began pacing back and forth, gripping her hands into fists in front of her over and over. I could see everyone else making plans in their heads on how to move forward while the princess stomps around grumbling to herself.

    "Keh, so they were after the zombie girl eh? The only way the broodling could be involved is if the king was susceptible to its influence. With that said, I do not believe it would be so stupid as to use him in such a way. They''re way too careful for that... So whatever the hell this is, is something else entirely." I said.

    Alicia came running into the room, giving me a thumbs up.

    "We brought one over Ishar! He turned into an egg with the help of one of the Eldritch. It''s gonna take a few hours, but he''ll eventually ''hatch'' out of it as his old self and immediately begin his search."

    Excellent! At least something is going our way.

    {Should someone help Rei?}

    "You kidding girl? We''d only get in the way. ''The white one'' is all about stealth. If we show up to ''help'' her, then any element of surprise is completely gone. It''s best she works alone on this and reports to us later about what she found. Don''t worry, she''ll be fine."

    Aresa nods meekly, returning to her meal.

    ... Well, I can''t blame her for worrying. I didn''t find a damn thing in my search, and Rei''s was cut short by friendly fire. Alicia is the only one here with actual good news. Although Rei finding that ''Tengu'' creature''s location can be considered a lucky boon.

    Cera sighed. "I''m glad Reimia found the Tengu, but I''m not quite sure what we can do about it. It''ll know if we approach, and worse case scenario it''ll just drop the cavern on top of us if we''re about to kill it."

    Sadly true. We received confirmation it''s here which is nice, and knowing that it''s apparently turning villagers into something is also good to know. Past that however, it''s hard to actually do anything with the information she collected for us.

    {Say, isn''t the Tengu''s location near Keith''s group?}

    "It is, which makes me wonder if we should all move there. That way they can help us kill it when it comes for you." Cera replied.

    The doors burst open, revealing a tired looking Seifer.

    "We have another problem. The village west of Keith''s village has just been discovered as a pile of ash."

    Eupemia whipped around. "How?! We had citizens, guardsmen, and knights keeping watch on every single village. It should be impossible for it to be ''discovered'' as ash! Did they not see it burning?"

    "That is the strange part. They claim everything was fine one moment, and then a second later the entire village was gone. Quite literally they saw children playing, music blaring from the town center, lights lit-up everywhere... And then it was all gone."

    Euphemia stared at Seifer, unsure of how to respond.

    What in the hell is going on here...? I''ve never heard of such a phenomena in my life, and I''ve been to dozens of different worlds during our invasions. The amount of bizarre shit I''ve seen is endless, but this one might be in the top three.

 Chapter 25 - The Fortress

    For hours I''ve been tracking them. I thought they were moving quickly considering how I couldn''t see them at all after exiting the village, but it turns out they had only rushed through that part of their ''escape''. After that it didn''t take me long to spot their crystal lights and even less time to catch up to them. I stayed just far enough away to pick up any chatter while being back far enough to avoid their lights from hitting me.

    Except they never said a damn word... Not even one. This is clearly a well-trained regiment that knows exactly what they need to do without requiring constant instructions. Useless banter out in the open like this when every little sound could be life-threatening is indeed something a rookie would do. Skill isn''t going to be an issue for these men, but that''s not the only problem. Even at a glance, I can tell that their armor is the maximum quality possible before upgrading to artifact armor. It''ll take several fully enhanced blows to punch through the weaker parts of that armor, so that leaves only one exposed area, their face. It takes time for me to enhance after dropping my aura, there''s no way men these knights are going to stare at me dumbfounded while I empower my fist.

    As we neared the fortress, I began to worry about how I was even going to enter the place. There are massive crystals that function like spotlights above all the entryways, halfway up the fortress, and on top of the walls pointing in both directions. While I''m pondering this, the knights break off into two groups. Most of the knights head towards the main entrance which has a constant stream of foot traffic going in and out of it, while the commander and two other knights drag Tyra off towards a door hundreds of meters west of the main entrance.

    Very little traffic over here, but the gaps between the lights are almost nonexistent... This is going to be a major pain in the ass.

    The other option is backtracking until I reach the mountains. If I run along the wall I''ll be able to avoid most of the lights, excluding the ones nearest to the doors. Except if I do that I''ll end up far behind Tyra''s little entourage... Who knows how many corridors and rooms await me in that place? I''m gonna need to keep up with them as best as I can. Although there is still one more massive problem. I have no idea of how bright it''s going to be in that place. If they really are struggling with mana, then the fortress should be dimly lit... But I guess we''ll see.

    Wait... There is a final option. I''ve done this a few times before but it''s very risky. Hell, the whole plan of following her into an unknown place that I haven''t scoped out before is risky... Fuck it, I''ve already made one bad decision today, let''s do one more.

    I run up behind the knights before they reach the spotlights. Ducking down behind Tyra, I ask my armor to stick to her as I place my body up against her. Thanks to how thick she and her armor are, I should be able to avoid most of the directed lighting. The truly problematic area will be inside the fortress.

    Tyra lightly chuckles, making the knights glance at her for a second, but nothing more.

    She must have felt me stick to her. Don''t worry old gal, I''ll try and get you out of whatever the hell this is.

    As we make our way through the light-infested landscape, only the light reflected off the snow behind me damages me, but it''s to a level I can handle long enough to make it to the entrance.

    "Welcome back, sir... Huh?" A guard said.

    I''m sure he was shocked after seeing that the prisoner was Tyra.

    The leader sighed. "Yes, I''m not proud of this moment either... I pray it''s all a misunderstanding."

    "R-Right, of course..." The guard said as the sound of a heavy-metal door opened nearby.

    The knights file through the large door, but as Tyra breaches the fortress, her armor begins screeching as she''s dragged along the stone floor.

    "Tsk, pick her up. I''m not listening to that the whole way down." The leader said.

    Shit, not good.

    Releasing my hold on Tyra, I back up to a corner near the door. The knights pick her up, wrapping her arms over their shoulders as they grab her waist.

    Yeah, they definitely would''ve found me... Still though, I''m surprised to see how large this hallway is. It''s also rather dark in here so far, but I know that won''t last.

    They begin moving forward again, turning right at the fork ahead. However, when they open the double doors at the end, pure white light floods the hallway. I stifle a scream as I dive behind a crate off to the right.

    ... It didn''t take long before any luck I had ran out. This is going to be difficult to get past. It looked like a large mess hall, and I heard several different conversations going on in there.

    The doors slam open again. Two men in butler attire rush past my hiding spot towards a door on the right. Once inside their footsteps echoed upwards.

    Good to know the way up for later, but right now I need to figure out how to get past this mess hall. I could try going up to see if there is an easier way to get past this mess hall, or I could drop my aura and sneak in the old-fashioned way...

    ........................

    Sneaking up to the doors, I drop my aura, slightly pushing open the left door and peeking inside, revealing a small part of the hall.

    Hmm, a group of five men in casual attire playing a knife game by the corner in the far back... Nobody looking this way currently.

    Closing the door, I push open the right one next. Another knight in casual gear sitting at a table, scratching his head with a pencil in his hand. A maid cleaning up tables at the far end, and the sounds of someone still cooking behind the counter.

    Damnit all, the knight has a clear view of the door. I''ll have to wait and pray that something pulls his attention elsewhere.

    Listening for any sounds behind me, I continued staring at the knight for almost five minutes before the maid came over and began talking to him.

    Please tell me you''re seducing him, lady. I can''t stay here forever.

    "Come on now, you can''t keep this up. You''re a knight you fool, not an investigator."

    "Seriously sis I''m onto something here! It''s adding up... I''m just not sure to what."

    "You''ve been saying that for a month now... Give it a rest already. Even if you''re right and incinerated bodies were found long ago, the hell does that matter? You said it yourself, you can''t link it to anything. Now come on, you''ve eaten already so wash up and go to bed, mister."

    "I hate it when you treat me like I''m twelve still... Fine, I''ll continue my work elsewhere."

    The maid shakes her head, walking behind the counter. After she leaves the knight gathers up his papers and walks this way. I close the door, quickly activating my aura as I return to my hiding spot. The knight enters the hallway, heading straight up the same steps the butlers ascended earlier.

    Incinerated long ago huh? I''ll bring this up to the others, but she''s right, without more clues it tells us very little.

    Running back to the door, I make sure the men are still throwing knives at a board in the corner. After confirming they are, I slip into the room, heading straight for the kitchen. As I near the door, it begins to open as the maid returns with the large box she was putting dirty plates into. I rush into the corner behind the door just as she exits it, but as she passes by I grab the door and sneak inside. The cook is stirring a pot absentmindedly in the middle of the room.

    So long as he doesn''t turn, he shouldn''t be able to see me...

    Sneaking forward I pass by the cook a few feet behind him, heading straight for the other door out of the kitchen. Once I reach the door, I peek over the counter, spotting the Maid looking the other way as she picks up more dirty plates.

    Now or never.

    Cracking the door open, I see the men over here are still looking towards the far wall, playing their game. They''re also completely drunk, that much is obvious now. Two of them are literally passed out in their chairs.

    Sprinting for the door, I only take a quick peek to make sure no one is around before entering the next hallway.

    Admittedly, it''s kind of fun sneaking around the old-fashioned way. If I still had a heart it''d be pumping like mad right now. With that said though...

    After confirming the dim lighting in my new environment, I reactivate my aura.

    This right here will always be my most comfortable state. I''m just too used to it at this point.

    Walking down the hall, I see an ungodly amount of doors on both sides. Fortunately, it looks like I have another way to find her. Tyra left me a little gift on the ground. Damn, that woman is smart... Even in her situation, she knew I would be delayed going through that mess hall.

    I follow the little sprays of blood on the stone flooring leading towards a single door near the far end of the hall.

    She must have reopened a wound in her mouth to help me out...

    Opening the door, I find a large set of stairs going down. I pass by several other doors as I''m sprinting deeper underground, before finally finding a door with a small spray of blood near it. Cracking the door open, I see a bare mountain tunnel.

    The inside of the fortress up to this point has been rather beautiful I''ll admit, but beyond this door, it looks like they left this as nothing more than an untouched cave. There are rocky stalagmites dripping water all over, with the only lights being natural crystals... Hang on, how do they make sure no monsters find their way into the fortress from such an obvious entry point? I need to see this... Merely caving in any other entrances means nothing to those who live down here. They''ll find a way if they sense souls underground, they always do.

    The ground is far too unsteady for running in this tiny tunnel, so I slow to a walk this time. However, after a few minutes, I begin to hear Tyra scream, which makes me return to a sprint.

    I wanted to take it slow going forward, but not if she''s getting tortured!

    After a few unfortunate tumbles, I eventually reach the end of the tunnel, where I''m met with a strangely familiar scene.

    The hell...? This looks exactly like where I saw the Tengu earlier. Except that''s much further away in this direction. The fish-like monsters are here as well, and holy shit are they gross looking.

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    Off to the far right, I see about ten cages lined up, with the knights and a few monsters staring into one of them. Sneaking up behind them, I''m shocked when one of the fishmen turns around. He turns his head left and right as if looking for something, before giving up and returning to the conversation taking place in front of him.

    Did... Did he hear me? I make almost no noise thanks to the way the bottom of my feet absorb sound. He''s a fish though so... How do they hear again? I think it was called ''echo''? Soundwaves or something... But shouldn''t they need to be underwater for that? Shit, this is gonna be a real problem.

    At a much slower pace, I begin moving forward again as Tyra yells at the knight''s leader.

    "ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?! DOES THE KING TRULY BELIEVE THIS WILL BE OKAY?!!"

    One of the knights laughed, but he shut up when his commander glared at him.

    "... Honestly, it''s not okay, but the decision was made long before I came along. You however could''ve done something about it. If only your damned eyes were open back then."

    "What...? You mean to tell me this has been going on for years?"

    The commander shakes his head and sighs. "Come men, we''re leaving." As he passes by me, he glances back one more time. "Don''t worry, she won''t be harmed, but we''re going to need to bring Princess Euphemia in for now. She''ll be held in her old chambers while the crowning takes place."

    Tyra began to say something but the commander pointed at the cage and her mouth sealed shut immediately. After that, he left back the way I just came through, while the fish things walked back over towards the lake.

    Ugh, the smell emanating from those creatures is atrocious. How can humans like those knights stand to be around them? They didn''t look like they were gagging at all.

    Slowly sidling up to the cage, I immediately see why he was able to shut her up. Glancing back, I remove my aura after confirming all the monsters are back underwater. Tyra smirks upon seeing me. Enhancing my hand, I crush the tiny chain holding the medallion onto the cage, which fortunately creates very little noise. Catching the medallion as it begins to drop, I carry it over towards a pillar and place it there. As I return to the cage, I see that her mouth has already begun to ''fix'' itself.

    "You showed up faster than I expected," Tyra whispered.

    I smiled. "Thanks to you. Now do you have any ideas on how to open this without it alerting the fishmen back there?"

    "Can''t you prevent the sound from leaking out? I have yet to hear a single footstep of yours."

    "Sadly no. The almost imperceptible scales on the bottom of my feet absorb sound, but I can''t create them anywhere else. Even if I did kick this door in, the whole cage is going to create a large amount of noise, not just where I kick."

    "Um..." A voice from another cage whispered.

    ... Yeah, I wasn''t quite sure how to react to what''s currently sitting in the other cage.

    Tyra looks over. "Hello little girl, can I ask you to wait patiently for a few minutes? This scary but nice lady here is going to free us, okay?"

    The girl nods meekly.

    "Tyra, I doubt it, but do you have abilities that can dampen sound?"

    "Unfortunately no. I can use my mana again thanks to you removing the medallion, but I''m currently using it all to heal my legs. Sadly, even once I''m fully healed in a minute, I only know one way of breaking out of here."

    Brute force huh...

    I sighed. "I think that''s our only option, so I have a plan. A rather shitty one but we have nothing else."

    "Hit me with it."

    "Once you''re done healing, tell me. I''ll break the girl out at the same time you free yourself. After that, we''ll dash through the cave as fast as we can. Once above we can either try and leave the fortress, or we find a dark room I can hide us in till things blow over. I consider this a shitty plan because we have no way of knowing if these things can communicate to those above that their... ''prisoners'', have escaped."

    "Hmm... It is indeed a haphazard plan, but it''s the same one I was formulating in my mind. There is also one other option, which is to head deeper into the mountains, but I''d prefer not to do that." Tyra said.

    "Oh, I should tell you, there is another cavern just like this one a few hours in that direction, and the Tengu Lord is there. I saw it in that man''s memories."

    Tyra''s face scrunched up. "I wish I could deal with him here and now, but we have far more pressing matters to attend to. I cannot allow Tyrell to reach Euphie''s manor. He plans on imprisoning everyone you came with down here, leaving them as food for their ''allies''..."

    "I don''t understand, why would they sacrifice us? Aren''t your people struggling enough as is? Killing the outsiders who are currently assisting with all your problems seems like an odd choice."

    Tyra sighed, "We didn''t talk much, as I''m sure you noticed. I have no idea what the fool is thinking, but he didn''t exactly seem pleased about any of this..."

    "He prioritizes the king''s orders over the prince, right?"

    "Indeed. Which is why I''d like to ask you to climb to the top of this fortress and find the king while I take this girl along to Euphie''s manor. These days the king is almost always alone in his chambers. There are a few guards stationed in front of the door, but I''m sure you''ll figure something out."

    Not a bad idea. After all, the fastest way to dissect an issue is to question the man in charge. Plus, I want to get all this other shit over with. More than anything I''m worried about the broodling. I wonder if it can influence these fish people too? If they''re spread throughout the entire mountain, that''s just one more problem to worry about.

    A small ruby embedded in the front of Tyra''s armor brightly lights up. As Tyra scowls I hit the ground hard. A gunshot rings out as something hits the wall to my right.

    H-How the hell did I evade that? Was it the armor or an abnormally fast reaction from me?

    As Tyra breaks out of her chains, I see a man peeking out from a pillar at the far end of the cavern. In his hands is a long wooden stock rifle. Meanwhile, the fish monsters begin flooding out of the lake in droves, followed by knights filing out of the entrance one by one.

    Dashing forward I smash the little girl''s cage open. Picking her up, I begin running further into the cave with Tyra right behind me.

    "Defenses?!" Tyra yells out.

    "None! I''ve never had a barrier!"

    "How?! Everyone has a barrier!"

    I tossed the little girl into the air in front of Tyra. Tyra catches her with one arm and pulls her in close.

    The fishmen, apparently faster than they have any right to be, close in on us and attempt to cut us off. In response, Tyra holds her left arm out in front of her. Shortly after, a small vortex of wind begins to circle her forearm. Tyra then whips her arm toward the fishmen on the left as if swatting a fly.

    I expected a wave of wind to push them away, but instead what occurred was more akin to an explosion. The ''air'' hit the fishmen dead on, making them fly into the cavern walls two hundred meters away. Even from here, I could hear the ''splat'' noise followed by the pink blood and guts spraying all over the walls. Unfortunately, that had barely deterred them, as there were still hundreds of the creatures jumping out of the lake behind us. That''s unfortunately not the only sound behind us. Whatever the knights had been charging up was now splitting off little bolts of lightning into the ground.

    "In front!" Tyra yells as she begins channeling a shield behind herself.

    Knowing what she wants, I enhance my legs to the max, propelling myself towards the man shooting at us.

    Over-enhancing myself is never good, it completely screws me for a while afterward, but there is little other choice at the moment. Tyra has been hit twice in the face with bullets already. The mana required to stop a bullet from a rifle is nothing to joke about. Going forward we''re going to need every drop of mana she has, so the man in front of us needs to die right now.

    The ground under my left foot crumbles as I launch myself forward. The knight barely had time to look surprised as I brought my right foot down onto his face, crushing it straight into the ground. His head exploded under the impact, splattering brains, bones, and blood all over the ground.

    Not a veteran, or he made a rookie mistake. He should''ve already enhanced himself as we approached him, but the idiot only had his ability barrier activated.

    From far behind I can hear the knights yelling something. In response, I quickly dive behind the pillar nearby. Moments later the whole cavern shakes as a ball of lightning shoots past me, firing off bolts in all directions before it smashes into the wall and explodes.

    Apparently, friendly fire was not on their mind. I could hear hundreds of fishmen crying out in pain as they released that spell. I wonder if it hit the water too? That would be fucking devastating to them if it did. I don''t know what kind of terms they have with each other, but I imagine frying thousands of them isn''t something the fishmen will look too kindly upon.

    Leaning forward, I kick off and begin running again towards the tunnel ahead of me. Glancing back I can see Tyra is close behind, albeit both her and the girl have some wild-looking hair right now.

    "All good?!" Tyra asked.

    "Yeah! It''ll take way more than that for lightning to damage me."

    The moment I reach the tunnel I slip right onto my ass and continue sliding forward unabated until I enhance my legs and kick myself upwards, regaining my footing soon after. Tyra sees my slip-up and slams her feet down as she runs forward, smashing right through the black ice.

    "Tsk, I can''t be wasting mana on something like this! Rei, just a warning, it took almost eighty percent of my mana pool to defend against that attack back there. And unfortunately, I have really shitty regen."

    "How shitty?!" I yell without looking back.

    "I''m gonna need hours!"

    Hours?! Who the hell needs hours to regen? Ahh wait a minute... I have met people like her. People who have a massive pool of mana but very little regen. And now we have no idea of where we''re going or whether we can even shake our tail. They probably know this area by heart, so it''s going to be hard to hide from them. I could hide by myse--- Oh, hang on.

    "Tyra, if you see me run into a dark corner, follow me," I said, hopefully low enough that only she could hear me.

    Glancing back at her, Tyra smiles and nods.

    I see we have a welcoming party as the tunnel exit comes into view. The fishmen spots me and begins screaming off to the side. Upon reaching the exit, the fishmen greets me with a powerful overhead swing using his stone greatsword. A single punch with my right-hand goes straight through the sword and continues forward into the creature''s face. The fishmen flies backward into the ankle-deep water, sliding until he hits a pillar.

    Oh? No enhancements on the weapon or his face... There is a high chance they are spawn then and not a new unknown race. I pray we don''t run into any Lords then. In this situation that would spell doom for the three of us.

    Exiting the tunnel, another sword comes at me from the side. Dropping to my knees I slide under it. Tyra exits next and plows right through it, punching the fishmen in the head as she passes by it. The creature''s head explodes as it crumbles to the ground.

    "You can''t run forever oathbreaker!" A knight from behind yells.

    Looking around, I see that this cavern is on a slight angle going up ahead of us, with this part of it somewhat submerged in the lake to our left.

    That does explain why the tunnel was so damn slippery...

    With no time to waste nor any obvious exits in sight, we both begin climbing the slope. However, once we reached the top, we found at least six different holes in the wall ahead.

    "Farthest on the right!" Tyra yells, launching herself in that direction. The speed burst was so fast that the girl in her right arm screamed in surprise.

    That''s the obvious choice since it''s closest to the fields of Kellog. However, the obvious choices are rarely the best options...

    And sure enough several knights came out of the tunnel as Tyra reached it. Tyra, apparently deciding to bet everything on that tunnel, blasts right into the knights, barreling them out of the way. Unfortunately, these men were obviously better trained than the man I killed earlier. They steadied themselves almost instantly. Upon seeing me they decided to focus on assisting the other knights in capturing me instead of pursuing Tyra.

    Either they know she won''t make it further, or they decided I was more important. Regardless, it''s way too risky for me to take that path. Normally I''d think I had been abandoned, but I know she probably miscalculated my strength and speed after seeing me take down that sniper earlier. My fucking legs are still wobbly from being overstressed earlier. It''s taking all I have to just stay upright, there''s no way I can go into that unknown tunnel with these knights on my tail. Which leaves me only one other option...

    Dashing to the left of the knights, I run straight for the darkest tunnel. A few knights from behind shot me a couple of times, draining most of the mana from my armor, while the knights to my right launched a two-fold attack. One swung low as the other swung high. Normally this would be deadly with these long spears, or at the very least force me to waste a bunch of mana evading, except they clearly have never dealt with someone who trained with the spawn of Xelba. As the two spears near me, I dive through the middle directly between them, rolling as I hit the ground and bolting towards the tunnel. Once I reach the tunnel it turns left immediately, telling me this is probably not the correct tunnel to get out of here, but it''s too late now.

    "Fifteen in! Bring some Merman with you, they''ll be able to locate her if she finds a good hiding spot." A knight yelled, his voice echoing down the tunnel.

    Since there was no more water in here, I was able to run through the tunnel with ease, creating more and more space between me and the knights. Also, the lights in here were very small in size, so I was able to turn my aura on for now.

    The end of the tunnel opened up to a slightly larger tunnel, one wide enough that six knights could stand shoulder-to-shoulder inside. The lighting continued to be limited, which would normally be perfect for me, but when it''s this low, the men behind me will be forced to pull out their crystal lights. I need enough ambient lighting to where I can withstand it for a few minutes, but just enough it will prevent the men from flashing every corner with their crystal version of a flashlight. What I''m hoping for is a miracle, so I need to come up with something better, and fast. Merely running from them deeper into this mountain is the last thing I should be doing.

    Just then, I caught sight of something poking above a large granite rock. Circling the rock, I find a corpse with a spear in its chest.

    The same medium armor and cloak some of the knights are wearing, the ones using guns.

    Bending down next to the body, I pick up the rifle and give it a quick look over. There are teeth marks on random parts of it, as if something tried eating it. Either that or he used it to block a monster from attacking him. Regardless, this might be just what I need. This tunnel isn''t big enough, but if I find a large cavern full of hiding places, I may be able to pick those knights off one at a time. It''ll depend on many factors, like lighting, durability, ammo, and the most difficult problem of all when it comes to guns... I need to make sure I''m shooting when they aren''t enhanced, which is much easier said than done.

 Chapter 26 - Goblins and Brimstone

    ~Ishar''s POV~

    <hr>

    "Are you sure it''s a good idea to have everyone leave? Who is going to defend this ''shaman'' of yours?" Seifer asked.

    Euphemia walked past Seifer. "It''s fine, let''s go. I already made sure that nothing bad will happen to our new Lizard ally. I feel bad saying this with everything else going on, but as far as I''m concerned, he''s the most important being in this nation right now." Euphemia stopped, turning towards Ishar. "Hang on, why didn''t the broodling prevent me from allowing you to hide it?"

    "Because that would be pointless? Your servants here are indeed more powerful than the average person, and while I know nothing of Seifer''s potential, none of you could stop us from doing whatever we wanted with the shaman. The broodling would risk exposing itself for nothing."

    "... I see," Euphemia said, gritting her teeth.

    I''m more worried about whether we can keep the shaman concealed or not. I''ve never done this with a single shaman before... You normally need at least four, with a preferable amount being somewhere around twelve. A couple of shamans search for the broodling while the others keep their presence concealed. The shaman said it won''t be able to do both, so there''s no way to prevent the broodling from finding it. What it does after that is anyone''s guess. I sure as hell don''t know what to expect, and that''s why I''m glad everyone is leaving together.

    We continued to the wagon area in silence. As we approached the only shed in the area, a butler opened it up, revealing an abnormally large wagon inside. Aresa beamed at Alicia after she saw it.

    {This is it! Euphie told me about this, and I''ve been dying to see it. It looks like the ''limozines'' you mentioned before!}

    Alicia chuckled. "I''ll show you how to spell it properly when we get inside. But yeah, it does look like the medieval version of one."

    I don''t know what a ''limozine'' is, but this is indeed the largest wagon I''ve ever seen. No wonder why she had it protected inside this shed that was exuding its very own aura. Pays to be a royal huh? It had to be ridiculously expensive to create a small building covered in defensive wards just to house your damned wagon. I''ll admit though, much to my surprise, she has been a rather good host. Albeit a little naive, but I''m used to dealing with that. Our little rookie here is still naive about many things after all. She''ll get there eventually, but it won''t be something that happens overnight.

    After everyone climbs inside, I jump in last, laying my spear on the table in the middle as I sit down.

    "And I thought Aresa''s wagon was amazing. Look at this fucking thing!"

    {True. I may need to upgrade it after seeing this...}

    Cera cut in, looking at Shana. "That aside, where is Rei right now?"

    "Lost her. She followed Tyra into a side door on the fortress."

    "West of the main door? The one with two guards in front?" Euphemia asked.

    "Yes, that''s the one. Know where it goes?"

    Euphemia shook her head. "I''ve only been in there twice, and both of those times I went straight up to Father''s living room. It''s easier through the main entrance, but I wanted to surprise him, so..." She sighed, then continued. "Anyways, unless they took Tyra to his living room or chambers, then I have no idea of where they would be right now. The fortress is basically a massive maze. If you don''t know exactly where you need to go you''re going to become lost rather quickly."

    "And what of Keith''s group? Has he said anything?" Cera asked no one in particular.

    Shana replied. "Their village is in chaos. Everyone is up in arms demanding answers, but the retired soldiers who saw the other village disappear in a flash don''t have any answers for them. So things are spiraling out of control there."

    "I''ll take care of it. When the people there see that I have personally arrived to assist them in their time of need, I''ll be able to persuade them to calm down. The problem is what comes after that. How fast will this ''Tengu'' attack us now that we''re moving Lady Aresa to a village close to it?" Euphemia said, making Seifer groan.

    Earlier Cera decided it was best to tell the two of them in private why Aresa was here. Seifer was outraged, as he should be, but the princess took it in stride apparently. My best guess is that she doesn''t give a shit about the Tengu when a real horror like the broodling is here infesting her soul and mind.

    "... Apologies, but I have no way of knowing what the Tengu Lord will do in response to such a bold action on our part. There is a one hundred percent chance it has already located her, and for us to move her so much closer to it, it may come and attack us personally, or use some other tactics against us. If Shana''s testimony is correct, then the Lord is aware that we know exactly where it is right now, so at the very least it should be suspicious of our current actions." Cera said.

    So ''anything could happen'' is her answer. I''d love to judge her for such a useless response, but I have the same damned useless answer when it comes to the broodling. If the Tengu directly attacks us, the broodling will use that opportunity to do something, there is no doubt about that. What it does though is anyone''s guess.

    <hr>

    For the love of fucking god, why does these caves continue to look the same? I''ve been keeping those knights at a specific distance for over an hour now, but the damned tunnels and caves continue to be the same size while also keeping to the same level of lighting. Normally time means nothing to me, and I can easily stay awake longer than the men behind me, leading to an easy victory on my side if they plan on following me to the point where they will need to rest. But I''m in a hurry to get back to the surface right now... And that''s apparently not the only problem, I''m seeing a new one pop up right now.

    A group of four-foot-tall green creatures with much pointier ears than me are sitting around a small fire, cooking a large rat-like monster over it.

    The last time I saw these things was that one time we advanced deep into the ground under Xelba. If they''re also underground here, they must be spread out over a large part of Urza.

    Moving to the other side of the cave, I sneak past the group, heading straight for the next tunnel. Right before I reach it I stop, placing the rifle on top of a nearby rock, aimed at the other side of the cave.

    I should''ve done this earlier, but after checking the gun and only finding ten bullets, I decided to keep it for emergencies. I was hoping I could find another tunnel out of here. One going up, not down... Instead, all I managed to do was waste an hour moving away from where I needed to be.

    A few minutes later the creatures went to divvy up the rat they just cooked. But before they can enjoy their banquet, their heads turn towards the tunnel I came in through earlier, listening intently for anything out of place. Soon after that, the green creatures grabbed their weapons and quickly got into position for whatever was approaching.

    I still can''t hear the knights at all. These little creatures must have some crazy good hearing.

    Eventually, the stomping of boots on the cave floor reached even me. Upon hearing this, the creatures duck low into their hiding spots. The two spear users are in front, with one in the back using a bow, and the last one holding a staff.

    What is it with the Tengu and these creatures using staffs? I''ve never seen anyone else use one for magic.

    The first thing that entered the cave wasn''t a knight, but a small ball of light. It shot straight out of the tunnel, sticking to the wall opposite it. At first I thought it was ''just a light source'', but that was immediately debunked. The ball began pulsing, sending out waves of something that I could feel radiating off of my aura. When it hit the greenlings, they instantly stood up and ran into the tunnel behind me.

    That must have been a probe... And surprisingly, the little green men are smarter than I remember. Back in Xelba they ran straight at us as if they had a death wish.

    Shouldering the rifle, I ran into the tunnel, following the greenlings. As I ran down the tunnel, I attempted to formulate a new plan, but upon exiting into the next part of the cave, I realized I no longer needed one. A much larger cavern opened up before me, revealing hundreds of greenlings, all preparing to meet the knights. Much to my shock, there were even a few ballistas on the far side of the cavern, elevated up enough to get a clear shot of anything exiting this tunnel.

    Even a knight gifted in defense will struggle to defend against that...

    One by one the weird jelly-like lamps around the cavern were doused, leaving the whole area rather dark. Seeing this, I ran towards one of the elevated wooden platforms and climbed up the shabby ladder, taking my place in between a few greenlings ducking below the wooden palisade.

    It wasn''t long before the same ball of light made its appearance again, pulsing over the front of the cavern. However, I could tell it was only reaching the front one-third of the greenlings here. Nobody on this platform was pinged by the thing. All of the greenlings stilled, waiting with their weapons drawn for the battle to come. However, ten minutes went by and nothing else happened. The two greenlings to my left began whispering to each other in an unknown tongue. While I didn''t understand the words, their confusion was evident. When the older greenling to their left looked at them, they both froze up and pretended they were never talking. As the minutes rolled by, I began to wonder if the knights found the situation too dangerous and called off the chase. But then a grey medium-sized sphere shot into the room, much like the ball from earlier, except this was a spell I recognized.

    They even have that spell? Only our best units in Xelba used it. And it looks like the greenlings don''t recognize it, seeing as how they''re all keeping their attention on the tunnel instead of the sphere.

    The sphere flashed out of existence, replacing itself with seven of the knights who were chasing me. As soon as they appeared, they launched a myriad of spells that they clearly had been channeling before the warp took place. A wall of fire appeared behind one of the greenling''s barricades, frying all those who were hiding behind it, while a hail of earth shards began raining down on the platforms opposite of the side I was currently on. Despite the ambush, the greenlings responded in kind almost instantly. Both the ballistas sadly hit the same target, but at least one of them was dead.

    One of the knights turned and yelled at the tunnel, "BALLISTA!!"

    Eight more knights charged out of the tunnel. This time only half of the knights were casting offensive spells, while two of them did their best to prevent the hail of arrows from killing their comrades. The remaining two were snipers, who promptly began picking off the greenlings in the back who were currently placing another arrow into both ballista. Seeing this, I removed my aura, taking aim at the closest sniper. The greenlings around me freaked out, looking to the old veteran on the left for guidance, who watched me intently as I shot the sniper right through his throat. The veteran then turned back around, continuing to shoot his bow at the knights below. That was good enough for the others apparently, as they immediately lost interest in me.

    I was aiming for that knight''s forehead... Thank god I still managed to kill him. I trained with guns in my soul realm sometimes for entertainment, but shooting one in the real world is completely different. The ones I made in my soul realm were perfect, too perfect. It didn''t account for the durability of the weapon, quality of the bullets, wind... Basically nothing thanks to my lack of knowledge concerning guns.

    "She''s on a platform over here, helping the Goblins!" A knight nearby yelled.

    Goblins is their name? Rather fitting honestly.

    While the knight''s magic(or abilities) were rather impressive, the goblins aren''t as weak as I was expecting. Putting aside how they weren''t prepared for that warp ambush, all the goblins I can see have proper ability barriers surrounding them, with the goblin casters creating a bunch of different visual effects over the only large goblin I''ve seen thus far. This one is about seven feet tall and covered in more scars than I can count. No armor or clothes on the top half of his body, with only a tight pair of leather shorts on his bottom half.

    As soon as the goblin mage finished channeling her last spell onto the goblin, she collapsed straight onto the ground. Upon seeing that, the large goblin bent down and entered a sprinting position, except its fingers were digging deep into the ground. One of the knights casting a directed frost spell saw the creature bend down. He canceled his spell, choosing to grab his kite shield strapped to his back instead. The second he readied the shield, the large goblin launched itself at the knight so fast I didn''t even see what happened. One second he was there, and the next the knight was crashing into the wall behind him. His nearby comrades didn''t panic in the least, instead they retaliated on the creature with a barrage of single-target spells and bullets. The bullets proved useless though. They were harmlessly destroyed right before they reached the goblin''s body. The yellow lightning streaking across its body was striking down any bullets that came near him, while all the spells were failing to penetrate his strangely green barrier. If anything, I swear it looked like it was getting stronger the more they hit it?

    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    The knights realized this as well, as they quickly stopped casting magic at the creature, choosing to draw their weapons instead. The sniper returned to firing at the ballista while a friend of his reinforced his party as he used his own body to prevent me from hitting the sniper. The large goblin barreled towards another knight, smashing him into the ground. He began punching his shield so hard that the knight''s body was cratering into the ground little by little.

    But his comrades weren''t just idly watching. One of the knights did a standard overhead swing attack at the goblin, which made the goblin laugh as he raised his arm to block it. However, much to the goblin''s surprise, his arm promptly fell off as the sword cleanly went through it. While the bullets couldn''t be enhanced, their weapons could. The mage must''ve enhanced the goblin''s physical strength beyond his limits while doing nothing for his defenses outside of that fancy yet limited ranged attack nullifier.

    A little strange that the large goblin didn''t seem to know about that though...

    The goblin tried jumping back, but a rope made of light whipped out from one of the knights, catching the creature in the air, causing him to fall straight onto the ground. Before he could recover, the knights were upon him, ending his life with little fanfare.

    On this end, the fight wasn''t going very well. As this was the area that was hurt the most by the ambush, the remaining goblins were struggling against the five remaining knights. After the ballista killed one, the other died as it tried hiding behind its shield. The goblins were focusing on him, keeping him pinned down until the ballista was reloaded. A massive bolt shot straight through the knight''s shield, pinning him to the ground as blood gushed out of his mouth. Unfortunately, it looked like that was all the help we were going to get from the ballista, as the last sniper had managed to kill the rest of the crew in the back.

    As I and the goblins nearby were shooting at one of the knights approaching our position, another knight jumped onto the platform from behind. He had his sword in his right hand already pulled back to his left shoulder as he landed. Upon landing he swung it backwards at me as a bright blue aura surrounded the blade. I dashed forward enough to grab his wrist with both hands, attempting to pull him to the ground as I kicked at his shins, but this man was a rock, he wasn''t moving at all.

    Damnit... It''s not even a physical barrier, he''s just purely that much more powerful than I am right now.

    As the knight pulled his left hand back to punch me, the two goblins nearby who were whispering earlier began stabbing at his face. In one swift motion, the knight closed his visor with his left hand and then headbutted the short swords, smashing them entirely. The slight aura around his armor shattered, suggesting its mana had been depleted, but it didn''t help in overpowering his enhanced strength at all.

    To my surprise, the goblins laughed upon seeing their short swords shattered. They leaped back towards the veteran, picked up another set of bows, and began firing down below again. The knight looked back at me, seeming just as confused as I was for a second before I felt him shake a little. The strength in his arm began to fade as the knight began coughing.

    "Fucking... Goblins...!!" He choked out, moments before he crumpled to the ground.

    Between the joints on the side of his knees, I could see a long needle poking out.

    Ahh, the veteran must''ve slipped in a needle laced with toxins. How he pierced through the knight''s enhanced body without alerting him is one hell of a mystery though.

    An explosion rang out from the other side of the field. I had no time to look though, as more knights were preparing to jump onto our platform. As I was preparing to flee, another idea came to me. The knight directly below the veteran bent down and enhanced his legs, preparing to jump. As he flew into the air, I leaped over with my legs fully enhanced and brought both my feet down onto the knight''s open-faced helmet. While his face had survived thanks to his enhancements, the speed at which he dropped was too much for his remaining mana. The man screamed in pain as both his armor and legs shattered. One of his comrades tried rushing over to help him, but the goblins began using a fire ability in unison, completely covering the fallen knight in fire.

    Far in the back, goblin reinforcements arrived, including two large goblins already infused with all their magical enhancements. Upon seeing that the commander whipped some kind of magic onto the ground that created a loud-sounding horn, which resulted in the remaining knights fleeing. The goblins began cheering and dancing at the sight of that. One of the large goblins even went over to the tunnel and bent over in front of it, smacking his ass at the exit. The goblins roared with laughter upon seeing that.

    The veteran nearby walked up to me, holding his hand out in a ''halt'' sign. I nodded, sitting down. The veteran smiled as I complied.

    With all the lights out I can get away from here easily, but hopefully I''m able to converse with them a little. I''d love to know an easier way out of here if there is one.

    A few minutes later one of the new arrivals climbed the ladder, a female goblin with a staff and robe. This one however was the first goblin I''ve seen with ornaments like jewelry.

    "Hello... Human?" She said, puzzled at the sight of me.

    "An Elf, but close enough. You can speak the common tongue?"

    "Yes. We used to have allies on the surface. Not anymore, but Teifas such as myself must continue to pass it down. You never know when we might need it. For example..." The girl smiles, motioning towards me.

    "Heh, true... I''ll tell you straight out, I''m the reason those knights came here. They were chasing me."

    The girl turns to the veteran, speaking something in their own tongue. He shrugs, saying only a few words in response.

    "He says ''That was obvious''. Humans, Fox-things, Wolf-things, Crotia, none of them come down here anymore. They have their vile Merman assault us in their stead."

    "I had the pleasure of meeting them earlier... They smell like sewage mixed with literal shit."

    The girl put a hand up to her mouth, holding in a laugh before apparently telling the others what I said. The two goblin archers laughed while the veteran nodded.

    "It is true~! They do smell like ''shit'' as you put it. Now can you tell us why those men were chasing you?"

    "Now that''s a tough question... I''m honestly not sure? I came here with a crew from another city after Kellog had requested their help in dealing with a crisis they are currently dealing with. Villages of people are disappearing completely, while other villages are burning down in an instant. I was investigating that when they jailed one of their own who was assisting me, and while I was breaking her out they attacked us. We got separated as we fled, and well... Here I am."

    The girl nods, relaying my words to the veteran. At some point during her speech, all three of the goblins look shocked. After she finished speaking, the veteran said something in return.

    "He wants to know if it''s true that they also have villages being burned to the ground. I admit, I also would like to know. We are plagued by the same problem. The village sentries don''t see or hear anything. They attempt to return home after their shift is over, and instead find the whole village is gone. Most of the time we never find the sentries either..."

    Now that was surprising to hear. Assuming she''s telling the truth that is.

    "The goblins are having the same problem huh... Yes, it is true that the nation of Kellog is being assaulted by the same phenomenon. Also, I have to ask, would you happen to know why entire villages are disappearing?"

    The girl scoffed. "No idea, but it''s the best news I''ve heard in a while. I''ll tell the elders later and they''ll throw a party for the whole ''kingdom''. We never go above, not anymore. We used to when the Crotia were still here, they were our allies, our friends... But they''re gone now. We learned so much from them, our elders still mourn their loss."

    Oh, so that''s why she called them ''Crotia'' instead of ''alligator-things'' like the other races. Surprisingly, she also knew about the werewolves... Did they used to come down here? I''m curious but I have more pressing concerns.

    "One last question. Do you happen to know a better way to the surface? I need to rush back, the others need to know that the Kellog is apparently planning to sacrifice us to those ''Merman''."

    The girl relayed my question to the veteran, who rubbed his chin in thought for a while before nodding. He waved for me to follow him as he descended the ladder.

    "Ahem, it appears he plans on showing you himself. Nice meeting you miss... Elf? He''ll guide you to the surface now." The girl bowed.

    "Nice to meet you too ''miss Goblin''. Oh, uh, are you planning on doing anything with the souls of those knights?"

    "No? They''ll disappear on their own soon enough, or they should? Not sure, there''s been something weird going on lately. Normally we need to rush to preserve our kin''s souls since we have our own rites involving their passing. Lately, their souls just sit there." The girl sighed, then continued. "Anyways, as far as the humans are concerned... I''ll use a phrase I was told to never use diplomatically. ''Fuck them''." The girl chuckled.

    Now this is perfect... I can only imagine the abilities they''re going to have. Looks like I won''t be so useless against the Tengu after all.

    I smiled and said my goodbyes to the female goblin, jumping off the platform and rushing over to the dead knights. One by one I ripped their souls out, feeding them to my core.

    I''d love to check these out before leaving, but the goblins around me appear to be extremely disgusted by what I just did. I can''t really blame them. It probably is disgusting seeing a human-like creature eating souls like an Eldritch would.

    Running over to the veteran, he immediately turns around and runs off towards a side tunnel that''s nowhere near where the goblin''s reinforcements came in from. As I follow after him, I probe the nine souls inside of me. Six begin to activate, with the remaining three staying dormant. They either had no abilities, or they had abilities related to barriers. Earlier, Tyra had a rather normal reaction to my lack of a barrier. I''m not sure why either, but whatever I am doesn''t allow me to create one, even through stolen abilities. Which is why I was so damn happy when I found this artifact armor. Having something that can negate damage is a godsend for me.

    <hr>

    We ran through multiple caverns for about an hour. On the way, we passed by several goblin regiments who were shocked to see one of their higher-ups leading a ''human '' around. Eventually, we went down a long slope for a few hundred meters before a decent-sized village came into view. Probably big enough to house three hundred goblins.

    "Elf." The veteran said.

    Looking at him I see him holding his hand out, waiting for me to shake it. I smile, reaching out and grabbing his hand. He let go moments later, pointing towards a tunnel nearby, saying only one word. "Kellog."

    "I see. Thank you for guiding me!"

    Unsure of whether he understood me, the veteran nodded and turned around, heading straight for the village. However, as I was turning to leave, something strange happened. The veteran literally disappeared.

    "What the...?"

    Staring at the village, I attempt to understand what had just happened. The whole village looks lively. Families are out and about working while the children play. By the river, I can see dozens of female goblins cleaning clothes. Near them, a blacksmith hammers away at a weapon he''s crafting, while in a small field to my right there are children creating flower crowns.

    I don''t understand... What did I just witness? The guards sitting about twenty meters in front of me didn''t react at all to the veteran blinking out of existence... Is that normal here? How could that be norm---

    A ten-foot-tall monster surrounded in flames appears directly in front of me mid-leap. Enhancing my legs I jump far off to the right, immediately activating my aura as I leave the ground. As I land in the ''field'' that was here moments ago with several children playing in it, I now notice it''s been completely burned to ashes.

    "Where?! Where did she go?! Did she leave...? No. Nobody would leave us... They need us!!" The monster yelled.

    What the hell is this thing?!

    ... Wait, it''s not just that. The whole village is on fire. This... This has to be the creature we''ve been looking for. Can it project its soul realm onto the real world? How the hell else would it be able to make it look like the whole village was fine until now?

    The tunnel we came in through and the one leading to the surface both burst into flames, cutting off my retreat. The monster stalks around looking for me, before putting its hands over its face and crying.

    "She won''t come out... She won''t come out... Why? Why do they always hide? We just... We just... Want to cook you a little!"

    The monster laughs maniacally before breaking into a fit of coughing.

    "... Something else... Something here? In our head... It should be burned!! Need to find it. Like the fishies... Annoying little fishies... Delicious when cooked!!"

    ... It''s clearly gone mad. It has the head of a lizard covered in brown fur, with a gorilla body and hawk-like feet. The whole thing makes me fucking sick. I don''t think I''ve ever seen anything this revolting before, and that includes the other realm...

    Behind a building, I can see the veteran crawling out from underneath it as the fire blazes on above him.

    He survived?! Shit, can I somehow save him from this thing?

    The monster walks away from me towards some more goblin bodies, scorching them till there is nothing left.

    "Can feel her! She''s here... Yet not here?" The monster torches another goblin home. "Why does she hide...? Ungrateful bitch!! Where would she be without us?! She needs us... Just like they did! They all needed us!! Yet she hides... Why, why, WHY?!"

    The monster leaps into the center of the village. A bright aura flares up around it soon after, growing in intensity with each passing second. Off to the side, I see that both the fires on the tunnels have disappeared.

    "We''ll find her... Oh yes, yes we will!!"

    Immediately I turn and run for the tunnel. On the way there a large wave of heat blasts outwards from the creature, washing over me completely as the smell of sulfur infuses the air. While the heat had hurt me a little, that wasn''t the most worrying part. It had completely destroyed my aura, which is going to need time to repair.

    The worst of all though is I felt the fucking monster try to place a cursed mark on me. It probably tagged the veteran and he doesn''t even know it.

    "There you are!! Clever little cunt... Think you''re smart, do you?! A little fire ought to fix her..." The monster said, sprinting directly towards me.

    Out of the corner of my eye, I can see the veteran goblin running towards the tunnel we first came in from. Before he reaches it, he turns to me and points at the monster, making a throat-cutting motion with his finger, then points towards the tunnel I''m running into as I lose sight of him.

    Is he going to bring goblins back to kill it? I hope he means it because I feel like I might be completely fucked here. That purge is a real problem too... The only bright side is that it didn''t hurt at all when it purged my aura. So whatever it just did was closer to an enhancement purge, like what Arkaios hit me with before.

    As I enter the tunnel I''m forced to jump over dozens of charcoaled bodies of all different sizes.

    Dear god...

    "NO, NO, NOOOOO!!! DON''T RUN, DON''T GO!! DON''T LEAVE US HERE!!!" The monster screams as it enters the tunnel, slowly gaining ground on me.

    I really am going to need a miracle. It may be time to just start throwing out abilities that I stole from the knights. Hopefully one of them can stall this monster long enough that I''m able to escape the underground. I''ll definitely be able to get away from this abomination in the pitch black darkness topside. It''s just a matter of whether I can get that far...

 Chapter 27 - Chimera

    "Where are you going?! Are you running for help...? You need us, not them!!"

    The tunnel ahead cuts sharply to the right, which poses no problem for me but the monster smashes right into the wall, stumbling for a bit before continuing its pursuit.

    So far all of these fast turns are the only reason this thing hasn''t caught up to me. I could over-enhance myself to outpace it, but I''d need to be absolutely positive that I''ll reach the surface before my mana hits rock bottom and my legs begin to give out. I just finished repairing them while the knights were chasing me earlier, I can''t believe I might have to do it again already.

    "Why them? Why not us...? Cheating slimy rag... She''ll change her tune when we catch her!"

    ... I need something else. All these twists and turns make it painfully obvious that this isn''t a straight shot up toward the ground, so over-enhancing is a horrible choice outside of emergencies.

    Raising my right hand, I pour a little mana into the first ability, just enough to create it and nothing more. A little bit of frost coats the top of my palm.

    Frost... Right, I do remember seeing a knight blasting a direct line of frost at the goblins.

    "We felt that! Planning to hurt us are you? Always hiding, always running... Spineless woman! Don''t worry, we''ll fix her... Oh yes, yes we will!"

    One by one I tested them as we passed through another sharply curved tunnel. Rope of light, the sonar ball of light, a strange metallic-like ball, lightning, and lastly one that activated but I couldn''t figure out what it did.

    The rope of light I saw before is the one I was hoping for the most. Of course, it still depends on how fast the monster can burn or purge it off...

    I cursed under my breath as the end of the tunnel came into sight, revealing a large open cavern like the one I fought the knights in earlier.

    End of the line... I won''t be able to outrun it here. Whatever I do needs to work here, or that''s it for me.

    As soon as we both entered the cavern I heard the monster almost imperceptibly whisper, "Now."

    Between that and the massive spike in aura behind me, alarm bells were ringing in my head. With no time for even a medium enhancement, I put what I could into my legs and leaped to the right. The monster blitzed forward as fast as the large goblin did earlier, leaving a trail of fire in its wake as it smashed into the pillar ahead. I thought I had avoided it, but then I noticed the large clawed wounds on my left torso, going from my waist up to above my chest. Black blood had been pouring out but my body sealed it up almost immediately. The only saving grace is that my left arm was somehow undamaged.

    "GAH, stop struggling!! It will be over quickly, we promise... And then you''ll be with us forever! So many friends waiting, you''ll be... Happy. Oh so very happy! Just like they are!!" The monster said as it ripped its right arm out from the pillar.

    Before it was fully free I summoned the rope of light, whipping it towards the creature while imagining it wrapping around its'' legs, but instead, it smacked right into the back of its ankle, searing it deep.

    "ARGH...!! Why?!"

    THIS is why I test out new abilities in my soul realm before using them in combat. Damnit this is not the time or place to be ''figuring things out''.

    As it ripped its left arm out from the pillar, I summoned the rope for one last try, tossing it to the right of the pillar this time while imagining it wrapping around it. It was rather sloppy and used up more mana than I had hoped because of how much rope I needed, but it began wrapping around the large pillar, tying the creature to it.

    "What? No... No, no, NO! YOU WILL NOT LEAVE US HERE!! WE WILL NOT ALLOW IT!!!" The monster said as it began burning brightly.

    Not waiting around to see how long it held the creature, I sprinted past the pillar towards the tunnel at the far end of the cave. However, on the way, I saw some more Merman flooding out of the lake near the tunnel entrance.

    Holy shit are these things everywhere?! No wonder why the goblins hate them. I''ve only known of their existence for a day and I already want to exterminate them.

    Halfway towards the tunnel, I smelled the familiar scent of sulfur in the air as a bright orange light flashed behind me. Glancing back I saw the monster dash out from behind the pillar, continuing its pursuit.

    So it can purge it off, as I suspected... How annoying.

    The Merman were preparing to cut me off at the tunnel, but as soon as they saw the monster they practically fell over themselves as they sprinted back towards the lake.

    "Fishies!!"

    To my surprise, the monster veered off towards the right so it could cut off the merman from escaping. Once it was in range, the monster stretched its arm out towards them, incinerating them one by one.

    Seeing that and remembering the goblin village, it appears that its burn ability has a roughly five-foot range from where its palm is. That''s gonna be very important if I can find my allies. I hope their barriers can withstand it... It''s going to be impossible to avoid it entirely with how fast it is. Also, it apparently absorbs the souls of anything it incinerates. I can see the merman''s souls ripping out towards the monster. I saw it back in the village too, but at the time I was preoccupied trying to figure out how the hell to get out of there.

    As I''m sprinting into the tunnel, I could hear the monster stomping in my direction.

    "Running, running, RUNNING!! That''s all she does!"

    For the first time yet, I was in a tunnel heading up, which also gave me another idea. The monster entered the tunnel, barreling up towards me at the same ludicrous speed as before. It took about a minute for us to reach the top, with the monster nearing me by the time we got there. I poured eighty percent of my remaining mana into the frost spell right before I reached the exit, turning around and blasting it outwards under the monster''s feet. As it slipped into the air, I made sure to shoot the ground behind it as well. After that, I coated as far down as I could see before turning back around and sprinting into the next cave.

    "NOOOO!! DON''T GO!! YOU NEED US!!!!" The monster screamed while expelling heat around itself, but all that did was melt the ice and create a giant water slide. It tried digging its claws into the side of the tunnel but it was pointless. Very few places underground can be damaged after all. Most of the rock down here is damn near invincible. A shame the pillar back there wasn''t... The monster would have severely damaged itself if it was.

    "WE''LL FIND YOU! OH YES WE WILL!!"

    <hr>

    About an hour later I began to hear a very familiar stomping sound accompanied by more inane ramblings.

    "Vile, disgusting, repugnant, loathsome...!!! No... She doesn''t know better. She has yet to learn... But she will... Yes, she will!!"

    Ever since I lost the creature it has mostly been a straight shot with very few turns, so I should be close to the surface if I compare this to how long I was running underground earlier.

    Earlier I tried coating another slope in ice when I heard the creature approaching again, but this time it wasn''t deterred at all.

    Hmm... I''ll risk a little over-enhancement... I have to be close to the exit at this point.

    I had one last ''just in case'' scenario planned out, but it''ll put me behind by several hours or longer. I''ve passed by a few merman lakes with my aura up and it hit me. They might hear me in the water, but I think I still have a higher chance of surviving in there as opposed to fighting the monster alone. It sensed me in the goblin village when I had my aura up, so hiding in these caverns is pointless.

    Speeding up a little, I sprint through the caverns for another fifteen minutes before the last tunnel opens up to a vast snow-filled plain and a blackened sky.

    Thank god finally!!

    Knowing it''ll see my prints, I instead leap onto the bare mountain, jumping higher and higher until I reach a place far enough away for me to feel comfortable. Ripping some blood out from my used-to-be sealed wound, I quickly create a large piece of cloth and stick it to the mountain. Infusing it, it quickly camouflages, appearing as if it''s just part of the mountain. Crawling inside, I alter it so I can see out, making it transparent on this side only.

    About forty seconds later the monster comes rushing out of the exit, looking every which way for me. It marches around looking between the snow and mountain for a while before noticing something else that catches its attention. A village far off in the distance, creating just enough light to give me vision here.

    Normally I can see the other village next to it as well though... Seifer said they were spaced out enough to assist one another, but they''re slowly adding on to each village with the intention of merging them all into one large city. That''s their plans for the future anyway, who knows what will happen now. With that said, why can''t I see the village to my right, but the one in front of me is plainly visible? It can''t be the disappeared village I was at earlier, those lights should still be running...

    "New friends!!" The monster yells, sprinting off towards the village.

    Well, I knew that was going to happen if I led it to the surface. I can''t imagine people will be happy about what I did, but now we know where it is and can kill it... Wait, if it''s been up here torching villages, how the hell is it getting back underground? This thing doesn''t appear to be very smart. If it was up here burning his new ''friends'', he wouldn''t stop at one village and go back underground... At least that''s not the vibe I get from the monster.

    Wasting no time, I put my body to sleep so I can heal and regen my mana. Entering my soul realm, I test out the new abilities one at a time. The rope is as simple as I thought it would be, I just failed miserably back there on my first try. The lightning is rather impressive and straightforward, but there is massive self-damage inflicted when I use it. Thanks to what I am it didn''t harm me much, but I''m kind of feeling bad for the knight who had this ability. I saw nobody using lightning or electricity, so he must''ve still been struggling to upgrade his barrier to prevent self-inflicted damage. He had a rather powerful ability he was unable to use... Poor bastard.

    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    The sonar ball is interesting but probably won''t help me much here. The last two I''ll have to save for another time. I can''t figure out the purpose of the metallic ball or the last one that activates but appears to do nothing. I may never figure it out and end up just using his soul for emergency mana. Wouldn''t be the first time. I''ve acquired two abilities in my entire life and I can use neither. The first one I can''t even figure out how to activate, and the second one can activate when my aura is up, but hell if I know what it does. I gave up ages ago trying to figure it out.

    After I was fully healed and capped on mana I leaped off the mountain, sprinting towards the village in the distance.

    It looks fine, but I know that''s just an illusion the abomination is showing outsiders. I''m jealous... That ability would be amazing with my skillset.

    And sure enough, as soon as I entered the village it turned into a hellish version of itself that I saw moments ago. I appeared next to some people who were banging on an invisible barrier blocking their path, the one showing illusions to those outside of it.

    So that''s why nobody just runs from the monster when it assaults villages... They can''t. It dropped this illusion in the goblin village so it could attack me, but there must be a reason it didn''t just activate it again while chasing me.

    Putting my hand up to the barrier, my hand goes right through it.

    Huh? Why am I fine but these people aren''t...? Wait, maybe it''s related to the curse...

    A man flies through the nearby home, sliding through the mud right up to my feet.

    "Fucking hell what is that thing?!"

    Removing my aura I call out to him.

    "Lindon?"

    He whips his head around. "Reimia?! What are you doing here?"

    "I was chased by that monster for over an hour and ended up here. So this must be where Keith is stationed?"

    Lindon stood up, pulling his pants back up. "Yeah, he''s fighting it now... Wait, you brought it here?! What the fuck is wrong with you?!"

    "This is the creature you guys were brought here to hunt. Don''t worry, you can thank me later."

    "THANK YOU?! This fucking...!" Lindon suddenly stops fuming and looks down. "Huh? Right... Sorry. Uh, Nisha told me to stop, saying ''We don''t have time for this''. She''s right, you''re here to ''help'' right?"

    "That''s the plan. Nisha can hear through you, right? Here is what I''ve learned. The monster needs to put its palm within five feet of you to scorch you, and when it stops moving to channel a bright orange aura around itself, that''s a purge it''s about to cast, which has a massive area of effect. Make sure you remove your barrier when it''s casting that, because it''ll rip it away, making you lose access to the ability for a while."

    "For real? Shit... It''s on Keith right now! I need to hurry back." Lindon said, turning around and sprinting past the home he flew into before.

    Following behind him around the home, we came out to a large open area that was probably meant as a gathering square. It''s devoid of people aside from Keith''s group, but the ground is littered with charcoaled corpses. Keith is currently backing up as Albel breathes a long line of fire on the monster. To my surprise, the monster is flailing around screaming.

    "IT BURNS! IT BURRNNNS!! IT BURNS SO... SO VERY... GOOD!" The monster yells, absorbing the fire before breathing it back out towards Albel. Right before it hits him he turns into a blue ball, shooting off toward the home I just ran by. Ten seconds later he comes running out of the building, fuming.

    "DAMNIT!! I''m useless against this fucking thing if it can absorb my fire!"

    I walk over to him, yelling so he can hear me over all the madness going on. "Albel! I''m not in a position to give orders, but can you get a vantage point and watch out for anything strange? You''ve heard of the broodling right? I don''t know if it can see through this illusion, but if it can, it might use the local citizens or knights to hit us from behind. Plus, it probably knows exactly where your sister is, given her strong soul sense."

    Surprisingly, Albel calmly listened to me and nodded. Jumping on top of the home he just came out of, keeping his eyes on everything around that home.

    He has a mana line coming out of him that goes directly into that home, just like Lindon does. She must be in the basement of this home... We need to keep the monster away from it.

    The monster dashes towards Keith, raising its palm towards him. Instead of backing away, Keith puts mana into his blade, choosing to attack instead, and the reason is obvious when I see fire surrounding the barrier Lindon placed on him instead of Keith himself. As Keith slashed at the monster, it pulled its arm back in time but still took a large amount of damage to its upper thigh. Even I could see the blood pouring out from here as it jumped backward.

    "Why do they always fight?! They always resist us... Why? Why?! Maybe they are dumb? Yes, oh so very dumb... Poor, poor Human... He''ll understand soon though!!"

    The monster slaps the open wound on its thigh, somehow sealing it up instantly. After that it immediately brings its fists up in a criss-cross pattern over its face, channeling its iconic orange aura.

    "THAT''S IT LINDON!" I yell out.

    Hearing that, Lindon immediately removes his barrier from Keith. Off in the distance, I can see the blue aura around Keith''s blade disappear too just as the monster explodes, washing the entire area in a bright orange light while burying everything in the smell of sulfur. Before the explosion had even finished expanding, the monster charged toward Keith with the same lightning speed he tried on me earlier. I thought Keith was going to turn into a blue ball and disappear, but instead, he kicked the ground with his right foot at almost the same time the monster''s aura exploded, barely avoiding the monster as it blitzed past him.

    Damn, his reaction speed is rather amazing. I guess there''s a reason he was called a hero...

    "HOW?! Twice... We missed twice today... No one dodges that! You''re making us very very angry...!!" The monster looks down, closing its eyes. "Enough. You are not our friends... Now we eat you!!"

    The monster''s body begins expanding. Its'' head, torso, and legs all increase in size, taking the creature from ten feet tall to fifteen feet tall as its muscles bulge in size as well. After transforming it immediately leaps high into the air, dropping down onto Keith who tries to dodge again, but he is far too slow now compared to the monster''s new speed. The monster''s fist was only a few feet from Keith''s head when Lindon''s barrier sprung up around him.

    The fist connected with the top of the barrier, cracking it a little, which apparently made Keith believe he was fine to counterattack, as I could see a blue aura forming around his blade. However, orange light flared up around the monster''s fist, making the barrier shatter. Keith must have seen the orange light and immediately reacted because he managed to just barely dodge the monster''s fist that was now buried deep into the ground. Soon after, the ground quite literally exploded, sending Keith flying into the tavern behind him.

    "Shit! It purged my barrier with its fist... Did you know about this too Rei?!" Lindon said without looking back.

    "No! It must be something it can do after transforming!" I yelled back over the sounds of screaming and buildings collapsing as the fire consumed them.

    There has to be drawbacks to that transformation, or it could''ve just transformed and easily caught me earlier.

    Activating my aura I run towards the monster, stopping just close enough to be in range for what might come next.

    Either it runs in after Keith, or Keith runs out of there to avoid getting buried in the building. Either way, I''ll be ready... Well, as a third option Nisha could drag him back, which might not be a bad idea given the situation.

    The monster raises its'' right hand, creating a massive fireball above it. As the monster is pulling its'' hand back, Keith appears out of the home, already mid-air with a fully enhanced sword pulled back over his head. I drop my aura, whipping two ropes of light with both hands toward each of the monster''s wrists. Sure enough, the monster was bringing its left hand up to block, while raising its right hand to smash the fireball right into him. If that lands, Keith will be the first one needing Arkaios to resurrect him.

    The ropes successfully wrap around both wrists as I over-enhance my arms and pull hard on them backwards. It was sadly barely enough to stop the monster, and only because I took it by surprise.

    "WHAT?!" The monster yells, trying to overpower me, but Lindon has already grabbed the ropes and is helping me keep it in place. Out of options, the Monster tries leaping back, but Keith is already too close. It avoided getting its head cut in two, but a very deep cut went down its entire torso, spraying blood all over Keith.

    "GGRRRRRRAAHHH!!! ENOUGH MEANS ENOUGH!!!"

    While in the air from its leap backward, the monster raises its right leg high into the air, burning it a bright red. Upon seeing that, all of us scattered in different directions, while Albel rushed into the home he was standing guard on. I followed after him, chasing him down the stairs into the basement, barely making it as both the ground floor and second floor exploded outwards.

    Looking up I see Albel laying on top of a stone casket, pushing his barrier to the max.

    There was no need for that since the fire didn''t reach here, but he made the right call. Better safe than sorry since his sister has no barrier and no way to enhance herself. A pure support like her is so rare... They''re honestly really lucky to have her.

    Reactivating my aura, I ran up the stairs to gauge the situation. The area around the monster in a one-hundred-meter radius had been completely incinerated. The people banging on the barrier behind me were quite literally nothing but bones piled next to each other.

    To my left, I could see Lindon peeking his head above another basement entrance, fear written all over his face as he glanced around.

    I don''t blame him. Even if they can revive, it will still hurt like hell being cooked alive. Also, I don''t know if they figured it out, but whatever this thing burns, it immediately absorbs their soul too. From my understanding, the souls of Keith''s group are now tethered to Arkaios. No matter how powerful the enemy is, they can''t overpower Arkaios, so they should never have to worry about their souls being destroyed or absorbed. Although, even knowing that I doubt they can erase their fear of a monster like this that easily. It''s going to take many years of getting used to their new immortal forms before they can erase their fears even a little.

    The monster rips its leg out of the ground and bends over, breathing heavily as it gasps for air.

    I knew it... This transformation is too powerful. Its'' body can''t handle it.

    "What is this madness?!" A familiar-sounding voice yelled.

    Looking to my right I see Euphemia nearby, along with everyone else who''s supposed to be at the manor. Deactivating my aura, I sprint over to them as the monster glances back at the new arrivals.

    "Idiot! Don''t draw its attention like that! This is the creature responsible for all the villages being burned down, and it''s very powerful. Did you see where I just came from? Go there right now and hide, princess. It''s too late to leave now that you''re inside its barrier, which I still suspect is an expansion of its own soul realm."

    "Rei?! What happened to Tyra? Is she here with you?"

    "We got separated in the mountains. If she escaped, and I wouldn''t be surprised if she did since they came after me instead, then she''s at your manor. Your staff will tell her where you went, so please for the love of god go hide!"

    Euphemia looks shocked for a moment, then looks over at the monster who is now forcing itself to stand. She quickly nods at me and runs off towards Albel who is waving her in.

    Ishar walked up to me. "Give me the rundown."

    "It can torch you within five meters of its palm, maybe closer now that it transformed. When you see an orange light around its body or its fist immediately cancel any abilities you have running, because it will purge them for a while. Also, expect any enhancements to be purged as well. Dodge the best you can, because you won''t be able to defend. Its speed level is extremely high too. Most importantly though is that it transformed. Did you see it struggling for air a moment ago? Keith hurt it bad but I think it''s struggling to maintain its new form."

    Ishar nods. "I''ll lock it down. Cera, Alicia, and this Keith fellow should be able to finish it off. If it''s as powerful as you say, it will probably only be frozen for one second tops." He looked back at Alicia. "This is it, your first chance to prove yourself. I can see how nervous you are already, but just do it like you did in your soul realm. Wait for my shout, and then attack it, understand? That''s it, just watch me and follow up."

    Alicia nods, but I can see her visibly shaking from here.

    On the other side of the village, a massive meteor appears out of nowhere in the sky as it crashes through the monster''s barrier, destroying it completely. Panicked screams erupt from the village as the massive rock hits the ground and begins rolling forward, killing anyone in its way. About halfway through the village it exploded, knocking everyone here down onto the ground while showering the entire area in shrapnel. Barriers flared to life around me while I burned through mana enhancing myself.

    As the dust settled, I heard Cera almost literally growl as she said one single word. "Tengu...!!"

    Just as she said, on the far end of the village stood a black and white forty-foot tall raven-like eldritch, brandishing a staff the size of a tree.

 Chapter 28 - Chimera part 2

    "WHY?! WHY DOES THE BIRD INTERFERE?!" The monster screams.

    Ishar looked back at us. "Ideas?"

    "Rei, how was the battle going with this monster? Can Keith''s group win?" Cera asked.

    "Yeah, they can beat it. I''m gonna stick around and help them, then join up with your group afterward."

    It would be a different story if the monster could handle its new form perfectly, but that''s obviously not the case here. It''s mostly recovered from the exhaustion it was showing moments ago, but it was by no means a minor problem for the creature. It''s going to become more and more exhausted as this goes on, so all we need to do is survive long enough while capitalizing on the moments it needs to rest.

    Cera nods. "Leave the monster to those who were already fighting it then. The rest of us will do what we came here to do." Cera looks around, then yells at Albel. "Where is Blackwall?!"

    "Huh?!" Albel yelled back, genuinely looking confused by the question. "Uh, Blackwall has never been here!"

    "What?! We were told he was coming here!"

    Strange... But that does explain why I haven''t seen him since our first dinner here. Actually, didn''t he say there was a bunch of Guardians sent ahead of our group as well? I haven''t seen a single Guardian here except Cid...

    Cera sighed. "Fine, we''ll do it without him, even though we really need his ability right now damnit." Looking around, Cera spots some trees and points at them. "I''m heading there. As we discussed before, I''ll follow your lead Ishar."

    Ishar nods. "Alright you lot, you''re with me. We''re going to try and pull the Tengu away from the village. For whatever reason it appears to be focused on killing citizens right now so we''re going to wrap around the monster and attack the Tengu from the mountain-side, alright? That way it''ll stay away from Cera as well."

    Ishar runs off toward the way I entered the village with almost everyone following behind him. Cera ran towards the trees she pointed at earlier, and Shana for some strange reason ran to where Albel was.

    Aresa walks up to me. {Be safe okay? I''ll see you again soon.}

    "Sooner than you think. Once this monster is dead I''m going to need your help."

    Aresa tilts her head, staring up at me with no new words appearing on her board.

    "You''ll find out soon enough, now go hide. Looks like the monster is done ranting about the Tengu and I can see Keith approaching again."

    Aresa meekly nods. {Okay... See you soon.}

    Seeing her here around all these dead bodies gave me a good idea of how to provide support against the Tengu. People aren''t going to like it... They''ll probably be disgusted when they find out what I did. Aresa and Albel will see it first hand though, so I''ll get a good preview of any future reactions that will be coming my way.

    The monster looks at Keith. "Still alive... Rodents! No more... No more alive... Soon." It pauses several times while talking to suck in air, clearly struggling to breathe.

    Off to the side, I can see Lindon crawling out of the cellar. Once he''s on ground level, he raises his hand towards Keith to put his barrier on him again, but barely a second later the monster appears in front of him, punching the left half of his torso off completely. I don''t know where his blood, bones, or heart went, but they''re nowhere near here.

    Aresa freaked out a little after she saw that, picking up the pace as she ran towards Albel who was currently hurling every curse word he could at the monster.

    Even if he knows he can revive his friend in a few months, it can''t be easy seeing that. It''s their first death after becoming branded, but they''ll have to get used to this eventually. Lindon truly is safe too, I felt his soul disappear immediately after the punch landed. It would''ve felt completely different if the monster had absorbed him. Also, surprisingly, despite how fast the monster had moved, Nisha had tried saving him. I saw a blue shimmer appear around Lindon''s body before the monster had finished kicking off at him, but she was too late sadly. It was already impressive enough that she could react at all.

    The monster begins buckling at the knees, struggling to stand up. Seeing this I pump the lightning bolt with every bit of mana I have left. Raising my hand, I point at the monster, focusing the ability at the end of my finger. Sensing something is off, the monster whips its head around at me. It tries dodging to the right as the bolt fires, but it''s too late. The bolt practically explodes from my finger, propelling me backward into the snow. As I hit the ground I could see the bolt slam into the monster''s chest, launching it much further back than I had flown.

    Seeing this, Keith enhances himself and sprints towards the monster. Upon reaching it, he tries cutting it in half while it''s still unable to stand up. In response the monster raises its left hand at him, creating another massive fireball above it. Keith tries sprinting around to the other side but the monster is somehow keeping the fireball directly between him and Keith at all times. If Keith hits it he''ll be the only one damaged, maybe even killed, so there''s nothing he can do while the monster heals itself.

    While that was happening I was running towards the cellar Aresa had just dropped down into. After reaching it I immediately jump down and rush over to Aresa.

    "Infuse please!"

    Wasting no time, she grabs my hand and fills me up with mana. After hitting the cap I try running off again but she grabs me hard with both hands. I was surprised at first but then I realized she''s capping the artifact armor too which has been completely drained ever since those rangers shot me.

    "... Thank you. I forgot about that."

    Aresa smiles, then waves me off. Behind her, I can see Shana sitting down in a meditation pose as a strange aura expels outwards from her.

    Ready to fight again, I jump back up onto the ground and see that Keith is still trying to get past the massive fireball.

    The lightning soul was gone just from that one attack, so that leaves me with... Ahh that one, there''s only half left but might as well use it. I am dealing with a fire-loving creature after all.

    Dashing towards the monster, it reacts almost instantly by creating a fireball in its other hand. Before it can fully form, I blast a large cone of frost at its face. The monster panics and brings the medium-sized fireball into the path of the cone. It does block it, but that leaves his other side wide open. Sprinting to that side while he''s still blocking the cone of ice, I raise an over-enhanced foot and kick directly into the side of the monster''s elbow on its right arm that it''s currently using to guide the first fireball.

    The monster screams out in pain as its arm snaps sideways, losing control of the fireball at the same time. Surprisingly it doesn''t explode when it lands in the snow, instead choosing to just roll around harmlessly.

    It must need a stronger impact or the monster has to command it to explode?

    Seizing upon the opportunity, Keith finally goes in for a fully enhanced attack, aiming right at the monster''s face.

    Quickly raising both feet, the monster kicks hard into the ground, launching itself backward across the snow. We both chased after it but the damned thing was moving at a shockingly fast speed. By the time we reached it, it had apparently healed enough to stand, as it welcomed us both with an overhead double-fist slam into the ground, engulfing the area in a sea of fire. Keith leaped backward but I pushed on, punching the monster in the side of its face hard enough to make it reel sideways.

    In a flash, the monster turned its head back towards me with its mouth wide open. Inside its mouth, a small sun-like fireball was spinning madly as it bathed the area in a bright red light, just like what Jasper had created before. Before I could find out what he had planned for the fireball, a sword pierced its chest, going all the way through.

    "GRAAHHHH!!!" The monster screamed as it leaped back a little, ripping the sword out and breaking it under its foot.

    "O-Omma... It hurts... We just... We just..." The monster began crying while glaring at Keith.

    Omma...? Never heard that word before.

    Keith pulls out his only replacement sword as a blue aura shimmers around his entire body. At first, I thought Nisha was pulling him back, but this was apparently something else, as Keith began moving much quicker than before. He was on top of the monster in a flash, but it still wasn''t enough to overcome the creature, as it was leagues ahead of us in speed and strength. Keith slashed at the monster over and over while the monster blocked all of his attacks with its enhanced forearms. With every block though, blood spilled out of its chest.

    I attempted to circle around the monster, but it would kick off sideways whenever I reached its backside. After about fifteen seconds I gave up and attacked its left side while Keith kept up the pressure on its right. With me, it could kick off and escape if it wanted, but not with how fast Keith was right now. It stood its ground, blocking us both from each side while trying to counterattack when it could, but it wasn''t easy for it to attack sideways, and its chest wound was looking more dire with every passing second. It was unable to focus on recovering with both of us attacking it.

    Unsure of how much mana Keith had left nor how long it''ll take for the monster to bleed out, we kept attacking until I was nearly tapped on mana. Suddenly the monster burst into flames, but I immediately saw why it didn''t want to do that before. The wound on its chest opened even more as a result of forcing itself to expel mana outwards while it still had a gaping wound. The fire was much hotter than the fire it hit me with earlier. As a result, we both had no choice but to retreat. However, as it raised its left hand, I thought back to how it slapped its thigh wound closed when Keith damaged it before. Keith must have realized this too because I saw him gritting his teeth in frustration.

    Neither of us could approach it though, so we watched on as it attempted to fix the only lethal damage we had done to it so far. As its hand was halfway down, several knives jammed into the back of the monster''s skull, causing it to scream wildly.

    Far in the back, I saw one of Shana''s clones running away, apparently having been the culprit. Seizing upon what he saw as the best opportunity yet, Keith pumped everything left he had into his blade as Nisha''s aura shimmered a little brighter than before. The monster was so damaged that it didn''t even notice Keith coming its way as it reeled forward, trying to dig the knives out of the back of its head. All it took was one large angled slash across the monster''s chest, and with little to no fanfare, it fell backward into the snow, giving no resistance whatsoever.

    As Keith audibly sighed with relief, the same barrier from earlier sprung up around us, except this one was much smaller in size. This one was about one hundred meters in diameter, and unlike the last one, it was showing an illusion to those inside the barrier. What we saw was nothing horrific though, if anything, the view in front of us was quite jarring considering the situation we were just in.

    "What the...?" Keith said.

    Yeah... I''m not entirely certain of what to make of this yet either, but the monster is looking over at the four beings in this illusion with tears in its eyes. An old Asian woman is cradling a tall lizard monster''s head, humming a lullaby to it as it sleeps. While a massive gorilla and hawk lay down nearby. Just like the lizard, they too are sleeping while listening to the lady.

    <hr>

    Kim Sung-Ryung never wanted for anything. Even as a child, she was emotionless, feeling nothing for her peers or their petty social-based hierarchies and the drama that ensued.

    ''Hyena''s fighting for scraps'' she thought to herself one day as she watched yet another vocal battle taking place in her high school class. She wanted no part of any of it.

    However, years later when her family set her up with an arranged marriage, much to everyone''s surprise(including hers), she accepted immediately.

    ''Why did I do that...?'' For days, even weeks on end she wracked her brain trying to understand it. Deep down she knew why though. It wasn''t pure disdain she felt for her peers, what she really felt was something much deeper that ate away at her with each passing day. Envy. She envied those who could love another. On some level she wanted to experience it, that feeling which seemed to move the entire world aside from a few stragglers like her.

    However, it was for nothing. No matter how much time passed, she felt nothing for the man she married, nor the baby boy they had created. Passing the duties off to a maid, she had all but considered a life of happiness nothing more than a passing whim her younger self had. A childish fantasy... Nothing more. From there on forward she focused solely on advancing her studies, intent on becoming the most respected eldritch researcher known in Zhegu.

    At the age of sixty-two, she had achieved just that. In fact, she was so well known, that a large corporation from the planet Aetheria had approached her, asking her to take care of a private project they had been planning for years. They wanted her to take care of three eldritch lords who had lost their god. They had already discovered that the souls of lords change once their god is dead. What they wanted to know this time, is how much they change, and what happens when multiple lords from different gods are kept together for long periods of time.

    She was intrigued, very intrigued. The amount of time required was quite extensive, but the money they were offering coupled with the fact that she''d be the first one to be doing a study like this had compelled her to accept their offer right there on the spot.

    Two weeks later three large containers showed up. It was a struggle to get the creatures into their cages, but eventually, they were settled in. The lizard had attempted to burn the bars while the gorilla tried ripping them apart, but the company who hired her had already prepared specific cages for each lord. There was no way they were going to break out of these cages.

    "They''re fascinating mother... Don''t worry, if you die I''ll take care of the project in your stead. I won''t let your last project be a failure." Her son said, purposely speaking in the common tongue for their foreign guests.

    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    "We are very glad to hear that Mr. Hyon. Our CEO is positive he won''t be disappointed. He was more than happy to agree to our proposal when we mentioned your names as the two we were offering this duty to."

    Her snake of a son smiled and bowed to the gentlemen. After the men left, her son fired off one expletive after another directed at the men who chose her out of hundreds of people they could have chosen.

    ''Stupid boy... No, he''s not a boy anymore, is he?''

    For Kim, the boy was nothing but a mistake from her past. Over the years he created one problem after another, distracting her from her work. Her husband had become fed up with both of them, divorcing her for a much younger woman, whose name Kim had never bothered learning. Eventually, her son had followed in her footsteps, Kim suspected to gain her approval, and annoyingly the boy proved he was very good at any job he did, including hers. She wanted to be proud of him, she wanted to be happy that her very own son was good enough to work under her. Instead, all she felt was... Emptiness.

    Days rolled by, turning into weeks, and eventually months, until finally a drastic change took root in the experiment. The three lords that were hell-bent on killing each other, were now out of their cages and relaxing together.

    ''Normally we''d have to shock them and drag them back into their cages so they could heal after attacking each other... But this... This!!''

    Kim was ecstatic. Up till this point, there had been zero change in the monsters, absolutely none. No biological changes including DNA, nothing to their soul, nothing regarding their personalities... It was all amounting to nothing. Yet here they are, five months twelve days, and seven hours later, and they''re socializing together as if they were part of the same hive. Later that day a soul scan was done again, and sure enough, there were signs that all three of them shared similarities in their souls.

    The company that hired her was also very pleased to hear the news. There were some problems on Aetheria currently so they wouldn''t be able to come check for a few months, but they wanted to be there for the next phase of the project, so they asked her to hold off on it. She agreed, not feeling dejected in the least. You can''t do this line of work without being patient after all.

    One other thing happened that surprised Kim. Now that the creatures were being friendly with each other, they had wondered what it meant for the people who were always here too. After some experimenting, much to everyone''s shock, the creatures were not aggressive towards those who had been here the most during the creatures'' stay. However those who were barely here were treated with hostility.

    It began with a simple emotion. Curiosity. Kim had always been curious, that''s why she was a scientist after all. At first, she would merely eat her meals down in the observatory while the monsters ate on the other end. However, one day, they began eating right next to her table. At the sight of this, Kim found herself feeling something new, something she had never felt before.

    She tried explaining it logically, but she knew this was different. She found herself wanting to be near the creatures, for reasons she couldn''t explain, and that''s exactly what she did.

    Little by little, she spent more and more time in the observatory with the monsters, doing things that horrified all those who worked under her. For instance, one day she smiled when she saw the lizard happily playing with the toy she had brought in the day before. A smiling Kim did not exist to these people, nor anyone who ever knew her. At first, they were taken aback by the situation, but as the days went on and the mood in the laboratory grew lighter, everyone accepted the new Kim and even appreciated how much easier she was to approach.

    One day the gorilla had asked a mundane question. It wanted to know if Kim needed them. Kim was so struck that for the first time in her life, she cried a little. "Yes! Of course I need you! We all need you silly! You three don''t know just how much you are loved by the world..." She was lying at the time, but she fully intended to make that a reality. ''If the world were to realize that you don''t need to hunt down wayward lords, and you can even integrate them into society... My god, this is the find of the century. They''ll have no choice but to allow me to let them live with me'' she thought to herself as she tickled the gorilla, making him laugh.

    It was at this point that Kim stopped going home completely. She had a whole bedroom set brought into the observatory, with three other massive custom mattresses laid out nearby. Now this kind of weirded people out when she began sleeping next to the monsters, but they still loved the new Kim compared to the old one, so nobody said anything.

    There was however one person who did not see the new Kim in a positive light, her son. Whether he realized it or not, he spent his entire life struggling to get her approval. Just once he wanted her to look at him the way she looked at the monsters, but it never happened. He began complaining about how she was ruining the experiment, but only his two friends in the laboratory had agreed with him. Not because they actually agreed, but because they wanted to be on his good side when he took over the lab.

    The complaints of her son meant nothing to her, however, what did matter to all involved, was when she canceled the experiment, telling the company who hired her that it was over and that if they had a problem with her decision they should sue her. She did that knowing full well that the government would rule in her favor over a foreign corporation. She had contributed greatly to their society, so there was no way they''d throw her under the bus, no matter how much of a fuss the corporation raised.

    One day the son watched his mother place a band-aid over a wound the lizard had incurred during some rough-housing with the gorilla. The abomination laid its head on her lap as she stroked it, humming a lullaby to it while it slept. The scene playing out in front of him infuriated him in a way he had never felt before. He lost it in that moment. He thought only of how he could punish her, teach her a lesson for all the pain she had caused him. His mind was infested with these nasty thoughts as he stared at the lizard with envy.

    A week later he found a way to force her to leave the observatory. A meeting was forced with the corporation(at his behest), and money had already exchanged hands with those who promised to succeed in ridding the world of that vile woman he called ''mother''. Two hours later he got a call from a hospital informing him his mother had been in an accident, and that he should come quickly because she might not have much time left. By the time he arrived, she had already died. He stared at her lifeless body, fury completely unabated. No... Far from disappearing, it had a new target.

    Now that he was running the lab, he accepted the company''s terms to continue the project into phase 2. With different lords sharing similar souls, they wanted to know how well they''d ''accept'' one another. As the next phase was being prepared, the monsters constantly asked for their ''omma''. Annoyingly the damned monsters spoke the common tongue, asking questions about her over and over. He didn''t want to ruin the experiment by shocking them and locking them up again, so he did his best to assure them that she''d be coming back next month. ''An emergency popped up and she had to go take care of it. Don''t worry! Your... ''Omma'' will be back shortly. Trust me, she misses you guys too!" That always calmed the monsters down and made them smile.

    ''Vile creatures... And why the hell did she teach them the common tongue? Wait... Was she planning on fleeing to a foreign country with them?'' The very thought sickened him, and it only got worse as he realized he was right.

    Days rolled by as his anger festered until finally the day to put an end to it all had arrived. The observatory was promptly filled with sleeping gas, more than enough to knock out a human a hundred times over, but it was necessary for these creatures. Eventually, they fell asleep, and Hyon went straight to work. Most of the lab had warmed up to the creatures as ''pets'' and even family members in a way, so they were horrified by the way things had transpired, but they did their job all the same. While several of the workers kept both the monster''s bodies and souls in stasis, Hyon and a few others cut them apart and stitched them into a singular body, making sure to destroy the heads of the other two lords in the process.

    Fortunately for him, it worked. After the stasis was removed, the other two souls stuck to the Lizard who was treated as the ''host'' since its brain was still there. Over the coming weeks, their souls merged more and more, which was unfortunately the only good news. The creature itself clearly had gone mad in the process. Gone were the days of the three monsters kindly asking for their ''omma''. Now they demanded to see her. They called Hyon a ''friend'' for the longest time, along with everyone in the lab, but a day came when they grew tired of Hyon telling them ''She will be back soon, I promise!''

    In that moment, Hyon''s life up to this point was over. Something changed in the monster, it looked at him and said ''You are not our friend. No... Not anymore!''. The observatory defenses shocked the monster, but it was barely keeping him in control as an orange aura exploded outwards from it, hitting Hyon directly but doing very little damage.

    After that, Hyon ran out of the observatory, straight for his car. He called his contact at the defense force directly hoping for someone to help him within minutes, except he wasn''t picking up. Giving up, he called the main hotline, except again, nobody was picking up. Even the police were ignoring his call.

    Confused beyond belief, Hyon drove directly to the police station twelve miles away. Once there, nobody had an answer as to why nobody was picking up. They claimed there were no records of his call, and asked him to please leave. Incensed, he stayed in the parking lot, refusing to leave in case the monster came after him, but the police weren''t having it. Eventually, they locked him up for ''disrupting the police''. After twenty-four hours he was let go. In lockup he had realized that the monster obviously didn''t know where he lived, so he could just go home. Unfortunately for him, it did in fact seem to know exactly where he lived.

    One of the foreign lab members who assisted with the surgery lived next door to him. Hyon was eating dinner with the man as he explained what happened next after he fled, but there wasn''t much to it. The monster eventually escaped the facility, and nobody had found it yet.

    No more than a minute later an alarm went off, the one at the front gate into their community. Looking at the local CCTV on his friend''s television, it showed the monster barreling through one yard after another, straight for where they were. They both freaked out and ran for his car, which wouldn''t start despite being almost brand new. So they ran to Hyon''s, which also refused to turn on.

    They both went into a panic, unsure of what to do next. As a way to cope they began bouncing ideas off of each other, just like they did at their job. ''How did it find us? How do we stop it from finding us?'' Ending with his friend finally saying ''Maybe it cursed us...?'' He went on to explain that the data harvester picked up something weird on everyone''s soul after the monster had hit them with that orange sulfur blast. Hyon despaired, saying ''If that''s true then there is nothing we can do about it!''

    Lucky for him, his friend had just the thing to get them out of this. He had previously worked for a company that created a multitude of different items. One of them was a liquid that could cut off cursed marks from sending information to the curse-giver. It was created because of all the corporations putting cursed marks on their employees as part of their contracts. They couldn''t drink it on the job, but one little drip afterward would conceal them for up to twelve hours. There were a few side effects but nobody cared if it gave them privacy.

    His friend rushed up the stairs while Hyon ran home and shoved all the money in his safe into a duffel bag. Eventually, he could hear people screaming as the monster''s footsteps stomped ever closer to him. He ran out back and met up with his friend, drinking more than necessary from the one-liter-sized jug. They ran one street over and broke into their neighbor''s cellar, rushing down below as the monster yelled ''WHERE?!'' from the front of his home.

    Hyon thought he was saved, but reality crushed him soon after. He got a message from an insider that told him he was being abandoned. The board had already agreed with the foreign company to sweep it all under the rug. They got their information and now they wanted it all to just ''disappear''. Unlike his mother, nobody cared about him, and while he always knew that, he never fully accepted it until this very moment.

    "W-What do we do? Our wives are coming back tomorrow, we can''t just leave it there!"

    "... True. Unlike my mother, I actually care for my family and not some disgusting monsters. Not to worry though. Even if we''re sold out, they can''t let the monster run free. But they''re not going to find our bodies here, so we''re going to have to flee somewhere far away..."

    Twenty minutes later they heard a large battle take place outside. After that they waited a few hours before finally leaving the cellar. The man who owned the home they hid by had just driven home, so they took the opportunity to mug the man and steal his car.

    Hiding on board a cruise they managed to flee to a faraway island country. But after two months of living there in squalor, they overheard that a large monster had been seen in a nearby town killing a bunch of civilians and police, last seen running in their direction.

    They had specifically chosen a place with very little technology, but that was backfiring now. As there was no way for them to get information here except by word of mouth.

    "I don''t understand... We''ve not missed a single dose of the curse eraser. How could it have found us?" His friend asked.

    "I also don''t know... Maybe it still has a vague idea of where we are? I''m even more surprised that the damn thing crossed the ocean."

    And just like that they fled again. Time after time they tried new tactics, like living in a city next to a large defense force base, but the creature had not just been stomping around mindlessly, it knew what to avoid now. It knew how to survive as it hunted its prey. Little by little it destroyed the city they were in, looking for them while somehow evading the defense force completely.

    After many repeated failures they found themselves hiding underground on some backwater moon next to the largest and most repulsive eldritch they had ever laid eyes on. It was a large human-like fish creature that had six legs and two stubby arms, with innumerable fish eyes over its body. Its spawn had captured them a week ago but never harmed them, and they finally understood why when a man in medieval armor showed up.

    "They''re not one of ours. Do what you want with them," is all he said. Hyon''s friend pleaded for him to stop, but he was completely ignored.

    "Heh... Hehehe... At least that monster will kill these people next after it''s done with us."

    Hyon wanted to nod, but he didn''t even have the energy for that. Eventually, they decided to take one last sip each, which was all that was left, and go their separate ways. The plan was that one would be chased while the other would hopefully get far enough away from the thing to escape forever. A pointless fantasy, but Hyon agreed anyway because at this point he didn''t care what happened.

    Unfortunately for him, he never made it to another world. No, he never even escaped the underground. He ran straight into a wall. He heard people behind it, but instead of helping him when he called out, they ran away. That was the moment he gave up completely. He collapsed right there against the wall. An hour, or maybe even days later the monster appeared. However, instead of eating him, it only watched. It sat in the tunnel, the only way out of there, and watched him slowly die. The only surprise was when the wall opened up, but the people on the other side closed it immediately when they saw the monster. Hyon tried moving through before it closed, but he only managed to fall onto the wall as it sealed back up.

    Eventually, with nobody around to witness it except the monster, Hyon gasped his last breath. The monster silently stood up and walked away, nothing more, nothing less. Not long afterward the monster found a nice hole to hide in, where it hibernated into its soul realm for over fifty years.

    It watched as its omma played with him.

    It watched as its omma read a story to him.

    It kept watching as its omma told him of all the wondrous things he was going to experience when they got to their new life in another world.

    "I''m going to prove it to you soon! I have a nice beachfront property on Aetheria waiting for us. It''s going to be beautiful... I promise you three, you''re going to love it."

    "We... We live together, yes?" The hawk asked.

    "Of course! And just like I promised, I''m going to name you three when we get there. That''ll be the start of our new life."

    "Name! Name!" The gorilla said happily.

    But suddenly one day, it was awoken from his hibernation. A large red creature with horns it had never seen before was looking down at it while grinning. Before it could get up, the red creature put a mark on its soul and ran away. The monster tried purging it off but it couldn''t, so it chased after the red creature instead. Before long it found itself outside of a village filled with a lot of potential new friends.

    ''They''re going to love resting with omma! Oh yes, yes yes yes!'' it thought to itself before covering the village in a large barrier.

    After it was done collecting all its new friends, it immediately appeared next to the place it was hibernating in before. Looking around in confusion it found nothing out of place, so it went back to sleep. That is, until the red creature woke it up again.

    This time though, it didn''t go back to sleep, it went looking for the red creature, and instead found plenty of new green friends and even some delicious fishies. Then one day while it was gathering more green friends, a strange human appeared. She was with a green one, but she had white hair and red eyes. The goblin walked into the village while the monster was examining the girl. The goblin immediately saw the monster and the state of the village and dove under a building with stone flooring. The monster wasn''t interested in him though, oh no, it wanted...

    ''That one! Never seen before... Another new friend!'' it thought as it leaped at the girl.

    <hr>

    Me and Keith silently watched as the monster struggled to breathe. It didn''t care about us anymore, it was instead staring at the Asian woman patting the lizard in the illusion.

    "It hurts omma..." The lizard said.

    "I know sweety. Want to learn a magic spell to make it stop hurting?"

    "Ooh spell! Teach us!" The hawk cut in.

    The woman chuckled. "Okay watch close you three." She reached out and put her hand on the lizard''s upper thigh where it had a small cut. "You rub it like this, and then you say the magic words, ''pain pain, go away~''. Got it you three? Say it with me now."

    The lizard and hawk said it perfectly, but the gorilla replied "Pain... Go away pain? Yes, away!"

    The other three began laughing, which made the gorilla laugh too.

    The monster put its left hand on the sword wound on its chest, slowly rubbing it. "... Pain, pain... Go... Away..."

    The monster''s hand slowed down until it stopped completely. Its arm went slack as it stopped breathing. The illusion kept playing out the same scene around us as we stared in silence at the monster''s tear stricken face.

 Chapter 29 - Skeletons

    "Did someone put those three monsters into a single body...?" Keith asked.

    It definitely looks like that...

    "I don''t know what kind of backstory this thing had, but let''s talk about it later."

    Walking over, I gather the monster''s soul into a small orb, but instead of eating it, I find myself admiring it. Surprisingly, whatever soul this monster had is rather beautiful. It''s a mix of bright and dark blue swirling around emitting enough light to light up a small room if it wanted.

    Never seen a soul like this before... It almost feels like a waste to eat it and not put it in my future home as a trophy or something. Sadly, I need the power from this soul going forward.

    As I toss it into my mouth, the core pulls it down like normal, except something new happened that I had never experienced before. My core stopped pulling it in at the last second, apparently confused at the appearance of a type of soul it had never eaten till now. Ever so slowly it devoured it, scanning it for any irregularities.

    I don''t have time to absorb this right now, but it''s going to be a huge boost after this battle is over.

    "So that''s what you did to Brian and Jason..." Keith said.

    I sighed. "You really want to do this right now?"

    "No, I don''t actually. I''ve already come to terms with what we did and why we must pay, especially me. And I do understand why they died, I truly have no right to complain about any of us losing our lives in response to our actions. However, please understand... It''s not easy when I think about the fact that they could both be here, right now, atoning along with the rest of us. If only..."

    ''If only I didn''t exist?'' Is what I was going to say but I kept my mouth shut. I know it''s more than that. At this point, he''s still filled with regret and a literal ancient being pushing him forward to atone. God only knows how many years it''s going to take for him to fully accept everything that happened and for him to willingly move forward on his own without all the regret and fear controlling him.

    The illusion around us finally dispels. Along with the fires and screams returning, I can see the Tengu far away from the village casting a massive ice storm in front of himself.

    Keith walks in that direction a little and stops. "Looks like they managed to pull it away from the village. I''m going to head straight there, what about you?"

    "I''m going to do something with Aresa real quick and then I''ll back you guys up. Is Albel going to stay behind to defend Nisha, Aresa, and Shana?"

    "No. Shana says she can take care of it so he''s going to assist us after a few of her clones return." Keith said.

    After finishing his sentence, Keith turns around and begins running towards the mountains where the Tengu currently is. A loud boom echoes out behind me as a large ball of energy fires past the village. It smashes directly into the Tengu''s barrier, causing him to reel sideways a little from the impact. He tries looking this way for the culprit, but thanks to that attack its blizzard spell was canceled, leaving the group over there free to attack it again.

    That came from the trees Cera was pointing at earlier... Does she have a sniping ability? It had enough power behind it to make the Tengu almost fall over despite its hulking form and the abominations barrier had diluted most of the impact. When its barrier is gone, it''ll need to be reacting instantly to avoid those shots, because even a Lord that powerful will take massive damage from her ability.

    Turning around, I run back towards the area where I first entered the village, passing a confused-looking Albel along the way. He watches as I pick up several different skeletal corpses of the villagers here and carry them over towards the cellar he''s in.

    "What are you doing...?" He asked immediately after I dropped down.

    "Testing something out. If this works I''ll be a much larger threat against the Tengu." I looked over at Aresa. "Just to confirm, you still have most of your mana right?"

    {Yes. Do you want me to supply you? I know you''re ''different'', but every living being can only handle a certain amount of mana infusions, and that will include you.}

    "Oh I know, but this is a little different. I''ll be nothing more than a conduit for you to supply something else. You''ll understand, just watch."

    Laying one of the skeletons out in a grave pose, I put my hand on its rib cage and send a small part of my soul into it. Less than a second passes by before a small black growth appears inside the skeleton''s chest. Dozens of small black ''tendons'' launch out of the tiny black object, latching onto different parts of the skeleton. With each passing second the tiny black object gets bigger as all the parts it attached to begin to turn black.

    "What the...?" Albel said.

    {... I wondered when you were going to do this.}

    "You knew I could do this? Did some of the summons remain after Xelba fell?"

    {Yes. They found some intact skeleton corpses and kept them in Viseux''s museum, but there were a few still active that attacked the Dwarves when they got close. They were fine, but what about us? Is this ''summon'' of yours going to attack us?}

    "No, they probably just went into pure hostility mode after I died. They didn''t have much life left in them after I was gone so they would''ve shut off on their own anyway, like the intact ones you guys found. Kind of weird knowing my old summons are sitting in a museum though..."

    I''m gonna have to go check that out after we return to Viseux.

    Two of Shana''s clones drop down and give Albel a thumbs up. Upon seeing that he jumps out of the cellar and dashes off towards the Tengu.

    "They strong?" One of the clones asks, pointing at the skeleton.

    "The basic one here? Eh, they''re alright. If I have enough mana to fully armor them and create a big enough weapon, then they are amazing. Good firearms also make them quite formidable. Regular ones like this will be just cannon fodder for the Tengu though, so if Aresa can supply them mana without overexerting me then I''m going to create as many as possible and have them blow up on the Tengu''s barrier. They take an enormous amount of mana though, are you fine with that Aresa?"

    {I won''t know till I try fueling them. I want to do this though, because this gives me an opportunity to help fight that stupid bird. I''ve never actually been able to help kill one before... I''m kind of excited!}

    "How many normal ones can you make?" Shana asked.

    "Depends on many things. Technically it could go on forever but that''s impossible. I need ''ether carriers'' which are very heavy and slow skeletons that absorb lots of ether from the area, except they''re weak as hell and need to be in range to actually keep the skeletons running. I assume you understand from that alone why it''s impossible to create an army. All it takes is someone with a little bit of intelligence to attack my carriers and that''s it for me."

    "Hmm... I was asking because I know where the armory here is. I found it earlier, and it''s full of guns." Shana said.

    Oh shit... Now that makes common skeletons a hell of a lot more useful in this situation. Guns kind of suck by themselves against barriers, but if there are dozens of them firing nonstop? That''s a completely different story.

    I look at Aresa.

    "... I''m going to make about five ether carriers just in case though. Not that I expect them to live long against the Tengu, but it can''t hurt to try since there is plenty of uh..."

    {Bodies around?}

    "... Yeah. I''ve never used the corpses of people I was supposed to be helping before, so I don''t know what kind of backlash is waiting for me after this. How mad do you think they''ll be?"

    Euphemia who was quiet until now cuts in, "Extremely angry... If I don''t interfere. Instead, they might be happy that their family members were able to get revenge for themselves. I can try spinning it like that and they''ll probably love you instead."

    Glancing over at her, it looks like she''s barely here. Her eyes look completely glazed over as if her mind is somewhere else.

    "Oooh, very smart Euphemia!!" One of the clones said as they both began clapping, getting zero reaction from Euphie.

    I see... That''s not a bad idea. Having a royal who is loved by the populace backing you up sure is convenient.

    Looking down, I see the last of the skeleton''s bones turn black with a small patch of hardened armor appearing around its chest.

    {To protect the core?}

    "Yes. It has another one in its brain in case it loses the main one, or vice versa." Just like me.

    Red eyes appear in the skeleton''s eye sockets as it stands up.

    "Okay princess, try fueling this skeleton through me."

    {... I''m not a princess, that''s Euphie.}

    You sure as hell look and act like one. I can''t see much difference between you two.

    Aresa reaches out and grabs my hand, pouring a continual stream of mana into me for a bit before she finds the link to the skeleton, shifting the mana over to it instead.

    {Ahh I see now... Like this, it''s going straight through your soul to somewhere else, so it can''t wear out your soul.}

    Perfect... I still don''t know how much mana she has, but I think I''m about to find out. Might as well build a small army like Shana suggested.

    "Shana---"

    Before I could finish the two clones jumped out of the hole. Soon after bodies begin dropping down into the cellar. The first wave was made up of purely skeletons thanks to what the monster did earlier, but the ones killed by the Tengu were killed in a myriad of different ways. Burned, frozen, shocked, crushed... It felt like every possible way of dying was here.

    "I can''t use the ones with most of their bones crushed. Fortunately, most of the bodies look intact. All the useless ones were probably hit by that meteor." I look at Aresa. "Okay, there''s one problem that I need to rectify right now. Once I begin summoning a bunch of these things I''m going to be very weak. Without going into a long explanation, I lose a percentage of my strength with each active summon, so I won''t be in a position to defend us."

    Pulling some blood out, I quickly turn it into a long rope, handing it off to Shana as I turn my back to Aresa.

    "Climb up Aresa, and then Shana can you please tie her to me? I''ll harden it a little once she''s in place so no need to worry about tying it off or anything like that."

    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    Shana nods as Aresa jumps onto my back, wrapping her arms around my throat. Shana then wraps the rope around us. Once she''s done, I harden it until I feel Aresa is securely glued to me.

    "That too hard? Should I slacken it a little?"

    Oh right her arms are preoccupied hanging onto me, she probably left her board on the ground.

    {No need. I''m fine.} A cute voice sounds off inside my head.

    "What the?! You could speak telepathically this whole time?? Why didn''t you do it till now?"

    {... I don''t like doing this, but I know I have to right now given the situation. Now hurry up, we don''t have much time, right?}

    True, which means I''ll have to summon one of those. Ugh, if she can''t handle this and the Lich backfires I''m going to be weakened for a very long time.

    Leaning down I touch one of the corpses, forcing a part of my soul into it just like before, except this time I tell it to turn into a Lich. Immediately I feel like passing out as a massive amount of mana is drained from me. I can sense Aresa panicking as she takes over the supply for me.

    {Jeez Rei! I know you said the drain would be a lot but this is too much!}

    "... Only the Lich is going to be this much of a strain. The rest will be much easier."

    ... Ugh, my head is spinning. This was difficult to do even when I could handle it alone.

    {Are you okay? It feels like you''re about to fall down...}

    "I''m not... I''ll be fine in a few moments though."

    A minute later the Lich finished forming. It floats into the air as its cloth armor slowly forms all over it.

    {I was grossed out at first but the more I see your summons the more I wish I could do this.}

    I doubt the others will see it the same way, but it does feel good hearing someone praise one of my summons again. I''m tempted to use the knight''s souls to try and create some unique ones... I shouldn''t though. It''s not worth the risk and extra mana drain right now.

    I tell the Lich to turn two dozen of the bodies into normal skeletons and it begins work immediately. Creating one after another, forming them much faster than I did earlier. I reach down and personally tell five other bodies to turn into ether carriers.

    Oh, hang on... Telepathy is a two-way connection. She can hear my thoughts, right? That shouldn''t be possible with me though...

    "How are you able to connect to me? Even with Humans, you''d need them to personally accept the connection, and forcing it would cause all sorts of reactions from the victim. With that said, we''re talking about my soul here, and I felt absolutely nothing."

    {Don''t worry, it''s not telepathy. I can''t mess with your soul. I''m sending vibrations through the air into your ear.}

    "So this isn''t your real voice? I feel cheated... Although I''ll admit what you''re doing sounds pretty damn impressive."

    {Hehe, this is what I imagine it''d sound like! So treat it as if it is my voice.}

    All the skeletons finish forming around the same time. Carriers are normally much faster, which shows just how much better the Lich is at summoning.

    {Ugh... I can handle maybe thirty minutes of this Rei.}

    We already went way past her regen huh? I can try making more carriers but the ether aura they are giving off is already extreme. Spreading them out does nothing, it only makes them look more dangerous. If I go past this there is a much higher chance of the Tengu attacking them.

    "Interesting. They''re heavy because their core takes up their entire torso, right? It had a completely different creation process from the warriors." A clone asked, pointing at a carrier.

    "Yes. They weigh almost four hundred pounds right now which is hard on their legs. I''ve tried tinkering with them but past a certain point the mana drain to make them move faster increases by a massive amount, so I settled on what they''re at right now. There''s no point to their existence if they use most of the ether they produce just to move."

    {I felt the load lighten quite a bit as they powered up. Although it''s still a big drain on me.}

    "Making armies like this isn''t something I''d normally do. The only time I did this is when I knew there would be uh, a bunch of ''fuel'' nearby."

    "The people of Xelba?" Euphemia asked.

    Looking over at her I see she''s curled up in a ball next to Shana''s main body. She has her face completely buried in her knees.

    ... She looks like a scared little kid right now. It even sounded like she was sniffling. She probably only asked me that question to keep her mind occupied.

    "Yes. Every time they killed someone the two Lich''s would take their souls and keep the supply lines fed. Once nobody was left I cut the connection and took all the parts of my soul back so I could go after Viktor at full strength. In those situations, the skeletons keep going until their cores run out of mana, including carriers. Without a part of my soul present, there is nothing left to draw in ether."

    A clone pointed up. "Okay, all the guns are collected. Should I drop them down here?"

    "Nope this is fine, and please grab some more bodies too. I have a feeling we''ll be needing them."

    As I jump out of the hole I can feel something pulse out of the Lich. All the skeletons float like feathers as they jump out of the hole, slowly gliding toward the ground as they reach the apex of their jump.

    {SO COOL!!! IT HAS GRAVITY MAGIC?!}

    "Anything it casts can only affect the skeletons and itself. When I tried making it so it could hit me with the spells too, the mana cost went sky-high. For some reason limiting it to summons made the costs very small instead."

    There are guns laid out around the cellar''s opening, waiting for my skeletons to pick them up. Which is exactly what they do as soon as their feet hit the ground.

    "Shana is one hell of a useful ally to have."

    {She''s very capable. Whenever I need anything covert done, I ask her. She''s um, a little jealous of you in that regard.}

    "The invisibility? Yeah... Most people are, but I imagine it''s much worse for someone whose abilities are based around sneaking."

    The skeletons sprint past me, moving twice as fast as I normally can while enhanced(thanks to the Lich buffing them).

    {Is it okay for them to be so far away? What''s the range on your summons?}

    "Around halfway to where the Tengu is so we''ll be fine since I''ll be back in range soon. So long as there is a single skeleton in between me and another one, I can keep the supply going at any distance. That''s also why I''m leaving the carriers here inside whatever cellar is closest to the battle. Hopefully, there isn''t anyone hiding in there. No time to explain to them that the creepy skeletons are their allies."

    Enhancing myself with what little strength I have left, I begin running towards the Tengu.

    {So slow!! You weren''t kidding about losing your strength. Want a boost?}

    "No. Don''t waste anything on speed unless we need to be mobile."

    As we get closer I can see Alicia blasting the Tengu''s barrier. A constant stream of electricity is streaming from her fingers onto the barrier, creating more and more sparks as the barrier becomes increasingly charged. The Tengu must have already realized how dangerous this is because he has several spheres floating above his head that are firing off random spells at her constantly, but Alicia keeps sliding sideways through the snow as if she were skating, avoiding the attacks.

    Even I can see the panic on the Tengu''s face as he glares at Alicia. That spell truly is devastating to barriers. The more she channels it onto his barrier, the more the spell reacts off itself, doing more and more damage. I''ve seen barrier-killing spells like this before. In a few minutes, the chain reaction will continue all on its own even if he manages to kill Alicia. And the others are not giving him any breathing room, so he''s unable to focus on her. Plus, to make things even worse for him, Shana has several clones throwing electrified knives at his barrier.

    I thought she had her clones carrying around real knives, but I just saw one of them create the knives right before she threw them. So her clones can use any other abilities she has? Damn, no wonder why Aresa has so much faith in her. I even see her creating knives for Keith to throw.

    In a tree near me Albel is doing the strangest but most impressive display of fast casting I''ve seen in a while. He''s punching forward with palm strikes at a ridiculous speed while shooting out fireballs with each strike. Alicia''s attack will do the most damage in the end, but right now there''s no one even coming close to the damage Albel is dishing out.

    In front of me, the skeletons begin to fan out now that they''re in range. A chorus of gunfire erupts after they take up positions far away from the Tengu. His barrier begins shining in random spots as the bullets land, which causes him to glance at the skeletons for a moment and nothing more. They''re dangerous, but not to the level Alicia or Albel is. However, it seems like the Tengu has already had the pleasure of dealing with Ishar, as his main spells are entirely focused towards him.

    {He must have already stopped the Tengu from flying towards Alicia. He realized has no choice but to kill him first.} Aresa ''said''.

    Excluding my initial fight with Ishar, this is my first time seeing him in action, and I''ll admit I''m rather impressed. The first spell I saw was a massive bolt of lightning, but Ishar merely held his artifact spear in front of his face which seemed to make the bolt hit it directly. After that the bolt immediately forked off behind him into the ground. The second spell was about a hundred different mini-fireballs blasting at him at extreme speeds. Ishar tried sprinting away but they chased after him, so he enhanced himself further and stayed just out of range while he cut them down one by one. As the explosions occurred he was already far enough away to not take any damage.

    The Tengu, apparently fed up with trying to take everyone here out one by one, raised his staff high into the air as a large fiery disc expanded outwards from it. It began spinning to the right, and it took no more than a second for everyone underneath it to realize how much danger they were in. I could see the snow melt almost instantly as the entire area became covered in a heat haze. Everyone enhanced themselves and tried fleeing the area, but a ring of electricity blinked into existence right at the edge of the flaming disc''s range. Alicia tried barreling right through it and was blasted backward, sliding along the super-heated rocky soil. Her barrier literally exploded from the heat as her skin began to sear. In a panic, I saw her grab the copper dagger hanging off her waist. Most of her hair burst into flames as she warped away.

    Shana''s two clones and Keith tried jumping over the electric field, but when they were vaulting over the field, three lightning bolts shot up and fried them in midair. The clones fell into the field and were both killed instantly while Keith turned into a blue ball and shot past me towards Nisha. Seeing this, Ishar swapped from a jumping stance into an offensive one. He dashed forward while holding his spear in front of him just like he did earlier against the Tengu, and it appeared to mostly work. The electricity seemed to be doing everything it could to avoid his spear, but the power must have been too much for his anti-magic spear because the rest of his body was periodically blasted by little bolts of electricity over and over as he made his way through the field. Upon exiting the field he promptly fell to his knees. A small green glow emitted from him the second his knees hit the ground.

    Healing in that situation? Quite brazen of him, but I assume he has no choice. His muscles are probably spasming out of control right now. Hell, it''s a miracle he made it through that field at all... More than that though, I''m concerned with what is coming next. I''m not sure if Shana can make more clones, but if she can''t that means it''s just me, him, Aresa, and Cera left? I don''t like those odds very much...

    Having accomplished his goal, the Tengu quit channeling the disc and electric field, instead choosing to fly towards Ishar with his staff pulled back to his right. Ishar turned around and used his shout ability, freezing the Tengu in midair as it swung at him. It appeared like it was going to be a complete miss thanks to Ishar''s quick reaction speed. It gave him time to leap back several times out of range of the staff, but as the stun wore off and his attack restarted where it left off, the Tengu''s staff extended outwards another fifty feet and smashed into Ishar, sending him flying into the mountain.

    I didn''t see any blood but if he did survive he won''t be in any position to help for a while... Well shit, I was supposed to be the support not the fucking main force. Even now my skeletons are still shelling the Tengu nonstop, having only stopped once so far to replenish their extra ammo they dropped near me, but they''re still nowhere strong enough to beat this thing.

    "Uh, are we fucked?" Albel said loudly from the tree.

    Almost on queue, the Tengu turned toward us and just stood there staring at us, waiting for us to make the first move(although my skeletons were still shooting him, making his proclamation kind of comedic).

    Another loud bang rang out behind me, making the Tengu hit the ground on all fours, except... No ball of energy appeared like it did before.

    Albel looked back at the village. Almost immediately I could see a panicked look appear on his face.

    "S-Shit! Keith and Cera are being attacked, and I think I see Seifer there too?"

    Glancing back, I see that Albel is sadly correct. Near a behemoth-sized wagon, Keith and Seifer are fighting off... Villagers? This is obviously the broodling''s doing. I knew it''d use these battles as an opportunity to try and kill us, but something feels weird here... Only a dozen or so villagers and guards are trying to climb the tree to attack Cera, while most of them are going after the wagon...?

    Aresa went into a panic after she saw the scene behind us.

    {Oh no!! Rei, the shaman is inside that wagon! Alicia hid him underneath the carriage in the storage compartment. The broodling is trying to kill him!}

    Clever girl... When I saw everyone here in the village I wondered how they were planning to protect the shaman who I assumed was back in the manor. That also explains why Seifer stayed behind. However, I don''t think the broodling is trying to kill the shaman. There''s no way this attack is going to work, not even a one percent chance of it succeeding. It was merely doing this to force someone to protect the damned shaman, which may in fact lead to its death once the rest of us are killed by the Tengu.

    The Tengu tried standing back up and was immediately swept off his feet by a gust of wind. Looking in the direction the spell originated from, I see Tyra standing there with a large contingent of knights behind her. Unlike her, they all looked shocked, but their commander shouted something and they immediately began channeling a group attack like they hit us with earlier.

    I''m sure it wasn''t on purpose, but Tyra being pursued by those knights turned out to be one hell of a lucky break for us. It looks like the knight chasing her was the one who locked her up earlier. So this is the king''s royal guard, right? They should be quite useful then.

    Far from looking displeased, I''d say the Tengu was looking mighty happy at the sight of our new arrivals. However, he instead looked rather unhappy at the sight of our next guests. From the mountainside, a horde of goblins appeared, along with a half dozen large goblins.

    {What are those...?}

    "Goblins. They came here to kill something else, but I can see them buffing the large goblins from here, so it looks like they''re going to attack the Tengu."

    They could have left the second they saw this new abomination in front of them and not the monster from before, and yet... They didn''t. I saw the veteran point at me and I can see that ''Teifa'' I talked to as well. Looks like they decided to help me, although I''m not quite sure why? It was already strange enough how kindly they treated me after I dragged a group of hostile knights to their location, which led to several of their own brethren dying. And now on top of that, they''re helping me again? If we survive this battle I''ll need to find a way to repay the favor. They deserve that much.

 Chapter 30 - Indomitable Force

    The Tengu leaps backward toward the goblins and slams one end of its staff down on top of them. The goblins had seemingly evaded the strike, but moments after the staff pierced the ground an explosion from below launched them in a myriad of different directions. Some were launched far enough to even land near me, while a few others had crashed mere feet before the knights. The knights completely ignored the goblins, keeping their focus entirely on the Tengu.

    Damn am I glad to see that. If they''re not going to attack the goblins, then they''re definitely not going to attack me. Not yet anyway, but that''s fine. I''m just happy to see that their commander knows when to pick his battles, and he obviously knows who the true threat here is. It was unlikely that trained warriors like them would do something as stupid as fighting the goblins right now, but I don''t know how deep their hatred of each other is.

    Albel stands up from his meditation and proceeds to bombard the Tengu again. Glancing back, I see that Seifer is keeping the caravan safe while Keith knocks out all the villagers trying to attack Cera.

    Excellent... Thanks to Keith she''ll be able to attack the Tengu again.

    The goblins on the ground near me stand back up and begin shooting arrows at the Tengu. As they hit his barrier they erupt into an explosion of electricity.

    Interesting... That''s not what they were using against the knights earlier. Considering they came here to fight the monster from earlier, they must have grabbed their best ammo designed for taking down powerful targets.

    The Tengu''s wings light up.

    Ahh shit here we go... With Ishar down for the count, there''s really no way of stopping him from relocating anytime he wants. Unless one of the new arrivals can?

    The Tengu begins flying towards the knights but the goblin mages all point their staffs directly at him, causing him to lose speed tremendously. The Tengu raises his staff at the goblins and is immediately smashed by something powerful from the knight''s direction, propelling him back to where he was before. Before he hits the ground he tries steadying himself with his staff, but another loud bang rings out as a large orb of energy strikes his back, causing him to topple forward into the goblins.

    All the large goblins quickly run to the front of the pack and punch the Tengu right in his face, cranking his head all the way back, making him fly backward toward the ground instead. Right before the Tengu''s head smashes into the ground, he drops the staff and stretches his arms out in front of him and promptly swings them toward the ground. It sounded like a massive explosion rang out as both his fists slammed into the ground, propelling himself back onto his feet, where he quickly picked up his staff and dashed towards the knights again.

    Having just repelled him moments ago, they weren''t prepared for another assault so quickly. But the goblin mages were continuing to slow the Tengu down so he was unable to reach the knights before they could break out of their mass channeling pose. Scattering, most of them were able to dodge the overhead strike with his staff. However, instead of the ground erupting like before, this time a large wave of fire blasted out in all directions. The knight''s barriers blocked it, but from the looks of things, nearly all of them had shattered just for that attack alone.

    {Why did he attack the knights instead of the goblins who were close by?}

    "Probably because the knights are channeling as one. The goblins are a threat no doubt, I''d even say they''re a bigger one considering their numbers and those arrows they are using, but by attacking the knights he''s able to break them up, preventing them from pouring their mana into a single spell. Also, the knights and Cera are the only ones who can stop the Tengu from channeling another spell like that fiery disc from earlier."

    And Cera just used her ability so she''s going to need time to charge another. The knights were also just broken up, which probably means...

    The Tengu raises his staff into the air again, except this time it''s sideways instead of pointing up toward the sky.

    Yep, here it comes... God damnit, there''s nothing I have that can stop this.

    The Tengu begins twirling the staff, but before he can ramp up whatever spell he''s casting, a massive gust of wind sweeps his feet out from underneath him, causing him to topple to the ground. One of the skeletons near him just so happened to run out of ammo as the Tengu came crashing down, so it began beating him with the gun in its hands.

    Ugh... Sometimes they''re not the brightest.

    Reaching out, I tell that skeleton to come get more ammo as it''s supposed to. It immediately turns around and sprints in my direction. The Lich(who is still hiding with Nisha) speed-boosted the skeleton the moment it began running, so it was back here reloading in no time at all.

    {Is that Tyra''s ability? Wind?}

    "Yeah, but when we were in the mountains she ran out of mana fast using wind that powerful. I didn''t see her till now so she must have been meditating to get her mana back from the initial attack."

    Mere moments ago I told Aresa that the knights and Cera were the only ones who could prevent him from channeling, because I figured that wind attack only worked since it caught the Tengu off guard, but it looks like that''s not the case. He''s going to have to deal with her as well if he wants to cast another spell that requires channeling.

    As soon as the Tengu hit the ground everyone but the knights attacked it. The knights ran into a huddle and began channeling something again while the goblin mages cast some kind of spell that sped up everyone around them. The goblins over there began shooting at twice the speed the goblins near me were, while the large goblins pummeled into the Tengu''s barrier. It was then that I started to notice little cracks forming along his barrier. Whether the others noticed it I don''t know, but I know the Tengu noticed it because he began wildly thrashing around like an animal, crushing all those engaging him up close(mostly the large goblins).

    The Tengu suddenly stopped moving, looking right at the knights as he dug his fingers deep into the ground. He switched from thrashing around to launching himself at the knights so quickly that the goblin mages had no time to swap from their haste spell to the slow debuff they were using before. It took maybe one second for him to reach the knights who had already realized they weren''t going to dodge in time, so instead they chose to fire off another powerful beam attack, hitting the Tengu right in his face, causing even larger cracks to form along his barrier.

    That was their last contribution to this fight sadly. The Tengu punched them so hard with a left hook that they went flying into the mountains like Ishar did earlier, except they hit it at an angle. I could see a line of snow falling off the mountain as they skimmed across it until they were completely out of view.

    Shockingly they''re alive. I can tell they survived because they were all casting something along the mountain as they slid, some kind of light spell. Something that can slow them down I assume, but there is no way in hell they have much mana left after taking a blow like that while they were enhanced. And the impact alone, my god... I can only imagine how many bones they broke. Some of them are going to need emergency aid as well if any of their organs were ruptured or pierced by bones.

    The Tengu whipped his head back and forth looking for someone else, but there was no one around.

    He''s obviously looking for Tyra, but he can''t find her? I can still see Tyra. She''s buried herself in a small pile of snow about fifty feet from him, but it seems that he can''t see her... Very interesting indeed. His eyesight must be rather basic. As a result, he probably relies on his soul sense to find people, and that''s not doing him any good right now since she''s currently meditating, which masques your presence by default.

    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    Standing up, the Tengu leaps backward toward his staff, but the goblins are slowing him again so he barely makes it halfway there before landing. I couldn''t help but laugh a little when I saw the look of pure annoyance on his face as he glared at the mages.

    {You''re laughing in this situation...?}

    Yes, because it is funny. It reminded me of that one knight dying while saying ''Fucking... Goblins...'' and it made the situation even more hilarious. They do seem really annoying to fight after all. Speaking of which, those large goblins that died earlier are really tempting me, I wonder if they''ll uh...

    "Hey, goblin archers! Would your people care if I used the corpses of those large goblins to create more skeletons?" I yelled at the two archers in front of me.

    They merely glanced at me before looking at each other and shrugging.

    Err, I guess that''s an okay then? I know that Teifa girl said something about saving their souls, so I''ll toss those to the side and not absorb them.

    Reaching out, I tell the two skeletons closest to the corpses to carry them back to the Lich. Tossing their guns to the side, they run over and pick the corpses up with ease thanks to the Lich''s buffs. The Tengu looked at them for only a second before picking up his staff and focusing his attention back on the goblins. That was unfortunately the moment that all the skeletons finally ran out of ammo.

    "Aresa, how much longer can you keep going? The bullets are exhausted, so I can either make them some basic melee weapons or bows and arrows from blood, but the ranged version will consume a lot more mana, while the melee version honestly makes them not all that useful in this battle. The last option is to make them blow up on the Tengu but that''ll cost even more since if we want to replace them."

    {Fifteen minutes. Those large goblins your Lich just touched drained a lot out of me.}

    And if I make a bunch of ranged weapons it''ll probably cut that in half too, and it might even be pointless. If the Tengu destroys the skeletons and the arrows, then it was all for nothing... Screw it, I''ll just make them blow up. His barrier is failing, so we''re nearing the end anyway.

    The Tengu pulled his staff back over his right shoulder, but instead of swinging it at the goblins, he turned to the left and released a solidified blade of air that glided over the knight''s previous location, causing all of the snow around it to blow away. Having been revealed, Tyra jumped up and prepared herself for whatever came next.

    This is when I told my skeletons to blow up on the Tengu. With their speed buffed, they sprinted towards him while the cores in their chest lit up a bright orange. Without sparing them a glance, the Tengu pointed his staff at Tyra as a bright green light wrapped around the end of it. The skeletons began blowing up on his legs before he could finish casting the spell, which he continued to ignore until his barrier shattered around him. Now that nothing was stopping them, the goblin''s lightning arrows landed all over him.

    The two goblins near me laughed while tossing aside their main quill which was nearly empty. In its place, they began using their other quill, which only had ten or so arrows in it. The first volley landed on the Tengu, but I couldn''t see any elemental effects flare up anywhere.

    {I feel something weird from those arrows, but I can''t quite tell what it is.}

    I don''t sense anything. If Aresa feels something is off though, then there must be special about those arrows. They were laughing too just like when that knight was poisoned, so maybe it''s poison again? But the Tengu is massive... You''d need a hell of a lot of poison to affect him, and that''s assuming it even can affect him.

    Aresa winced behind me as the Lich created a new army of skeletons.

    Whether he was bothered by his barrier breaking is unknown, because the Tengu took everything that was hitting him without flinching even a little, continuing to cast his spell aimed at Tyra. The next thing I knew she was falling down onto the snow while a large amount of blood gushed out of the right side of her stomach. I could see a very small green spear expanding out of the Tengu''s staff. Apparently he had pierced her stomach and was currently in the process of whipping it to the left. It was all moving in slow motion for me as the barely perceptible spear whipped past me about ten feet above my head, going straight through Albel''s torso.

    "S-Shit..." I barely heard Albel say, as both him and the tree split in two, falling right onto the ground.

    I could feel Aresa''s grip around my neck tighten.

    {R-Rei, Albel is...}

    ... I know. Neither he nor Nisha could respond to that, as he was cut in half almost instantly. Yet another person they''ll have to revive, but I imagine this death is still going to hurt Nisha quite a bit.

    From behind I could hear Keith curse as he ran up to Albel, bending down near the top half of his friend and saying something I couldn''t hear. After burying his face into his hands for a moment, Keith walks over to me as a new wave of skeletons runs past us toward the Tengu.

    "... Cera is fine, she dodged it somehow despite being at the same height Albel was." After saying his peace, he turns and follows behind the skeletons.

    I nodded before he left, unsure of what to say. Not that there was time to chat anyway, which is why he left his friend''s corpse as it was. There''s still a battle to be won after all.

    {Rei, why is he relocating?}

    Looking at the Tengu, I see his wings are lit up again as he flies far off to the right(where Ishar was earlier).

    That is rather strange... He was in range to take the goblins out, and it''s not like this distance is preventing them from shooting him. I still see arrows sticking deep into his feathers and limbs.

    The Tengu then began twirling his staff above his head again. Another shot rang out, but this time the Tengu dropped down and dodged it, quickly bouncing back onto his feet to continue twirling his staff. Slowly but surely, I could feel something akin to a vortex pulling me towards him, and it was ramping up fast. The smaller goblins near me had already lost their footing and began sliding towards the Tengu. They tried to stop themselves but couldn''t get a grip on anything. Keith stabbed his sword into the ground, biding his time, while the goblin group off to the left all began sliding along the ground as well.

    {Rei! What are you going to do?!}

    "Nothing."

    {Nothing?!}

    "That''s right, we''re not here to personally engage it. Now lend me some mana when you feel me enhance myself."

    Enhancing my right foot I smash it into the ground and then proceed to the same with my left foot.

    The pull continues to get stronger and stronger, to the point the goblins are moving at probably thirty miles an hour towards the Tengu, but he''s also pulling in things that he probably shouldn''t be bringing to himself. The skeletons willingly go along with the flow, running along the ground as both the Lich and Tengu increase their speed. Right before they reach him they all leap into the air directly at his torso, and the Tengu responds by raising his left hand at them, palm out, but before I can see what he has planned, a loud shout sounds out behind him, freezing the Tengu completely.

    {Ishar!}

    How in the hell is he still moving after that hit from earlier? The bastard must be built like a rock.

    Thanks to the Tengu freezing up, his vortex stopped as well, making the skeletons drop lower than they intended. One by one they latched onto his right leg and exploded together all at once just as Ishar''s stun wears off. The Tengu roared in pain as he dropped to one knee, but he kept his focus and immediately slammed his staff into the ground. No explosion rang out this time, instead something else began pulsing through the dirt. I could feel a strange wavy aura ripple out underneath me. And at the same time as the pulses began, a blizzard appeared around the Tengu in the form of a sphere, spinning faster and faster as it ramped up in speed.

    {Rei, you need to stop that! My soul is rattling every time that pulse hits me!}

    So she says, but all I have left are the large goblin skeletons that are running towards him now. I also see a few of Shana''s clones running along them, so it looks like she was finally able to produce a few more.

    All of the goblin''s arrows were being swept up in the storm, unable to pierce its strong winds. Meanwhile, Keith was still standing stoic in the same spot with his sword pierced into the dirt. After concentrating on him a little I''m able to see an extremely condensed aura donning his body with little blue streaks going through it.

    {Rei, please keep an eye on Shana''s clones, she''s going to start soon. Once she opens up a hole, move your goblins through.}

    Near the blizzard, I can see Shana''s clones press themselves up against each other. With one hand they''re holding each other, while their other hand is pushed together palm out towards the Tengu, much in the way he was aiming at my skeletons earlier. I can barely see it, but the hands they''re interlocking are doing some kind of sign motions. Soon after, a small green ball flies out of their palms right into the blizzard.

    {Here it comes!}

    I tell the Goblin skeletons to enter a sprinting pose like the one I saw back during the battle in the cavern. Seeing this, the goblin mages nearby cast several different buffs on them as the Lich gives them my usual speed and strength buff. With little fanfare, a massive hole expands out from where the green orb pierced the storm. The over-buffed large goblins quite literally disappeared as they sprinted forward. A loud banging sound rang out as the blizzard disappeared and the Tengu came toppling down sideways. His right leg is still mangled from when my skeletons blew it up, but now his left foot has been completely snapped to the right as well.

    The Tengu tries raising his right arm at the goblins but it is visibly shaking. He barely managed to raise it up about ten feet when his arm suddenly went slack. He stared at his palm, watching it shake uncontrollably. The snickering from the goblins made it painfully obvious who was responsible for the Tengu losing control of his body.

    {Poison?}

    "Yeah... Most likely."

    The Tengu whips his head toward the sky. Moments later he tries to raise his arms in a futile attempt to block something, but it was far too slow. Keith dropped down from directly above the Tengu, piercing him right through his skull. The Tengu Lord''s arms dropped to his side, as he finally went silent for good.

 Chapter 31 - The Scourge

    "How the hell did you do that Keith? The last time I saw you, you were easily two hundred feet from where the Tengu was."

    Keith is currently resting against the Tengu''s corpse, trying to catch his breath. He shakily looks up at me.

    "Anyone could make that jump... But it was Nisha. She warped me above him..."

    Yeah anyone could, but would they? Hmm... He was channeling for quite a while... I suppose if you did a really good job of enforcing your legs they might survive a jump like that. I would need to practice it for a long time before it actually worked though, and even then it''s risky. I''ve seen people have the bones in their legs shatter from smaller jumps than that one. People who I would have considered quite powerful in the grand scheme of things.

    "Um, Miss Elf!"

    Looking down and to my left, I see the little goblin girl I talked to before.

    "Oh, you were here... Teifa?"

    "Ahem, that''s a role in our culture, not a name, but you can call me that for now. Anyways!" Teifa motioned to the three large goblin skeletons. "Is that your ability?!"

    "Yes, you want them? I''m not sure if you can keep them running after I take my connection out of them, but you can try? I never considered it possible till the girl on my back kept them supplied with mana in my stead." My soul was inside them at the time though, so I really don''t think it''ll work.

    "Yes please!" Teifa turned to say something to the other goblins but saw the veteran approaching and stopped in her tracks. "Gah, the elder wants to speak with you... I almost forgot about that."

    The ''elder'' walked over to us and nodded at me, then said something to Teifa.

    "Hmm, he wants to know what this creature was. He knew Kellog had enemies, but nothing like that." Teifa said.

    Behind her, I can see the goblins taking apart the Tengu one piece at a time. They''re wrapping all the feathers up into a bundle while chopping up the rest of him for meat.

    "They''re not wasting a single part of him huh? And he''s right by the way. This creature is known as a Tengu and it wasn''t here for Kellog, it was here for us." I continued. "Also, I wanted to ask, why did you help kill it? You could have easily turned around and left after seeing the Tengu... So why didn''t you?"

    Teifa shrugged. "I don''t even need to ask him, I already know what his answer will be. There was a fight in front of us, so we joined it. It would take a while to explain the goblin''s philosophy concerning battle, so just understand that we won''t shy from a fight, ever. Surely you found it odd that we didn''t harm you for getting several of our brethren killed when you brought those knights to our doorstep? We saved their souls and are reincarnating them as we speak. That was a complete victory in our eyes."

    "I see, that does explain a lot then. Also you just reminded me, the souls of those three large goblins are back there in a cellar. Want me to bring you to them now?"

    "Would you? Then please do it now before I get lost in researching these skeletons of yours. Plus I want to see if I can shove their souls back into the skeletons... The elders might not agree though, so I need to do it fast."

    Aresa taps my shoulder.

    {Let me down.}

    I drain all the mana from the mesh wrapped around us and it slackens immediately, falling onto the ground. Aresa bends down and picks it up.

    {It can make a good scarf!}

    "I don''t mind, you can keep it. Just know that it wears out over time like anything else, especially if it continually has mana poured into it."

    {Aww, I thought all your creations would last forever...}

    Pfft, as if they''re that convenient. If they were invincible I would probably just become a tailor and use my fortune to influence people of power into killing Viktor for me.

    Turning around, I lead Teifa toward the cellar where I left the souls. On the way, I point out the dead monster that was the cause of their villages being incinerated. Teifa merely confirms it''s dead and then urges for me to continue. We drop down after arriving at the cellar, and I see Shana and Nisha leaning against the nearby wall. Shana looks absolutely exhausted, while Nisha has a vacant look in her eyes, almost as if she''s dead inside. Euphemia is still in the same pose as before, burying her face into her knees.

    {Can you do something for Nisha?}

    You want me to do something for her??? Oh my sweet little naive Aresa... You''ve clearly lost your mind. Right now Keith is the only one who can console her. Either that or she needs to be left alone for a while. At the very least, the last person she wants talking to her right now is me.

    Teifa runs over near the Lich and grabs the three souls it''s holding out for her.

    "Thank you! We really thought they would be gone after dying to such a being. There are a lot of eldritch who devour the souls of anything they kill right there on the spot. That monster back there seemed like the type who would do it, but that doesn''t appear to be the case thankfully!"

    "Teifa, are the goblins going to return now?"

    "Yep, that''s the plan. Those knights are heavily damaged but it''s only a matter of time before another contingent shows up here. We should be gone before they arrive, or we''ll have no choice but to fight again. Remember, we won''t flee if a fight comes for us. Even though personally I''d really prefer we did run if the knights catch us... Odds are we''ll lose out here on the surface, and then nobody will be left to save our souls. We''ve already lost enough to that fire monster as it is."

    In that case it''s definitely for the best that they leave as soon as possible. Reinforcements from the fortress should be here any minute now.

    After taking back my soul from the Lich I jump out of the cellar and run back to the large goblin skeletons, pulling my soul out of them next. Off to the side I can see Keith asking Seifer to show him his ability again. Seifer makes the scythe in his hands disappear, and then moments later it reappears in his hands as if it was always there.

    "I understand how presumptuous I''m being by asking this Lord Seifer, but can you please teach me how to do that?"

    Seifer smiles. "Sir Keith, you played a pivotal role in slaying two of the monsters in our great nation. I''d be more than happy to teach you my ability. However, it will need to come after everything is taken care of."

    "Of course! My biggest issue has always been carrying around several heavy weapons, especially when I use them as ranged weapons half the time." Keith replied, beaming happily for a moment before returning to a stoic face.

    That is an amazing ability to have, so I don''t blame him for smiling when Seifer agreed to teach him. He probably feels bad being happy after his two friends had just died moments before. Now it''s just him and Nisha left... Their party has shrunk quite a bit.

    Teifa, having already shoved the souls back into the large goblins, is now discussing something with the elder. Far from mad, he looks curious. Several of the goblins are putting their hands on the skeletons and pouring their mana into them.

    "Miss Elf, how do we command them?"

    "Hmm, that''s a tough question... I do it through my soul, but you obviously don''t have any connection to them like I did. Do the goblins have any abilities that involve tying their souls to others?"

    "Of course. You saw the buffs our casters use, right?"

    Ahh true. Buffs and debuffs are much easier to cast if you can tap into the opponent''s soul. Since the large goblins are permitting their allies access, it makes buffing them much easier.

    "Try doing the same thing, but giving them orders instead. It''s easier if you maintain a permanent connection though. I have no idea of what is going to happen if they are left to their own devices." They might even start attacking everyone like what happened with the ones in Xelba after I died.

    Seifer walks up to us. "Apologies Rei, but I''d like to return as soon as possible. I''m worried about the princess and we really need to heal Tyra. Shana''s clones and Cera have already moved her to the caravan and put her to sleep. She''s stable, but the sooner we can get her back into action, the better off we''ll be."

    I''m honestly glad to hear she survived. It''s a shame she barely got to help against one of her mortal enemies, but I imagine she''s quite happy with the outcome.

    "You''re right Seifer, let''s head back. I need to take care of something real quick, but may I suggest you bring Teifa here along as well?"

    "What? Why would I stay here miss... Rei?" Teifa asked.

    "This is a perfect opportunity. I imagine the hatred between you and Kellog runs deep, but this could be a chance for you to become allies. After we take care of the broodling I''m sure the princess will be back to her old self, and she''ll definitely try and smooth things over after all the help you provided."

    "What''s a ''broodling''?" Teifa asked, quirking her head.

    Oh right... The goblins don''t know yet.

    Seifer nods. "I do not mind in the least. The feud is an old and pointless one as far as I''m concerned. We haven''t had an actual battle with the goblins in ages... Honestly, sometimes I forget they''re even still down there."

    Teifa shook her head. "That''s half true. The battle down below earlier today was the first time we fought each other directly in a very long time. At most, we kill solo knights who try to sneak below and spy on us. The problem ''Mr. Seifer'', is that your king sends the disgusting fishmen to kill us in his stead. So actually, we''ve never stopped fighting Kellog."

    Seifer looked between Teifa and me, clearly confused. "... Rei, what is she talking about? Fishmen...? And what is this about a battle below?"

    Teifa looked at me and shrugged.

    "I''ll go into greater detail when we''re all back in the manor, but your king is working with an Eldritch below Kellog, and he sends them to attack the goblins. Your people also jailed Tyra earlier and then tried killing the two of us when I broke her out."

    "You..." Seifer cut himself off, putting his head into his hands. "... You''re right. Let us discuss this in the manor. Will you be joining us, Miss Teifa?"

    "Err... I don''t really..." Teifa looked over at the elder. They talked back and forth for about a minute before she finally sighed.

    "... Looks like I''m going with you. He doesn''t care one way or the other, but there are plenty of elders who would prefer peace if possible. So, yeah... Thanks for the suggestion ''Rei''." Teifa said, rolling her eyes at me.

    "Oh come on, you''ll be fine! Think of it as an adventure."

    "I''d rather relax and tinker with those skeletons..."

    The skeletons in question were walking back and forth as the goblin mages pointed their staffs at them, apparently having figured out how to control them.

    It''s not the greatest method since it leaves them unable to cast anything else, but it''s a good start.

    Ishar comes stumbling up to us. "Fucking bird. I think I''m going to be healing from that hit for the next ten years..."

    "I can''t believe you survived... How many bones did it break?"

    Ishar sighed. "You don''t want to know... I focused on my legs just so I could get back into the fight, but if he turned and attacked me again that was it for me. I should''ve just kept my ass in that mountain and healed, but I was angry damnit. Nothing was going to keep me from rejoining the battle."

    Seifer leads the group toward the wagon, with Ishar trailing behind them as he uses his spear to steady himself.

    {Ready to go?} Aresa whispered into my ear despite being all the way over by the cellar.

    "... Not yet, I need to take care of something real quick. It won''t take long."

    {? Um, okay then. See you soon.}

    Running into the village I make sure nobody is looking before I begin scooping up all the villager''s souls. One by one feed them to the artifact armor(and take back my soul fragments from the ether carriers while I''m at it).

    It''s better I use them instead of their souls just sitting here until some random monster stumbles upon them and has himself a feast. With that said, the others shouldn''t see me doing this. Even I know this is pretty fucked up, but... Oh well. I am what I am.

    Wondering where the survivors are, I look down the road past the wagon and see a huge line of people walking toward another village.

    Half of them are carrying people too... Jeez, just how many people did Keith have to knock out? Looks like the broodling went all out, but it was pointless to send regular people against this group. All he managed to do was delay Cera and Keith for a little while. I wonder how much that helped the shaman locate it?

    Seifer opens up the side door as I''m running up to the wagon. Jumping inside I sit down between Teifa and Shana.

    "Take your time Rei..." Cera sighed.

    "Shut your cunt mouth," Shana said.

    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    Cera reaches for the strange firearm at her side and Shana immediately wills two knives into her hands.

    "Ladies, please! Haven''t we had enough excitement for one day?" Keith said.

    After staring at each other for a few seconds, the both of them put their weapons away.

    "No really, thanks for inviting me Rei..." Teifa mumbled.

    ... What the hell is this wagon? It''s just now hitting me, but everyone can fit in here. Hell, Tyra is lying on a table between both sides of us. There''s a table in here... This has to be the princess''s wagon, there''s no other explanation.

    For her part, Euphemia is looking a little better after seeing Tyra alive and well.

    <hr>

    We rode the rest of the way there in silence. Once we arrived and everyone filed out, Alicia(who is now almost entirely bald) came running out of the manor, clearly in a panic.

    "Guys! There''s nobody here!"

    "What...?" Euphemia said, her face turning white.

    Seifer runs off into the manor, with Keith and Euphemia following behind him.

    Alicia slides under the wagon and comes back out soon after, with the shaman sliding out behind her.

    "Any luck?" Ishar asked

    The shaman nods. "Very stupid it is. I trace connection after it connect to everyone in village! Lots reject influence, broodling try and force it, I find him! Very very stupid..."

    Alicia claps her hands. "Great!! Where is it?!"

    The shaman points towards the village connected to Euphemia''s manor. "Here."

    Ishar rubs his chin. "Hmm... Convenient. That also explains why they were able to feed that fox-girl to the broodling without any of the manor''s staff reporting anyone else missing. They took care of her and came back in under two hours I''d bet."

    "It doesn''t take a genius to connect the broodling''s location to all the people in the manor missing. There''s only one problem. When we passed through the village everyone was fine... Why did people only disappear from here?"

    "Isn''t it because we''re a threat to it?" Alicia replied.

    "So it disappeared all the maids and butlers...? I know you guys love the luxuries this place affords, but you''ll continue your lives just fine without them."

    Alicia looked down. "Ahh, yeah... I guess it is pretty meaningless? Why''d it do that then?"

    "We''ll find out soon enough. Rei, can you track them?" Ishar asked.

    "Hmm..." Circling around the wagon, I stare down the trail leading to the village.

    It''s been snowing ever since I exited the cave... I''m not seeing any tracks anywhere.

    "Unlikely. Even I can''t do anything about the snow covering their tracks. At the end of the trail I might be able to follow any tracks that surface, but there is always a massive amount of foot traffic coming and going from this place. We can try if you want, but I feel like we need a better plan."

    "What about Cid...?" Tyra said.

    I jump back into the wagon and see Tyra grinning up at me.

    "Shouldn''t you be asleep right now?"

    "Hah! I''ve been focusing on healing myself, ain''t got no time for sleep." Tyra''s face contorts into a grimace. "I''m... Disappointed, that I can''t help Euphie at such an important time..."

    "In that case just keep healing yourself. You''ll be by her side again soon enough." I sit down next to Aresa who is currently passed out. "Cid huh? Why''d you bring his name up?"

    "He wears a cloak with teeth on the end, remember?"

    ... Oh, I see where she''s going with this. It wasn''t a big deal when there was snow around, but holy shit the sound of those teeth scraping against ice was so annoying.

    Standing back up I exit the wagon, heading straight up the trail toward the village. Ishar limps along behind me as Alicia runs up next to me.

    "Um, I guess I''ll look after these two?!" Teifa yells out.

    "Keep them safe for us!" I yell back.

    Once we arrive in the village I begin scanning the ground.

    Ishar speaks up at the same time I find the marks. "Hell, even I can see those."

    "How about you Alicia?"

    "Huh?!"

    Alicia looks down at the ice. "Um... I''m sorry."

    "It''s okay baldy, you''ll get there in time," Ishar said.

    Alicia looks at him and growls in a way that almost sounds like the werewolf I fought before.

    "... They almost certainly have wigs in Viseux. Want to go pick one out together when we get back?"

    "Thank you, Rei... I''d appreciate that."

    The people in the village swerve around us, giving our group a wide berth. Ishar looks around and starts laughing.

    "I forgot they hated us! Good thing the princess took us in or I would''ve made life hell for these people."

    Chuckling, I continue tracking the claw marks. There are large gaps in the tracks thanks to all the foot traffic and wagons going through here, but we eventually track them to a pub. Upon walking inside the man behind the counter calls out to us instantly.

    "Hey there! The princess''s guests, right? I''ve heard all about you from Cid and Mia."

    Ishar steps forward. "Indeed. We''re actually here looking for Cid. Did he come through here earlier?"

    The barkeep goes silent, looking back and forth between the three of us.

    "Is something wrong sir? We''re only concerned because we just returned to the manor with the princess and the place was empty. All the staff were gone."

    His eyes go wide when he hears that. "I..." The barkeep sighs, "... They came through here earlier. It''s against the law but we have a large part of the underground still unsealed. It''s completely blocked off so nothing can get to us from down there, so there was never any fear of something dangerous coming above ground."

    "You don''t need to explain yourself to us, we really don''t care that you were breaking the law. We only want to know why everyone disappeared... So they''re down there right now?"

    "Yes ma''am. Mia came through with a large group of butlers and maids earlier, with Cid showing up about thirty minutes later." The barkeep said.

    Thirty minutes... I doubt he''s corrupted then. It''s not impossible, but it''s more likely that he came back to find the manor empty and tracked the people to this place. It was only thirty minutes so the snow wouldn''t have hidden their tracks yet.

    "Can you show us the way?" Ishar asked.

    "I can show you the door, but you''ll have to go the rest of the way yourselves. I still have a bar to take care of and it''s a straight path there anyways."

    The barkeep walked into the back room, motioning for us to follow. After following him through a few rooms he unlocks an old rusty door that looks like it''s about to fall off its hinges.

    "There you go. I don''t know what''s going on, but I hope everyone is okay..." The barkeep said then walked past us, returning to the bar.

    "... I think we should wait."

    Alicia looked at me. "Are you sure? What if they need us now?"

    "I''m with Rei, let us wait. The others will be right behind us. The shaman has access to the mark on my soul, he''ll lead the others right to us." Ishar said.

    Me and Ishar sit down by the wall. Alicia sees that and just shrugs, sitting down between us.

    <hr>

    Only ten minutes went by before Euphemia came running into the room. Looking behind her I can see everyone except Tyra, Aresa, Keith, and Nisha.

    "Thank you for waiting. Mia is... Mia is my, um..."

    Standing up I put my hand on Euphie''s shoulder. "Come on, the sooner we find them the better."

    Euphemia nods. Ishar opens the door and begins to descend the steps, with the rest of us following behind him one by one. It was pitch dark inside so several of the others pulled out a few crystal-torches. The descent felt like it took forever, but it was maybe only three minutes long. Once it leveled off, we continued forward for another minute before coming up to a door that looked even older than the one upstairs.

    Ishar reaches for the handle but the shaman grabs his wrist and yells, "No!"

    The shaman puts his palm over a tiny crystal in the middle of the door. His hand then lights up orange for about ten seconds before he pulls it back and gives us a thumbs up.

    "A trap?" Alicia asked. The shaman nodded at her.

    Once again Ishar reaches out for the door and this time he opens it. Upon seeing the inside, Ishar sprints into it with the rest of us following after him. By the time I get inside, I can see him peeling Mia off of Cid, who is currently bound tightly in a strange flesh-like rope that I used to see all the time in the other realm.

    Off to the side, I can see what Mia was dragging Cid towards. A large portion of the stone wall itself is warped, as if someone tried painting the wall to match the rest of it, but didn''t quite have the talent to do it.

    A bright yellow column of light appears between Alicia and the wall. The portion next to her grows brighter and brighter as she pulls her fist back. After the light gets so bright that nobody in the room can see anything, she punches the column, making the light shoot forward into the wall.

    Blood and flesh explode out of the ''wall'' after the ball of light hits it, but that''s not all that comes out of it. A long spear of flesh shoots out of the wall, going straight through Alicia''s chest. Multiple spears shoot out towards everyone else in this room as well before anyone can help her. Seifer wills a sword into his hands and jumps in front of Euphemia, Teifa, and the shaman. Deflecting all attacks that come his way.

    I dash towards Alicia and punch the spear jutting out of her chest, breaking it completely. I then pick her up and carry her back into the previous room. Once outside I lay her against the wall and rip the spear out. She''s lost a lot of blood already, but she immediately begins healing herself and tells me she''ll be fine.

    Rushing back inside, I see Cera hiding behind Seifer as she aims her purple ability gun at the broodling while Shana dodges every which way throwing knives at it as it repeatedly tries to spear and slice her up. Running past them I head towards Ishar who is somehow losing against Mia.

    Ishar shouts at Mia but it does absolutely nothing, she keeps attacking him with her enhanced claws. Ishar is parrying them all, but only just barely. Upon seeing me Mia jumps backward towards Cid and picks him up. After she has him in her arms she sprints toward the broodling who is now firing spears at both me and Ishar again. We''re able to fend them off but neither of us can stop Mia from running away.

    However, thanks to her paying attention to us she didn''t see the knife coming at her from the broodling''s direction. One of Shana''s knives goes all the way through her foot, pinning it to the floor, and as soon as she stopped moving Shana threw another one into her other foot.

    "Hurry Ishar! It try for early birth! Weaker, but still very strong!" The shaman yelled.

    "I''m trying damnit! Argh, my whole body is killing me...!!"

    The shaman went to say something back to him but turned his head toward Cera instead. Soon after that, everyone in front of her dove out of the way. Two things happened next at almost the exact same time. First, my eardrums nearly ruptured as she fired her gun. With the other point of interest being that the broodling literally exploded, showering the entire room in blood and guts.

    Mia hit the ground while holding her head. She looked around in a daze as Euphemia ran up to her.

    Ahh... I know that look, and I know what happens next. I really don''t want to be here for this...

    "Careful princess!! She''s clearly not herself!" Seifer yelled.

    Euphemia stops in her tracks, looking between Mia and Cid.

    "... No need to worry Seifer. Mia won''t attack her anymore."

    Ishar nodded as he sat down against a nearby wall.

    "How are you two certain?" Seifer asked.

    "I already told you Seifer, remember? My family. And Ishar deals with the Xerath all the time so his word means even more than mine in this instance."

    Hearing that, Euphemia finishes running towards Mia and picks her up.

    "... Euphie?" Mia looks up at her with one eye open.

    "Yeah, I''m here Mia. Do you um, do you remember what you''ve been doing?"

    I walk over to Cid and begin untying him. His eyes are darting all over the place so he must have woken up recently.

    "Of course. I was helping master birth sooner by feeding him the workers from the manor. But then Cid came, and um..." Mia looks over at Cid who is finally standing back up. "R-Right! Your guests intervened! We were so close, you would have experienced his love too Euphie... He was going to let us travel! You would have finally been able to get away from this dreary place..."

    Euphemia seemed at a loss for words, which is to be expected. I was stunned too when I thought I saved my family and they began rambling like this about their glorious master. But... This is the good part sadly. Very soon the ''love'' she has for the creature will fade and reality will set in.

    Cid glares down at Mia. "Mia, you... Did you feed Fei to that creature?"

    "Huh? Of course I did. I didn''t have a choice after the Guardians and the white one showed up."

    ''The white one''...? I''ve been called that before, but only once or twice since I woke up I think? It was usually Ash who called me that, and he''s been dead for ages.

    Cid leans back against the wall, putting his hands over his face. "O-Oh my god... Please tell me this isn''t real..."

    "Of course it''s real." Mia sighs and looks at Euphie, "You see? This is why it didn''t work between us. All he ever does is look away from reality. At least he was a good Father to Fei, she was growing up to..."

    Mia''s face contorts into about ten different emotions as she looks back and forth between the Xerath, Cid, and Euphie.

    Ahh... Here it comes.

    "F... Fei? Is, is she...? No... She''s fine, right Euphie? She must be back at the manor practicing her cooking. The chef even said she''s getting good enough to help out in the kitchen full-time. Yes... That must be where she is... She has to be there..."

    Nope, I''m out. I can''t watch this again.

    I begin walking towards the door and Ishar begins limping along behind me. As we pass by Seifer''s group Cera makes a disgusted face at me. I stop in my tracks and bring my face within inches of her own.

    "Go ahead, say something snarky again. I dare you."

    Cera looks surprised at first but begins glaring at me soon after. She must have realized I really was going to kill her if she pushed it further, so she looked away, biting her lip. I straighten my back out and continue walking out of the room, sitting down next to Alicia. Ishar sits on the opposite side of me and immediately begins healing himself. With nothing else to keep my mind occupied, I reach out to both of them and pour my mana into them while meditating.

    At least with this, I won''t be able to hear anything in the other room.

    <hr>

    "Rei."

    I open my eyes and look up to see Seifer looking down at me.

    "Can you come back into the room? Mia has something to tell you, and it doesn''t look like she has much time left..."

    Me? Why me? I think I only talked to her once...

    "Okay." Is all I said as I stood up.

    Following him back into the room, I see Cid is now the one holding Mia. Cid, Mia, and Euphemia all look emotionally broken. And sure enough, even at this distance I can feel Mia''s soul almost fully decoupled from her body.

    Seeing me, Mia looks up and smiles. "Rei... Thank you for coming. I wanted to tell you about the book in the prince''s room."

    "A book related to me...?"

    "Yes. I used to clean both the prince''s and Euphie''s rooms back when they lived together. One day I found a book he tried hiding away and read it out of curiosity. It was the journal of someone from Xelba. He talked about you quite a bit. He um... Didn''t have very nice things to say about you I''m afraid."

    ... Ash. It has to be Ash''s diary. Nobody hated me more than him. He was Viktor''s right-hand man but Viktor needed me more than him to break the stranglehold the other faction had over him. After all, they knew Ash worked for him, so it limited his movements greatly. His jealousy was really aggravating to deal with. Just remembering it is making me angry.

    "Thank you for telling me Mia, but um..." Is that it? This is interesting and I plan on stealing that book if only so I can burn it while pretending it''s Ash himself, but I don''t see why she felt the need to tell me about it.

    Mia lightly chuckles. "Silly girl, don''t be so quick to be disappointed. I read the whole thing and there''s something in there that you don''t know, at least according to the diary owner."

    Well, he was Viktor''s confidant, so this isn''t much of a surprise. Although I''ll admit, I''m very curious as to what she''s about to say...

    "There were three faceless creatures, um, these ''Xerath'' like the one I..." Mia begins to cry again. "S-Sorry, um... There were three, not one. He mocked you incessantly for thinking there was only one. Although it was the most important one. They took one of the others to an area called ''the dark lands'' and the last one was traded to a corporation on a planet named Zhegu for something important Viktor needed. He um, he wasn''t specific about the trade though, I''m sorry."

    "The dark lands..." I heard the shaman mutter.

    Ahh that''s right... I remember the other shaman telling us about how they opened a portal there and everyone died instantly. And Zhegu was the planet the skeleton was from, I think...?

    "I see... Thank you for telling me Mia, truly. I''ll admit, I really did have no clue that there were three of the damned things."

    Mia smiled, then looked back to Cid. "You better be okay without us asshole... Don''t you dare mope around for the rest of your life."

    Cid weakly returned her smile. "I''ll try hun... But I''ve never known life without you..."

    Shana leaned over and whispered. "They lived next door to each other. They grew up together and immediately got married. He''s not kidding, he really doesn''t know life without her."

    I can''t even imagine losing someone like that... I only knew my friends for seven or eight years and that was soul-crushing when I lost them. It would be different if I knew their soul had reincarnated instead of being fed to... Oh, wait a minute, hang on!

    "Teifa! Can you come here?"

    "Eh?!" Teifa looked around, shocked that she was being called on in this situation. Eventually she did come out of her shock and walk up to me.

    "Um, what do you want?"

    "The goblins, how do they save souls?"

    "Why would you... Oh." Teifa looks at Mia who is looking right back at her. "... I''m pretty sure I can do what you''re asking, but we can''t revive her. That requires a whole other set of rituals and other things. I can however force her back into the cycle of reincarnation so that freak doesn''t steal her soul."

    "What?! Is that true Miss Goblin?!" Euphemia yelled.

    "Y-Yes, I swear! We do it all the time, there should be no difference doing it for a Fox-girl."

    Mia wholeheartedly laughed, clearly relieved that she wasn''t about to be eaten by Meizha''thul or something else entirely.

    Cid, Mia, and Euphemia kept talking for quite a while, this time much happier than before. His daughter may have not been so lucky, but he was genuinely happy knowing that his childhood friend was going to reincarnate, a rarity these days. They were talking about something that happened soon after they moved into Euphie''s manor when Mia suddenly went still, telling everyone here that her soul had finally broken free of her body. And sure enough, I could see it floating harmlessly above her body.

    Teifa grasped around randomly for about thirty seconds till she finally grabbed it. An aura appeared over her hand, slowly encompassing the soul. When it was completed she tied it to her staff. After that, she performed a small rite that mostly involved her meditating on her staff while hardly talking or moving.

    I knew when it was completed though, because I saw Mia''s soul do something I had never seen before. A small golden aura shone over the soul for a few seconds before it blinked out of existence. Except that wasn''t all. When it warped away I could feel a small pulse from the other dimension it was moving to, and that''s when I knew for a fact that she had entered another realm because it was the warmest feeling I had ever felt in my entire life. It made Arkaios'' dawn realm feel insignificant in comparison.

 Chapter 32 - Grinning Demon

    Strange... This is all very strange...

    I continue to watch the memory play out in front of me while I rest on a fancy recliner in my soul realm. The monster known as a ''Chimera'' barrels through one car after another as it chases after the man who killed its mother.

    How is this possible? It''s already extremely rare for me to gain an ability after absorbing a Lord or Eldritch, but I also retained the creature''s memories? I understand why the Chimera''s soul was so different after watching its memories, but for it to be this different is honestly shocking.

    The Chimera screamed in rage as the vehicle carrying Hyon Sung-Ryung drove out of sight. Soon after that, it activated one of its abilities, a very special one that excels in tracking. The very same ability I acquired from absorbing its soul.

    I was ecstatic earlier when I tested my new ability after watching the Chimera use the one it''s showing me now. It allows me to see the past movement of souls in the area, and I can also ''mark'' souls so the silhouettes they are attached to look different, which allows me to immediately pick out ''who is who'' in any crowd. I have no idea of how long the remnants of soul activity stay behind, but even if it''s only an hour, this ability is going to be unbelievably useful for me.

    "You done Rei?"

    Hmm?

    Looking over at the widescreen TV I see Alicia standing over my body that''s lying down on one of Euphemia''s couches. Dismissing the Chimera''s memory, I immediately exit my soul realm and look up at her.

    "Is it time?"

    Alicia nodded.

    I got off the couch and sighed.

    "I found something that will make the ''negotiations'' easier."

    Alicia was already turning to leave but she whipped back around when I said that.

    "How?! Haven''t you just been lying there absorbing that monster''s soul?"

    "Yes, and just like the Tengu''s little spy, I was able to take a peek at his memories. I know where it came from, why it was here, and what dragged it to those villages. I can say without question that it was also unrelated to the disappearances."

    Alicia turned and walked toward the exit. "... I have so many questions about that enviable ability of yours, but for now who is the culprit you''re referring to."

    "A type of Demon I''ve never seen before. Did the Lizardmen ever speak of a Demon with four gangly arms and a perpetual giant grin on its face?"

    Alicia shook her head. "Nope. That one is new for me too. Sounds really freaking creepy though..."

    No argument here. I was rather disgusted by the thing when it showed up in the Chimera''s memories.

    Alicia led me outside to Euphemia''s wagon, where everyone was already seated and waiting for us. I jumped in after Alicia and took the only free seat next to Nisha.

    Alicia looked at me as the wagon began moving. "Tell them what you found. Maybe someone here will know what that Demon is."

    "Demon?" Keith asked.

    I explained to them everything I saw in the Chimera''s memories. Everyone calmly listened until I began to describe the Demon, at which point both Keith and Nisha''s eyes went wide.

    Keith put his hands over his face. "Rei, did you see any of the spells it used?"

    "Hmm... I think I only saw one? It placed a mark on the Chimera''s soul and warped it back to where the Demon found it after the Chimera had finished burning down a village."

    Keith went silent after that.

    I was hoping he''d illuminate us as to why he and Nisha appeared to be very disturbed when I described the Demon. Obviously they have seen the thing before, so hopefully they''ll tell us later.

    "Now it''s a Demon... The fun never stops in this place." Ishar said.

    This revelation didn''t seem to bother Euphemia or Seifer in the least. They both had the same stoic faces they''d had all day. Clearly determined to deal with the king and get some answers, one way or the other. I assume the death of the broodling also played a massive role in lifting the princess''s spirits.

    "Seifer, how come they had you watching the wagon? Weren''t they worried you''d kill the shaman when you were alone with him?"

    Seifer shook his head. "The shaman gave me the all-clear before we left the manor. He scanned my soul and said for the time being I was safe. However, um..."

    Seifer looks over at the princess awkwardly, which makes her smile in response. "It''s fine you can say it. The shaman said there was a good chance I wouldn''t be able to resist. But I did! I could feel the vile thing trying to worm its way into my mind when I was hiding in that cellar."

    So that''s why she was so downtrodden when she arrived... But the Lich would have choked her out if she turned hostile so there was never any danger anyways.

    "... Just to confirm Euphie, but how well do you expect this meeting to go?" Cera asked.

    "Not well at all," Euphemia replied nonchalantly.

    Teifa raised her hand. "Um... I''m going to be okay, right?"

    "Probably not... But I promise to bring your soul back to your people."

    "Oh shut up Rei! You''re the reason I''m here to begin with..."

    Euphemia chuckled. "Now now, don''t make fun of our little goblin guest. I swear that nothing will happen to you Teifa so long as you''re with me." Euphemia put a finger to her chin, then continued, "Unless of course, he has all of us killed... You never know with my Father these days."

    Teifa curled up into a ball and I could see Euphemia ever-so-slightly grin when she saw that.

    She''s certainly done a one-eighty after the broodling died. Her mood has lifted to the point she''s even joking around now. However, from time to time she''ll look incredibly sad, which is to be expected after everything that''s happened(including her best friend dying).

    ... Hmm, she''s probably forcing herself too. It''s gotten a little easier since I first ''revived'', but I still have to make a valiant effort to not think about my friend''s deaths.

    "Rei." Nisha pokes my arm.

    ... I must be imagining things. I can''t imagine this girl talking to me, ever.

    I look to my right, and sure enough, she''s staring right at me.

    "... Yes?"

    "Can you describe the Demon again?" Nisha asked.

    The deadly look in her eyes says this is apparently important to her. Either that or she''s plotting my death with her eyes alone.

    "Want me to just show you?"

    Nisha''s eyes widen. "Are you... Sure?"

    It should be fine. Both Lindon and Albel are dead now, so with only her and Keith left I can''t imagine her doing something to my soul. There''s also the part where Arkaios would purge her if she did something as stupid as that when Urza already has so many other problems they need to deal with.

    Nisha scooches closer to me and wraps her left arm around my right arm, hugging me tightly against her, resulting in my right arm being crushed by something soft.

    "... Uh?"

    "What? I might fall after entering your soul realm. It''s not just to hide my body, I also feel much more secure laying inside something or hiding in the ground."

    Then just lean back with your legs against the table like I was going to do? One of the first things Practitioners learn after creating their soul realm is how to access it in any situation. Riding in a wagon should be one of the easiest places...

    Nisha brings her nose close to my shoulder. "... You have no smell. My god, you''re so weird. Seriously, what the hell? Are you a walking corpse? There''s a reason we put you in that jail cell instead of killing you."

    Keith chuckles, "I almost forgot about that... We really did think you were dead."

    "You locked her up previously? And not only that, you were going to kill her?" Seifer asked.

    Keith looks around awkwardly. "Err, well there were uh... Special circumstances? Everything is fine now though... I think."

    Nisha taps my leg. "Come on let''s go. I want to see if it''s the Demon we met before."

    "You''re the one who delayed it..."

    Closing my eyes, I erase the veil from one area of my soul. Soon after that I can feel Nisha connecting.

    A much deeper connection than I''m used to, but that''s to be expected considering what she is.

    Immediately the scenery changes to my soul realm and Nisha looks around with a disgusted face.

    "I heard about your upbringing... Looks like it was true. These are the ''Xerath'' huh? Arkaios has set Demons as priority number one. Xerath are number two, and lastly, any hostile Eldritch we come across are number three. I''m gonna have to get used to the sight of these things apparently..." Nisha looks around in a panic. "Rei, I''m not the only one connected to you right now!"

    "I know, it''s the Tengu and there''s nothing I can do about it. I probed it earlier when I was absorbing the Chimera, but it''s locked in tight. It''ll be a long time before I''m strong enough to do anything about it."

    "... I see," Nisha said.

    I sit down on one of the couches, a long fancy one from my home back in Aetheria. Nisha walks over and sits down next to me. Immediately I start flipping through the Chimera''s memories, making random bits appear here and there as I search for the Demon. After about twenty seconds I finally find him and change the view so it focuses solely on the Demon.

    "That''s the Demon... I knew it from your description, but still... My god, is this really happening?" Nisha said.

    "Alright you saw it, now tell me what''s going on, please? If you know what this Demon is, we''re all going to need to know as well before we fight it."

    Nisha sighs, "Yeah... You''re right. I''m leaving your realm and going to tell everyone in the wagon right now. No point in doing this twice."

    Both me and Nisha exit my soul realm, and she immediately begins explaining to everyone that she and Keith have already fought the Demon before, about three months before they met me. Apparently, it had tortured and eaten Keith''s sister, which is what led to them summoning a Satyr. Keith did it to both save his friends and kill this very same Demon.

    "But that makes no sense? Why would a Demon help you kill another Demon? And why were you so certain this ''Satyr'' would most certainly help you?" Cera asked.

    Keith looked away, so I cut in. "As for why a Satyr would kill another Demon, it''s because the pros far outweigh the cons. They get far more out of contracts with humans than they do for keeping some random Demon alive. Case in point, they can now place portals here. As for why he was certain of this... I believe I have an idea." I look at Keith, "I''m starting to get a feel for how that creature thinks, so I''m almost positive of this, but did a certain raven tell you how to summon a Satyr and inform you that it would not betray you?"

    Aresa who had been quiet up till this point opened her eyes and shoved her board in front of Keith''s face.

    "... I''m sorry Lady Aresa, it''s true," Keith said.

    "So that''s why you suddenly came back and said we were summoning a Demon... We all knew something happened while you were gone, but none of us had even considered the Tengu as a possible culprit." Nisha said.

    "Why not? It''s definitely something he would do."

    Nisha shrugged. "He had just reappeared one year prior. Up till that point, the Tengu was nothing more than a threat from the past we had to learn about in school. A pointless history lesson that almost nobody remembered or cared about."

    {Maybe for all of you. Both me and Rai''ga were always scared he''d come back since nobody knew why he disappeared after killing Tsukiko, the Kitsune Eldritch.}

    Aresa leaned back into her seat and closed her eyes again.

    She''s been completely exhausted ever since I used most of her mana... Apparently, if she can''t return to her chateau, she needs to sleep for an enormous amount of time to recover.

    The wagon rolls to a stop and Tyra immediately opens the door.

    "Euphie, we''ve arrived, but..." Tyra glares at someone to her left.

    We begin exiting the wagon one by one, with me coming out last. Next to Tyra, I see the knight who locked her up before.

    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Euphemia steps forward. "Oh good, I was hoping to talk to you as well, Tyrell. How very kind of you to allow me the opportunity to pay you back before we talk to Father."

    Tyra grabbed the hammers at her waist at the same time Seifer was willing two scythe''s into his, but Tyrell reacted by hitting the ground with one knee while laying his weapon down.

    "... And this is?" Euphemia asked.

    "I surrender. I realize now that this is the best opportunity to change the King''s mind. Also, I''m nowhere near healed from my wounds yet. I wouldn''t be able to beat Tyra right now, let alone Seifer as well."

    Euphemia narrowed her eyes at Tyrell. Tyra did the same, but after staring at Tyrell for a little while she ended up sighing and putting her weapons away.

    "Euph---My Lady, let us hear him out," Tyra said.

    Euphemia kept staring at Tyrell. "Seifer?"

    Seifer''s scythes disappeared as he approached Tyrell, picking up his weapon and blinking that out of existence as well.

    "... I see. In that case, please stand Tyrell, and come inside my wagon. I''d like to talk to you first before approaching my Father."

    Another knight nearby approached Euphemia. "Apologies princess, but the King is waiting for you as we speak. So if you would---"

    Euphemia ignored the knight, turning around and entering her wagon. Tyra saw that and chuckled at the knight before following after the princess. One by one everyone else filed back into the wagon except for me and Ishar. We both sat down with our backs to the wagon.

    "Thoughts?" Ishar asked.

    "Well, the King is definitely working with an Eldritch from below, it''s just a question of why. As for the Demon... I''m really not sure? If we''re to believe the Demon came here after fighting Keith''s group, then it''s only been here for about five months at most."

    Ishar raises his hands and begins cracking his knuckles. "And yet, it didn''t do anything until recently? A ''perpetually grinning Demon'' sounds like something that would bring far more destruction to this place. Also, why did it bother using this ''Chimera'' instead of doing the dirty work itself?"

    I shrugged. "Hell if I know. I''m an expert on Satyr, but any other Demon aside from Imps are a mystery to me."

    "You only saw Satyr and Imps in the Xerath realm?"

    "Yep. I was isolated to my little area of the realm though. There could have been different Demons elsewhere."

    We waited in silence for quite a while, until finally the wagon door opened and everyone followed Euphemia towards the fortress''s main door. Ishar and I stood up and did the same.

    The first room you see after entering through the main door is leagues different from the side door I entered before. It''s one gigantic room that''s built like a warehouse, with stairs on each side that go up to different levels. I can also see doors adorning the walls on each level.

    There have to be hundreds of rooms in here... I do like this design though. You''d have to be me to sneak through here. Anything out of place would be spotted and killed instantly.

    The princess leads us to the staircase opposite of where we came in. Surprisingly, once we began scaling the stairs, we stopped on the third floor instead of going all the way to the top. A normal-looking door only three doors away from the stairs is where the princess finally stopped. The two men in front of the door lightly bowed to her and then stepped aside for us. For the most part, their faces were impassive, but they were clearly surprised to see Tyrell when he passed by them.

    Inside the room, there was only the King, Prince, and two maids waiting for us. The King raised an eyebrow when he saw Tyrell but said nothing as the man stood at attention beside Tyra near the wall.

    "Hello, Father. Thank you for meeting with me." Euphemia said as she sat down. She glanced at her brother and continued, "And look who''s here, my brother who said he''d be having dinner at my place after the Guardians arrived, and yet no one seemed to know where he was till now! I''m relieved to see that you are safe..."

    "I''m sorry Euphie. I''ve been rather busy lately..."

    "I''m sure you have been," Euphemia said.

    "Meaning?" Parn replied, narrowing his eyes.

    Euphemia sighed. "Alright, you know what, I can''t bring myself to play this game anymore." Euphemia leaned back onto the couch, sitting more casually for the first time since I''d met her. "Which one of you wonderful family members of mine brought a Demon here?"

    The King''s eyes nearly bulged out of his head. "What is the meaning of this?! Why would you... Ah!" The King then glared at the rest of us. "Outsiders... You must be responsible for this...!"

    "DEMON! WHICH! SPEAK NOW!!" Euphemia yelled, pointing at both of them.

    The King sighed and pinched the brim of his nose, while Parn just stared impassively at Euphemia.

    Euphemia threw her hands up in the air. "I already know you''re in a pact with a foreign Eldritch Father. A fish creature from underground. Putting the Demon aside for now, mind telling me why you''re allied with that Eldritch?"

    The King shook his head. "You would not understand. I sent you to that home to live in peace because I knew you wouldn''t be able to understand why such an allegiance was necessary."

    "At least try and explain it to me, please? After the hellish week I''ve had, I deserve that much." Euphemia said.

    The King glared at Ishar. "I made that pact before I was King, for several reasons. First off, I needed something to defend us from below. The damned crocodiles proved that to us on several different occasions. And secondly, we needed food. The gold mine had dried up and the land was slowly dying. Nobody could figure out why, so we had to come up with a plan, and fast. Fortunately, none of our people have questioned why we have so many fish despite Kellog only having a few small lakes."

    Tyra sucked in air sharply off to the side, making everyone look at her.

    "You... No, wait... Something Rei said in the wagon gave me an epiphany as I listened to this." Tyra continued, "My King... How did you know there was an Eldritch close to the surface, and most importantly, who contacted it for you?"

    ... Oh shit, I see where she''s going with this.

    "..............."

    The King went silent, closing his eyes.

    Tyra''s head hung down as she mumbled, "And my brother...? How is it connected to him?"

    "... I didn''t know it was going to be him. I was only assured that my Father and Brother would be killed. You half prevented it, but fortunately, my Father gave up the crown to me soon after that, instead of my weak and cowardly brother who was originally meant to reign." The King said.

    "Father, did you really...?" Euphemia asked.

    The King stood up, pacing back and forth. "Peace... The fools wanted peace with the Crotia and Xelba. I know not whether Xelba agreed, but the Crotia did, and they... They were actually going through with it. After those vile, despicable, loathsome creatures had killed, tortured, and maimed countless citizens of ours, they wanted PEACE?!"

    The King''s face turned red as he began walking faster, "Peace!!! All the raids, all the killings, all the... No, it doesn''t matter. My mother, your very own grandmother was killed by those creatures, and I knew for a fact that the peace accords were fake, hell, so did Father! But he was going through with it anyway. The Crotia merely wanted time to deal with Viseux who was on the move to evict them from Urza. And thanks to me taking the crown, I was able to make it a reality. I solved the food shortage, evicted those useless crocodiles, and even now we continue to collect a large amount of metals from underground as a bonus. All things that never would have happened if my spineless brother lived."

    "... And the price? I''ve seen your cages down below. I was put in one after all." Tyra said.

    "What?" The King said, clearly confused.

    Everyone on our side looked at Tyrell, who also appeared confused by his King''s response. "My King, you... You''re the one who told me to capture ''the white one''." He pointed towards me, then continued, "And if we couldn''t capture her, then we were to grab Tyra or Cid instead. ''The white one would try and save them'' we were told, so..."

    The King sat down and slammed the desk. "I never gave such a ridiculous order! What is wrong with you Tyrell?! Tyra has served us dutifully her whole life, and I owed her a debt after getting her brother killed, even if that wasn''t my intention. So as a means to lighten my own remorse, I sent her to look after my daughter, which also served as an early retirement."

    Tyrell looked stunned. "But it was your voice using your communication crystal! Who else but you could use it, My King?"

    "No one should be able to... Even my own children can''t use it without my permission."

    The room went silent while the King became lost in thought.

    I have a pretty good idea of who it was since there is only one person here who would call me by that name, but there''s also something else I''d like to know.

    Leaning down, I whisper into Euphemia''s ear, "Ask him if the push to the east is related to the Eldritch."

    "Father, a slightly different question, but Rei here just asked something I was also curious about. Why the sudden push to the east? And is it related to the fishmen?"

    "Ahh... Right, that. Ask your brother here, it''s his plan. And yes, he wanted to use the fishmen. Their ''civilization''... If I can call it that, goes for hundreds of miles. They might even be underground in every single region of Urza. They''re the ones who even told me about all the gold to begin with."

    Holy shit, that explains why they seemed to be everywhere. They are fish, after all, so it''s probably not very difficult for them to create more... I can''t even begin to imagine just how many eggs the god can lay in a week.

    "Brother?"

    Parn shrugged. "There isn''t much more to add. Father is soon going to pass the crown to me, so I figured the first thing we should do is fill our coffers. The Eldritch already agreed to clear the way so long as we increase our deliveries to it a little. At least that was the plan before the sky disappeared. Now I''m not sure of anything anymore..."

    Deliveries... Like that little girl? I was worried that Mia might have fed her to the broodling, but Tyra told me she had hidden her in the manor without anyone seeing her before Tyrell showed up and chased after her again. She''s still in the manor even now. Euphemia brought in a few people from town to look after the place for now while she finds new maids and butlers.

    "Speaking of those ''deliveries''... Are you feeding our people to that thing?" Euphemia asked.

    "No, gods no... They''re brought to us from Viseux. Before you ask, I have no idea of where they are originally from." The King replied.

    Hah... So it''s okay so long as they''re outsiders? It seems like every place has a little ''Xelba'' in them.

    "And you''re fine with this brother?"

    "It''s either that or starve. The peanuts are the only other damn thing we''re growing right now thanks to this weather. The only good news is that the Eldritch is currently looking for a place away from the goblins where we can place our farms underground." Parn looked at Teifa and continued, "Speaking of goblins... Why is this thing here?"

    Teifa looked like she wanted to flee right then and there, but Euphemia moved to the left on the couch, blocking her brother from seeing Teifa who was standing behind it.

    "P-Princess...!" Teifa said, nearly crying.

    "She''s with me. I heard all about your little war with the goblins, and they''re more than happy to be at peace. However, after listening to Father earlier, I can already imagine what the both of you are going to say." Euphemia said.

    "You''re right. There''s no way Father would agree to a cease-fire or anything of the sort." Parn replied.

    The King sighed. "I don''t care about them anymore. I only hated the goblins because they were allies of the Crotia. I told the fishmen to kill them because I was expecting them to be a major problem going forward, but instead they kept to themselves all these years... In retrospect, I should have reached out to them years ago and offered a truce."

    Parn whipped his head toward the King. "Are you serious Father?! Just like that?"

    The King shrugged. "Of course. Even when the Crotia were here, the goblins only defended the underground. A few stragglers came up and stole food or clothes, but nothing that truly mattered."

    For her part, Teifa looked stunned. Seeing her lifelong war with Kellog so easily dismissed was quite shocking I''m sure.

    Euphemia clapped her hands. "Now then, enough of these delays. Tell us where you met the Demon, brother."

    Parn narrowed his eyes at Euphemia. "And you think it''s me because...?"

    "''The white one''."

    Parn shook a little and glanced at me after hearing that name.

    "... What of it? The first time I saw her was barely a week ago."

    "Mia told me about your little diary. The one you tried hiding, poorly I might add. It''s from one of the upper echelons that used to serve Xelba, and it spoke of Rei quite a bit." Euphemia said.

    "Tsk... I loathe the younger version of myself who thought hiding a book under the bed was a good idea. That aside, what does this have to do with the Demon?"

    "So you''re going to keep this facade going... Tyrell called her ''the white one'', and only you could call Rei that. Technically Mia could have too, but it obviously wasn''t her. Even she couldn''t have slipped into this room and used Father''s communication crystals without anyone noticing." Euphemia said.

    Parn shrugged. "Still waiting to hear this definitive proof of yours. I fully admit to associating with an unregistered Eldritch, and even feeding the damned thing. But I never, not once, consorted with a Demon."

    Annoying little prick is probably unrelated to the Demon, but he clearly has no intentions to tell us why he wanted to have me jailed... I''ll look into it myself later on.

    I looked at Keith. "You told us about your fight with the Demon, but why were you originally called out to kill it? It might explain why it''s disappearing people here."

    "Oh, we were actually told it was an Eldritch. We only figured out it was really a Demon after Brian ran into it. After everything that happened with my sister, we kind of forgot to ask him what it was doing when he found it. All I know is that it was in an abandoned church, and I remember seeing a lot of dead farm animals strewn about." Keith said.

    Animals...?

    "I''ve heard reports of animals being found eaten in their barns, but surely that''s not all a Demon is doing here?" Seifer said.

    {Even if they''re abandoned, churches will always have a stronger connection to other realms.}

    The King, apparently having not noticed her till now, went wide-eyed. "I-I see, thank you Lady Aresa... And thank you so much for assisting my realm during this turbulent time."

    "Why is that?" Teifa asked on instinct, then went into a panic when everyone looked at her.

    Surprisingly, the King replied to her. "The goblins don''t know? Prayers are designated for gods. Even if their prayers have no aim, they unconsciously seek out otherworldly beings in their thoughts. Over time, places of worship become areas filled with ether and it also becomes much easier to enter other realms there. Basically, demonic sacrifices require far fewer people as a result."

    "Why the hell did you choose an arena then?" I asked Keith.

    "... Because the area was filled with ether, making the whole ordeal much easier. Maybe because it was where lots of people had died in the past?" Keith replied.

    That explains why Viktor conducted all his rituals in that massive ruined temple and even placed his little pet there as well. But he never needed anywhere near five hundred people to summon one Satyr... He could''ve easily got two or three for that amount. I really need to understand these temple connections better going forward. Hopefully Aresa has some books on the matter back at her place.

    "I still have a hard time believing you''re innocent in regards to the Demon, brother, but at the very least I want that diary. Hand it over." Euphemia said.

    "You are out of your mind if you think I''m giving up such a valuable treasure. Also, if you read the diary like I have, you wouldn''t be so friendly with that thing behind you."

    I couldn''t help but laugh when he said that. While it''s true I wasn''t exactly righteous, it''s just the fact that I know Ash embellished everything in the event someone stole his stupid little diary. I''m sure it was meant to hurt me in Xelba and not out here forty-two years later, but he got his wish regardless.

    Cera raised her hand. "Excuse me, but how are we certain the Demon is even responsible for the disappearances?"

    A good question. The Demon is something you''d expect to be the culprit in a situation like this, but there are no guarantees. Especially if the damned thing has been here for many months.

    Cera looked at Keith, "Has anyone else ever seen the Demon before? Or just your group?"

    Keith shook his head. "Just us, strangely enough."

    The King sighed, "This is going nowhere... I say we break for dinner. What do you say Euphie? It''s been a while since you ate with us."

    Euphemia stood up, with her face looking like she was about to explode. "... Apologies Father, but I need to head back for now. We''ll talk another day."

    As she turned to leave I held my hand out. "Wait! We really need to know where Blackwall is."

    Cera nodded. "True... We haven''t seen him since the first day we arrived. Or any of the Guardians for that matter."

    "... Father?"

    "Just like the Demon, I have never seen this ''Blackwall'' of yours. However, there were eight Guardians who showed up before all of you. Maybe about three days in advance?"

    "And does anyone know where they are?" Cera asked.

    "Have you tried the inn near my sister''s manor? We already knew you''d be staying with her since she asked Father. So when the first group of Guardians showed up, we had them stay in her village." Parn said.

    After hearing that, Euphemia walked straight out of the room. Parn just shook his head and shrugged in response.

    Everyone but Tyrell followed her out of the room and continued walking behind her until we reached the wagon.

    Euphemia turned around. "Well?"

    Ishar rubbed his chin, "Hmm... I believe we should head straight to that inn. It may be related to the Demon, or it may not. Regardless, it''s best we find this ''Blackwall'' as soon as possible."

    Euphemia nodded and turned to enter the wagon, and that''s when I felt time slow down around me. To my left, I could see the Demon rising out of the ground, right behind Nisha. Ishar reacted immediately thanks to his anti-magic spear shining brightly, and Keith was already drawing his weapons because of his ridiculous reaction speed. The others were lagging behind, but for the most part, everyone here was preparing to kill the creature here and now.

    It began to reach out for Nisha but I grabbed her waist and pulled her away right before he reached her. The Demon''s perpetual grin quite literally turned into a frown as several of Shana''s daggers struck its barrier. A strange sound emitted as the Demon blinked out of existence.

    "Damnit! This is the same problem we faced last time..." Keith said, stowing his weapon.

    "If you''re putting your weapon away already, does that mean it''s gone? I''ve never seen a warp that fast before..." Ishar asked.

    "Yes, it''s gone for now. The damned thing will be back though. It kept trying to nab one of us until it finally got my sister, and that''s when..." Keith trailed off.

    "So what exactly do we do then?" Alicia asked.

    "Same as before, go to the inn. We just need to be more vigilant from here on out." Ishar replied.

    I let go of Nisha''s waist. She looked at me for a moment before turning around and entering the wagon. The rest of us filed in after her in silence, with me sitting next to Shana this time.

    "I''m tired of this place," Shana said.

    Yeah, I think I''m pretty fed up with it too. Once we find Blackwall and kill this fucking Demon, it''ll finally be time to go back to Viseux. I''ll relax at Aresa''s place for a week and then begin the next stage of my journey. The Chimera''s soul gave me a shocking amount of strength. So I''m more than ready to leave Urza anytime I want now.

 Chapter 33 - Back to the Underground

    Aresa holds her board out in front of Seifer.

    {How could you not know? Don''t you work for the King?}

    "... Apologies, Lady Aresa. But it seems the King believed I wouldn''t be on board with such an agreement, and he''s half right. While it disgusts me, especially since people from the outside are sacrificed for our well-being, it''s also a fact that we''ve always been teetering on the edge of collapse. If most of our fish were to disappear, well... I really don''t know how long Kellog would last. Especially now that the only thing we can grow is those damned peanuts from Thule. Although they are rather delicious, there''s no denying that."

    ''Half right'' huh... He loves his nation but his morals aren''t on board with sacrificing people for it. Looks like the King''s decision to keep him in the dark was correct. As for whether I think the King made the right decision by making a pact with a foreign Eldritch... I''m really not sure. I would have needed to be here during the inception to know whether there truly were no other options. The man obviously has a deep hatred for the Crotia and both his brother and father. Who''s to say he didn''t ignore other paths he could have taken because he was too focused on getting revenge?

    I looked at Keith. "How often is that Demon going to try and capture one of us? And why was it so slow? It could have easily grabbed Nisha by warping behind her and grabbing her in the same instant, but instead it... I don''t even know? Grew out of her shadow it looked like..."

    Keith nodded. "Because that''s exactly what happened. We figured out that the only way to sleep was by putting light sources everywhere in a single room. This way nobody was casting shadows big enough for the Demon to appear from. And before anyone else asks, I don''t know why it only approaches us through shadows when it obviously has the ability to warp."

    Hmm... There must be rules to its warp. When you have an ability or spell that''s a little too strong, the world imposes restrictions on it. Which is a major reason why I was so shocked when I first encountered Arkaios'' reset. Even an old god like Eremnon can''t just do whatever he wants in our world... I did get my answer to that in the end though. Without the templars and his artifacts, he''s just as harmless as Eremnon and Meizha''thul are.

    It does bring up a few more questions that I''d love some answers to.

    Why doesn''t Arkaios just make a whole legion of ''branded'' people to carry out his will here?

    And the other obvious question is ''Why the hell does Meizha''thul have the ability to take the souls of our dead''? That question has been asked by pretty much everyone though, and nobody has an answer to it. At least nobody I''ve ever talked to.

    "Only peanuts? You said earlier that you heard of farm animals missing, and we saw those massive barns on the ride into Kellog. Don''t you have a bunch of farm animals?" Alicia asked.

    Seifer shook his head. "Not so much anymore. Those barns were only meant to house half of our stock, so we had no choice but to butcher the other half after this eternal winter started. That meat will last us quite a while, and there are plenty of hunters like Cid who find wild game in our region, but the remaining half of our animals just aren''t going to cut it. We''re building more barns right as we speak, but it''s going to take a long time thanks to this damned weather."

    Honestly, I''m pretty sure this nation is done for. If the cause of the pitch-black sky isn''t found, and Viseux delays the lizards from ''helping'', then they might reach Kellog far too late. It''s possible for them to pull through, but the madness has just begun and they''ve already needed to call for help from the outside. The next time they do it, Viseux is going to smell blood and make some very hefty demands. I just... I really don''t see them surviving.

    "... You okay Euphie?" Cera asked.

    "No." Euphemia sighed, then continued, "... I don''t know. I understand what Seifer is saying, but the way my Father and brother brushed it off as if it was..."

    ... They did act like the people they were buying were just another commodity to be bargained for, like iron or meat. It can''t have been easy for her to witness that firsthand. It didn''t help that her brother who is about to be crowned made it perfectly clear that not only does he plan on continuing the arrangement with the Eldritch, he in fact intends to strengthen the alliance.

    The wagon slows to a stop, and an attendant opens the door for us. Upon exiting the wagon I see that we''re at the manor.

    "I thought we were going to the inn?" Alicia asked.

    "I''m sorry Alicia, but I think I want to rest for now. On that note, I may need some protection for the time being..." Euphemia trailed off.

    She''s definitely a possible target, so someone needs to stay and defend her if she''s not coming with.

    "I''ll stay with you." Cera looks around, "Anyone with fast reflexes able to stay as well?"

    "You already know I''ll be staying." Tyra said, exiting the wagon.

    Keith steps forward. "Placing lights everywhere is more than enough, but I''ll stay just in case. Is that fine with you, princess?"

    "Thank you, sir Keith! I greatly appreciate the help." Euphemia said, then turned around and walked toward her manor, with her two ''protectors'' trailing behind her.

    Shana looks at me and nods while miming the action of squeezing someone''s chest. Aresa sees that and immediately puts her board in front of Shana''s face.

    {That''s not why he''s staying!}

    Shana puts her hand on Aresa''s head, rubbing her hair back and forth. "It''s okay that you don''t understand Aresa... I still love you just the way you are."

    {... I know you''re deriding me. I''ll have you know I could easily get a lover... I''m just choosing not to. I can''t have my emotions swayed by anyone or anything until Mother has returned.}

    Shiva huh... It''s kind of amazing just how little I know about her. She was quite literally the queen of Urza, and yet the people of Xelba barely knew her name. Why did Viseux do so little to stop us? I feel like my unit talked about it a few times, but I can''t remember what they said... And I''m still too scared to bring up memories of my friends inside my soul realm.

    "One second you guys," I said, then ran up to Keith right before he reached the manor''s doors. "Hey, before you go, can I ask why Nisha is suddenly... I won''t say friendly, but she''s treating me rather normally."

    Keith rubbed the back of his head, "Ahh... There are a few reasons for that." He looks back at the three girls, and Euphemia nods at him in response. "First off, when we were branded we had actually spent a long time in the dawn realm. Only a week passed out here I was told, but for us, it was closer to a year. For most of that, Arkaios sent images into our heads, showing us every known Demon, Xerath, Eldritch, etc. Surprisingly, he doesn''t know all that much, since getting information from other realms is impossible without sending someone there directly and having them survive the trip back."

    Now that''s interesting... I knew that old gods couldn''t interfere in our realm directly without some level of corruption or apparently a temple connection(as I am now learning), but I always assumed they could access each other''s realms much easier. It looks like I was wrong.

    Keith continued. "Nisha thought only of killing you when she first arrived, and Arkaios knew that. While he wanted us all to calm our emotions while training us to inherit our roles better, he also wanted to make sure that none of our previous ties interfered with our work. After the year was up and he sent us back, everything seemed fine, until she saw you in the Guardian''s guild. The feelings of revenge came back a little, and while I was struggling to figure out how to get her past it, this nation did the heavy lifting for me."

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    "... Because of the broodling?"

    Keith nodded. "Exactly. I guess everything was kind of fantastical up to that point? Even I, after spending a year in the dawn realm, had a hard time adjusting to the fact that I was now an arbiter for an old god, and I will continue to be one until the day I pass on. In her case, the reality of it all must have hit her when the broodling''s influence almost put her out of commission. We said she was fine so we could leave the manor and head to the village, but honestly? She was not doing well... Not even a little bit. It took about three days of pure meditation for her to start feeling normal again, and even then it was still eating away at her she said."

    Damn, it was that bad? I knew a pure support like her would struggle against things that heavily influence souls, but even I wasn''t expecting it to be that bad.

    "Basically, I think it all started to feel real for her, so her hatred of you diminished in the face of the real threats she''s going to have to face from here on out." Keith said.

    So in other words, faceless creatures eating away at her soul served as a nice wake-up call. She most likely is still disgusted with me somewhere in the back of her mind, but if she''s not going to act on it, then I don''t need to worry about her anymore.

    "I see... One more question though, as it''s something that has been bugging me for a while now. How come Markus and all the other templars didn''t know about the Xerath?"

    "Oh, that''s simple. Templars are those who willingly become branded. They aren''t interested in anything but serving. When you''re in Arkaios realm you can feel his emotions if you search for them. That''s how I was able to figure out that he actually has an extreme dislike of forcing brands on people. He only desires those who want to serve him willingly, but he will brand those he feels deserve a chance to repent, instead of just killing them outright."

    Keith continued, "But to answer your question, it''s because templars on Urza are not trained to deal with Xerath. The templars were formed here only half a year before Xelba was destroyed, and up till that point, everyone thought it was an Eldritch running Xelba, not a Xerath. Arkaios saw no reason to teach them about an enemy they would never face on Urza... Or so he believed. Also, just in general, templars aren''t taught much. They are given orders, and then they follow them... That''s it."

    So that''s why Markus was so in the dark about everything...

    "Thanks for telling me Keith, and good luck guarding the princess." I waved to Keith as I ran back to the Wagon. I passed by Nisha on the way, who was currently heading toward Keith.

    Decided to stay? That''s for the best actually. We will have a hard time protecting her if we get into a battle.

    Keith waved at us before entering the Manor with the three girls.

    "Ready?" Ishar asked.

    I nodded and we all filed back into the wagon.

    <hr>

    Ishar opens the wagon door after returning from the inn. "They all left the night we had arrived, and they never came back."

    "To where?" Alicia asked.

    Ishar shook his head.

    "What was it that Blackwall said again during our first dinner? He said there were problems... I think?"

    Shana nodded. "Complications, was the word he used."

    "Did he elaborate on what those complications were? I can''t remember..." Alicia said.

    {No. He ate dinner and then left again. No one has seen him since. I have known Blackwall since he was a little boy... You''ll find him, right Rei?}

    "... Yeah, don''t worry Aresa. I''ll definitely find him."

    The problem is that they''ve been gone for a long time... I don''t know what happened to them yet, but the odds of them being okay are quite low.

    As I''m contemplating what to do next, a small blue line connects to both Alicia and Ishar.

    "You guys let Nisha mark you?"

    "How did you know?" Ishar asked.

    "Because I can see that she just connected to both you and Alicia. There''s a tiny little blue line sticking into your chest."

    "... Your eyes really are convenient." Ishar continued, "Yes, we let Nisha connect to us since Keith is staying there. This way we can pass information back and she can support us. Also, baldy there needs all the help she can get after screwing up twice in a row."

    "You''re such an ass... I had no way of getting out of that Tengu''s electrified ring besides warping home. And the broodling attacked me at the same time my light hammer hit it. I... I admit that one I should have been more careful on, especially since I blinded everyone with that attack." Alicia said.

    "Um, Rei?"

    I looked at Teifa. "Something wrong?"

    "Ah, um... Possibly. Another Teifa has just come up to the surface to talk to me." Teifa continued, "Oh, you probably don''t know. It''s really hard to talk through curses, buffs... Any mark really if the person you''re connected to is underground while you''re up above, and vice versa."

    "I didn''t know that, and it''s nice to know, but why did the other Teifa contact you?"

    "I think the ''disappearing village" problem you mentioned before might have found its way to us. Our furthest western village didn''t send their usual shipment of omni-blood to us, so a search party was sent out and they sadly found the entire village empty. But to make things worse, half the party broke off to check on the mines to see if anyone was down there, and then they went missing too!"

    I went to respond but then Teifa cut me off, "Oh! Omni-blood is the blood you get from crystal veins that are connected to Urza! It''s very useful. Turning it to steam and entering your soul realm makes learning spells and turning them into abilities much easier, but I don''t know why? And um, it''s very important for making healing and mana potions. Also, you can straight up inject it if you''re in a bad situation! I wouldn''t suggest trying that though..."

    "I know what omni-blood is but thanks for trying to inform me anyway. Now as for your missing village, that does sound like what is happening up here. The only difference is that nobody who went searching for the villagers turned up missing..."

    Teifa raised her hand, "W-With that said! The elder you met before has asked for your assistance. He says with your invisibility you should be able to check the mines and figure out what is happening. He says ''She has a stake in this too, so she will not say no''. Oh, that was translated by the way."

    Not sure why she''s raising her hand but it''s true what the veteran... Err, I mean ''elder'' said. This could be just like the Chimera, meaning our answers are waiting below. Plus I would have helped them regardless. They helped me with the knights and the Tengu after all.

    "Well shit, looks like I was wrong both times," Ishar said.

    "As happy as I am to see you admit defeat on something, I don''t actually know what you''re referring to?" Alicia said.

    "Underground. I told Rei that there was no way the underground was responsible for what is happening up here. But in both the damn cases they may have originated down below..." Ishar replied.

    "Hmm, not quite Ishar. I mean technically yes, but the Chimera was originally an above-ground Lord. Three Lords mashed into one body actually... But my point remains the same."

    "Bah, the damn thing was hibernating underground, and you even found it down there!" Ishar sighed, then continued, "... This was a learning experience. While I have been right up until now when dismissing any ''Maybe it''s underground?'' claims from others during my travels, I know now that it''s not the guarantee I thought it was."

    Normally he''d be right though. Only two times in all my years living in Xelba did something I was investigating lead me underground.

    "Alright well, I guess I''m heading underground? You guys can handle the Demon just fine without me... I hope."

    Aresa grabs my armor and holds up her board with her other hand. {Be safe... Please?}

    ... It''s been so long since someone cared about me. Even just this little bit of sincerity is hitting me harder than it should.

    I reach out and pat Aresa''s head. "I''m sorry cutie. I just said I''d find Blackwall, but it looks like I need to take care of something else. With any luck, I''ll be able to wrap this up fast. That way I can make it back here in time to assist you guys."

    Shana taps my shoulder. "Sending a clone with you, okay?"

    "That''s fine with me. I was planning on running there with my aura up but it''s probably for the best that I don''t so I can I escort that other Teifa home."

    "She''s not alone. There is an escort with her already, and they''re waiting for your reply," Teifa said.

    "Oh, in that case tell them I''m on my way and that someone else will be coming with me as well. Also, I need to confirm, but they''re in the same underground entrance I came through earlier, right?"

    Teifa nodded as I exited the wagon. Ishar stepped aside, making room for me as one of Shana''s clones materialized into existence next to me.

    "Try not to go missing like the others, yeah?" Ishar said.

    "If I do then all of you should just abandon this place. If it can find and eliminate me before I can escape, then there''s a high chance none of you will see it coming."

    Circling the wagon, I begin running towards the same spot I had just left earlier.

    Shana''s clone catches up soon after, running alongside me. "Were you always this fast?"

    "Not until I absorbed that Chimera."

    And this is nothing. In a wide-open field like this with no obstructions, I could easily reach forty-five miles an hour without overexerting myself. Of course, that is only possible if I''m able to run a straight line with no obstacles in the way. But I''m not going to do that right now with my aura off. I could easily die if something attacks me while I''m at max speed and unable to properly react. The Demon won''t be able to reach Nisha anymore, so I''d rather not put myself in a bad position if it decides to choose me next.

 Chapter 34 - First Encounter

    "This is it. See? There are cooked meals on their tables with only a few bites taken out. It''s as if they were there one second, and then gone the next." The Teifa said.

    Looking around I see plenty of goblins milling about. Most of them are talking with confused or angry expressions, while a few others are searching through the village for anything that may help them understand what happened here.

    "Same as Kellog''s villages." Shana''s clone said.

    "It''s a bit late to be asking this, but you can send your clones underground while your main body is topside?"

    Shana gives me a peace sign.

    Strange... Teifa said marks are blocked between the two. Her ability must operate in a rather unique way if it''s able to avoid the barrier that''s blocking connections.

    The elder walks up to us and begins speaking to Teifa.

    "He thanks you for coming here, and that if you can figure out what happened here he''ll give you something as a reward." Teifa points toward one of the tunnels in the back, "That''s the one that leads to the crystal mines. Before you reach them you''ll have to go through three medium-sized caverns and two large ones. Um... Good luck?"

    I look at Shana. "What are you going to do? I plan on using my aura from here on out, for obvious reasons."

    "Can you use this while invisible?" Shana asked, handing me a thumb-sized piece of wood she had just created.

    "How do I use it?"

    "Push one of the ends onto the ground and it''ll leave a mark only I can see. Mark every cavern entrance and exit so I know where you are. You can also write words with it if necessary."

    "Then there is nothing to worry about. The only things I can''t touch while invisible are anything with a soul and any objects that are infused with people''s mana. But if it''s already in my hand it should be fine."

    Shana gave me a thumbs up as I activated my aura and began sprinting toward the tunnel at the back of the village.

    <hr>

    I begin creeping forward after pushing the wooden stick into the side of the tunnel entrance, this time going much slower.

    If the second Teifa''s instructions were correct, and I assume they were, then the mines should be in the next area.

    The damp, musty smell of the cave slowly disappears as I progress forward, changing into something more akin to a blacksmith''s workplace.

    Hmm... I''ve only been in one crystal mine in my life, but I know it didn''t smell like this. Could the goblins be using some kind of equipment that melts crystals? Either that or someone else is the cause.

    The end of the tunnel comes into sight. Rays of light shine from the cavern ahead, projecting deep into this tunnel. As I get closer the light begins to hurt me, but I keep moving forward as it''s well within tolerable levels. Upon reaching the end of the tunnel I slide the piece of wood along the tunnel exit.

    I can just barely see her clone behind me. It''ll take her a few minutes to reach me so if anything does happen in here, she should be in range to help me.

    After creeping into the mine I quickly glance around hoping to spot some goblins, but there''s nothing around except some annoyingly bright crystals and the overwhelming stench of something burning.

    That''s not all though, I think I hear an engine right now...? I was a little girl the last time I heard one, so it''s obviously been a while, but I swear this is what they sounded like... The goblins didn''t seem like they had the technology for something like an engine, nor does anyone on Urza for that matter. There are pillars all over the damn place blocking my view so I can only see a portion of the mine right now, but whatever is causing all these abnormalities is hidden somewhere behind one of them.

    Putting my back to a nearby pillar I wait for Shana to reach the cavern entrance. When she finally does I remove my aura and hold my palm out to her. She responds by rubbing the bottom of her nose and holding her hands out to her sides, palms up. I shrug then point my thumb behind me as I reactivate my aura. I see her nod as I begin circling the pillar, heading deeper into the mine.

    Looks like it''s this way, straight ahead from the tunnel exit. I can hear the ''engine'' getting louder with every step I advance in this direction...

    As I near this end of the cavern I pass by one last pillar, and that''s when I finally see it. There''s a contraption made out of bone placed against the wall that is vibrating madly while roaring like an engine, and six skeletal creatures are standing at attention nearby.

    They''re not like my skeletons... Not even vaguely. I see a few ''human'' ones, but there is something terribly wrong with all of them. Their bones are all misshapen and weird, and some portions of their bodies are held together by a thick white string. They''re covered in a much lighter version of that very same string too, but I don''t know what it is. It kind of looks like cobwebs...?

    Two of the ''skeletons'' have large greatswords for weapons, while another two are holding up an ornate skull on a metal pole as if it were a banner. The last two are in the back and unarmed, doing something to the bone engine.

    ... One of them is a goblin. Or it looks like it was a goblin. I''m not seeing any bodies though---

    It was at that moment the human skeleton working on the engine moved back enough for me to see what it was doing. The feet of a goblin were dangling out from inside the machine, and they were slowly being sucked deeper into it.

    ... Well, now I know where the search party ended up.

    Looking back I see Shana peeking out from the last pillar I passed by. Hiding behind the one next to me I remove my aura and hold six fingers up to her while motioning behind me. She nods and sneaks over this way, putting her back against the pillar directly next to me.

    I reach out and grab her hand, reactivating my aura to extend it over both of us. She realizes what I''m going to do and sits down with me, closing her eyes. I quickly bring up my recent memories after entering my soul realm, showing her what''s behind the pillar.

    "... I like your skeletons more," Shana said.

    "These things are rather gross, aren''t they?" I continued, "Think this is enough? I see no reason to stick around any longer."

    Shana nods and we both exit my soul realm. I stand up and begin making my way towards the exit when an aura hits me from behind. Normally something like this would pass over me and find nothing, but this one somehow encompasses my veil and pings it backward towards the source of the aura.

    "Tsk!" Shana clicks her tongue as we both sprint at different angles toward the exit, with her going left and me to the right. A brief flash of smoke erupts in front of me and it''s quickly replaced with the human skeleton wielding a greatsword. She''s already in mid-air with her sword pulled back over her head.

    With a shocking amount of speed, she swings it downwards and I just barely roll out of the way. At the same time, the skull on top of the banner lights up and shoots what appears to be literal plasma beams at me. Kicking the ground hard I slide out of the way but the lizardman skeleton appears in front of me low to the ground mid-swing as well. Raising my left foot I enhance it and bring it down hard onto the sword.

    Lifting myself back into a standing position, I bring my other foot down onto the creature''s skull and shatter it just as a third skeleton appears behind me, gripping my left shoulder hard with its bony fingers while it raises its right hand in a stabbing motion. A dagger made of bone appears in the creature''s hand the second it starts swinging down at me. Unable to break its grip since it grabbed me before I could enhance that part of my body, I kick backward and break the creature''s right leg, making it buckle to the right. As a result the dagger plunges deep into my right collarbone instead of the back of my skull.

    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    Enhancing the rest of my body(aside from the area it was still gripping me) I launch myself backward toward the ground, crushing the skeleton completely. But because of this, my non-enhanced left shoulder shattered as well. I''m not used to my new strength damnit... I even broke the barrier on my armor with that hit.

    Looking around, I realized that during the scuffle I had ended up in the same area the bone engine was. All of the skeletons disappeared in a flash of smoke and reappeared next to the engine in a kneeling pose with their hands pressed against it. The engine roared to life and began spewing out a dark brown smoke.

    The smoke quickly formed into two different creatures. A four-meter-wide black Araneae with four spears for arms, and a six-meter tall dark-purple humanoid monster with fleshy tubes connecting to every part of its body. Both of them were faceless.

    Xerath?!

    The Araneae launched itself at me, closing the distance in a flash. One spear attack after another rained down upon me, but thanks to my left side being shattered I could only parry them with an enhanced right hand while dodging.

    S-Shit, I can''t keep this up for much longer!

    Several electrified knives stuck into the Xerath, causing it to scream in anger, but it didn''t relent in its assault against me. Suddenly the Araneae attacked in a way that left my right side open, allowing me to leap in that direction so I could create some space, but I immediately realized that was what the creature wanted. A dark-purple fist bigger than my entire body approached me head-on. The world moved in slow motion as I curled into a ball, over-enhancing every part of my body while praying it''d be enough.

    The Xerath''s fist connected, shattering my right arm and both legs while sending me backward at nearly half the speed a bullet would move. I hit the edge of a pillar and ricocheted off to the side, out of sight of the creatures. I slid along the ground for a while leaving a long trail of black blood behind me. Deeper into the cave I could hear Shana''s clones battling the Xerath, obviously trying to buy me time to hide.

    Before the blood pouring out of me leaves my area of influence, I force the blood around my right arm and upper thighs to turn into sharp blades while turning the rest into a thick cloth so I don''t leave a trail behind me. I quickly crawl towards a nearby pillar and begin climbing it.

    I thought I was going to need to make my blood sticky to get up this pillar but it can be broken thankfully.

    The little blades stick into the pillar as I pull myself higher and higher. However, the cloth dragging behind me is so large now that it''s starting to weigh me down.

    Loud stomping approaches me from the other side of the pillar, informing me that Shana''s clone had died.

    It''s a miracle she lasted that long. I''m honestly grateful for any time she bought me...

    I try pulling the massive heap of cloth up but it proves impossible when I only have stubs left for bones in my limbs. Realizing this is all I can do at this point, I camouflage the cloth to match the pillar and turn invisible.

    Normally I''d put my aura over the cloth too, but it would need way too large of an aura for that. It''s a little too bright in here for me to handle that much light damage.

    The purple Xerath comes running up to where I had landed after it punched me. The creature is so tall its head is currently only about ten feet to my left. It continues looking back and forth trying to find me as the Araneae wobbles around the pillar.

    Three of its legs have very large chunks cut out of them. I can''t believe she managed to do that with just a clone versus these two monsters.

    The two Xerath scour the area, spreading out while trying to find me.

    I must be outside the range of that bone machine back there. I''m assuming that''s what hit me with that creepy aura, revealing my location. If they can move it to this side and re-activate it, then that''s it for me. Quite literally there''s nothing I can do at this point other than hope they don''t find me while I try and heal my broken body...

    Focusing inwards I enter a deep meditation stance. Since my left arm and shoulder were hurt through self-damage they are the least damaged part of me. I focus on healing that area of me first.

    One arm is better than none after all.

    <hr>

    The bone on my right ankle pops into place. Smiling, I drop down to the ground and try walking back and forth a little while stretching my arms.

    Perfect... I''m back in fighting shape. I don''t know how long I''ve been down here, but Shana should have told the others about what had happened to me. She won''t know if I survived though...

    I run to the back of the cave while scanning everything around me. Upon reaching the last pillar I see that the bone engine is in the same spot it was last time.

    It''s rather annoying that I don''t know where they went... All I know is that about a week ago the roaring of the engine suddenly stopped. I figured there would be nothing left, but their engine thing is still here...? The Xerath were ''born'' out of this thing, so for all I know the skeletons are inside of it as well. Honestly, it was stupid of me to even get this close. Being trapped against that pillar with nothing to do but heal really dulled my instincts. If this engine blasts out another aura and pings me, I doubt I''ll survive this time.

    Turning around I run towards the exit of the tunnel. I pass by two dead skeletons and some black flesh along the way.

    I''d love to remove my aura and enhance myself so I could get out of here faster. I''m worried about what might have happened up above while I''ve been stuck down here... But that''s obviously a horrible idea. Slow, steady, and invisible is the only option here.

    <hr>

    A few hours later I reached the goblin village. This time however, there was nobody around.

    After me and Shana disappeared they must have abandoned this place... Which was the right call.

    Just in case I look through a few homes to see if anyone or any Xerath are hiding nearby, and surprisingly I find someone I recognize hiding inside a home with her eyes closed. I walk up to her and remove my aura.

    "You had a clone waiting for me?"

    Shana''s eyes shoot open as she looks up at me. "Rei..." She said with her bottom lip quivering a little.

    Is... Is she about to cry? I like Shana but I didn''t think I meant all that much to her...

    "Um, sorry for being late... It took a long time to heal all those broken bones and now I''m starving. The Xerath bone-engine-thing is still down there by the way. So we need to tell the goblins to avoid this entire area."

    Shana stood up and nodded, wiping her eyes. "Y-Yeah, they already know. I sent a few clones down to look for you but they died before reaching the mines. The Xerath have sentries camouflaged into different parts of the walls now. The first one was directly outside the mines, and the last one was several caverns closer. They''re slowly spreading out in this direction."

    ... Thank god I kept my aura up.

    Shana punched my arm. "Aresa has been deathly worried about you. Oh, and..."

    Shana went silent while looking back and forth. Apparently deliberating on whether to tell me something.

    "... Did something bad happen? Did the Demon kill someone?"

    "No! It''s just..." Shana sighed, "We couldn''t find Blackwall... Or the Demon. But it is still hunting people in Kellog. People keep being reported missing and even a few knights have disappeared in the middle of their units. But, you know... I really don''t want to ask you for help when you just got back. We''re all huddled in that locked area in the princess''s manor. It has a bathroom, beds, and a large stock of emergency food for moments like this. She was pretty excited to finally get to use them, but it only took a few days in that place for her excitement to disappear."

    Hah, I bet it would. I could easily relax in the same place for ages, but I know the average person would go insane if they were stuck in the same couple of rooms for weeks.

    "Then you obviously need all the help you can get. Don''t worry about me Shana I''m fine now. My pain sensors are severely dampened. It still hurt quite a bit when that Xerath punched me, but it was nothing compared to what light can do to me."

    "... Are you sure?" Shana asked.

    "Yes! I''ll be fine so tell me what you guys found. The last thing I remember is when Ishar found nothing at the inn."

    Shana nodded. "Seifer said they should look into all the missing farm animals after that. But no matter how much they searched, they found none of the corpses or where they were taken. I''ve even spread out my clones, searching everywhere I can, but I... I can''t find anything."

    "Is there nothing else? I don''t even know where to begin if there isn''t a single hint or clue."

    Shana shook her head. "Sorry... Oh, I told the others that you''re safe so they all know now."

    "What did Aresa say?"

    "... She said good luck on your mission," Shana said, looking away from me.

    Heh... That''s an obvious lie, but that''s fine.

    "So you guys have just been hiding while hoping I re-appeared? That can''t be right. There''s no way in hell Ishar just sat there patiently waiting for a savior."

    "Oh no, they have a plan but it''s an odd one. Keith said he was given visions of an artifact which means his god wants him to communicate directly with it through an artifact, so Alicia warped back to a ''temple'' to talk to Markus. But..." Shana grits her teeth, "Fucking Viseux has him and all the other templars locked up. Godwin''s family is down in the prison with them. So now Alicia is waiting for her dagger to recharge so she can bring the princess to Viseux where she''ll supposedly get the artifact for us. Which I don''t see happening."

    Why bring the princess instead of---Oh, right. Her ability to bring people with her during warps is directly correlated with how powerful the other person is. Obviously she can''t bring Aresa along then. And did Alicia tune herself to Aresa''s home? I don''t remember her doing that but she must have if she can warp there.

    "And you''ve been to all of the temples and churches inside Kellog? Keith said they found the Demon inside one of those after all."

    Shana nodded.

    ... Hmm. What else can I do then? My first thought is that they must have missed a temple. But if I consider the fact that they have access to the knowledge of a princess and a steward of the kingdom, it''d be surprising if they forgot to mention a few temples. Although it is possible there is a temple they don''t know about... I need someone with more extensive knowledge into the past of Kellog. Wasn''t there a knight researching the Chimera? That one in the fortress I was trying to sneak by. He was talking to his sister(the maid) about things that happened long ago. The only other idea I have is to ask the king, but the others would have already asked him anyway.

    "Alright Shana, I''m heading to the fortress. You coming with?"

    Shana smiles and gives me a peace sign.

    I knew she would, but I''m still glad to see her agree. The Xerath would have killed me back there if she didn''t delay their pursuit...

 Chapter 35 - Ritual

    "Like I already told you, we don''t know who you''re talking about. You need to be more specific than ''A knight who knows about history''." The Fortress guard said.

    "And I told you that his sister works in the dining hall. The one that is just past this door on the right. She''s a maid. She''s a rather attractive girl with short brown hair and freckles, surely you''ve seen her around?"

    "Never seen her before." The guard curtly replied.

    This son of a... I know he''s lying. And I know one other thing, I''m strong enough to crush this annoying guard and turn him into a skeleton. If I order it to run until it runs out of mana, all the evidence will be gone... And I''ll get that portion of my soul back soon after it dies.

    Behind me, I can hear Shana mumbling something about murder and guts.

    ... Should we? I''m really tempted to. And there is one other way past this. While I was healing I had a lot of free time to test the remaining knight''s abilities. That metal ball is going to be very useful. I''d rather not waste it on this idiot, but I will if I have to.

    The fortress door opens up, revealing an exhausted Tyrell. His eyes widen a little upon seeing me.

    Tyrell looks at the gate guard, "Is there a problem?"

    The guard freezes up. "Um, no sir! She''s just looking for a knight, but her description is too vague so I don''t know who it is."

    "Is this true, white one?" Tyrell asked.

    "Half true. I''m looking for a knight I saw previously in the dining hall behind you. He has a sister who works in there too. Short brown hair, freckles, pretty girl. However, this guard is pretending he doesn''t know who I''m talking about."

    Tyrell put his head down and rubbed his eyes, "I''m too tired for this shit. I know exactly who that is, follow me white one." Tyrell glared at the guard, "I''ll decide how to deal with you later." The guard blanches upon hearing that.

    Shana and I followed Tyrell as he walked back into the fortress, leading us straight into the dining hall. The inside looked completely different from the last time I was here. There were knights at every single table now. Most of them were eating or chatting, but a few were completely passed out with their faces planted against the table.

    Tyrell motions towards the tables, "We''re on double shifts. The other knight commander was taken by that god forsaken Demon, along with nine other knights so far. Then there are all the civilian disappearances on top of yet another village vanishing... I know you found the cause for us, but that information regarding ''faceless ones'' hasn''t helped us at all. We''ve abandoned all other villages near the mountains, but the strain it''s putting on the other villages is too much... We need to deal with the root cause, and fast, but between that and the fucking Demon, my men''s morale is hitting rock bottom."

    I look at Shana, "The Xerath took another village? I doubt it, but did you figure out why they left after taking everyone? And just how do they take everyone without anyone noticing? My first thought is that it''s related to that dark brown cloud. It must be obscuring vision and sound from the other villages."

    Shana shook her head, "They learned nothing. The people were there, and then they weren''t. As for your cloud idea... Maybe? We only saw them de-materialize into smoke and then re-materialize somewhere else."

    I never did get the chance to investigate those empty villages. The very same knight who is escorting me right now interrupted me the first time around. I might have to do that after taking care of the Demon. Assuming it can be taken care of. I''m not quite sure how to catch something that can warp away that fast. We''ll have to kill it while Ishar has it locked down. Speaking of which...

    "One more question came to mind. Why aren''t they baiting the Demon? Ishar should be able to lock it down long enough for you guys to kill it."

    "Tried that. We can''t break through its barrier in the time it''s frozen, and that''s with Cera blasting it with a fully charged shot." Shana replied.

    ... Well shit. Now I really don''t know how we''re supposed to stop it from fleeing. Like I said before though, with an ability that powerful there have to be rules to it. But we don''t have the time to figure out what they are...

    "Oh shit, hang on. Um... If an ability works on humans in your soul realm, it does that because you''re human and it knows how they work inside and out naturally, right?"

    Tyrell nods, "Of course, everyone knows that. You''re asking for confirmation for a reason I assume, so what is it?"

    "What about Demons? I have an ability that can lock a human down, but testing it on Demons in my soul realm would be useless, correct?"

    "Yes, it would be meaningless unless you''ve used a spell or ability that acts just like the one you''re testing on that exact type of Demon. Have you ever fought a ''Grinning Demon'' before this one?"

    I shook my head.

    "Then you''ll just have to test it and see if it works. I hope whatever it is will be enough. I truly do... Even I am at my wit''s end. The only silver lining from this whole mess is that I learned the King doesn''t like the deal with the Eldritch either, he''s only doing it out of necessity. I don''t deal with logistics or farming, so I hope someone like Seifer can come up with a good plan to get us out of this mess. As a result, we''ll have to fight the Merman, but the Goblins have already agreed to be our new allies."

    Oh? That was shockingly fast... I don''t know enough about the goblins to know whether they''re holding grudges or not, but at the very least they see the bigger picture and are making sensible choices.

    Shana taps my shoulder, "New plan?"

    "... Maybe. We''ll talk about it after we''re out of here." I''d rather not describe one of my stolen abilities in detail. Tyrell may know the ability of every single knight, so if he hears a hyper-specific explanation of an ability from a missing knight, his friendly attitude might disappear in a flash.

    Tyrell points to one of the knights sleeping at the tables, "That''s him. Levy is his name. I''m going to assume you learned of him during your infiltration, but you made a good choice going to Levy if information is what you''re looking for. He''s not going to be a knight for much longer, I''ve already put in for him to be made a scholar. He''s much more suited to that role."

    After thanking Tyrell, he waves to us and heads back the way we came. With him gone I walk up to Levy and punch his shoulder.

    Levy''s head shoots up and he glares at me, "What now?!... Ah." Levy''s face whitens when he realizes who he''s yelling at. "Uh, hello miss white one..."

    "It''s Rei, ''Levy''. I need your help."

    "My help miss...? Whatever for? I''m barely an apprentice and already getting canned."

    I sit down next to him with my back to the table, "That''s not what Tyrell said? You''re more of a bookworm so he''s shifting you to be a scholar, that''s all."

    "... That''s what''s known as a demotion in this kingdom."

    His sister(who was approaching to see why the creepy ''white one'' was talking to her brother), overheard Levy and slapped him in the back of the head. "Fool! I''ve told you time and time again not to worry about the loss of honor or dock to your pay. We''ll be fine, okay?" She looked at me, "Um, may I ask why you''re talking to my little brother?"

    "I hear he''s quite the nerd, so I came to him for help. I need to know if my allies missed any temples or churches in their search for the Demon''s lair."

    "What does that word mean? ''Nerd''?" Levy asked.

    "... It means you''re super knowledgeable and the ladies love you." It''s nice that the people of Urza use the same language we do, but sometimes I use words they''ve never heard of and it''s really jarring. I just got hit with a wave of nostalgia over a simple word like ''nerd''... I really need to go home.

    Levy straightens his back and smiles, "What a perfect word to describe me then! I''m going to remember that."

    "........"

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    "As for your request, I have every map of Kellog ever created. Maps are wonderful... Nothing holds the history of your realm better than a simple map does." Levy said.

    "But do they show the locations of every temple? I''ve seen plenty of maps over the years and none of them went into extreme detail like that."

    Levy nods, "Of course they do. You must have only seen nationwide or Urza maps. Kellog has those as well, but ever since the printing press was brought here the King decided to have new detailed Kellog maps made every two years. They are for each cluster of villages, and it points to where the blacksmith is, the inns, bathhouses, and of course, places of prayer. But uh, the ones I''m going to show you were hand drawn in the same style. They''re much older so please don''t damage them..."

    "And that includes abandoned ones? Also please exclude any maps that everyone in the kingdom has access to. My allies would have the very same maps."

    Levy shakes his head, "By ''allies'' you mean the princess and Seifer? The princess will not have a few of the maps I have, but there''s a chance Seifer might... Do you still want to see them? They''re old maps from long before the printing press came to our region."

    Then why did he bring up detailed maps made from the printing press if he''s going to be showing me older maps that have nothing to do with it...?

    "Shana, you''re doing most of the legwork so I assume you''ve seen the maps. Will you notice any differences between them and the ones he''s about to show us?"

    Shana gives me another peace sign.

    "Perfect..." I look at Levy, "Please show me these maps of yours."

    "Happily. They''ll be here any minute now." Levy said, then put his head back down on the table and promptly fell asleep.

    ... Uh? Is he messing with me right now?

    "Rei," Shana said. Looking at her I see her pointing towards Levy''s sister who is currently returning through the double doors with a small stack of rolled-up scrolls in her hands.

    Damn, that girl works fast. I only mentioned the maps a minute or two ago.

    Levy''s sister places them on the table next to me. Shana sits down and begins unraveling the first scroll.

    "These are really old and he treasures them, so please don''t ruin them..." The maid said.

    "Don''t worry, Shana won''t damage them. And while she''s doing that I actually have a couple of questions for you. First off, what is your name?"

    "... Yuki."

    A Kitsune name? But she''s obviously a Human...

    "Then for the second question; How would you feel about working for the princess directly? The both of you?"

    "EH?!" Yuki nearly shrieked, causing a few nearby knights to look at her.

    Shana taps my arm without looking away from the map in front of her, "Can you hire people for her like that?"

    "Nope, but I''m going to. She just lost all of her staff and even Mia. I have a good feeling about this Yuki girl and her brother, so I''m going to bring them back." I continued, "On that note, tell her and Seifer what I''m doing."

    Shana put her current map to the side and unfurled another, "Already did. They''re both confused but not saying no."

    Good enough for me.

    "Um... Do we have a say in this?" Yuki asked.

    "You do, but I have a hard time believing you''d say no. Are you going to?"

    Yuki shook her head, "... No. It''s just so sudden... We know the princess is loved but everything else about her is kind of a mystery. I''m not even sure why she is loved."

    I went to reply to her but Shana cut in, "Found one."

    "That didn''t take you long. I actually wasn''t sure if we''d find one at all."

    Shana rolled the maps up and handed them to the maid. After Yuki grabbed them Shana lifted her up into a carrying pose.

    "W-Why?! Miss um, Kitsune? Why are you carrying me?"

    Shana quirked an eyebrow, "We need these maps, and you''re starting work for the princess right now. This way you can get used to the princess and keep an eye on the maps at the same time. Perfect, right?"

    "But all my... I mean, what about work? My brother?!"

    Shana ignored her and ran out of the dining hall. I stood up and followed after her.

    Once we were outside the fortress Shana yelled back at me, "Remember the first disappeared village you went to? That''s where the temple is. I''m sending another clone from a nearby village to meet you there."

    Immediately I pivot to the left and activate my aura, sprinting in the direction that particular village is in.

    "She vanished! How''d she do that?!" I heard Yuki yell behind me.

    <hr>

    All the lights are still on and there isn''t a soul around. I love this creepy atmosphere... A town all for me! I wish anyway. Maybe one day I''ll make my own town somewhere? Would it be just for me though? I don''t know if I could rule over others... It sounds like a major pain in the ass.

    Upon reaching the tower I scaled last time, I circle to the right and remove my aura. "You in there Shana?" I say to the cart full of hay.

    Shana climbs out of the cart and pats the hay off herself, "It sure would be nice if I could turn invisible..."

    "I know right? It''s amazing."

    Shana smirks and punches my shoulder.

    "Now where is this temple?"

    "According to the map, it should be around the area you exited town when you were following Tyra," Shana said.

    I pivot to the left and retrace my steps from a few days earlier. Our footprints have long since been covered in snow, but I almost always remember my past movements.

    Upon reaching the edge of the village, I turn to Shana, "Okay, I hope it was way more precise than that?"

    Shana shook her head, "Nope."

    ....................

    "Alright well, I guess we''ll have to go door to door? I see nothing that looks like a temple though? Maybe it''s underground then... Which is rather strange if so."

    Shana shrugs and walks towards the homes on the east side. I activate my aura and turn towards the west, walking up the steps of the nearest home. Kicking the door in, I walk inside and immediately I feel like I''m on edge. As if something is terribly wrong here but I''m not quite sure what.

    The hell is this? It''s a bit dusty and kind of creepy, but that shouldn''t be anywhere near enough to scare me. There''s something else here... An aura? Is this what happens when people fear my aura?

    Keeping low I sneak around the home, checking every corner, every room, trying to find something out of place, but in the end I find nothing. Upon exiting the home the sickly aura encompassing me disappears immediately. To my left, I can see Shana running in this direction.

    I remove my aura, "Did you feel the same oppressive atmosphere in the home you were searching?"

    Shana stops next to me and nods, "It made my skin crawl. I always work solo, but maybe this time, uh..."

    "It''s fine, I was going to suggest the same thing. When we''re inside the homes stick to me and I can cloak us both. There''s no light in these homes after all besides the tiny ambient lighting from outside."

    Shana smiles, "Thank you! I was hoping you''d say that... And we don''t need to worry about creating any light. I have an ability that lets me see in the pitch dark. As a spell it''s garbage because of the high mana cost, but after upgrading it to an ability it''s been a godsend."

    Walking to the next home I prepare to kick it in again but Shana puts her hand on my leg to stop me. Then she walks up to the door and pushes her pointer finger against the lock. Soon after I hear a clicking noise as she smirks at me.

    Convenient...

    I grab her hand as we both walk inside. After closing the door I activate my aura. I drop low to sneak and Shana does the same with a confused look on her face.

    "It doesn''t block sound?" Shana whispered.

    I shook my head, "No, only vision of me."

    "Even then, why keep low? You make no sound with your footsteps. I rarely hear you walking."

    "And when are those times you heard my footsteps? When I''m standing up, right? My feet absorb sound but being careless can have disastrous effects. I still need to be careful around things like old wooden boards."

    "Yeah... You''re right. Sorry, I never knew your abilities in detail so I made a few wrong assumptions about them." Shana whispered.

    "No need to apologize. You''ve been nothing but helpful for me miss ''Ninja''."

    Shana smiles and gives me another peace sign.

    <hr>

    About an hour later we were scouring yet another home when I noticed something out of place.

    "Shana, you see that? The scuff marks on the carpet over there."

    We sneak over to the wooden cabinet and Shana rubs the carpet with her left hand.

    "It''s hard to see, but it''s definitely there. Shall we?"

    I nod. We both stand up and try pushing the cabinet from both ends but it won''t budge at all.

    "We could drop the aura and enhance ourselves. Smashing through this would be easy, except..."

    Shana nods, "Yeah... If the Demon or something else is below, it''ll know someone is here."

    Deactivating my aura, we both split up and began searching through the room for anything that might resemble a switch.

    Under the couch? Nothing.

    Side tables? Nothing.

    Kitchen table? Nothing as well.

    Eventually, I began sliding my feet across the carpet while pushing down hard to see if there were any push devices under the carpet, but that came up empty as well. I reached for one of the side tables again when the cabinet suddenly began sliding out, revealing a dark set of stairs going down. Looking back at Shana I see her right hand raised high pushing a small panel into the wall.

    So there was a push device but it was on the wall...

    Shana turns around and smiles at me. I give her a thumbs-up as she sneaks back over to me. Grabbing her hand and reactivating my aura again, we creep over to the stairs and look down them.

    "I hate winding staircases..." Shana whispered.

    They''re convenient if I want to jump down quickly with an enhanced body, but I can understand why some people wouldn''t like them.

    We begin walking down the stone staircase. Moss keeps crunching underneath Shana''s feet so I scoop her up into the same carrying pose she had Yuki in earlier. She doesn''t fight it and wraps one arm around me while keeping her eyes ahead.

    I''m also making some noise stepping on all this wet moss but it''s much less than she was making.

    Looking at the walls I can see little dribbles of water coming through the cracks.

    That explains all the moss...

    In less than a few minutes we reached the bottom which extended outward into a long hallway, just like back at the inn when we were coming for the broodling.

    Is this the same type of complex? I wonder how many others just like this one exist in Kellog.

    The whole flooring was covered in moss. I crept towards the door at the far end, attempting to make as little noise as possible. Upon reaching the door Shana reaches out towards the tiny crystal embedded in the center and pulses her mana through it. Shortly afterwards she looks at me and shakes her head. I let her down and we both pushed the door open quickly. The sound of stone grinding over stone echoed out.

    No point in taking this part slow. There''s no way to keep a door like this from making a ton of sound. Unless either of us had an ability that could block sound on an object, but sadly, we don''t.

    After the door opens I quickly scan the room but I don''t spot any Demons. However, what I do see is both surprising and disgusting.

    "Rei... I don''t think the Xerath are the ones disappearing people." Shana said, covering her nose.

    Me neither. That much is obvious after seeing this scene.

    Inside the chamber there are countless body parts ripped, torn, and cut up strewn about the mossy interior. There are flowers everywhere covered in dried blood.

    The smell is unbearable... I''m shocked Shana isn''t throwing up.

    "I told the others. They''re on their way here now." Shana said.

    So it was the Demon all along... I wonder why it''s now resorting to grabbing people one by one? Which also makes me wonder how it managed to get every single villager down here without anyone noticing... There''s no way it can warp that much.

 Chapter 36 - Coalesced Force

    "Shana, did you get a good look at Aresa''s face when you spoke of this place?"

    Shana -who is currently sitting next to me wrapped in my aura-, shook her head, "No, why?"

    "Well..." I sighed, "Blackwall and the other Guardians are still missing, so..."

    "Ah..." Shana tensed up and looked down.

    She was obviously preoccupied with the dangerous situation we''re in here, but everyone else probably realized it right away, including Aresa.

    "Did you know him long?"

    Shana nodded, "I helped the Guardians here and there, so we had plenty of contact. We weren''t friends by any means, but he was a really nice guy and a good leader. I know it''s not looking good, but I still hope we find him alive..."

    We both go silent as I rest my head against the stone wall behind me. We''ve been waiting inside the ''Temple'' for the others to join us while keeping an eye out for the Demon.

    It''s been about an hour and there''s no sign of it yet... The others should be here soon, so hopefully it continues to stay go---

    At the other end of the temple, the air itself appears to ripple out as the Demon blinks into existence. Shana''s grip on my arm tightens as she freezes up and slows down her breathing.

    The Demon scuffles around picking up different body parts and tossing them into its mouth. The fact that it wasn''t chewing was surprising enough, but it didn''t appear to be swallowing either.

    It kind of looks like what happens when I toss souls into my mouth...

    The Demon''s head snaps toward the exit. It drops the leg it was picking up as it runs over to the door and pushes its ear against it.

    It''s barely ten feet away from us and it''s looking in the other direction... Damnit, the fucking things barrier is down too. Moments like this are painful... Even if I had Gaz''s sword, most monsters and people will always know when I deactivate my aura next to them. Normally they wouldn''t know I''m there even if I was standing right next to them, but when I remove my aura, anything nearby instinctively feels like something dangerous is behind them. I''ve never been able to pinpoint why that happens, but even if I did know, I doubt I could do anything to prevent it from happening.

    Also, there''s only one reason the Demon would be worried about any sounds it''s hearing past that door(we closed it before hiding here).

    I look at Shana and point towards the hallway past the door and she nods in response.

    Yeah... It has to be them. I''d love to take advantage of this situation, but I only have one idea that might work... But it''s not like I have any other options, so I might as well try it.

    I begin to stand up and Shana does as well. We walk toward the Demon until we''re barely four feet away. For his part, the Demon still has its'' ear against the door. Wasting no more time, I raise my right hand to Shana with four fingers held up and begin lowering them one by one.

    Three.

    Two.

    One.

    As soon as I drop my aura I create the metal ball in right hand, while Shana has already stuck two electrified daggers into the back of the Demon''s knees. Not a single sound erupts from the abomination as a red barrier forms around the Demon. It merely glances over its'' shoulder at us and attempts to leap away, but it was never given the chance to. The metal ball smacks into the Demon''s barrier, causing a bright white light to wrap around the Demon. The whole effect lasted maybe one second, and when the light faded, the Demon had vanished along with it.

    "Shana!" I yelled as I dove for the ball, pouring as much mana into it as I could.

    While we waited for the others to arrive I told Shana how the ball worked, so she should know what I need right now.

    Shana sprints straight for the door and pushes it open. "Hurry up!! Rei sealed the Demon but we need help---Huh?"

    Shana runs back to me and begins pouring mana into the ball.

    "What''s wrong?! Why did you seem confused just now?"

    The ball shakes back and forth as the Demon fights to be free. Little bits and pieces of the ball begin to break off. Ugh, there''s no way in hell the two of us can keep it contained!

    Shana continues pouring mana into the ball but her gaze is locked onto the hallway past the door. I look in that direction and immediately realize why she sounded so confused.

    It''s empty...? What the hell was the Demon listening for then?

    "R-Rei, how long is this going to last?!"

    "Maybe thirty seconds! If nobody is coming then we''re just wasting our mana here. Let go of the ball, I''m gonna chuck it over there and then we need to get out of here!"

    Shana nods and removes her hands from the ball. I immediately toss it to the other end of the temple and make a mad dash for the exit. The sound of metal breaking apart echoes out as we sprint through the hallway. After we reach the stairs I can hear the barrier around the ball explode, telling me that the Demon just freed itself.

    Shit! Should we hide here or...?!

    Shana answers that for me by enhancing her legs and jumping to the top of the stairs. I do the same and grab the steps next to the door, hurling myself up and sprinting into the living room.

    "Shana!" I say as I dive into a dark corner next to the couch. Shana, -who was currently running out the door- pivots toward me instead and slides right into my lap. I activate my aura mere moments before the Demon warps in next to the doorway.

    The Demon walks up to the door and grabs the wood around it, peeking outside back and forth with a massive grin on its face. It continues looking back and forth for a while before something spooks it. It stares off to the left(where Shana and I had originally broken off to search different homes), squinting its'' normally wide eyes as it scrutinizes something in the distance. Suddenly it jumps backward into the home and blinks out of existence.

    Our allies must have finally arrived, but did it really flee? Probably not... It''s most likely going to try and ambush us again.

    The two of us stand up and walk over to the door. We both peek outside and see everyone(except Nisha, Keith, Teifa, and Euphemia) huddled together in a group with Alicia and Aresa in the middle. Alicia is holding her left hand in the air while her right hand is holding Aresa close. Floating high above her left hand is a massive ball of light, bombarding the area with a ridiculous amount of light.

    Taking one quick glance around to make sure the Demon isn''t behind us, I remove my aura and walk outside with Shana. The others spot us and slowly begin moving this way while continuing to watch their surroundings despite the obvious lack of shadows thanks to Alicia''s light spell.

    ''Better safe than sorry'', huh? A good mindset to have.

    "Is it still inside?" Ishar asked as they approached.

    "Upon seeing you guys it jumped backward and warped away, but I learned something thanks to that."

    Shana looked at me, "You did...?"

    I nod, "Yes. Have you seen those tiny vertical claw marks on its chest? They''re on the upper-left side, near its nape."

    "I''ve seen them. Half of them were dark green, while the others were just scars. Did something happen with them when it warped?" Cera cut in.

    "The fucking thing does warp fast, but I was still able to see it. One of the empty cuts on its'' chest shined a bright green just as it was warping away."

    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

    Ishar narrowed his eyes in thought, "Hmm..."

    "So what''s the plan then? Make it warp away until all the cuts on its chest are filled up? That''s assuming it can no longer warp at that point. And we don''t know where it''ll flee to, do we? Nor do we know when the green marks will disappear..." Alicia said.

    A lot of good points. This information is nice to have but there are too many unknown variables.

    "Rei''s metal ball ability was able to lock the Demon down but we couldn''t keep it trapped inside for very long with only the two of us there," Shana said.

    "What? Why''d you do that before we arrived...?" Ishar asked.

    "Because the damned thing put its ear up to the door as if it was listening for something. We thought it was you guys so I decided to try and capture it while it was looking the other way. And it worked, but when Shana opened the door there wasn''t anybody there, so we had to ditch the ball and flee."

    "That''s rather odd. What was it listening for then?" Seifer asked.

    Good question... Some part of me wonders if it was baiting us, but that would mean it knew we were there and invisible. I have a really hard time believing that''s possible.

    "Uh, hang on guys, Aresa has something to say. Her board reads ''Those doors are weird. When you brought me to the broodling lair I could feel a strange connection leaking out from the door, going somewhere else''."

    Oh? Now that I didn''t expect. So it was... What exactly? Listening for sound from somewhere else?

    "Aresa dear, can you try tuning into the door and see if you discover anything?" Cera asked.

    "She says ''Okay''." Alicia relayed.

    "I see several of Nisha''s mana lines attached to you guys, but can she warp you when you''re this far away from her? For example; if the Demon grabs Ishar right now, can she save him from wherever the hell it brings him?"

    Ishar shakes his head, "According to her there is a hard limit for bringing people to her. However, warping people through her little trap portals has a much greater distance, but that also is riddled with problems. For starters, we''re nearing the maximum distance she can even keep the line connected, and at this distance she can''t do anything except talk to us."

    Ahh shit, that''s no good then... It would''ve been a really convenient lifeline if she could save us from any fuck ups going forward. If the Demon manages to grab someone here, I''ll... Oh.

    I quickly activate the soul tracker ability and give everyone''s silhouette a unique appearance and color while also placing their names above the silhouettes.

    Perfect. I don''t know if it''ll track someone who warps away, but it''s still for the best that I have this setup in advance. Just in case I ever need to find one of these guys.

    "Alright, let''s move in. Rei, take the front?" Ishar asked.

    Hmm, I can''t stealth with that vile ball of light shining above everyone, and as I''m thinking this I see Alicia creating several more spheres to circle the group because of the house''s low ceiling. I might as well take the front though. I should be able to dodge the Demon if it comes for me.

    I walk back into the home with everyone else filing in behind me. I can hear Alicia chuckling on the way down the steps, which is the last thing I expected to hear in this atmosphere. After we reach the Demon''s lair, Aresa runs up to me holding her board out.

    {You found a hidden door?! And there was a temple underneath it! That''s so cool...}

    Ahh, so this is what Alicia was chuckling about. Such a cute girl... It really shows just how sheltered she was. Even in this situation, little things like this look dazzling to her.

    {This smell is unbearable, but I feel bad saying that... All these poor people.}

    I reach my hand out and begin patting her head. "You don''t have any ill will when you''re saying that, right? It''s a natural thought in this situation. Because it does smell horrible, so let''s get this over with, okay?"

    Aresa nods. After I take my hand off her head she puts her hands on the door and rests her forehead against it. A slight blue shimmer forms around her while everyone eyes their surroundings, waiting for the Demon to strike.

    {... We have a problem, Rei.} Aresa whispers into my ear with her ability again.

    "What''s wrong?"

    Ishar glances at me and quirks his left eyebrow.

    {This door connects to all the other Temples in the region. I can see inside their rooms. A few of them are just like this one, littered with bodies. However, there is something much worse in another one... There is an injured Satyr resting against a wall meditating.}

    "What?! Where is it?!"

    Aresa pulls herself back from the wall and holds her board up for everyone to see. The words on it are exactly what she just told me.

    "Fucking hell... I really don''t want to fight one of those right now." Ishar said.

    "I''m very good at killing them if they''re outside and they don''t know I''m there, but the other Demon can track us, so..." Cera trailed off.

    "Aresa, where was that specific temple located?"

    {Very far to the west. But it felt different from the others...? I think it''s above ground. I can still feel a slight connection to it but I don''t know when that will fade.}

    Cera sighed, "Rushing there is not an option... We''ll just get picked off like that."

    True... The other Demon could still pop up at any time.

    {Um, Seifer? The temple is very far to the west. When we were looking at the maps I don''t remember seeing any villages that far out. Why is there a temple out there then?}

    Seifer adjusted his glasses, "That''s where our original mines were. In fact, that was our biggest village here in Kellog. It had both the mines and our trading post, but between the mines drying up and the constant monster attacks, the King decided to abandon it. As you said, it''s way too far to the west of the fortress, and he wanted to keep all of Kellog within a certain distance of it. He also plans on constructing walls around the entire nation, so that old village was doomed regardless."

    "Hang on, Nisha has some good news. Euphemia talked to her Father and he''s sending Tyrell over with a large contingent of knights. They''re already on their way over here." Ishar said.

    "Well, that takes care of the Satyr problem then... I hope. We should wait for them near the bell tower. You guys head over first, there''s something I need to take care of real quick."

    "Shouldn''t we stay together...? I know why you think you''re safe Rei, but it''s still risky." Tyra said.

    "You''re right Alicia, but I''m dying of hunger. For obvious reasons I wasn''t able to eat while I was underground healing... As a result, I''ve gone far too long without food, so now my core is starting to siphon my soul for strength. I need to eat now. I''m sure one of these homes has something edible left in them."

    At least I hope they do...

    Ishar nods, "Fine, we''ll meet you in the courtyard. The knights will be coming from this direction so you''ll probably see them first."

    The group slowly walks away, going back the way they came. I also do the same and run back into the home behind me, reactivating my aura as soon as Alicia''s ball of doom can no longer reach me.

    Jeez, even with my aura off it hurt quite a bit being near that...

    I run into the kitchen and open up the pantry.

    ... Oh come on. I have eaten a few of these so far and they are good, but I don''t want to only eat peanuts damnit.

    The inside of the pantry is completely devoid of food, aside from a single large box filled with peanuts. Sighing, I reach down and begin scooping up handfuls of the delicious yet disappointing meal I just found.

    <hr>

    The sound of heavy boots stomping through the snow wakes me from my stupor.

    So they''re finally here...

    After I finished eating, I ducked low and crawled into the pantry. I''ve been hiding in here while waiting for the knights.

    A strange melancholy came over me after I was done eating... And I really wanted to be alone for a bit as a result.

    This empty abandoned village with all its residents killed in a bizarre ritual.

    My allies waiting for me in the center of this ghost town.

    Everything that''s happened up until now...

    And then of course; we''re finally approaching the last battle.

    Every now and then I get emotional over what seems like nothing... While I was healing underground I had nothing else to do except test the knight''s abilities and watch old memories in my soul realm. The one I watched the most was from when I was in Aresa''s Manor. It was literally just the four of us(Me, Aresa, Ishar, and Alicia) sitting there reading books in silence or randomly making small talk with one another. Yet there I was, already looking at that scene through the lens of nostalgia.

    This was something that started after I lost my family. I''ll randomly become sad out of nowhere, but it''s been way worse ever since I lost my friends in Xelba. And now I''m looking at the others as if I''ve already lost them... Maybe I will try and reach out to Cera. She clearly hates my guts, but it can''t hurt to try and be on friendly terms with her.

    Grabbing both sides of the door frame, I pull myself out of the pantry. Entering my usual sneaking stance I quickly move through the home and make my way outside. On the outside I rush through the snow toward the center plaza, finding a large amount of bootprints along the way.

    As I near the plaza I remove my aura, but not just because of Alicia. The knights brought someone who can create sphere''s of light that are somehow brighter than Alicia''s, because they currently look like the fucking sun itself.

    I walk up to the knight talking to Tyra, "Oh my god... I see you no longer have a need to worry about the Demon jumping you, Tyrell."

    Tyrell laughs, "Damn straight there isn''t. Not anymore, anyway. I was allowed to bring some men from another unit for this Demon extermination. One of them can make several floating spheres of light, as you can clearly see."

    *And feel.* I''ll have to trail way behind this group. There''s no way in hell I can stay near them like this.

    "With this, we should be able to run the whole way there. Everyone ready?" Ishar asked.

    Tyrell nodded, "Indeed, but we should walk out of this village first. We''ll set up formations outside the village and then sprint from there."

    "Works for me," Ishar replied, motioning for our group to begin moving.

    I don''t move as the group moves away from me, causing Alicia to yell out, "You coming? Aresa is asking."

    "Yeah, I''ll be right behind the rest of you. All of your light abilities are killing me. Don''t worry, it will be impossible to lose your group. Anyone can see you coming from a mile off, including the Demons."

    "We''ll deal with that when the time comes. We can''t give any opportunity for that grinning fucker to grab one of us." Ishar replied.

    He''s right, which is honestly a huge problem. My master told me long ago ''Not all Demons work together, but *most* do''. So there''s a good chance the grinning one will know we''re coming and warn the Satyr. The last thing you want to do is approach a Satyr who has had ample time to prepare for your arrival... But even if we wanted to put it off, the defenders of Kellog can''t just sit here waiting for us to kill the Grinning one while the Satyr heals its injuries.

    After everyone has left the plaza I put my aura back up and hide under a tree.

    I''ll wait here a few minutes and then run after them. If we can manage to kill the grinning Demon here, then we''ll finally be done with this place...

 Chapter 37 - The Long Night Ends

    ... I have to admit, out of all the possible ways things could get worse for us, I didn''t expect this to be one.

    Thanks to my allies, the forest in front of me is lighting up as if there is a live concert going on inside of it. What I didn''t expect to see, however, is a human-shaped specter tailing them. Far off to the left just barely out of range of their spheres of light, I can see someone jumping through the trees perpendicular to them. At first I thought it was because of the lack of light, but nope, it really is just a shadow, not a person. Is that their ability? To turn into a shadow...?

    I knew someone in Xelba who could create shadows, but I''ve never seen someone literally turn into one. It''s rather suspicious that the Demon can ambush people through their own shadows, and now I''m seeing a person using a shadow-based ability or spell. Obviously they''re connected, but there''s no way to know how till this person is captured and... Questioned.

    Of course, it could all be a big coincidence and that''s actually a knight tailing the group entirely for the purpose of protecting them. Unfortunately, there isn''t a single bit of me that believes that nonsense. Real coincidences are far too rare for me to consider it a possibility in this situation... But I guess it is possible.

    Hmm... How am I going to handle this? The only way to contact the others is by getting as close to them as I can and then drop my shadow to yell at them or walk up to them. The last, and probably best option, is to take out the shadow person on my own.

    I pivot to the left and run toward the mountains in the distance until I''m far enough left to flank the shadow. I stare at the forest for a while until I finally see it move.

    There you are... Damn, even I can''t see it until it leaps between trees and is hit by the light from my companions.

    While jogging into the trees I continue staring at the last spot I saw the shadow. Once I''m within about fifty feet I slow to a crawl, sneaking up to a nearby tree where I can still see where the Shadow is. About a minute later it leaps to another tree, keeping itself around one hundred yards back from my allies. Same as before, I sneak forward while keeping an eye on where it landed.

    Leaping up there won''t do any good. This thing is leaping between trees at a very fast speed, so it must be slightly enhanced at all times. By the time I land on the branch it''s on, it''ll either have attacked me or leaped far far away. I could try climbing the tree by making my blood or armor sticky, but I can only dull sound with my feet...

    ... I''ll just keep tailing it for now. If this shadow is only scouting, then I''ll follow it back to where it came from, but if it attacks my allies after they engage the Satyr, then that''s the perfect time to hit it.

    <hr>

    I''m currently at the last of the trees before the dilapidated village ahead, and whatever I''m tailing is on a nearby tree. We''re both watching my allies skulk around a church that''s at least three times bigger than the ones I''ve seen in other villages here.

    Were the people here much more pious in the past? Or it could be because this village appears to be absolutely massive. A hell of a lot of people must''ve lived here in the past. But now it''s just...

    Alicia turns toward the forest, "Uh, Rei?! You might want to come look at this!!"

    Unmoving, I stare at the shadow''s location, expecting some form of movement, but nothing happens.

    Shit... I wasn''t expecting someone to yell for me. This shadow person has to know someone else is here now. That''s assuming he or she wasn''t tracking us from the start. If that''s the case then they would have noticed the disappearance of a white-haired girl right away.

    ... Do they know I''m tracking them? Bah, this line of thinking is pointless. More importantly, something must have happened for her to be yelling at me instead of fighting the damn Satyr. Is it gone? That means the grinning fucker warned it we were coming.

    "Are you there?! Aresa is saying, ''Hurry up!''" Alicia yelled.

    Ugh... Well, I can''t just walk to them and leave this thing here. All I can do at this point is try and capture it... Honestly, I''ll be shocked if this actually works out.

    Removing my aura, I pour as much mana as I can into enhancing my whole body. Barely a second passes by before the shadow leaps further into the forest. Fortunately for me, it was jumping to the exact same tree it was on before. On top of enhancing myself, I had created that sonar ball I stole from the knights and was firing it at the same spot the shadow was currently retreating to.

    "?!"

    The shadow clearly reacted to the ball of light flying towards the same spot it was going, but it was unable to stop itself in midair. Unfortunately, it landed on the branch and leaped away before my ability reached it.

    Heh, well done, but that''s still not good enough asshole.

    The ball released a blast of sonar, pinging the shadow for me. I tried activating the Chimera''s tracking ability as a just in case, but I couldn''t get a lock on the shadow.

    It must be veiled like I am. I''ve only known one other person like that, the shadow caster in Xelba... But it can''t be him?

    The shadow continues leaping from tree to tree in a vain attempt to escape me.

    The sonar lasted about two minutes in my soul realm when I tested it on humanoid beings. Not exactly a large amount of time, but I won''t even need one minute at the rate I''m catching up to the shadow. Unless of course, it has more abilities that''ll help it escape.

    The shadow, realizing that I''m moments away from being close enough to intercept it in midair, removes its shadow aura and leaps directly at me with both his feet pulled back. Right before the person reaches me he kicks his feet forward. Shimmying to the side, I direct most of my enhancements to my left fist and drive it into the man''s stomach as he passes by where I was moments before, sending him flying deeper into the woods. Upon hitting the ground he begins sliding through the snow. The man then slams his left arm into the ground and uses the momentum to do a single backroll onto his feet.

    ... Nice moves. It''s making me even more suspicious.

    The man appears to be quite old, maybe even in his seventies. He has scars all over his face, and not a single ounce of hair can be seen anywhere. Not on his head, eyebrows, or face.

    He looks nothing like the man I remember, but it has been a long time...

    As the man enters a fighting stance, that highly resembles the warriors of Xelba, I yell a single word at him.

    "Fin?"

    The man freezes up. It''s extremely dark here so it''s hard to tell, but it almost looks like his eyes are finally focusing on the world around him. He stares at me with a look of pure confusion on his face, and even begins to look around at the forest around him with the same exact look, as if he can''t even comprehend where he is.

    "Is that you Fin? You look... Different."

    "... R... R... Aaaa...?" The man asked, his voice so hoarse and gravelly I could barely make it out.

    Before I could respond, Fin shook his head left and right as if fighting off something from within his head, until eventually he looked at me again with the same impassive face he originally had. Unsheathing two daggers at his waist, he launches himself at me, swinging both weapons at my throat. I lean backward and swat the attack away with the back of my right hand and immediately pull myself up, smashing my head into Fin''s chest.

    He rocks backward a little but is on top of me again in no time. He swings at me time and again, all aimed at my throat with extreme precision. One by one I parry them away with the back of my hands, waiting for him to use his signature ability I saw several times before in Xelba.

    There really is something messing with his head! Fin should know better than to attack my throat. It''s been a long time so maybe he forgot, but that''s obviously not the case here.

    Keeping up the attack with the dagger in his left hand, he puts his pointer finger and middle finger together and aims them at the ground under my feet. I do a short leap to his right side just as his shadow-capture ability forms under my feet. Before he can pull his right hand back, I over-enhance my right foot and kick the side of his elbow. A large cracking sound pops out as Fin slides back through the snow several feet.

    "FIN, CAN YOU UNDERSTAND ANYTHING I''M SAYING?!"

    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Fin doesn''t respond, instead taking something from his left pocket and jamming it into his now-broken right elbow. A few more bone-cracking sounds could be heard shortly after and within a matter of seconds he began bending his arm again to make sure it worked.

    ... Unbelievable. There''s a reason nobody uses those. Emergency repair shots are for when you have no other option or know with absolutely certainty that someone can heal you afterward. Those shots mess up your soul''s connection to the affected area, and if someone highly skilled in soul magic doesn''t fix it within at least half a day, that part of your body is gone forever.

    We never used them in Xelba; both Viktor and the other main faction forbid it. There was a small period of time when units were allowed to use them, and we ended up with a ridiculous amount of crippled veterans as a result. Where the fuck did he even get that from? I obviously suspected he was still working with Viktor, but that man was against emergency repair shots from the start. He only allowed them to prove to the nobles that they were basically cursed objects. There''s no way in hell he''d give them to Fin if they were working together.

    The sound of lightning, explosions, and yelling erupts from behind me at almost the same exact time.

    The Satyr? Or are they fighting the grinning Demon? The worst-case scenario is both... I need to end this now.

    "... Sorry Fin, but I''ve wasted enough time here. It would be nice if you surrendered, but I assume you''re not going to do that."

    With his right arm temporarily repaired, Fin launches himself at me again, but this time he''s much faster than before.

    He''s over-enhancing his whole body?!

    Same as before, I parry the daggers with my enhanced palms, but this time I''m barely keeping up. It wasn''t long before I missed one of the attacks and it cut deep into where my artery should be. Black blood begins spilling out but unlike the hundred wounds I was inflicted with when the Xerath punched me, this wound is small enough that my body begins repairing it right away. Blood continues to trickle out, but it''s nothing more than an inconvenience.

    The zombified Fin stops attacking and stares at me, waiting for me to fall down or clutch at my throat, but when that doesn''t happen he looks back and forth between his dagger and my throat, trying to confirm whether he really did cut me deep enough or not. Yeah... There is obviously something wrong with him. Fin should know that''s not enough to kill me.

    I stare at him, waiting for him to make the next move.

    After over-enhancing himself that much he''ll be feeling the brunt of it soon. My right foot is already hurting and feels like it''s been crushed. So it should be any minute now that he...

    Fin pivots and attempts to leap away but I grab his ankle mid-air and whip him into the tree nearby. Apparently he had greatly lowered his enhancements after his ''killing blow'' so he could minimize his self-damage, but it backfired. The damage from being slammed into the tree was quite visible as he tried to scream in pain as the wind was knocked out of him. Before he falls off the tree I leap at him and kick his stomach hard with my left foot.

    Yep... He wasn''t enhanced or just barely was. My foot went right into his stomach and I even felt something explode in his stomach.

    Fin falls to the ground lifelessly. He begins choking for air, which leads to him coughing up blood not long after that. His eyes slowly regain their focus as he looks right at me. He pats the right side of his chest while weakly smiling at me.

    "Th... Ke... U..." Fin said. He choked one last time before finally going silent.

    Thank you...?

    ... I might have been able to capture him, but it was too risky. Even if I broke his legs and arms right there, who''s to say he couldn''t still capture me with his shadow ability? And if I broke one leg it might have given him time to re-enhance the rest of his body.

    Looking at Fin''s scarred-up face I almost feel like crying.

    I don''t know what you went through old friend, but I''m sorry I couldn''t save you...

    Never having absorbed an ally before, I hesitantly reach out for him and try pulling his soul out.

    Huh...? It won''t move?

    Yanking, tearing, and even trying to move it just a little, proves fruitless.

    The fuck is going on? I''ve pulled the souls out of powerful Eldritch before, but Fin''s is stuck inside him???

    The more I grasped at the soul, the more I noticed something odd about it.

    It almost feels... Demonic? The grinning Demon does have an ability rather similar to Fin''s... Does that mean he made a pact with it? The only Demonic Pact I know is the one Satyr offer people. It''s actually rather fair, which is annoying to admit. But they definitely don''t gain the abilities of those they contract with... I wonder what he got out of forming a pact with the grinning one? Unfortunately, I can''t read his memories like this...

    Unbuttoning his leather vest, I reach in and feel around the inside right-hand side of his vest and quickly find what he was patting. Grabbing something small made of rugged leather, I pull it out and see it''s a small journal. The battle rages on behind me so for now I punch out a small hole in the ground and bury it there. After covering it up with dirt and snow I run toward the village behind me.

    Upon reaching the village I find what I feared the most, albeit it''s not quite what I was expecting. The Satyr is swinging away at the knights with two large axes, and the grinning Demon is here too, but...

    Now this is weird... The Satyr should be dead. It has a hole in its chest the size of a small cannonball. The grinning fucker is on top of the temple playing with... A heart? Is that the Satyr''s heart?

    Shana''s clones, Ishar, Alicia, and Tyra are on top of the roof trying to engage the grinning Demon from behind but they are unable to break the barrier around it. Far off to the right in an abandoned warehouse(that''s completely devoid of a roof) I can see Cera and Aresa fighting seven imps in close combat. And the knights are trying to spread out so some of them can attack while the Satyr is attacking one or two of them, but it''s at least two times faster than any Satyr I''ve ever seen. I can hear the torrent of air from here every time it swings one of those axes.

    Well, it''s obvious who I should be helping here.

    Sprinting to the right I leap up onto the warehouse''s second floor. The imp closest to where I land tries to spear me but I grab the tip of the spear and begin smashing the imp into the wooden flooring. After being smashed five times the imp either wisened up and let go, or it had lost the strength to keep holding on, as it had let go as I was raising the spear again. Seeing this, I flip the spear around and throw it at the unmoving imp, impaling it into the wall.

    The other imp nearby freaks out and tries to run away, but I grab the back of its head and push it into the floorboards. Enhancing both my arms and hands I crush it into the wood until its skull caves in.

    {R-Rei!!}

    Aresa, apparently only good at defense, is struggling against three imps. They''re focusing their mana at the tips of their spears and pushing hard into three different points of her barrier. Even from here I can see the barrier cracking under the constant directed attack.

    Dashing forward I kick the imp on the left up into the air and immediately punch it back down with my right fist. It bounces off the floorboards and goes rolling off the side of the warehouse. The other two look at me with shocked expressions but I was already on top of them. Grabbing both of their faces with each hand, I push them into the floorboards like the imp earlier until their skulls explode. Off to the side I can see Cera finishing off the last imp near her as well.

    Aresa runs up and hugs me.

    {T-Thank you!!}

    "I understand why you''d want her here with you, but shouldn''t you have someone guarding the two of you so you can shoot?"

    Cera picks her gun up and begins aiming at the grinning Demon again. "We did. The fucker warped them over there. Ishar yelled at us saying something is on his soul and he can''t move away from the Demon."

    Ahh... The same mark it put on the Chimera.

    Down below Tyrell finishes channeling a spell and throws his hands forward with apparently nothing in them. Soon after that though, a large pair of metal bolas go flying out and wrap around the Satyr''s legs, forcing the creature to hit the ground hard. The rest of the knights take that moment to pounce on the creature and manage to chop one of its legs and arms off in no time at all.

    Even from here I can see the grinning Demon''s grin turn into a frown again. It begins channeling onto the heart, making it grow brighter in intensity at an alarming rate. The knights immediately retreat from the Satyr as its body is also growing brighter at the same rate. But instead of the Satyr exploding, a large explosion occurs from inside the forest. Everyone looked there in surprise but quickly turned to look at the grinning Demon next as it began screaming in pain.

    {The barrier! It had multiple layers but there is only one now!}

    Wait... Did Fin''s soul explode? I know most Demon''s souls explode when they die, I just didn''t know that it could also work like that when you form a contract. The Satyr contract definitely doesn''t do that, but it makes sense that the grinning Demon''s would since he was also borrowing Fin''s abilities and mashing them with its'' own.

    A boom so loud I thought thunder struck us erupts from my left. A large ball of energy fires out from Cera''s gun and strikes what remains of the Demon''s barrier, shattering it completely. The Demon, clearly in a panic for the first time yet, tries warping away but only manages to fall over onto the roof instead. It looks down at the scars on its chest in confusion.

    They''re full... But they shouldn''t be? Did having its contract severed so violently mess its soul up to the point that its abilities became temporarily unavailable? Even the Demon wasn''t expecting that apparently... As it''s currently looking around in a panic trying to figure out how to escape.

    "Heh, look at that... It has a very pathetic look on its face right now. Not grinning anymore, are you asshole?" Cera said.

    It looks like a cornered animal that knows it''s finished...

    Ishar approaches the Demon, causing it to flip around and try to attack him. The Demon takes one quick swipe at Ishar, and while it was a surprisingly fast attack, it wasn''t anything Ishar couldn''t handle. He leaped back a little and arced his spear up in the most simple attack motion I''ve ever seen, but it was all he needed. From the elbow up, the Demon''s arm fell onto the roof lifelessly. The Demon stupidly tried jumping backward and went right off the roof, falling to the knights waiting below, who quickly cut the Demon into a dozen pieces before it even hit the ground.

    Once the Demon was dead, the knights scattered and created a blue shield in front of themselves, waiting for the impending explosion which came soon afterward.

    While it''s not a devastating explosion by any means, it''s still nothing you want to be close to when it goes off.

    "What the...? Do you see that, Aresa?"

    Aresa nods, {Yes! Isn''t that great?!}

    Huh? It is?

    {... Why are you confused right now? All of the souls the Demon had absorbed up until now are free! With Teifa we can make them enter the cycle of rebirth. I might even be able to do it now too. She''s been showing me how in what little free time we''ve had.}

    Oh right, that is a possibility now. I''m not used to having someone around who can save people''s souls like that... In this world you try not to think about it since the queen bitch takes them all.

    {Oh wait! If it keeps all the souls around and doesn''t absorb any of them, maybe Keith''s sister is in there? Rei, can you check souls and learn anything about them without absorbing them?}

    "No, sorry. I''ll only be able to tell if they''re Human or Crotia, etc. However..." I stopped and pondered a certain god before continuing, "Arkaios would know but I''m not quite sure how to make that work. Once we leave the area engulfed by these black clouds, Meizha''thul is going to take all those souls for herself."

    Cera''s gun vanished into thin air as she looked at me, "What if Alicia warps back with them and immediately runs over to Arkaios'' temple?"

    I shrugged, "It''s worth a shot. I assume Meizha''thul can''t touch them if they''re within Arkaios'' domain."

    Whether she''ll take them before Alicia can reach the temple, however, that''s a question nobody will have the answer to. The best we can do is try and pray it''ll work out.

 Chapter 38 - Tombstone

    ... God damnit, Blackwall.

    Leaning down I clean the pin that''s stuck on what little is left of his armor. After the dried blood is removed, I see the very same pin Godwin had. The one designating him as a leader of the Guardians.

    Shana sits down next to the body parts and begins removing the armor from them. "This is going to crush Aresa. She may be considered old at this point, but I''m sure you''ve noticed how little life experience she has?"

    "Yeah, she''s kind of... Naive? Randomly she''ll sound very adult, but for the most part, she still seems like a kid."

    Shana nodded, "Because she is. Most of her life was spent in that chateau with no friends or parental figures. The only thing she had were worshipers begging her to take back Viseux. I only reached out to her after I heard Cera was attempting to befriend her. I was afraid she''d try and corrupt her, but..." Shana sighed, "She hasn''t done anything like that. That cunt has been nothing but nice to Aresa... It''s strange."

    While I watch Shana clean the remnants of Blackwall''s armor, I think back to the last time I met the man.

    "Complications was the word he used at dinner... Right?"

    Shana nodded.

    "The only thing that comes to mind, is the fact that all the Guardians disappeared. So he must have been looking for them?"

    Ishar and Alicia, who have been silently guarding the entrance to the temple, both affirm my theory at the same time.

    Ishar continues from there, "Then the real question is, why only Guardians?"

    True... That''s exactly what is nagging at me.

    Alicia hummed, "When I was being taught how Demons operated, I was told over and over that they''re ''very clever''. Doesn''t that mean the Demon was smart enough to take them out before they became a problem?"

    Ishar shook his head, "It didn''t just ''take them out'', the damned thing lured them here somehow. And yet, it didn''t do that with anyone else."

    "Assuming it really did lure them here."

    "Meaning?" Ishar asked.

    "I''m caught on something else that looks unrelated, but I feel like it''s connected... Tyrell''s orders to capture me."

    "... Hmm." Ishar rubbed his chin, "I see where you''re going with this. You think they were ordered to check this temple out?"

    Shana stood up, handing Blackwall''s torso armor to me. She then bends down and picks up the rest.

    "What about Blackwall?" Shana asked.

    "... I don''t know. Maybe the Demon grabbed him while he was tracking his men down? This is the closest temple to the one underneath Euphemia''s village, but it is kind of far away. Still though, the trail would be rather fresh compared to when we were searching for them."

    "Unless he was also given orders." Ishar followed up.

    Shana shook her head, "No. Blackwall would have confided in us if that happened. It would''ve been suspicious for only him to get orders and not the others. But if he was tracking his men... I think he would have done it alone. We all had a job to do, and Blackwall is... Was, too nice for his own good. He wouldn''t want to bother us till he found something."

    "Let''s leave it there for now. Looks like you two are ready, so let''s head back to the manor and ask the others." Ishar said as he walked out the door.

    The three of us followed him out of the temple.

    <hr>

    "... Before I comment, may I ask what answer the three of you reached?" Seifer asked.

    After returning to the manor, we all gathered together in Euphemia''s war room to discuss what we found.

    I''m sure it was just a bored princess naming her safe room something powerful sounding, but we have used it quite often for horrible discussions like these. I bet she never expected this to actually happen when she named it that.

    "The prince''s attitude during the meeting we had before is bothering me, but all I have is my instincts to go on... I have nothing concrete to offer you."

    Seifer looks at Euphemia, "Princess...?"

    For her part, Euphemia looks like she''s fed up with everything. She looks at Seifer and sighs, "Reimia has a point..." Euphemia goes quiet for a moment, clearly lost in her own thoughts, then continues, "I wonder when it started? My brother was such a sweet kid who, I dare say, was rather weak. Father never expected him to properly hold the reigns, and that''s precisely why he was considering passing the crown to Seifer."

    Seifer blanches, "A-Are you serious, princess?!"

    "Why wouldn''t I be? You''ve always done great work and everyone can see that you love our nation. Father was more than happy with the prospect of leaving it in your hands. Both I and Parn agreed as well. Until..." Euphemia trailed off, eyes glazing over.

    "Until...?" Alicia urged her on.

    "... I''m not sure. It felt like a gradual change? Maybe that really is normal for young princes, but it felt like nobody expected him to turn into the man he did... Right, Seifer?" Euphemia said, looking at Seifer.

    Seifer nodded, "Indeed. Before this very moment, I would have never imagined talking behind the prince''s back, but I must admit, I had no expectations for the young man. I must also say though, I was not looking down on him, not even a little. Every person is different and has their own set of needs and desires. I figured the prince would just end up in a different role serving the kingdom. He seemed to love books, so the head of scholars or even just an advisor would''ve been a perfect fit for him."

    Euphemia smiled and chuckled, "True... He was a little bookworm who loved to learn and read fantasy stories in his free time." Euphemia''s smile faded, "... It has to be him. It pains me to say it, but I can feel it in my bones, there is something wrong with my brother."

    {What are you going to do then?} Aresa whispered into everyone''s ear.

    Everyone but me looked at Aresa with a stunned look on their face.

    "L-Lady Aresa, how did you...?" Seifer asked.

    {ANSWER THE QUESTION!}

    ... I''ve seen her annoyed before, but this is my first time seeing her pissed off.

    Aresa has yet to look up during the meeting. She''s just been staring at Blackwall''s mostly cleaned-up armor on her lap.

    Seifer was clearly unsure of how to answer her, but Euphemia just looked at her expressionlessly, "I don''t know. We would need to find proof that he somehow used Father''s communication crystal and gave orders to the Guardians. I know we have someone here who could search his quarters for us, but would he be stupid enough to keep something incriminating in his private space? Assuming there is any evidence left to find..."

    No evidence... An ability? Magic? There would definitely be no way to trace that. At the very least I have no way of tracing that through Tyrell''s or the King''s communication crystal.

    Aresa stares at me, unmoving.

    ... She either wants me to do what Euphemia just suggested, or she wants me to kill him. This is Aresa we''re talking about, so it should be the first option, but considering how upset she is right now...

    Tyra breaks the silence, "I know we no longer need to warp Euphemia to Viseux so she can acquire your templar ''artifact'', but I must request that you continue with your plans to take her away from here."

    Euphemia''s expression finally changes from one of pure exhaustion to pure shock, "Tyra?! You would have me flee?! The broodling is gone, I no longer have a reason to run from my own home!!"

    Ahh, so she really was considering running away. Not that the broodling would have let her leave.

    Tyra kneels before Euphemia, "Please, Euphie... Even if it''s only for a little while. Please leave Kellog, I beg you. Look at how much has happened to us in such a short amount of time! I love my home, I truly do... But, I think it''s for the best that you step away for a bit. A nice vacation while staying at Lady Aresa''s chateau, how does that sound? That way your safety is guaranteed while we figure out how to move forward from here." Tyra looks at Aresa, "Is that acceptable, Lady Aresa?"

    Aresa peels her stare away from me and holds her board up at Tyra. {Of course. I was planning on leaving tomorrow as well. We haven''t been here very long, but at the same time we''ve also been here far too long...}

    True. It''s probably only been a few weeks and yet it feels like we''ve been here for half a year. I already acquired the strength I wanted, and quite frankly, I''m fed up with this place.

    Teifa raised her hand, "Um... What about those souls in the corner there?" She points to the corner where I dropped all the souls from the Demon hunt.

    Alicia sighed, "The plan was for me to warp back with them and bring them to Arkaios'' temple, but I can''t grab them and Rei is unable to place them in any bag we hand her." Alicia looked at me, "Didn''t you say those Satyrs were placing souls in a fleshy bag or something? Did you ever discover what that bag was or how they did that?"

    "I''m surprised you remembered that little detail from my past. Also no, I never did discover what that bag was. In fact, that was the only time I ever saw them with a bag made of flesh. I assume they were collecting souls for Viktor, but I kind of forgot about it until I was telling you guys my past."

    Keith steps forward, "How about Nisha goes with you, Alicia? Her soul is unique, she can make herself as weak as a normal person. It won''t be taxing to warp her and she''ll have access to the temple. Nobody in Viseux has access to the temple besides those who have sworn their loyalty to Arkaios. She can grab the artifact and then you bring her back here, where we''ll put all of the souls inside the artifact. Then you can finally take them back to the temple."

    Alicia looks at Keith, "Wait, why didn''t we do this before then instead of asking Euphemia to go?"

    "I didn''t want to send her there alone... Viseux is being tolerant with the Guardians, but branded members like us may end up under house arrest as well. Which means they''d make sure we can''t leave the temple. Nisha won''t have the strength to force her way through them if they grab her, but now it doesn''t matter since we''re all returning to Viseux anyway." Keith said.

    "Hang on, I wanted to ask you something, Keith. Why did you volunteer to protect the princess instead of getting revenge on the grinning Demon? You sacrificed an entire fucking village for a chance to kill the thing. I know that''s only half the reason you did it, but it''s still part of it."

    Keith rubbed the back of his head, "Ahh, that''s simple. Remember when I told you about Arkaios keeping us in his realm for a year while forcing us to go through training? He made it clear that I was to drop my drive for revenge and treat all Demons with that level of vitriol. I had the perfect excuse here to get my revenge, but when Euphemia asked for people to guard her, I decided then and there to try and follow my Lord''s wishes. It hurt to let someone else kill the Demon, but I felt something else as well. Something I can''t quite explain yet..."

    "Excuse me, um..." Teifa cut in, "What''s the point of that when I can just send them to the afterlife right here and now?"

    "I want to see if my sister''s soul is there. Arkaios may allow her to stay in his realm, and it would make me feel much better if I had absolute proof she was able to move on or live on in Arkaios realm for all eternity." Keith said.

    All eternity huh? I wonder what they actually do there? Arkaios seems like a good god so far, but who knows what he considers a ''happy afterlife''.

    "I need to ask one more question, I''m sorry! It''s very important." Teifa gripped her staff hard, "What is to happen of the ''Xerath'' coming up from down below?"

    Seifer looked at Teifa, "I''m sorry Teifa, all I can do is ask your people to wait for a little bit longer. Right now the king is attempting to negotiate with the fishmen Eldritch, but it''s not going well. The Xerath are slowly worming their way into different areas underground, killing lots of fishmen as they go. Normally the Eldritch would''ve been more than happy to accept any assistance in killing them, but it hates the Goblins quite a bit as well. Because of this, the negotiations are going to take a while. The king says that the Eldritch is bound to cave eventually. It can''t just sit there and do nothing as these powerful creatures slowly take the underground from it."

    "But the broodling is dead, right? Is this a different Xerath then?" Euphemia asked.

    Ishar nodded, "Yes. For there to be different types of spawn appearing, that means it has long since passed the broodling stage and is a full-fledged god. It must have been born far away from here, but from my understanding, there shouldn''t be anything south of this nation?"

    "There are settlements here and there, but you are correct that there are no nations south of us anymore. Xelba is gone, your Crotia nation was completely evicted, and both the Kitsune and Rai''ga were forced to flee to the north. There have been attempts to repopulate the south, but they''ve all ended horribly. At most, small settlements in resource-rich areas are all you''ll find down there. Do you think one of them was fed to the broodling?" Seifer said.

    "... Could be, but it doesn''t need our souls. Monster, Demon, Eldritch... All of these souls will work just fine as sustenance for the creature. But those things are generally absent when a broodling appears in a humanoid nation, so it defaults to us for food. It''s clear that they prefer us though. Keeping worshipers alive while slowly feeding off their souls is vastly better for the creatures." Ishar said.

    "But the Xerath is turning my people and the fishmen into weird skeletons? Do those count as worshipers?" Teifa said.

    Ishar sighed, "I am having trouble understanding that as well... Normally that would mean the Xerath already has a lot of worshipers and is only interested in consuming everything else, but Seifer here is telling us that there are no large nations to the south, so I''m really not sure how to answer that, little Goblin."

    "Did you get anything from that journal, Rei?" Tyra asked.

    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    "Yes, and no. First off, it''s in code. Each unit had their own code so you''ll need someone who can decipher codes like this to look into it."

    Euphemia looks at her new maid, Yuki, who panics a little when she realizes what the princess wants. "Um, my brother Levy might be able to help with that!"

    "Being a history buff and deciphering code is far from the same thing. Are you sure?"

    Yuki nods.

    "... Alright then, I''ll give it to him after this." I continued, "Now for the second part of his journal. There''s a chaos ritual diagram, I assume to summon the Demon, and a map. It shows Kellog with a bunch of red circles where the temples are, and another red circle far to the south."

    "How south are we talking here? Xelba was at the base of the mountains far to the southeast. It''s the most southern nation that ever existed on Urza, so is it near there?" Seifer asked.

    "Farther. It shows the mountains and then a red circle past them in the dark lands of Urza. I''ll admit, I don''t know much about that area despite it being just south of the place I grew up in. Why would I? It''s a hellish winter landscape with minimal light, just like the dark lands on Aetheria. I could survive there if there were monsters to eat, but my unit would have died easily."

    "You''re half right, Rei. Most of the dark lands on Aetheria are quite warm, but they''re still a bleak nightmare everybody avoids." Alicia said.

    Oh? I didn''t expect that, but hopefully I''ll never have to find out in person. Then again, didn''t Ash''s diary say they took a broodling there?

    .............

    ... Yeah, I hope someone else takes care of that.

    "That could mean one of two things. Either he was planning on attacking something there as well, or that''s where he hails from. But how could either scenario even be possible...?" Seifer trailed off.

    "Ishar, what are the dark lands like on your planet? Or do the Crotia live on a moon? I don''t even know where you were exiled to."

    "A shockingly beautiful moon. If anything, the people of Urza did us a favor. Some of my people are still warmongers at heart though, so they sent out raiding parties to other moons and planets periodically. During one of those trips, they made the grave mistake of assaulting Lord Terra''ka''s forces. The Lizardmen subdued the group and then forced them to lead the way to our homeworld. And thank god for that... The bloodthirsty faction broke off and fled to who the fuck cares where, and now the rest of us spend our days willingly serving Terra''ka."

    Ishar continued, "Oh right, you asked about the dark lands on the underside of our homeworld. They''re much like any other. Eighty percent dark and filled with way too much ether. As a result, only the most powerful of Eldritch and monsters live there. We built a massive sensory system that wraps around the border of the entire dark lands so we have ample warning for when anything with ether crosses the border."

    Tyra whistled, "I admit, I''m impressed. I can''t even begin to imagine how big of an undertaking that would be. As for your ''bloodthirsty faction'', it''s a real shame they didn''t return here for revenge..."

    Ishar grinned at Tyra, "A shame indeed. My people would have welcomed the news that they had all died on Urza in a foolish attempt to reclaim their land."

    "Who''s to say they didn''t come back?"

    Ishar looked at me, "... It couldn''t be. I think I know where you''re going with this, but even they could not have survived in the dark lands alone. There wasn''t that many of them... Maybe a thousand at most?"

    Realization dawned on Seifer''s face as he watched Ishar speak, "I really hope they''re not the ones hiding out down there."

    "Assuming there really is someone down there..." I sighed, "Okay, we''ve talked enough. What''s the plan?"

    "Alicia takes care of the souls with Nisha, and when she''s done she''ll bring the princess with her. Meanwhile, the rest of us aside from Rei will go to Viseux by wagon." Ishar continued while looking at me, "Take care of Parn in any way you see fit."

    Seifer jumps out of his chair, "Wait!! Shouldn''t you at least look for some kind of evidence first?!"

    Euphemia looks down and closes her eyes, "... I heard nothing. Do what you must."

    Seifer stares at Euphemia, aghast. "Princess..."

    "Do you know what they''re saying about me in our village, Seifer?" Euphemia asked.

    "Huh? You''re loved in this nation. What could they possibly be saying that would influence your decision in this matter?"

    Euphemia sighed, "My lovely new maid and some of our friends here have told me more than enough. Think about it, Seifer. How many maids and butlers were employed here? And how many are still alive?"

    "... Surely they are not blaming you for that? I sent out an emergency newsletter and I was one hundred percent honest in it. I told the people exactly what happened and who was to blame." Seifer said.

    "Vampire... They''re calling me a vampire. Apparently, I sucked out all their blood so I could remain empress in this insular nation."

    "WHAT?!"

    "It''s true, Seifer... We could hear the townspeople speaking badly about her and the nation when we were outside looking for the Guardians. Vampires are a work of fiction from stories found in the Elven ruins, but I... I think these people believe she really is one?" Alicia said.

    "... But how could..." Seifer sat down, resting his head in his hands.

    Honestly, I was surprised at what we were hearing as well. I didn''t know someone could go from loved to hated that fast. Hell, they''re hating their own nation too... With that said, A lot of horrible things did happen, so it''s not like there isn''t a good reason for them to lose trust in the leaders here. And from what Shana told me, Euphemia purposely hired maids and butlers from every village, so as a result, people who lost family to the broodling are in every village. That act of kindly outreach of hers backfired rather spectacularly, but it''s not her fault for not preparing for a monster to show up and eat them all.

    "... I assume there are no other objections?" Ishar asked.

    Nobody said anything. A few moments later Ishar clapped his hands and said "Let''s get going then. I want to get the hell away from this place as soon as I can."

    Everyone began to prepare for the journey ahead, but Aresa walked up to me while holding Blackwall''s armor.

    {You gonna be okay alone?}

    I put my hand on her hair. "Even when I was in a unit with my friends in Xelba, I was still alone most of the time. That''s just how it works out thanks to my skillset."

    {I didn''t ask that.}

    "... I''ll be fine. We''ll see each other again soon, alright? I promise cutie." I smiled, shuffling her hair around.

    {... I''m not cute.}

    Aresa ran back to her chair and put Blackwall''s armor down, replacing it with her board. She came back and held it up to me.

    {I''m leaving this drawn on here till I see you again.}

    On the board there is a cute drawing of a girl who looks like she is hugging another girl who looks like me.

    "Ugh, I''m getting embarrassed just looking at that..."

    Shana, who appeared behind me at some point, puts her hand on my shoulder, "It looks great."

    Cera walks up to us, "Aresa, are you going to continue using magic to communicate then? It was already surprising enough when I saw you using magic to write on your board instead of chalk, but now you''re going to avoid using your board entirely?"

    Aresa nodded. {I don''t know why, but after the ride to Thule that I spent talking to Rei, writing on my board began to seem really stupid. I was worried it''d alienate people even more if letters magically appeared on my board, but I shouldn''t have been worrying about that. I''m going to try the same with ''speaking'' too. It feels weird, and tiring, but I''m going to try all the same.}

    I forgot that she used to write on her board... I only saw her do it a few times after all.

    Aresa hugs me and looks up while smiling. {Just like the board, see?}

    Shana hugs the both of us from behind, prompting Ishar to walk this way. "A group hug huh?! Families in my tribe do this all the time before one of us is going to leave on an extended trip. Like this!"

    Ishar picks all of us up and crushes us against him.

    {Urgh, too strong, Ishar!}

    "That''s the point! Now you''ll have no choice but to remember this!" Ishar laughs and lets us down.

    ... Moments like this are rather nice. It''s bringing back good memories from my unit.

    "Alright, alright. Let''s go you three. We''ve got a long way to go, and Rei has work to do." Cera said with a smile, surprisingly.

    Take care of him... Huh? I need to figure out how I''m going to do that. He lives in the main fort area apparently, and there are only a few passages that come in from the side door. None of them come out to anywhere near his room. And worst of all is that his room is in the most heavily guarded area.

    Everyone but Nisha and Alicia files out of the room.

    Aresa turns around at the door. {See you soon, Rei!}

    "I''ll be right behind you guys, don''t worry. If I run the whole way I''ll catch up to your wagon in no time."

    Aresa smiles and nods before turning around and leaving.

    I walk up to Alicia who is currently explaining to Nisha how her warp works.

    "I thought you were taking the princess with you?"

    Alicia shakes her head, "Nope, that''s later on. Nisha already powered herself down so we''re going to leave soon, and after that it''ll take about half a day for the dagger to recharge? Maybe way less actually, since Aresa''s chateau is overflowing with ether. I can''t recharge it myself. It has to be the ambient ether in the air."

    Sounds like that was the perfect place for her to create a warp point then. It''s a good thing Aresa let her do that...

    Nisha glances at me, "How are you gonna get to him?"

    "Hmm... I''m not quite sure yet. I want to search his quarters first, which is making this much more difficult than it needs to be. But I''d still like to find proof if I can."

    "Alright, let''s get this over with. We''ll be back later, Rei!" Alicia said.

    A few seconds later the two of them blinked out of existence.

    I walk over to a couch and sit down. Closing my eyes, I enter my soul realm and change my view to the inside of the fortress. I move the view around while looking for a way to safely sneak through the area.

    <hr>

    "Rei?" A voice calls out to me.

    Looking at the TV, I see the princess and Yuki standing over me. I exit my soul realm and look up at her.

    "What''s wrong?"

    "We''re leaving once Alicia''s dagger recharges. She''s already finished all her trips with Nisha, so now it''s our turn. You''re going to be alone here... Are you going to be okay? I''ll leave the master key on the table there."

    I laughed, "You''re just like Aresa. Don''t worry, I''ll be fine. If anything, you''re the one who is going to need people around you. You lost almost everything in the span of only a few weeks... Which is something I''m all too familiar with. In my case, they literally died, but I know it''s gonna be hard for you all the same. Aresa will help you get through it. That girl cares about the people around her far more than most people on Urza do."

    Euphemia smiled, "She does... Doesn''t she?" Euphemia continued, "And I know you''re right... Especially you of all people. I''d be stupid to not listen to you right now."

    I went to reply to her, but a low rumbling from above caught my attention. Moments later I could see both Euphemia and Alicia noticed it as well.

    "What is that?" Alicia asked.

    The low rumble continued to ramp up to the point I could feel the manor begin to shake.

    "Alicia! How long until you can warp the three of you out of here?!"

    Alicia grabbed the princess and threw her onto a nearby chair, "I think about ten minutes?! Maybe five! What the hell is happening?!"

    "Stay here!" I got off the couch and ran out of the room.

    I ran down the long hallway until I reached the main hall, where I quickly pivoted towards the main doors. Upon reaching them I stopped and slowly opened one of the doors, peeking outside.

    ... Once those three are gone I need to leave as well. The plan to kill or investigate the prince is off. There''s no point now.

    The pitch-black sky was lighting up just enough for me to see a large twister forming below it, but instead of forming into a bigger twister, it was turning into an obelisk of some sort. Activating my aura, I exit the manor and walk into the lot. From here I can see fifty or so people from the village gathered in the square nearby. They''re all looking up at the obelisk with expressions taut with fear.

    After the strange monument finished forming, it floated high in the sky for another ten seconds before it suddenly plunged down onto the fields nearby. Off in the distance I could hear the same crashing sound echo out, one after another.

    Shit... There must be one appearing near every village. Hurry up Alicia!

    Reddish-black lightning shoots out of the obelisk toward the plaza. I thought I''d see one of the villagers being blasted by lightning, but instead I saw one of the skeletons I fought underground appear next to the villager. The skeleton took its greatsword and lopped the woman''s head off before any of the villagers could react. Seeing this, the villagers flew into a panic, with some of them attacking the skeleton while others fled to their homes. As this was going on, more reddish-black lightning began discharging from the obelisk, firing off toward different parts of the village.

    I was about to head back into the manor when a sickly feeling came over me again. The same pulse I got hit with underground had just washed over me, and barely a second later several different lighting bolts were fired in my direction, leaving three skeletons around me in their wake.

    ... It didn''t fire any into the manor, nor did I see any go into any homes in the village. So if I can get away from here, Alicia''s group should have plenty of time to warp away before they find them.

    I remove my invisibility since it''s serving no purpose with this sickly aura encompassing my veil that''s letting these creatures know exactly where I am. I enter a combat-ready stance as the sound of combat and screams mingle together from the direction of the village.

    From different places in the distance I can see multiple bolts of reddish-black lightning firing off toward the ground.

    ... Alright. Kill these three, and then run in the direction I''m not seeing any lightning bolts...

    Somehow I doubt it''ll be that easy. I don''t know what the range is on these obelisk''s, but just like before, once I''m able to escape the aura''s radius I should be able to get away from these creatures and catch up to Aresa''s wagon... Here''s hoping they aren''t also under assault right now.

 Chapter 39 - Xenoforming

    As I''m enhancing my entire body one of the skeletons disappears in a puff of smoke and reappears to my left with its greatsword already raised high above its head. I don''t move my body even a little as the sword approaches me, instead, I merely punch to the left and shatter both the sword and the skeleton''s head.

    The remaining two skeletons reposition themselves next to me, with one appearing behind me and the other to my right, both mid-swing as usual. I grab the skeleton on the right by its head and dash backward, whipping my enhanced head into the skeleton behind me while bringing the skeleton''s head in my right hand down onto my right knee, shattering both their skulls.

    Same boring tricks. You need to do more than send a couple of barely enhanced minions at me if you want a better result. I already know how their smokey warp works now after all.

    The obelisk fires off ten lightning bolts in my direction, leaving ten skeletons in their wake. At the same time I can see three different types of Xerath forming from clouds spewing out of the base of the obelisk.

    ... Okay, now that I can''t handle.

    I turn around and sprint away from the village. One by one the skeletons appear around me in flashes of smoke, all mid-attack. I kick the ground hard and blitz through the skeletons in front, shattering any and all parts of their bodies I come into contact with. The remaining eight skeletons encircle me again a few seconds later.

    These things are just fodder now... I''ve timed their warp ability, it has an eight-second cooldown and roughly a twenty-yard range. They can warp before the cooldown is finished, but the one skeleton who tried that had trouble moving for a few seconds afterward. It kind of looked like a broken doll...

    I continue smashing through them until there are only two skeletons left, but then I begin to hear extremely loud footsteps coming up from behind me that are shaking the ground beneath my feet. Glancing back, I see the same dark purple monstrosity that nearly killed me underground, and it''s quickly gaining ground on me. Behind him there is another Aranaea and a new Xerath I don''t recognize.

    As I''m struggling to come up with a plan of action, the sickly aura dissipates. Finally.

    I leave only my legs enhanced and turn invisible before pivoting toward the trees in the distance, sprinting directly for them while keeping an eye behind me. And just as I expected, the Xerath pivot in the same direction I''m going while staring down at my footprints in the snow.

    The dark purple Xerath gets within twenty feet of me as I reach the treeline. Wasting no time, I leap up onto the nearest tree and begin hopping deeper into the forest in a zigzag pattern. As I''m trying to pick out a tree to hide on, I spot something even better instead.

    Now that is perfect... They won''t expect me to pick that for my hiding spot in a forest full of tall trees.

    Leaping toward my new destination, I land on a tree stump near the right-side of the forest that has been chopped down. After landing I immediately sit down and remove my leg enhancements.

    I created a disturbance in the snow on the stump but that shouldn''t matter. There''s all sorts of wildlife bouncing around in here. Very few of these stumps have undisturbed snow on top of them.

    In front of me I begin to see one tree after another fall down. At first it was just in front of me, but trees in all directions begin to fall down as the Xerath fan out to different parts of the forest, cutting down every tree they come across. Far to my right I can see the Aranaea skitter through the clearing, heading for the trees behind me. As soon as it reached the trees it immediately began cutting them down as well.

    ... I may have been in trouble if I didn''t hide here. After a tree comes down, the Xerath quickly scour the snow around it looking for anything that may look like someone had landed in it. It would''ve been possible but extremely difficult to keep myself on a tree as it falls down with no enhancements on my body. I was almost out of mana back there, so keeping myself enhanced wasn''t an option.

    <hr>

    About twenty minutes later the entire forest had been completely deforested. The three Xerath then spent another ten minutes scouring around looking for any signs of me before finally giving up.

    I was mostly certain that they wouldn''t look for me here, but that was still nerve-wracking as hell...

    I stand up and begin sprinting directly north, opposite of the mountains behind me. If I remember correctly, there should only be one large village in this direction.

    As I''m running I continue to see bolts of red lightning streaking through the darkness to both my left and right.

    ... I had a feeling Kellog was done for, but I didn''t expect it to come so soon, and not like this.

    So the Xerath I fought underground were also the ones responsible for the sky? I wonder if that''s why I felt sick in the other realm when I approached the black sky over there... My core must have sensed that sickly aura and bid me to stay away from that place. And thank god I did.

    The village ahead of me comes into view but there''s no obelisk in sight. Crystal lights, torches, magic spells, everything and anything that produces light is set to the maximum inside and around the village. As I near the village I remove my aura and run through it toward the main square. On the way I pass by one family after another that''s loading up their wagons, clearly readying themselves to flee Kellog. Upon approaching the square, I see someone I didn''t expect to find here.

    "Tyrell!" I yell as I run up to him.

    Tyrell stops talking to the knight in front of him and turns toward me, "White one...? What are you doing here? I saw your group leave through the main gate hours ago."

    "I stayed behind. There was something I had to take care of, but the Xerath assault began, which forced me to flee this way."

    Tyrell turns back to the knight and puts his gauntlet on the man''s pauldron, "See it done. I''ll be with you shortly." The knight nods and runs off toward a line of wagons in the back.

    "Now then..." Tyrell glances around before whispering, "Did your ally warp the princess to Viseux before the invasion began?"

    "You knew about that? ...Seifer? And yes, she got away." Not that I have proof, but all the skeletons and Xerath near the manor chased after me. Not a single one entered the manor, so Alicia should have had plenty of time to recharge her dagger.

    Tyrell smiles and nods, "Yes, Seifer told me through a communication crystal. And now that I know for certain all of the royals have successfully fled, it''s now time for me to save as many civilians as I can." Tyrell sighs, "Admittedly, I have very little hope for the rest of us. We have no way of knowing why they only assaulted the fortress and the villages near the mountains. Could they not just drop more of those monoliths on top of us right now?"

    "That''s why I was shocked to see this village lit up and not under assault. I have no idea as to why they stopped at the first line of inner villages, but with any luck there''s a good reason for it that''ll allow you to flee to Viseux."

    "... I pray you are correct. But I must ask, what are you planning on doing from here on out? I assume you are going to chase after your allies?" Tyrell asks.

    "Yes, that''s the plan. I''m also going to ask them to wait for your wagons to catch up. I doubt anyone will oppose that suggestion."

    Tyrell sighs with obvious relief. "Oh thank god... I mean you, thank you! I was struggling to come up with the right words to convince you, but it seems you planned to help us all along. And to think I was supposed to capture you a week ago and hand you over to..." Tyrell shook his head, then looked me dead in the eyes, "Please accept my apologies, whit---No, Reimia. This is not the time or place for it, but I want to say it now all the same. You know, just in case..."

    I chuckle, "Yeah I know, Tyrell. And thank you for the apology. You can help me pay off this armor as another way of saying sorry." I continued, "With that out of the way, I''m going to chase after my allies now. But be careful, even if they don''t drop an obelisk here, you should still hurry. The tall Xerath that chased me can run up to fifty miles an hour, so it wouldn''t take them long to reach this village if they were chose to run here."

    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Tyrell winces, "I really hope they aren''t coming here on foot then... And thanks for the warning. We''ll be seeing you soon."

    I sprint through the square and turn right on the main road, heading straight north. After escaping the lights of the village I enhance my legs enough to match my mana regen and put up my aura after I''m done.

    It shouldn''t take me long to catch up to them... Please don''t let them be under assault.

    <hr>

    Around thirty minutes later I saw a familiar sight hiding in the grass off to the side of the main road. I remove my aura and she spots me instantly.

    "Rei!" Shana stands up and runs over to me, "What''s going on back there?! We''ve only been told that the nation is under assault. Euphemia is still trying to get more information out of Viseux."

    I knew they''d be fine, but it''s still nice to have confirmation.

    "The sky quite literally came down onto the fortress and the villages closest to the mountains. I''ll talk about it more in detail after everyone is gathered up. Can you tell the wagons to stop?"

    Shana gives me a thumbs up, "Already did the second I saw you."

    I smile at her and start running down the road again as Shana''s clone returns to the grass.

    Wait... Grass?

    Looking around, I see that the sky isn''t the only thing that changed. Most of the snow is still here, but there are random patches that have already completely melted.

    Very bizarre... The snow back in Kellog was definitely not melting.

    Three minutes later I slowed to a halt in front of a set of wagons parked on the side of the road. Everyone was there waiting for me.

    "Short then long version," Ishar said, keeping his eyes on the sky.

    {My attendants told us everything Alicia and Euphie said. But they were really limited in information. Alicia said she could hear something that sounded like electricity and something massive running by the manor.}

    "The sky formed multiple monolith structures and dropped them down onto the ground. Soon after that red lightning bolts shot out of the obelisk toward the nearby village, leaving skeletons in their wake. The very same ones I fought underground."

    "So they''re taking over the sky and the underground? I hate to say it you guys, but Urza isn''t united enough to stand against such a threat. There''s a reason I was trying to get my friends away from this place..." Keith said.

    Cera looks at Ishar, "What are Lord Terra''ka''s plans?"

    "No clue. Hopefully the rookie was smart enough to report this back to our Lord instead of just sitting there in the chateau waiting for us." Ishar continues, "All I can say is that my Lord only abandons places where he sees the battle as hopelessly lost. For example, there is a jungle on Aetheria we opened a portal to that we were unable to escape. There''s an Eldritch there with a domain too powerful for us to overcome. The whole jungle is a maze, it''s literally impossible to escape. The only way out is to let the damned Eldritch corrupt your soul... Aside from our portal home that is."

    In other words, you need to become a worshiper of it. I remember the Lizardmen telling me about that place when I was looking for easy ways to get to Aetheria... Good thing I decided not to go there.

    I look over at Tyra. She''s sitting on the entrance to the wagon with her head in her hands.

    She''s one of the only three natives to Kellog here... Or so I thought? I don''t see Teifa anywhere. She must have returned to the underground then? Seifer is absent too, but he might be doing something inside his soul realm.

    {What happened after that?} Aresa ''said'' into everyone''s ear.

    "I was hit with the same sickly aura I and Shana were hit with underground. It pinged me and sent three skeletons my way. I dispatched them, maybe a little too easily, because then it sent ten skeletons and three Xerath after me. I barely managed to get away."

    Ishar grinned, "Sneaky as usual. I would''ve died there... Actually, we all would have. We somehow left at the perfect time."

    "Speaking of which, only the inner villages had been attacked, and during my retreat I ran into Tyrell who was at that first big village we went through on the main road out of town. They''re filling the wagons up as fast as they can and fleeing in this direction. I told him you''d all wait for them after I caught up to you."

    Tyra looks up, "So there are survivors?! Oh god, I was so certain everyone was dead..."

    ... There''s a good chance the Xerath will give chase, so I have no idea of how many have or will survive, but it''s best she doesn''t know that.

    {Of course we''ll wait!} Aresa glares at Ishar, {Right?}

    "Bah, don''t look at me like that. I''m not opposed to waiting. If the sky is going to come down on us, then waiting here for a few hours won''t make a difference."

    "Now a question from me. Has it been this warm all along?"

    Cera shook her head, "No, it only started about an hour ago. Didn''t you notice it?"

    "Shit... No, I didn''t. My mind was elsewhere, and temperature itself only matters because of the way it affects my surroundings or the weather. I only realized it was getting warm when I saw Shana''s clone sitting in a patch of grass with no snow."

    {It was suddenly really hot for about a minute and then the sky lit up... Kind of?}

    Looking up, I see the sky is still somewhat black but it''s now giving off enough light to match what the moon next to Urza normally gives off at night. The average person can see a little now, which means I can see everything again.

    I jump on top of Aresa''s wagon and sit down. "I''m going to keep an eye out until we''re home."

    Ishar shrugs and leans against the wagon, staring at the fields in front of him. The others spread out and do the same.

    {I''m glad you''re okay.} Aresa says to only me.

    ... Me too cutie.

    <hr>

    Four hours later the wagons from Kellog finally catch up to us. Tyrell walks up to Aresa''s wagon and even at a glance it''s obvious he had to fight to get here. He''s completely haggard, covered in blood, and parts of his armor are broken.

    He notices our gazes and shakes his head. "This was from our initial escape. The Xerath hit us before we could leave, which led to one of the most difficult battles of my life. Do each of those creatures have different weak spots? The tall purple one suddenly died when a knight from a different regiment speared it through the middle of its chest. We thought that would be it, but the fucking spider ones wouldn''t die until we bled them out. And don''t even get me started on whatever the hell that last one was."

    "Was it lanky, hunchbacked, and had three super long claws on each hand?"

    Tyrell nods, "That''s the one... It cut right through one of my knight''s armor as if it were paper. We couldn''t harm it with physical damage, including enhanced attacks. It felt like we were attacking a cloud... Magic however, that worked. But by the time we figured that out I had already lost several men. It shouldn''t happen again now that I know how to bring em down, but..."

    ''It won''t bring my men back'', is how he was going to finish that sentence. Even alluding to this line of thinking was forbidden in Xelba, and I actually agreed with it, because there is only misery waiting for you down that path. Losing people to an unknown foe is quite high, and once you know how to kill it or avoid its attacks, the leader is bound to think ''If only we had done x, y, or z... Then my men would still be alive'', and while that''s technically true, it''s also a catch twenty-two that can only harm both yours and the troop''s morale. It''s one of those things everyone knows, but nobody should ever voice.

    "They didn''t attack you again on your way here?" Tyra asks.

    Tyrell shakes his head, "Not even once. I and my men were able to meditate, heal, and rest up the entire way here. The retired knights kept watch for us."

    "We need more information, but I''m not quite sure how we can obtain more. Even the undead one is at risk in their lands. So sending her in as a scout isn''t an option." Ishar motions toward me.

    Yeah, that''s way too dangerous. If an obelisk dropped near me and there were no civilians around to keep it occupied, then I''d get swarmed with enemies. I could accidentally run into one of those bone engines too, which could also lead to my death.

    {Can we leave? You guys can talk about this on the way, or after we stop for the night.}

    "Agreed, we should get moving. It pains me to say it, but the more distance we put between us and my... Home, the better." Tyrell said, making Tyra look down.

    {You going to stay up there, Rei?}

    "Yes. It''s best if I keep an eye on our surroundings from here on out."

    Everyone returned to their own wagons. I watched as Keith walked into Blackwall''s wagon that''s currently only holding him and Cera.

    Nisha is in Viseux and the rest of his unit is dead after all... The first thing he''s going to do upon arriving in Viseux is revive them I assume, but I don''t know how long that''s going to take him.

    <hr>

    Just like the trip to Thule, we somehow weren''t attacked a single time. However, five days away from Viseux, we finally came upon something that wasn''t here on the journey to Kellog.

    {They''re all dead, aren''t they...? My whole life I''ve heard nothing but good things about this city...}

    Keith sighed, "Looks like we were all wrong about the Xerath not moving north yet... We were too optimistic after they didn''t attack us once."

    This is the city that everyone traveling stays at, whether they''re coming from or going to the southern parts of Urza. The road to the west of it leads toward Thule and the southwest parts of Urza, and the road we''re currently on leads to Kellog and the southeast parts of Urza. This was a pivotal city for the people of this moon. But now all I can see is five obelisks and a massive black building situated between them, and the black building is billowing out a ridiculous amount of smoke into the sky.

    "... Let''s keep going. We''re way too close right now. If they decide to attack us, we''re going to get massacred." Ishar said.

    No one disagreed or said a single word in response. We all returned to our previous positions and restarted our journey north while praying we weren''t going to see a horde of Xerath come pouring out of the city''s eastern gate.

    <hr>

    {R-Rei...}

    "... This just keeps getting worse and worse."

    Two more things quickly became apparent to us as we escaped the black sky. Firstly, there is a thin brown layer of clouds expanding out from the black clouds. And secondly, there are parts of the ground bumping up here and there, with one of them being pronounced enough to show an earthen-shaped mouth and teeth.

    "So the sky is slowly expanding north toward Viseux, and there is a faceless god being born here...?" Cera said, horrified.

    "What are you going to do Ishar? We need the Lizardmen more than ever."

    "First things first, I need to speak to the rookie. I give her a lot of shit, but I know she''s smart enough to have reported everything back to Terra''ka already. My Lord or the Shamans will know what to do going forward." Ishar sighs, "But honestly? If Viseux doesn''t quickly accept our help so at the very least we can kill the broodling, then I think Terra''ka will abandon this moon until he can secure all of the portals that lead to Urza. Whenever we accomplish that, we''ll assault this place with our full force from every corner. But if it really does come to that, then it won''t be happening for many years to come."

    {I... I can''t abandon Urza!! Mother, she''s going to revive eventually, and she''ll need me to look after her chateau until then...}

    "... I''m sorry Aresa. I don''t think you have much of a choice anymore."

    The Xerath made that decision for you. Unless Viseux drops the politics and accepts the Lizardmen''s help, but I really don''t see that happening.

 Chapter 40 - Inevitability

    The more I stare at the sky, the more I see it change. The thin brown mass of clouds spreading to the north is slowly but surely thickening. We''re not waiting around long enough to time it, but I know they''ll eventually evolve into the same black clouds we''ve been seeing all along.

    Eldritch and Xerath have always changed the environment to fit the god they are associated with, but I''ve never seen anything quite like this before... Especially not from Xerath.

    "Ishar, come up here for a minute!"

    Ishar is walking alongside Aresa''s wagon while keeping an eye on our surroundings. After I yell for him he runs up to the wagon and jumps on top of it, sitting down cross-legged next to me.

    "You figure something out?" Ishar asked.

    "No, I wanted to ask you about all the Xerath you''ve met up until now. Did any of them try and mold an entire moon into their own image? I know that''s the end goal of every Eldritch and Xerath, but something about this one feels... Different."

    "Hmm..." Ishar looks up at the sky, "Sadly, most of my Xerath exterminations began and ended with them as broodlings. After all, it''s best to kill the fuckers before they can even mature. And Terra''ka is gradually lowering the corruption level of my home, so eventually we won''t even have to worry about them anymore. Well, at my home that is. They are still a major threat in a lot of the moons surrounding Mother."

    "What about planets like Aetheria?"

    Ishar shakes his head, "Not very often since planets work differently. Moon corruption is static throughout the entire moon, but for planets each section has its own level of corruption, which makes it much easier to figure out which nation is in need of some restructuring. Some lashings and heads on pikes can fix a lot of problems if you have the stomach for it."

    Ishar continues, "I''ve met plenty of nations who think talking your way through everything is the solution. And while they''re talking the corruption scales higher and higher, leading to the same result every time, a full-on purge. Although I did eventually figure out just how naive I was. The talks of friendship and peaceful resolutions were nothing but a smokescreen. In reality, those ''peace-loving nations'' are always aiming for something else, and I''m sure you know what that is."

    "They wanted to expand their own territory, and what better way than claiming ''We tried our best, but now we have no choice'' while exterminating them? Morally they appear right too."

    Ishar nods, "Once I understood that, everything else began to fall into place." Ishar looks down, "I kind of miss my old naive self who saw good everywhere and wanted to better other worlds in the way Terra''ka bettered mine... But sadly, reality has rarely matched any of my old fairy tale views on the world."

    "Rarely?"

    Ishar chuckles, "Heh, they''re not all fucked up. I''ve met some really amazing civilizations full of happy people who only think of bettering themselves and their nations as a whole. They''re the minority, but they do exist, thankfully."

    I''m honestly surprised to hear that...

    "Back to my initial question, does this Xerath seem off to you in any way?"

    "The whole fucking thing feels ''off''. The fact that this blackened sky blinked into existence the very second this moon passed the corruption threshold is so bizarre that I don''t even know where to begin with it. For the record, none of the Lizardmen know what to make of it either, which shows just how strange this situation is. And as you said, they''re quite literally terraforming the entire moon, or maybe xenoforming is a better term here. Either way, I''ve never seen Xerath expand on such a wide scale before, and it makes you wonder why they waited several months before they began to spread their influence."

    That part is bothering me too. The sky went pitch black around the same time I woke up, which as Ishar just said, was months ago. And yet they''re just now choosing to expand outwards? There must be a reason for it, and I''d bet anything that their home base is located in the area Fin had circled in his diary.

    "You going to check it out? Or do you have other plans going forward?" Ishar asks.

    "... I would prefer that Aresa and the others straight up abandon this moon, but I know it won''t be easy for them to give up on their home. Especially Aresa."

    "You''re going to have one hell of a time convincing that girl to leave. She has a good reason to stay too, which is going to make it all the more difficult." Ishar says.

    "The other option is one I don''t even want to consider because it feels like it''s far too late to be slowly gathering information, but I could try and sneak into the area Fin circled on his diary, because I''m almost positive that''s where the Xerath''s home base is. And the fact that it''s so close to Xelba is really bothering me..."

    "From what you''ve told me, that nation was destroyed ages ago and the leader, the man known as Viktor, fled to Aetheria through a portal and took the core of the Xerath with him. It''s worrying that his right-hand man''s journal suggested there are more broodlings, but Viktor had already left Urza long ago, right?" Ishar continues, "Having said all that, it is rather suspicious, even from an outsider''s perspective..."

    We both went silent after that, thinking about all the different problems currently plaguing us.

    <hr>

    As we neared the city I saw a blue mana line connect directly into Ishar and Keith''s wagon. Soon after that Ishar yells for all of us to hear, "They''re coming to meet us at your side gate!"

    The last time we came through here I could see citizens looking at Aresa''s wagon in awe, but this time barely anyone even noticed us or the large angry-looking Crotia walking next to it. The fear was palpable in the air as people discussed the sky and all the weird protrusions popping out of the ground.

    Off to the side I could see Tyrell and Tyra waving at us as they approached the main gate. I could vaguely hear them and the guards talking about refugees and what happened in Kellog.

    The knights guarding the noble entrance approached Keith''s wagon(which was in the front) in the same manner as last time. After a brief conversation with Cera, they opened the small gate and let us through. Once we passed the gate I could see Alicia and Nisha waiting for us on a bench nearby.

    Ishar walks up to them, "Rookie, has our Lord made any decisions regarding the situation here?"

    Alicia scratches her cheek, "Yes... But it''s best we talk about this in the chateau. We only came here to meet you because we were out and about anyways, looking into something important."

    More problems I''m sure, wonderful.

    The two girls stand up from the bench and enter Keith''s wagon. As we make our way through town I see the same thing inside the city that I saw on the outside. All the joy was gone from the expressions of the people here, and I saw several wagons being loaded up here and there.

    I don''t know where they plan on going, but I can understand why they''d try and flee. Also, at this stage the broodling won''t be strong enough to force these people to stay, so this is their one chance to get away.

    We rolled up to the chateau and everyone got out of their wagons. One by one we followed Aresa inside, finding an exhausted-looking Euphemia on one of the couches. Her maid Yuki smiled at us as we approached.

    "I''m glad to see you all made it here safely... And my citizens made it too, yes?"

    Seifer sits down on a chair next to her, "Yes, I saw Tyrell''s convoy being led through the main gates. For now they are safe. However, we''ll need to figure out what to do from here on out."

    I sit down on the couch opposite Euphemia, "Where the hell have you been, Seifer?"

    "Apologies, I was inside my soul realm, preparing myself for what is to come. The fight with the broodling showed me just how rusty I''ve become. I have neglected my training for far too long in favor of the pen."

    He was protecting a large group of people against an onslaught of spears, and he calls that rusty? He''s far stronger than I had expected. And even stranger is how I can''t feel any mana from him even when he''s fighting...

    Ishar sits down in his favorite chair, "Ahh... Finally." Ishar points at Alicia, "Now speak, what happened with Terra''ka and whatever the hell you were doing in town."

    Alicia meekly nods and looks around awkwardly, "Um, our Lord is giving up on Urza if Viseux doesn''t agree to ally us in the next month... And Viseux''s response to this was to spit in our faces, almost literally."

    Both Aresa and Euphemia looked at Alicia as if the world was ending. For them it might as well be ending...

    "Aresa, if you''re going to use your influence, it has to be now."

    {You mean start a civil war? Now?}

    Ishar shrugs, "Either that or let the Xerath win. We won''t be back here for a very long time... Understand, little one?"

    {..........}

    Aresa goes silent for a bit, until she eventually does something I had yet to see her do up until now. She entered her soul realm.

    "Eldritch Lords can do that?" Alicia asks.

    Cera shakes her head, "No, only ones like Aresa can. I''d bet anything that the Tengu''s Lords have their own soul realm as well."

    Aresa opens her eyes. {I do have control over a large part of this city... But are you absolutely certain of this? I''m going to need all the help I can get.}

    "I personally think we should all leave for Aetheria, but I know you want to try and save this place, and it can''t hurt to try." At least I hope it can''t.

    "Hang on, I still want to hear what you two were doing in town," Ishar says, looking at Alicia.

    "Oh, we were looking for news about Godwin and Markus. From everything I''ve heard, we''re going to need the Guardians and Templars, but the Templars were locked inside their temple until recently, and the Guardians are watched like hawks. As for where all the Templars are, we''re not sure... But we did find Godwin and Markus''s location. They''re in the prison underneath the city." Alicia says.

    "I could vaguely feel Uncle Markus beneath me when we walked near city hall. That''s when I knew that he was down there. I have no proof that Godwin is down there too, but it''s obvious that he and his family would also be locked up down there." Nisha says.

    "We can do this one of two ways. One; I formally request that they be released into my or Aresa''s care. Two..." Euphemia looks at me, which leads to everyone turning and looking at me as well.

    "... It''s possible, but I''ll need time to look into it. Noble homes have Dwarven runes engraved into different parts that sap the mana from anyone who enters without permission. It''s pretty much guaranteed that City Hall or the prison below it is going to have those very same runes. They rip my veil off, and it takes a few seconds to get it back. Not an issue if nobody is around, but it obviously is a problem if someone sees me. They''ll know why I''m there, which will lead to all sorts of problems, including the fact that the prison will become a hundred times more secure."

    "In that case we should decide here and now about how to proceed going forward. I believe our Lord would change his mind if Aresa took back the reigns on this city, but will it be that easy? How many people in the military would follow you?" Ishar asks.

    {Probably twenty percent... Not all that much. My followers have mostly refused to allow their children to join the military, which has led to Rai''ga controlling most of it. I understand why they did it, but it''s turned into a glaring issue that forced me to stay passive.}

    "Yeah, that''s..." Ishar trails off, leaning back and putting his hand over his eyes.

    "Even I know that''s nowhere near enough..." Euphemia says.

    I raise my hand, "Wait, hang on. I need to know something kind of unrelated." I look at Yuki, "Where is your brother? Is he okay?"

    Yuki looks at me and smiles again, "Yes! He left ahead of your group and arrived much faster since he wasn''t in a wagon. You want to give him that diary, right?"

    I nod, "We need to read the contents, so please call him over."

    "Already did when we heard you were approaching. He''s taking care of something for the princess and he''ll be back in a few hours."

    Perfect... I hope he can decode it like she claims he can. I''m dying to know what is in the darklands next to Xelba, and it would also be nice to know why Fin was bound to a Demon.

    <hr>

    Looking up at the sky, I stare at yet another black sky giving off a nominal amount of light. On the other side of Viseux, a thin brown layer of cloud continues extending to the north.

    The past month had pretty much been a complete waste of time. My allies tried their damnedest to try and come up with a plan to take over Viseux, but they were met with two obstacles they just couldn''t overcome. First, as previously mentioned, the military. Viseux lost a lot of men trying to assault the town to the south that''s currently spewing all that smoke into the sky which is extending the Xerath''s control over the skies, but they still have way too many men who are staying loyal to Rai''ga.

    And that leads to the biggest problem of all, Rai''ga. I haven''t thought of him much since my reawakening, but after one glance at him, I knew right away that we stood no chance of bringing him down. It''s an Eldritch the size of a large building with three distinct heads.

    The head on the right is a mantis with human teeth.

    The middle head is a lynx with seven eyes on its forehead and no mouth.

    And the last head is a reptilian bear with a black tattoo-like swirl going around its face in a circle.

    When I peeked into Rai''ga''s chapel; hoping to get a look at him, he immediately turned all three heads at me and smiled. He began to tell me telepathically that he knew exactly what we were planning, and that he''d happily work together with Aresa to aim for a peaceful alliance with the Lizardmen, but Aresa was furious when I told her. She said she knows he''s lying, because according to her, he always lies. I barely remember Rai''ga from my time in Xelba(since we avoided his lands after three crushing defeats), so I wasn''t able to rebuke her at all. He may in fact be the liar she says he is, I honestly wouldn''t know.

    The broodling is... Well, this is where things get weird. Viseux managed to find it and kill it with ease, but nobody knows how they did it. Terra''ka became much more wary of Viseux after he heard about them pulling off a feat that even he has never seen or heard of before. As far as the Lizardmen are concerned, the whole reason to keep corruption below the threshold is because the birth of broodlings in your moon or planet will eventually lead to the end of life on that world.

    Long ago the Lizardmen had run a test where they told worlds that passed the threshold on how they could protect themselves, and while most of them did a good job at first, they would always be overrun in the end. All it takes is a couple of mistakes and then suddenly your broodling problem has escalated into a Xerathian god problem.

    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    But that was only one problem down. The sky issue has only been getting worse and worse. Ishar and Alicia have basically given up and are planning to go back to Terra''ka''s homeworld soon. Ishar has chosen to travel directly to the portal instead of wait for Alicia to figure out how to use Aresa''s chateau to power her dagger high enough to warp anyone she wants, but since he has no idea of how long that''s going to take, he ended up saying ''Fuck it, I''m riding to the portal'' earlier today.

    "See anything different?" The Crotia in question said from my right.

    "No... The same sky that I''m honestly quite sick of seeing."

    "You and me both..." Ishar continues, "You''re really going to do this though? I''ll wait here to make sure you''re alright, but even if you''re not, you know there isn''t a whole lot I can do, right?"

    I chuckle, "I know, Ishar. I appreciate you waiting, but you really don''t need to. It shouldn''t take too long for Alicia to figure out how to overcharge the knife with all the ether flowing through the chateau. Most of the others are really dejected about the fact that they have to abandon this place, but I''m quite happy. Not that I''m going to tell Aresa that..."

    "As you shouldn''t. That would be a very bad idea with how upset she is lately." A voice from behind says.

    Turning around I see Keith walking up to me.

    "What are you doing here?"

    Keith sighs, "I just came back from conversing with Arkaois at the temple. He''s giving up on Urza too for now. He was originally planning on working with Terra''ka to take this place back, but he suddenly had a change of heart. He decided to not only abandon Urza, but he''s giving up on this galaxy entirely. He''s leaving my unit here to help until we''ve reached our atonement, but he''s sending all of his other branded to Gaia. He''s always been far more interested in spreading his influence there."

    Gaia...

    My core hurts a little when I think about that place. There is a long beam of light going through the entire universe, and within it, exists Gaia. I''ve only been there once, but it was everything I dreamed of and more. Gaia is one giant soul realm, and each region you''re in changes depending on what type of souls make up the majority of that region. A region full of humans will lead to a human-based environment, seeds, weather, etc. Meanwhile, a region occupied by an Eldritch made of stone that primarily uses lightning abilities will live in a region made of rock that is under a perpetual lightning storm.

    It really is a magical place. There''s so much more to it than that, and it only gets better from there. Which is why I was so excited at the idea of living there with my friends, but thanks to Viktor, that dream was cut short forty-two years ago...

    "Well shit, that''s some of the worse news I''ve heard in a while... Terra''ka was very delighted to be allied with an old god that seemed to support most of his decisions." Ishar says.

    Keith nods, "Yeah... I''m not happy about it either, but at least he''s letting me live out my life here, so I can do as much good as I can until it''s time to move on."

    "How come I haven''t seen the rest of your crew yet...? Does it really take that long to revive them?"

    Keith threw his hands up in the air, "That''s also thanks to fucking Viseux! Without the templars we don''t have enough people praying to the artifact. It''s going to take another month of just me and Nisha praying to bring them back, and we obviously don''t have time for that. That''s actually why I''m here. Rei, please find Markus and the other templars, we desperately need them back..."

    "What? I thought the plan was to release them so they could head north and flee through Khan Uluhm''s portal? There''s obviously no way for them to come topside and casually stroll back into the temple."

    "Godwin''s family will flee north, but there is a way to enter the temple through the underground. It''s also the same as the main entrance, only those who worship Arkaios may use it. Markus will surely come that way instead of running away." Keith says.

    In that case, it should be fine, and it''ll be quite reassuring to have Markus by our side again.

    Just as I was about to wave goodbye to these two, Aresa''s wagon pulls up and stops nearby. Aresa walks out of it with Shana soon after.

    {So it''s time... I really hope they''re all okay down there.}

    "They should be, but what spurred you to visit me? I was going straight to the chateau after I was done here. It''s just a casual prison break... Not anything serious enough for you to worry about me."

    {Hehe, liar! Things are going to become even more difficult from here on out, so I... I was feeling anxious. You''ll be back soon, right?}

    I reach out and pat her hair, "Don''t worry, I''ll be right back, and then we''ll all warp over to Terra''ka''s world. Whenever Alicia is ready that is, which will probably be much sooner than Ishar reaches the portal. Honestly, why the hell are you riding a Grakka there? What if the Xerath attack you?"

    Shana nods, "Very stupid. Poor reptile brain... Can''t make good decisions."

    "Bah, fuck all of you. I''ll be fine! It might take that rookie months to figure out how to warp a single one of you. And I... I need some time alone. I have a lot to think about... A lot of very unnatural things have gone down, so I need a break to relax." Ishar looks at me and continues, "Also, you never did tell us why you served Viktor. So you better do that one day."

    "Never showed me your meeting with Eremnon either..." Shana said.

    {I forgot about that! Well, the first one... I never heard about you meeting Eremnon though? Is that true?}

    "It is, and it''s as you guys say, I completely forgot about all of that... I''ll show you all back at the chateau since we''ll have plenty of time while waiting on Alicia. Ishar will have to hear it later though. He needs time alone, so that''s why he''s trekking through an abandoned area for nearly five days which could easily result in his death."

    "Okay, okay, I get it! Even I have been thinking it may be a shit decision to go south alone. I''ll just hide in Aresa''s pool area for a while to relax." Ishar said.

    {... It''s a bath area.}

    "Honestly I''m dying to read Fin''s journal. There is far too many unknowns concerning what happened in Kellog. Hell, we never even found out how it was able to warp the entire fucking village down into those temples. Not to mention the fact that an injured Satyr just randomly appeared and was killed by the Grinning Demon. You don''t just run into stray Satyr like that..."

    Shana raises her hand, "I know why. The Lizardmen engaged and killed several Satyr near the Demon''s portal, but one was able to get away using the mana from its necklace. It must have landed somewhere close enough to feel the ether from the temple and decided it''d be a safe place to heal up."

    ... Oh. Well that had a disappointingly simple but reasonable explanation. And I had all these wild theories going through my head for weeks now...

    "I see, thank you, Shana."

    Shana gives me a thumbs up.

    I really don''t want to cut this short, but the sooner I free everyone, the better.

    "Alright, I''m out. I''ll see you guys soon."

    I waved to everyone and ran toward the ally next to the city hall building. Just as I planned in advance, I enhance my legs while looking around to make sure no one is looking and quickly turn invisible before jumping up to a window ten feet above me.

    How nice of them to always leave this window open...

    I drop down next to a desk that has an older woman sitting behind it who''s currently mumbling curses about the other people working here. Same as the last time I was here.

    Maybe it''s because this is a room full of old books, but they have next to no lighting in here. At some point in my life I heard that lights were bad for books, but hell if I know whether that''s true or not.

    Sneaking through the aisles I pass by several workers who are reading instead of working until I reach two sets of doors near the corner of the room. One leads to the hallway which includes lots of lights, people, and runes, while the other one is a very convenient emergency staircase for people to escape the underground. Normally it''s locked, but the always mumbling lady let me borrow her keys yesterday. I set everything up in advance so it should just...

    I reach out and turn the handle, and soon after that the door opens.

    I knew these people were too lazy to check all the doors before leaving for the day. Now there are only two other potential problems to overcome.

    I enter the dilapidated staircase and close the door behind me. I begin to run down the steps, just like I did yesterday until I reach the bottom. After reaching the bottom I slightly crack the door open and see none of the same things I saw yesterday.

    Thank god... Yesterday there was a whole contingent of Viseux and Khan Uluhm soldiers playing cards and talking in here, so it was impossible to enter.

    I open the door and walk into the area, which is dimly lit today. It''s a massive cavern, except the stone on this side has been processed into a large lounge area for the soldiers. The rest of it looks like the caverns under Kellog.

    I exit the area plastered with the human element and walk deeper into the cavern, aiming my steps directly for one of the holes in the walls that is guarded by two well-trained men. The fact that they have nothing to do except stare at a bunch of rocks for eight hours and they''re somehow fully alert, tells me I really need to avoid entering into combat with the both of them.

    Upon nearing the two and their annoyingly bright crystal torch high above them, I speed past both of them and the light, heading straight through the tunnel to the other side. Here was problem number two, I was almost positive there would be runes here, but there wasn''t it seems.

    On the other end I find what I''m looking for, a room full of cells on four different floors.

    Heh, the only reason I even knew it was here is because I heard Godwin yelling loud enough that it was echoing into the previous cavern, which was making the men lounging in there laugh in response. None of them seem to hate Godwin, but orders are orders to men like these.

    Looking around I see one guard bouncing a ball against the wall, while another one is asleep at his desk.

    Night and day from the men guarding the tunnel...

    Checking the first row of cells I find no one I recognize. Advancing to the second floor I finally see someone I know. Hera is asleep in the corner of the cell with a few other women. After that I advance to the third floor and find both Godwin and Markus in different cells.

    No matter where I stand the two guards below could see me if they look up here, but I remove my invisibility anyways outside Godwin''s cell. Both he and the man in his cell see me, and the other man stupidly goes to say something which would obviously echo in this deadly quiet area, but fortunately, Godwin clamps the man''s mouth shut and drags him over towards the bars.

    "Took you long enough," Godwin whispers with a smirk on his face.

    "How do I open this? I see no keyholes."

    "You need one of those two below to channel their mana into the bars."

    ... Great.

    I put my aura back on and make my way down the steps, walking right up to the man bouncing a ball off the wall. When I''m within one foot of him I remove my aura and he immediately begins to turn around, but I''ve already locked my arms around his throat and head while my legs are crushing his arms into his torso. He tries slamming me backward into the ground but it''s pointless, we both had the exact same amount of time to enhance ourselves, so we''re dead even in strength.

    We roll around on the ground for a bit until he eventually goes still.

    It''s been a while since I had to knock someone out without killing them... This place is going to need every soldier it has, so it''d be a waste to end him here.

    I bend down and pull the dagger from the man''s scabbard. With that in hand, I walk over to the other man who''s still asleep at his desk. Upon reaching him I grab a fistful of his hair and yank him up while pointing the dagger at his throat. He barely squeaks out a "hie---" before I push the dagger into his throat a little. Fortunately, my threat was loud and clear to him.

    "Here''s what we''re going to do, Mr.Soldier. You''re going to release three sets of cells for me, and then you''re going to take a little nap like your friend over there."

    I turn him so he can see the other guard that''s out cold. It made him shake hard at first, but he must have seen the other guard''s chest rise and fall down, proving he was still alive, because he stopped shaking soon afterward.

    "O-okay... Which ones?"

    I let go of his hair and grab his shoulder, lifting him up. He complies and lets me guide him around until we reach Godwin''s cell. Once we''re there, he reaches out and channels some mana into it. The cell opens up and Godwin lets go of the other inmates'' mouth. The two of them walk out soon after, and Godwin immediately leads us to Markus''s cell, where the guard opens it again. For his part, Markus looked like a deer in headlights. Unlike Godwin, he had a hard time believing this was all real.

    Eventually he stands up and walks over as a smile spreads across his face. "Thank you, Lord, for decrying this girl as an ally..."

    Godwin and Markus exchanged hearty handshakes and began smacking my back while laughing. The men outside the tunnel can probably hear it, but it shouldn''t worry them. If these two think it''s safe, then maybe the prisoners were always allowed to talk.

    One by one we release all the templars and Godwin''s family. Hera and Jasper were just as shocked as Markus was.

    "R-Rei, thank you!" Hera whispers and hugs me from the side, but before she reaches me I drop the dagger so I don''t accidentally stab anyone.

    "Foolish daughter of mine, we''re not out of here yet. If anything, here comes the hard part..." Godwin whispers, gazing toward the tunnel below.

    "I haven''t mapped out any of this cave, so I have no idea of how you''re going to get to the north. And Markus, Keith says you have a way to enter the temple from below?"

    Markus nods, "Indeed. And it''ll be easier than you''re thinking. We just need to reach the storage room that''s down here in this very cave. We''ll be able to pick up some spare uniforms there and---"

    An alarm begins blaring, one I''ve never heard before.

    "Is this for us?!"

    "No! This is the call to arms!!" The guard says.

    "He''s telling the truth... Shit, those faceless ones of yours must be assaulting the city." Godwin says.

    I let go of the guard, "Go on, help the city! We''ll be up there soon as well."

    The guard looks at me with a confused expression, but he doesn''t stare for long, instead choosing to grab his gun and run out of the tunnel.

    "I''m going topside to make sure my allies are okay. I know where Markus is going, but just to confirm; you three are fleeing to the north, right?" I motion toward Godwin''s family.

    Godwin nods, "Markus already knows as well. We had plenty of time to talk in this shithole after all..." Godwin stares at me for a moment before reaching out and shaking my hand, "Thank you, Reimia. Truly... I''ll make this up to you one day, I swear my life on it."

    Hera and Jasper thank me as well but before Hera can hug me again a large explosion occurs from above us, nearly knocking all of us off our feet.

    "I''d love to say some proper goodbyes, but it looks like we''re out of time!" Markus says, dashing toward the exit. The four of us follow him into the cavern, but the Godwin family turns left with me and Markus instead of turning right to go north.

    "Why are you going this way?!"

    "We can''t leave looking like this with no supplies!" Godwin says.

    Ahh... Sometimes I forget just how difficult journeys are for normal people. Godwin, Markus, and Jasper are all in boxers and nothing more, while Hera is in a heavy brown robe. Judging from the amount of skin I can see when the robe sways, she is probably naked under there.

    Once we reach the lounge area I passed through earlier the four of them run into a door opposite where I came in, waving to me as they go inside. At a glance I can see why they chose that one, it''s obviously a supply room.

    I reactivate my aura and run through the nearby door, sprinting up the stairs as fast as I can. Once I reach my floor I immediately realize that there is no need to be quiet anymore. Whether it''s the sound of combat, screaming, or explosions, the air is filled to the brim with every known sound related to a city being attacked.

    Opening the door to the book room I see the previously lazy workers trying to keep the door to the hallway closed while something keeps slamming into it from the other side. The men are so focused on their task that they don''t even notice the door I''m coming through has seemingly opened all on its own.

    I run past them and through the rows of bookcases until I finally reach the window I entered earlier. At first the mumbling lady is nowhere to be seen, but once I look out the window I see what happened to her. Another type of Xerath I''ve never seen before had pulled her out through the window and is currently eating her.

    Shit, if I drop down I''ll land on the creature''s back...

    I pull some blood out of my arm and quickly make two patches of sticky mesh. I then jump outside the window and stick one of them to the wall and begin scaling the wall to the right until I can safely drop onto the ground. Once my feet hit the ground I dash out of the alley, where I''m met with complete pandemonium.

    We knew they could invade areas under a blackened sky, but this is ridiculous...

    The amount of red lightning bolts shooting across my vision is endless, and that''s not all. There are two other types of monuments I''ve yet to see until now, and one of them looks like it''s *moving.* Worst of all, however, is the Xerath peeking down from the clouds, firing enormous fireballs down at the city. It''s really far away and mostly buried in the clouds so it''s hard to tell, but it kind of looks like a serpent.

    Another one of its fireballs lands on a building a few blocks over, causing the entire structure to explode, sending bricks and large pieces of the building everywhere.

    So that''s what almost knocked us off our feet earlier...!! How in the hell are you supposed to kill that thing if it''s all the way up there?!

    I run out of the alley and make a mad dash straight for Aresa''s chateau.

    She and the others had plenty of time to get home, so they should be safe...

    A sickly aura washes over me from several different directions. Almost immediately most of the Xerath not engaged in battle turn to look in my direction. A few moments later they begin running right at me.

    Shit! They were chasing civilians but my soul must have given off a dangerous enough aura that they decided the strange invisible humanoid was a far more important target.

    Three large dark-purple Xerath, two aranaea, and four of the gangly ones with long claws close in on me fast. I drop my aura and enhance myself to the max. After I''m fully enhanced, I jump toward a nearby building and begin running up it at a ninety-degree angle. I get barely ten feet up when something slams into my side, sending me sideways at a faster speed than when the Xerath underground had punched me.

    My back slams through one building and completely exits the other side, only losing a quarter of the speed despite the heavily bricked walls I just flew through. I burst through one more building''s exterior and finally slow down enough that I smash into the building''s interior walls instead of going through them, but the damage was done. I fall to the living room floor below, barely conscious as both my broken brain and cracked core struggle to repair themselves.

    One of the tall dark-purple Xerath chasing after me finally catches up and charges through the wall. Wasting no time, it runs over to me and brings its larger than my whole body right foot down onto me, crushing me into the stone flooring.

    <hr>

    I open my eyes and the first thing I notice is that I''m underground. There is barely any light in here thanks to the black webbing blocking out most of the light from above, but I can just barely make out the dirt around me.

    This feels... familiar...

    I slowly stand up and the first thing I notice is that I''m naked, again.

    Wait, again?

    Little by little I remember everything that happened, including the last memory I have where I was killed by one of the dark-purple Xerath.

    I may be off by a year or two, but Xelba fell about forty-two years ago. The memory of Godwin saying that flashes through my mind, horrifying me to my core. Before I begin to freak out I sit down and push my palms together in front of my chest. I enter a deep meditation, focusing inwards on my mana to calm my mind.

    Calm down stupid... There''s no guarantee it''s forty-two years again. For instance, I''m not as weak as a child this time. I''ve barely lost any strength this time and I still have all of my abilities. This is a major improvement from the last time I woke up in an unknown location.

    Releasing the meditation, I stand up and begin climbing out of the hole. Once I near the webbing I activate my aura and rip it open. After that''s out of the way, I pull myself out of the hole and stand up, finding myself in a large open field next to a village.

    There isn''t a single light on though... So odds are it''s abandoned. Either that or all of its occupants were slain long ago... Which is the most probable explanation, considering what we''re both under.

    I look up, gazing at the black sky that stretches on for an eternity in all directions.

    It''s giving off the same white light as before but it looks a little brighter this time?

    Returning my gaze to the village, I stare at it for a while, checking for any signs of movement.

    No movement, no lights, no sound of any kind... So far it looks dead, but I won''t know for certain until I''ve physically scouted the village out. And I need to figure out where the hell I woke up at, so it''s time to get to work.

    I lower into a sneaking stance and begin to creep toward the village. While my mind is focused on avoiding any ambushes that may be waiting for me, I''m unable to stop myself from thinking about something else I''m really worried about.

    ... I hope they''re all still alive.

 Chapter 41 - Alone

    As I near the village, all I can hear is the sound of a couple pairs of window shutters opening and closing. One of the small cabins to my right has one of the shutters making so much noise. Sneaking over to it, I see that the wind is slightly lifting them up and dropping them.

    They weren''t properly fastened. They could have been in a hurry, or perhaps this is normal? People forget basic shit all the time, so this could just be another one of those cases.

    I grab the shutters and lift them up enough to peek inside. The cabin is a complete mess. There are dishes and ceramics broken everywhere. The bed is ripped apart, and there is dried blood splattered across the wood on this side of the cabin, including the inside of the shutters.

    ... Or they tried escaping through these shutters and didn''t manage to make it outside. I wasn''t here when this place was attacked, but from what I saw in Viseux and Kellog, I doubt the outside of this cabin would have been much safer.

    I close the shutters and circle around the cabin, entering the village square. Half the benches are destroyed and there are blotches of dried blood strewn throughout different parts of the square. The only thing moving here is the large pinwheel in the center of the square that''s barely spinning. The squeaking it''s emitting is much louder than it should be thanks to how quiet everything else is.

    All the bodies are gone. I don''t even see a single bone anywhere... Were they all turned into those skeleton creatures? I don''t see any Xerath structures anywhere, but they might retreat back into the sky once they''ve completed their task.

    Here and there I see doors smashed in, but there are a few still intact. I walk up to one of the cabins missing a door and find the same scene I saw earlier. Dried blood and a completely trashed interior. Attempting to make as little noise as possible, I sift through the wreckage looking for a map for a few minutes, But I come up empty.

    Someone here is going to have a map, right? This is a tiny hamlet, but surely one of these cabins has a map of Viseux, or at least a diary that tells me the name of this place. I''ve never thought of it before now, but the average villager might just live their life merely knowing where they live, and not bother with things like maps... Which is going to be a real problem for me.

    <hr>

    ... Nothing. I''ve been through twelve of the twenty cabins here and there hasn''t been a single fucking difference between any of them. I knew people lived simple lives in places like this, but I can''t find any individuality anywhere here. After everything that''s happened, I really need some good news right now...

    I walk up to cabin number thirteen and go to reach for the door, but something stops me in my tracks.

    ... It''s faint, but I sense something. An aura...? Could it be a trap? Now that I''m stronger I can actually pick up on things like this if I''m careful. No more walking into teleportation traps from someone like Nisha unless I really fuck up or walk into one while I''m distracted.

    Pulling my hand back, I walk around the cabin to scout out all of the shutters, and find that they are all trapped.

    ... Hmm. I could check out the other homes first for a map, but someone who took the time to trap their home is bound to be quite different from the other people here, who apparently aren''t interested in owning maps or diaries.

    I run off toward the lumber mill in the distance, grabbing one of the two-by-fours lying around and bring it back to the cabin. I look around real quick to check for threats before removing my aura and enhancing myself. After I''m ready, I stick the two-by-four out and turn the handle, but it won''t move at all. Locked, as expected.

    I then move to the right a bit and try lifting one of the shutters. It takes some effort but the hinge snaps and a light purple flash appears around the shutter. No explosions, lightning, or elemental blasts of any kind. Instead, I can hear a faint alarm sounding out from somewhere. I leave my enhancements up and reactivate my aura before jumping through the window.

    This place is also a complete mess... The Xerath were obviously in here too, but I don''t see any blood this time.

    The beeping stops, but I already have a general idea of where it''s coming from. I walk over to the mattress on the floor and drag it backward, revealing the same wooden flooring I see in all of these homes. But after I walk on top of it, it becomes obvious that this is the spot I''m looking for. Bending down, I run my fingers over the floor until the pointer finger on my left-hand sinks down into the wood, leading to a slight popping sound as part of the floor pops up.

    I grab the wood and pull it open, revealing a thick ladder that goes down for quite a while, and the only reason I know that is because of the bright lights at the end of the ladder. After one quick glance around me, I grab onto the ladder and begin to descend downwards. It takes about a minute before I reach the bottom, but I stop just before the lights hit me.

    ... Okay, between the slight enhancements and bright lights hitting my veil, I should have a few seconds to crush anyone down here waiting to ambush me before I run out of mana.

    I count down from three, and once I hit zero I drop down into a small room full of herbs and crystal lights with a large desk nearby. Next to the desk the room hooks to the right into an area I can''t see. I charge forward ready for combat, but what I find instead makes me drop both my veil and my enhancements.

    ... It looks like I found the one person here who managed to die naturally.

    There''s a mummified corpse on the bed. It''s badly degraded to the point that I can''t tell if it was a man or a woman. I head back to the desk and begin scrounging through it. In one of the drawers, I find one of the items I''ve been looking for.

    A rather large diary. Not a map, but I''ll take it. I can also imagine why this thing is so large. This person probably had very little else to do with their time.

    Near the bed, there is a small table against the wall with a chair next to it. The only thing on the table is a chessboard with all the pieces.

    Poor bastard had nothing to do but play chess with himself...

    I sit down at the table and begin reading through the diary. At first, it''s a rather interesting tale about how this man was sent here to find someone. There was another villager here who was apparently a follower of an Eldritch that caused the fall of an entire city up north, and Rai''ga wanted to make sure all of its followers were punished. Sadly, as interesting as this is, I''m not here for this, so I begin skipping through until I find the part talking about the Xerath attack.

    Wow, it didn''t take me too long to find this, so the rest of this writing must''ve been what happened afterward. Just how long was this guy down here playing chess until he died?

    The man goes on in his diary about how he was at the lumber mill when the lumberers came running from the trees, screaming about a monster attack. It wasn''t too long after that when the ''strange creatures with tubes on their bodies'' began to kill everyone in the village. The man had managed to flee underground and activate his spell that placed the bed over his hidden area so they never found it. He went back up a month later and sealed the place up, putting alarm traps everywhere.

    After another hour of reading the diary I mostly find what I was hoping for. The beginning tells me the name of this hamlet and the main city nearby, but it unfortunately doesn''t give me any idea of how much time has passed.

    Even he didn''t know how long he was down here after all, and most of this diary turns into rambling after a certain point. Which I can understand, given what became of his life.

    After deciding to keep the diary I realize that I''m still naked. So I spend the next couple of hours refining a tight one-piece outfit covering my entire body aside from my head and the bottom of my feet. I make the central portion of my back sticky and stick the diary to it.

    It looks weird as hell when I wear these, but it gets the job done. I can''t believe I lost my fucking armor already... I hope it''s still there where I died, but I bet it isn''t. The Xerath probably absorbed it.

    With that out of the way, I walk over to the crates in the corner of the room and open them up. I sigh the second I see what is inside of them.

    Well, at least they don''t look rotten? It''s been a while but I think someone told me they last decades, and I''m about to put that to the test.

    I reach down and scoop up a handful of peanuts. After tossing them into my mouth I chomp down cautiously a few times and quickly realize that they are just as fresh as the ones I had in Kellog. For the next twenty minutes I shove peanuts into my mouth before there aren''t any left in the crate.

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    There might be more in the crate underneath, but this is good enough. The diary said the nearby city is called "Glassdow", and I vaguely recall that as a place northwest of Viseux. However, the forest was on the eastern side of Glassdow, and the trees here are on the western side, so this hamlet must be on the other side of the forest. Assuming I''m right, then I should only need to go east until I reach the main road and then head straight south to reach Viseux.

    I look over at the mummy, "Thanks for the food and directions."

    After saying my thanks I walk over to the ladder and begin climbing back up. Once outside the reach of the crystal''s light I enhance my legs and reactivate my aura. I reach the top and climb out of the hatch, closing it behind me. Walking over to the window I immediately jump through it and sprint out of the village, heading away from the forest.

    If I come across the main road, that means I was right. If not, uh... Well, I''m not really sure what I''ll do. I might have to return to that hamlet and run through the forest until I reach the city on the other side.

    <hr>

    I stop next to a wide stone road that''s clearly in desperate need of maintenance.

    No one will be repairing these roads ever again, but they''re not degraded to the point that I''d trip over anything... I think. And it looks like I was right about where I was located.

    ... I could go northeast to see if anyone is alive in Khan Uluhm, but that would probably be a wasted trip... I suppose it is possible that they retreated into the mountains and survived, but it''s not like I could assist them in any way that matters. Odds are they all fled through the portal anyway, and now they''re all refugees in a foreign country.

    I turn to the right and begin running south down the main road. Every so often I run by a toppled wagon with no corpses in sight. Sifting through the wreckages mostly ends up a waste of time until I finally find something of value.

    Heh, bombs invented in Xelba? I had no idea they were still making these in other parts of Urza, but I''m glad they were. I know exactly how to use these too.

    I reach down, picking up the two small circular crystals and stick them below my chest.

    After I make sure there is nothing else of value to be found, I restart my sprint toward Viseux. While I''m running I can''t help but be awed at how eerie Urza is now. Every now and then I''ll hear some birds or a wolf howling in the distance, but for the most part, I can''t hear anything.

    Nothing moving, nothing making a sound. Just a bleak world buried under a black sky. The occasional toppled cart almost gives me some kind of solace as it serves as a reminder that people used to live here. What if I''m the only person that''s currently alive on Urza?

    ... I''m really not sure what I''ll do. My first thought is to check out the area in Fin''s journal, but hopefully there is something in Aresa''s chateau that''ll give me a clue to the well-being of my allies---no, my... Friends.

    <hr>

    About four days later a familiar sight came into view. Although that isn''t entirely accurate thanks to a few visible changes Viseux has undergone in my absence.

    I thought maybe it was just the weather, but now I see why it was getting progressively more foggy the closer I got to Viseux. It''s not fog, it''s the smoke emitting from all of the Xerath monuments.

    Even with my eyes, it''s hard to see far into the distance right now, but every now and then a bunch of bright orange spots begin glowing on the monuments, and I can see a lot of them. There must be twenty or more spread throughout the city.

    Instead of sprinting again, I decide to slowly walk over the bridge into town.

    After all, this is their city now. If they have any of those aura devices active it''ll basically be the same as setting off an alarm when I run through one. If I barely touch it while walking through and back out in time, I might be able to prevent them from detecting me. I don''t know how I''ll get to the chateau if the whole city is completely surveilled, but first I need to check and see if the Xerath''s detection aura is even here.

    I walk over the bridge and through the gate, and it''s around this time that I start to hear something pulsating. As I get close to one of the monuments, I realize that the bright orange lights brighten in accordance to how loud the pulse currently is. They help brighten up the area around them a little, but not all that much thanks to how much smoke there is in town.

    I continue walking down the main road until I reach the center of Viseux. I turn left and stay near the buildings on this side so I can actually see them through the smoke.

    Not this building... Nor this one... Ahh, here we go. This one I recognize, so it should be close.

    After passing by a few more buildings I come upon what I''ve been looking for. City Hall.

    Alright uh, now what happened after I fled here? I ran through the square and tried running up a building near the end of the square heading towards Aresa''s home... I''m pretty sure that''s where it was anyway.

    I continue walking in this direction, hugging the buildings, until I run into a building in front of me. To my left I see an alley with tall buildings behind it.

    I can just barely make out the building over there, but I''m going to assume that''s the first one I flew through...

    Walking down the alley, I reach the building ahead and circle around it into the street behind. This street is quite wide so I have to walk a bit before I reach the next building, and the first thing I see is two very familiar holes on the front side of it. The hole I created on the second floor, and the one the Xerath created when it burst through the building.

    I walk up the steps to the home and enter through the Xerath hole. After that, it doesn''t take much effort to find the spot where I was killed. There is a big hole in the floor where the Xerath stomped me.

    Jeez... The fucking thing hit me so hard he destroyed the stone flooring.

    Peering down into the hole I see some destroyed pipes and my armor lying there nestled between them, but...

    There''s no body? Did they take me somewhere? That makes no sense though, because that would mean they took me and left the artifact armor behind...

    The implications of this shouldn''t bother me, but the idea that my body just disappears after I die is really creeping me out.

    Well, I guess there is some silver lining. If I ever die in a place that people have access to; my body won''t end up auctioned and then most likely placed like an object in some noble''s home, or worse, it could be used... Ugh. You know what, I''m glad it disappears, but it''s still creepy. And most importantly of all, I can''t believe my armor is still here...

    I reach down and touch the armor, commanding it to turn into a necklace. It begins shifting around and then reforms itself around my neck.

    This is good enough. It can still protect me after I cap it on mana. Not that it''s been able to help me much up to this point, but that''s because I''ve been taking hits far beyond what people normally have to deal with.

    I turn around and exit the building, heading back to the main street and turning left. The sound of pulsing is the only thing I can hear as I make my way down the street. About twenty minutes later I finally reach a familiar-looking building sitting all by its lonesome on a hill.

    And it''s completely untouched. I had a feeling it would be since it''s a place of worship with power still running through it, but with nobody around to worship Shiva, it won''t last forever. Not that I have any idea of how long it''s supposed to last.

    I reach out, touching the barrier, and my hand goes right through it. After confirming I still have entry, I walk through the barrier and up to the front door. Grabbing the handle, I open the door and walk inside, finding the main room completely empty.

    No dried blood smears or upheaval of any kind. Just the same room I''ve seen all along when I enter her chateau.

    "Hello?!" I yell out. It echoes off the walls for a few seconds, but in the end, nobody responds.

    Hmm...

    I walk over to the middle of the room where everyone normally gathers and immediately I see a stack of papers on the table with a weight placed on top of them. Moving the weight, I pick the papers up and sit down in my usual spot on the couch. The first thing I read is apparently one of the last messages, so I stop reading it and shift the papers around until I''m on the first page.

    {Rei, I know you''re going to read this at some point, so I''ll tell you everything that happened. We made it back to the chateau just as the Xerath assault began. We all sat around in my Gazebo watching the invasion, hoping you, Ishar, and Keith would come running down the street, fighting off anything that came your way, but...}

    So Ishar and Keith also didn''t make it back... Keith can be revived, but Ishar? Maybe he uh... Maybe he made it to the north? I know it''s a stretch but I''d rather not think about him dying until I see it with my own eyes later. I''ll use my tracking ability focused solely on his soul, it should still show me the last movements he made in this area.

    {A-Anyways, um, Nisha was freaking out, because she needs the artifact to revive everyone. There was no reasoning with her, and we had no reason to stop her, so... About a week later, we let her go. But Shana went with her. By then the obelisks had retreated and we couldn''t see any Xerath anywhere, so she said they''ll be fine, but they also... never...}

    Never returned... I''ll need to check out the temple after this.

    {Terra''ka gave up on Urza. I don''t blame him, but he needs Alicia back. He''s allowing her to teleport us all somewhere but we don''t know where to go, so she''s taking us to her apartment in Aetheria. It''s still going to take a while for her to figure out how to teleport me, but once she''s done, she promises to come back here once a year to check for you.}

    {... Don''t take forty-two years to come back, please? Alicia is going to write something down every time she comes here, so you''ll know how much time has passed. ----- Okay um, adding this in a few weeks later, it looks like Alicia figured it out and I''m the only one left. I''m leaving now... I''ll miss you... See you soon, okay?! I better!}

    I look at the other thing on the table, her board that still has the art of her hugging me.

    Yeah... Hopefully soon, but the part I read in the last paper tells me that it''s most likely not going to happen.

    The next paper is mostly Alicia just checking in and marking how long it''s been. On the fourth year, she finally says something.

    {Rei, I hate to say this... But I can''t keep doing this. It''s really taxing warping to a world at maximum corruption that is currently under full control of a Xerathian god. The only reason I can warp here at all is because of Aresa''s chateau which operates like a temple, but it still takes me multiple days of resting here before I''m able to leave, and Terra''ka doesn''t want me wasting any more time on this. I feel bad, but there are so many other places he needs me, I''m sorry Rei... I''ll try and let Aresa down easy.}

    {P.S. I just read all of Aresa''s notes and realized she didn''t mention Fin''s diary once. It''s fully translated. That... Guy, I forget his name, had decoded it all for you. It''s in Aresa''s stack of books next to her chair. I read the diary, it should give you a good idea of where to go next. It makes me sick that I and Terra''ka won''t be able to cleanse Urza for many years to come, but I promise you, we definitely will one day... I swear we will.}

    ... Well, I kind of expected this, and I don''t blame her or Terra''ka since neither of them knew when I''d be back, or even if I would be back.

    I stand up from the couch and remove my outfit.

    Time to go relax in the bath for a while... I need to rest and think about what to do next. Regardless of what the diary says, my destination will most likely be the same, the area in the darklands south of Xelba. This will be my last chance to rest, so might as well enjoy it while I can.

 Chapter 42 - Goodbye Viseux

    I stab the hamburger with a fork and bring it up to my mouth. After a brief hesitation, I bite down on it.

    ... Oh? I still have no idea of how long I''ve been dead, so I expected the meat in her giant freezer to all have gone bad, but this is still delicious. Can meat freeze forever? If that''s true, then that''s amazing and something I need to remember for the future.

    I chew on the salt and ketchup infused hamburger while gazing out at Viseux. I''m outside in Aresa''s gazebo right now, hoping I won''t see anything moving in town while I eat and read Fin''s diary. So far everything is exactly the same. The only thing I can see and hear is the pulsing of those monuments, which is starting to get on my nerves.

    Alright, let''s see what, uh... I forgot his name it seems. Yuki''s brother, the one who translated this for me. Kind of rude of me, but eh, it is what it is. Anyways, let''s see what he wrote down for me.

    I slide the plate out of the way and bring the binder over. Flipping it open I find about three and a half pages in neat handwriting.

    <hr>

    ~Fin''s Diary~

    Reimia(white one), this wasn''t an easy code to break but it wasn''t super hard either, so I''m nearly certain everything written here is one hundred percent accurate. It starts from the next line:

    I escaped... How long was I trapped there? I don''t even know where I am nor why I''m writing in a fucking diary. Feni said writing in a diary helped her after we had rescued her from Kellog''s prisons. I really doubt this will help, but I might as well try. I have no one left to talk to after all...

    Ash... That fucking limpdick freak blamed us for Xelba falling. Or to be more specific, he blamed me. ''Why didn''t you trap her in one of your shadows?!'' he yelled the second we returned to Jericho. Does it fucking matter? I didn''t know nor did I care why Rei had suddenly decided to go on a massacre inside the city while all our warriors were out repelling the siege.

    Although, the fact that I hadn''t seen her unit for months gives me a pretty good idea as to why she had rebelled. We''d all heard the rumors about what happens to any units who try and remove the cursed marks, and I''d also heard that Rei had figured out how to remove them from her unit, so... It''s really not hard to put two and two together. There''s no way Viktor, Ash, or anyone else in power was going to let that slide.

    Regardless, Ash, that little shit acted like it was our duty to stop her. Technically it was... But that''s only because we had no idea Viktor and the Xerath were still inside Xelba. Ash had told us weeks before that the Xerath had been moved to Jericho so we could begin phase two, so if anyone was at fault, it was him for lying to us. And that''s exactly what our leader said to him. The next thing I knew we were all in the dungeon... And that''s where I had been this entire time.

    One by one I watched my unit, my friends... Die. Most died during the torture, but a few had merely just... Died. Lack of food, water, and medicine will do that. None of us understood why we were there, but I held out hope that Viktor would return and find out that Ash had lost his fucking mind. And yet, that time never came... Time and again the Tengu reached out to me, offering his aid, and I refused every time. I stupidly believed Viktor would save us, but that all came to an end when I saw them drag in another unit from Xelba, chaining them up with the rest of us.

    Apparently, we were all loose ends. Well, everyone but my unit and one other was... Viktor said to keep us alive, but Ash took it upon himself to kill us anyway. It was then, that I allowed the Tengu to corrupt me, except... He didn''t. I was told that even with an infusion from him it''d be a miracle if I killed Ash. So instead, he taught me several different diagrams for chaos magic. One would summon a Satyr, while useful, it wouldn''t quite be what I needed.

    There was another for a far more sinister Demon. You become its puppet and share your abilities with it, but it can level entire nations if it''s given enough time and sacrifices. The Tengu said it was very capricious so it could cause some problems here and there, but if I support it properly, I should be able to destroy Jericho.

    Except I needed an ungodly amount of souls to transfer the creature over and I needed the corruption level to be at a certain percent before the ritual would even work. I had never heard such a phrase before, but that basically meant I had to wait, which was very aggravating.

    With nothing but time on my hands, I was able to hide the ritual under the city of Glassdow, where I had slowly sacrificed people over the years. You don''t need to do it all at once, and since I had the time, I did it one person at a time. Thanks to this, no one ever caught on to what I was doing, and it''s amazing how fast people will sell others for the right price. I had mostly powered the ritual by myself, but the Tengu told me recently that the corruption level had finally reached what I needed, so I decided to risk it and just buy some humans.

    Whether anyone caught on or not I have no idea, as I''m about to finish the ritual now regardless. I''ve been told I won''t be myself anymore after I summon this Dedrasi, but it''ll be worth it to kill Ash and everyone else in Jericho. After this, the Dedrasi will require a large amount of sacrifices before it''s powerful enough to unleash its special magic on Jericho. And gathering them shouldn''t be an issue. The Dedrasi and I will channel on rituals underneath villages until it reaches the point that it''s ready to attack Jericho. Once it is about ninety percent ready, it can no longer cast high-tier magic or channel onto anything like ritual marks until it uses its special magic.

    According to the Tengu, the Dedrasi''s spell will quite literally make everyone in Jericho explode from the inside out. We''ll still need to create the chaos marks around the city, but I know Jericho in and out, so that part shouldn''t fail. I can only hope that Viktor is there as well, but he probably won''t be given how long it''s been... Ash however, I know he''ll be there. He can''t leave until it''s time to initiate the final phase of the plan. I just hope I make it in time...

    Ahh, it''s just now hitting me... I''m doing the same thing Rei did all those years ago.

    <hr>

    ~Reimia POV~

    .............

    I lean back in my seat, gazing out at the city, letting the words I just read ruminate in my head for a while.

    ... Jericho. So that''s the city south of Xelba? How the hell did they build a city in the darklands without anyone knowing? I thought I was keeping track of Viktor and Ash''s movements, but there were plenty of times I needed to leave so I sadly didn''t know everything they did... Even so, this is still hard to accept.

    Up to this point, all signs were pointing to there being another city of Viktor''s on the other side of the mountains, but it just seemed so damned implausible that I couldn''t shake all my doubts about that theory. And yet, if Fin''s diary(or the translation) is to be believed, that''s literally what happened.

    I can see why Fin was surprised that Viktor was still in Xelba during the siege. Even I was surprised when I saw him fighting one of the nobles leading the cursed Lords. I knew he wanted them dead, which is why he was relying on my assistance under the guise of allowing my unit to leave for Gaia when we succeeded. Which I didn''t fully believe, and that''s why I looked for ways to break the curse, and that resulted in the Lords finding out somehow... The next thing I knew, we were being ambushed by several other units and stabbed with those knives. I, Simon, and Nera all managed to escape, and then we did our best to save the others, but our rescue attempt failed miserably...

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    I sigh, stabbing the last of my hamburgers and shoving it into my mouth. I make short work of it and immediately walk outside the chateau, heading straight for city hall. On the way I see no monsters or Xerath as usual. Upon reaching city hall I duck into the alley where I initially gained entry to the building.

    Okay... I can''t activate this tracking ability with my aura up, so this will be my first time removing my aura outside of Aresa''s home. I hope these damned monuments don''t have visual detectors on them, at least not very good ones.

    I remove my aura and immediately activate my tracking ability. I focus it on Ishar''s soul and sure enough, he pops up at the last known sighting of him in this area, but it''s kind of far away.

    The range on this ability is pretty amazing, but I think I get why he''s way over there. His ''last known'' location in the tracker''s range would be just as he''s leaving the tracker''s range. Let''s see if I can...

    I focus on the ability, attempting to shrink the area it''s scanning. It takes me a few minutes but I eventually figure it out and shrink it all the way down until it''s just outside the alley. The silhouette of Ishar is looking backward and up at the sky with his arms outstretched as if he''s preparing for battle.

    So this is him when the invasion began...

    I extend the range a little, which shows Ishar with his spear out battling an empty space. The more I extend it, the more I see him trying to fight his way toward Aresa''s chateau, but eventually, the ability shows him face down on the ground. Strangely enough, the more I extend it, the more I see that he wasn''t devoured like everyone else was.

    He''s being dragged away...? His arms are held out at his sides as if there is two people carrying him from both sides. His feet and tail are sliding along the ground while his head is completely slumped over. He''s obviously not conscious, or doing a damn good job of pretending he isn''t.

    Very strange... When I was running through Viseux the Xerath were devouring everyone. Yet here he is, being carried away by two beings that appear to be human-sized. The only idea that comes to mind is that the people of this ''Jericho'' knew about him being an ally of mine, and wanted to capture him to find me... Maybe? That feels like a stretch, but I don''t know what other reason they''d have for keeping him alive while slaughtering everyone else. In that case, I need to see what happened to Shana and Nisha. Maybe they were captured too.

    I deactivate the spell and put my aura back up. I head south through some back streets while praying I''m moving in the right direction. I only went to the temple once, but I think it was in this direction?

    <hr>

    After about an hour I finally find it. Just like Aresa''s chateau, the temple is in pristine condition, completely untouched.

    Heh, I''m not surprised. With the amount of templars praying here and Arkaios channeling through it, it''d take ages to break through this barrier, and there''s just no point. Even if there was somebody inside of here, they''d have to come out for food eventually. So the Xerath expending themselves to break into here would be a waste of time.

    I walk closer to the temple until I sense something in front of me. I reach out and touch the barrier. One emotion after another flares to life upon contact. Pure shock, confusion, acceptance, joy, and finally an overwhelming desire for me to enter. Immediately I feel the barrier give way, allowing me entry. I walk through the barrier and open the front door, revealing an interior that''s just as clean as Aresa''s chateau is.

    I wonder if these places of worship stay clean by default so long as they have... Prayer power? I don''t even know what to call it. I''ll have to ask Aresa when I see her again. Whenever that is...

    There are small blue lights leading me forward that stop at the artifact sitting on the altar in the back of the temple. I reach the artifact and grab it with both hands. Immediately, I can feel Arkaios touch my soul and mind much more closely.

    {Alive again... The most resilient of my children.}

    "Your children?"

    {You must hurry. I only have a vague understanding of where Nisha is, but at this point only she can revive the others.}

    You''re not going to answer the ''children'' part huh...

    "What about Markus and the other templars? The bishops too?"

    {All gone... Markus was here but fled in a rage when he realized all of my other worshipers had been slain. He never returned.}

    Oh right, I completely forgot that Keith wanted me to find the templars down in the prisons. When I was with Markus he never mentioned them so I figured he must have known something I didn''t, but apparently he thought they were all still back in the temple?

    "Where is Nisha? On Urza somewhere?"

    {No. She was taken far to the south. I can only ping her soul if she is not interacting with one of my artifacts or near a temple of mine. So all I know is that she was surrounded by Xerath for several years, but suddenly she was transported to another moon where she is now surrounded by Demons.}

    "Demons?! How the hell did that happen? Viktor no longer had a use for the Demons after he got everything he needed from the Xerath''s realm. I know they wanted to keep him on a leash, but there''s no way that egomaniac would allow himself to be used as a pawn of theirs again. Not after I helped the fucker escape them once."

    {Unknown, but it did not seem like a friendly exchange. The amount of Xerath, humanoid creatures, werewolves, and Demons that appeared and disappeared around her was going up and down at a alarming rate, suggesting a battle of some sort.}

    "Werewolves too, what the hell..."

    {Her soul is fine right now, so she is not in danger, but she hasn''t moved in quite a while. Whenever I''ve pinged her the past half a year, eighty percent of the time it''s Demons around her, but there have also been Eldritch Lords, and that Kitsune ally of yours.}

    "Shana is there too?! Oh thank god so she''s safe as well... Now I just need to find Ishar."

    {The Crotia, yes? He was in the same area as Nisha during the Demon battle and when they were on the other moon, but soon after that he disappeared and was replaced by the Kitsune.}

    "Hmm... Did he hand her off to Shana and go somewhere else? Regardless, I think I know everything I need to proceed. Thank you Lord Arkaios."

    I get on my knees and enter a prayer pose.

    {... So diligent, unlike my other children who only care for gadgets and technology now. But that too, is my fault.}

    "How are you talking to me, I thought I needed to touch the artifact? Also, by children you don''t mean the Elves, do you?!"

    {Once you have touched the artifact inside my temple, I can speak to you thereafter. So long as you remain inside the temple, that is.}

    Bah, ignoring the damn children comment again. He had to mean the Elves though... Who else is obsessed with technology and gadgets? I suppose it could be races from another planet or moon that I know nothing about, but since he calls me one of his children, connecting the dots toward Elves makes the most sense.

    {You are going to leave soon, yes? Take the artifact with you. It''s necessary to bring back Keith, Lindon, Albel, Markus, and all of my templars associated with this specific temple.}

    So their souls are anchored to this artifact, basically. Well shit, this thing is like two feet tall and kind of heavy. I really don''t want to bring it, but it''s obviously necessary, so time to just shut up and deal with it.

    I make the back of my armor sticky and back up into the artifact, sticking it behind me like a backpack, replacing the diary that was there before(I left it in the chateau for Aresa to read someday).

    "Can you still talk to me through the artifact once I leave the temple?"

    {Yes, and no. It becomes much more difficult. Expect broken sentences and maybe only emotions.}

    "So it''ll be like talking to the Lizardmen, understood."

    {................}

    I activate my aura and walk out of the temple, heading straight for Aresa''s chateau.

    <hr>

    About a day later I''m finally ready. I stuffed myself with meat, rested to the max, and reinforced my armor the best I could.

    I look around at the inside of the chateau one last time, feeling an overwhelming level of sadness for something I''ve barely known.

    It''s the memories of being here with everyone... One day I hope to return here with Aresa and everyone else. I can only pray that it happens...

    I finally turn around and walk out the front door, exiting the barrier soon after. With one last glance, I look back at the chateau and say my goodbyes.

    <hr>

    Alright... This part is going to be a major pain in the ass.

    I''m south of Viseux, standing near the outer wall. Looking around, I see no monsters or Xerath in sight so I remove my aura and activate the tracker ability at max range.

    Bah, no Ishar. I have no idea where he was dragged to and there''s like ten fucking exits out of this place going south.

    Over the course of an hour I check several different exits before I finally see Ishar''s silhouette which appears to be lying down in midair.

    Hmm, probably a wagon? It makes sense that they wouldn''t drag him while walking the whole way.

    I remove the tracker and put my aura back up. Once I''m safe again I begin to walk down the road, the very same road that we traveled to come and go from Kellog.

    The fastest route to Xelba would probably be through Kellog... I just hope the fortress is abandoned and the gates are opened. From the looks of things everything is dead and abandoned, so I imagine the fortress will be too. I''m just guessing here, but I believe my first real struggle will appear when I reach the mountains behind Xelba...

 Chapter 43 - Jericho

    {Why track?}

    ... I understand why he''s shortening his sentences now, but it''s kind of annoying.

    I know why you''re asking. You already told me the general location of Ishar, so there''s no point in tracking him, right? But even so, I still want to see where they took him. It only takes a second to activate the tracker and check for him after all.

    Plus, he''s only checking for anyone around Nisha. The odds of Ishar being somewhere on Urza and I just so happen to find him with my tracker along this road are basically zero, but why not check just in case? Also... I don''t know. Some part of me wants to see what they did to him.

    {I see.}

    I''m currently hiding in the first manor-sized barn we saw as we entered Kellog last time. The tracker ability just barely reaches the road, and sure enough, Ishar is still floating in the air while lying down. This is the last time I can check for him though, as I can see a few obelisks in the distance. It''d be too risky to walk through these villages directly. Honestly, I wanted to visit Euphie''s Manor one last time and maybe grab some food, but it looks like I won''t get that chance.

    Swapping the tracker for my aura, I run out of the barn and toward the east away from the villages. After I reach a safe enough distance - a little past where I escaped the obelisk''s aura during the Kellog invasion - I turn right and continue sprinting toward the fortress in the distance.

    ... I''ve put this off long enough. I have been scared to ask Arkaios about how long I''ve been dead, but it''s pretty damn important, so I need to just get it over with.

    Arkaios, how long have I been dead?

    {Four... half years}

    Four and a half...? That''s it? I really need to know what determines how long I''ve been dead... I don''t even know where to begin with that though. Then that means if Alicia came one more time she would have seen me. Er, wait, then I would have needed to wait half a year for her... And I doubt I would have done that, especially when Ishar, Nisha, and Shana might need help. I left a note behind for Alicia in case she comes back so everyone will know I''m alive again, but I doubt she''ll see it.

    As I near the fortress, I see that the gate is wide open and there aren''t any obelisks nearby.

    About what I expected. Now the only thing left is the long trek to Xelba.

    <hr>

    Hmm... I remember this village; I came here a few times for missions. They brought Ishar through here? Xelba is far off to the east though... And I see they carried him further south, but the road south stops at this village. So the way to this ''Jericho'' has always been over here...?

    I enter a run-down home and rip off the last jar of peanuts I stuck to my armor before leaving Viseux, quickly tossing them into my mouth.

    This is probably my last chance to eat so I''d prefer something more delicious, but there''s no way this village has anything left after being abandoned for fifty years.

    After I''m done eating I leave the home and begin running south. Now that I''m up close I can see obvious signs of travel on the hard ground, but the grass has mostly hidden it.

    <hr>

    Three hours later I finally find what I''m looking for.

    ... Well, this was rather brazen of them. I know this is near the mountains that barely anyone approached, but I could see this massive lift from almost a mile out. If someone from Xelba became lost and saw this they would have been silenced, but if the Kitsune or Crotia found it? That would have ruined whatever plans they had here.

    Hmm... They might have built it after Xelba fell? Either way, I can''t use it. I see one of those bone engines sitting in the back of the fucking platform. If I activate the lift there''s a good chance it''ll wake up whatever the hell is inside of that engine, and I already know what happens after that. There''s no way they''d solely rely on a lift to get up and down though. There has to be a back way somewhere for emergencies.

    I begin walking west along the mountain, scanning for anything out of place. About thirty minutes later I find a side entrance, but...

    This almost looks more dangerous than battling the Xerath hiding inside the engine...

    There''s a slope going up into a cavern, but the entire path is made of the skeletons that the Xerath create from dead bodies. Well... Some of them? I saw them devouring people in Viseux, so I''m not entirely certain of what their criteria is for turning people into eternal servants.

    These skeletons have their arms criss-crossed over their chest in the death pose you see when people are being buried, but they''re all standing up. And there are skeletons in the same pose standing on top of the others, lining each side of the slope up. Instead of building something to reach that cavern entrance, they decided to just place their pawns here who would create a path while also doubling as watchdogs... How very annoying. I could keep looking, but I''d bet any other paths are just like this one, so...

    I creep up to the ''slope'' and put my hand on top of one of the skeleton''s heads, its head immediately shoots up and turns to look in my direction. I let go and back off a bit. The skeleton looks back and forth for what touched it for a bit before lowering its head again and going still.

    ... Hmm.

    I look past the skeletons toward the cave entrance, checking for anything I can hang onto or maybe scale on the sides, but there''s almost nothing.

    Let''s see, I''ve got three options here...

    Climb on top of the skeletons and sprint for the cave, I''m sure this won''t end horribly.

    Enhance myself and jump above the skeletons and continue kicking off the mountain to keep myself above them until I reach the cavern.

    Or I can over-enhance myself and just jump the entire way there.

    The first is out immediately. Both of the other options are equally risky... Kicking off the mountain could drop rubble down below. I don''t know how perceptive these things are, nor do I know whether there is a bone engine or obelisk nearby that they can activate to find me. The third is a problem if I jump straight into one of their auras. I''ll have lost a lot of mana and made my legs half-useless for a few minutes, which is not the kind of position I want to be in if I get swarmed.

    ....................

    I walk along the mountain, far out of sight of the skeletons and remove my aura, quickly enhancing my whole body before re-applying my aura. After that I sprint back to the ''skeleton slope'' and immediately jump above the skeletons. Upon reaching the apex of my jump, I kick myself toward the cave entrance. From the very first kick onward I knock parts of the mountain away that fall onto the skeletons below. I don''t look, but I can hear the loud clattering of bones knocking against each other.

    I land near the entrance and look back to see skeletons climbing on top of one another, all looking to and fro in this direction.

    It seems that even simple pawns like them can figure out that something was progressing in this direction above them...

    I run into the cave entrance, finding myself in a circular room with a black contraption in the center. It looks like a flower that hasn''t bloomed. Opposite of me there is a Xerath sitting in a chair with its head hanging down, the very same type of Xerath that killed me(The tall dark-purple variants). The rest of the room is covered in some kind of thick black substance, while there is a crystal light attached to the ceiling that''s subtlety lighting up the room.

    About seven of the skeletons come running into the room behind me, which makes two things happen at once. The flower blossoms and the Xerath looks up at the skeletons while turning its head sideways.

    As the skeletons continue to look around the room their behavior seems to put the Xerath on guard, as it stands up and also begins to look around. The flower however is spreading some type of star-like pollen all over the room, but it''s not sticking to me.

    Maybe it''s poison? That''s obviously not going to affect me so I don''t have to worry about these creepy flowers at least. And there aren''t any other doors in this place, but there has to be a way to move forward...

    As the Xerath continues to look for me, I move along the wall while running my hand across the black substance, looking for anything that might be out of place. Ugh, it looks dry and hard at a glance, but once you touch it it''s firm and kind of moist.

    This goes on for a few minutes before I reach the chair the Xerath was resting in. That''s when I notice the small button on the right side underneath the armrest. I push it and a portion of the wall behind me opens up. The skeletons look toward the wall that just opened up while the Xerath whips its head toward the seat. It immediately lunges in my direction and raises both its hands into the air. I dodge to the right just as the Xerath brings its hands down behind me, causing the ground on the right side of the chair to break apart from the sheer force of the attack.

    I sprint through the opening and up the slope waiting for me on the other side. Glancing backward, I see the Xerath bent down, looking out through the opening in the wall.

    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    That opening is way too small for him, and apparently he can''t dematerialize into smoke and reappear on the other side like the skeletons can. I''ve seen his type appear from a bone engine though, so maybe the Xerath need contraptions like those to move around? I''m just glad knowing that a behemoth like that thing can''t warp like the skeletons can.

    I continue running up the mountain trail for a while. It takes a few hours but I eventually exit onto the other side of the mountain, where I finally get a look at the place they hid from me and the place Fin wanted to destroy.

    So that''s Jericho huh...

    The city is broken up into multiple different areas. They are on top of man-made platforms jutting out of the mountain that appear to be housing thousands of people. On each platform city there is a long black bridge that extends to another platform city. Unlike normal bridges, this one has walls everywhere and it looks circular in design. That must be how they move around.

    I honestly didn''t know what to expect, but I''m shocked to see how many people live here... I expected maybe a few thousand. This however is bigger than Xelba was. Where the hell did all these people come from? I know I''ve been gone from this area for almost forty-eight years now, but still, this is not a good sign. I really doubt this is the only place Viktor owns, and I suspect he''s spread out far larger civilizations than this one. With the Demons and cursed Lords gone, there''s no one left to get in his way after all. Then again, Demons did assault this place.

    First things first though, I need to figure out where the hell Ishar was taken. I checked with my ability on the slope but he wasn''t there, so odds are he was taken on that lift. To my left I can see where the lift comes up because there is a large platform there attached to some railways that lead to the biggest city here. I need to start there it seems. I also don''t see a bone engine on that platform, so I should be able to use that instead of walking down these long steps and going through multiple cities just to reach where the platform stops.

    I lay down on the ground and remove my aura. After enhancing myself I reapply my aura and begin jumping alongside the mountain. A few minutes later I land near the platform and am shocked yet again at how large it is. Seriously, was this thing designed to move armies?

    Looking around the platform I see the only way to operate it is from a booth nearby. There''s nothing on the platform itself to control it. I walk into the booth and find a man dead asleep in his chair. I remove my aura and the man''s eyes go wide , but before he can do anything I reach out and snap his neck. Good thing I left my enhancements on.

    I pick him up and carry him outside, tossing him down into the darkness below. Good riddance.

    Heh... So that''s why. I haven''t felt any sort of happiness or joy from harming anything after waking up in that hole near Keith''s group outside of when I hit that Satyr with one of Janet''s bombs, and now I see why. I felt a rush killing these fucking freaks. These... These...!!!

    I sit down and meditate to calm myself. After the rush passes I stand and activate my aura as I walk back to the terminal.

    It''s because of who it is... I want to kill these people. Viktor''s people. And Demons as well of course, but everyone wants to kill them. And judging from how quickly the grinning Demon killed the Satyr and used him like a toy, it looks like Demons enjoy killing Demons as well. The only universal constant in my world.

    I look down at the console.

    As expected for a simple tram, there''s nothing to even figure out here. There are only a few buttons with a handle next to them, with one extra button off to the right side under glass. It''s not hard to guess what that one will do.

    I push the green button but nothing happens. Hmm... I push the button again but this time I hold it down and push the handle upwards. Immediately a loud horn begins to blare from the platform as the lights on it begin swirling around. The radio on the counter blares to life.

    "Carl, you can''t keep forgetting to inform me of any packages or people you''re sending over. Fucking idiot, I''m tired of being woken up to the goddamn alarms... One more time and I''m telling the boss." The man continued, "Activating on my end in one minute."

    I exit the terminal and run over to the platform. Once I''m on it I see that the other end of the platform has seats on it facing forward. I sit down in one of the front-row seats and grab the straps behind me, pulling them over my shoulders and buckling myself in.

    Full body harness huh? It does look like this platform is going to aim down around the halfway point, and the railings aren''t up. I think ''Carl'' is supposed to put them up, but he''s obviously busy elsewhere.

    The platform begins moving. It ramps up in speed until it reaches about ten miles an hour. I look to my right and extend my vision toward the cities, scanning for anything that might stick out.

    Oh? One of the long black bridges goes into the mountain... Is there another city in there? This place never ends it seems...

    I also see little lights going down and up from the edge of the cities into the lands below. I extend my vision to the max and see that they''re people in mechanical suits with large glass visors, but I lose sight of them after they drop past the fog down below. I wonder what they''re harvesting from the dark lands?

    A few minutes later the platform turns and starts to go down toward the main city. Most of the city is well-lit and I see people running around everywhere, but the outer edge of the cities have no buildings, only some small trees, benches, and lots of grass, which looks odd when the rest of the city is pure stone. There''s about a one-hundred-and-fifty-meter distance between the edge of the city and where all the buildings are, and the fake parks they''ve made only have a few lights here and there.

    I know how I''m getting around some parts of the city then. The problem is I need to reach that long black bridge. Now that I''m closer and my extended vision is reaching it, I can see little windows on it and there are lights emitting from them. It can''t be just a walkway... It''s way too big for that.

    I remove my veil and enhance myself before reapplying my veil.

    The platform slowly finishes its journey and locks into place. I remove my belt and run toward the booth.

    "The hell? It''s empty? Did that moron send over an empty platform? No... Even he wouldn''t do that."

    The man reaches for the radio and I quickly remove my veil and snap this man''s neck too. Behind me I can hear a couple laughing in the park. I put my veil on, making him invisible too. I pick him up and run as fast as I can to the edge of the city and throw him over it. I drop my enhancements and sit down.

    Holy shit, I almost ran out of mana... Hiding other people while moving is just something I''m not meant to do. There''s barely any light here too.

    Standing up, I run back over to the platform and hide behind one of the seats. I remove my veil and activate the tracker. Ahh, there he is... Ishar is moving toward the center of the city.

    The center is where that ''walkway'' is, but that''s where I expected them to be taking him. Either that or a dungeon here.

    With my veil back on I begin running around the outskirts of the city until I find a place with much less lighting. However, I stop when I see something else. A sign jutting out of a building with a pair of scissors on it.

    ... A barbershop.

    I lift my hair and look at it.

    I wonder if they have dyes? The Elves did, and this place seems to be incorporating a lot of their tech, which I''m sure Viktor did begrudgingly. I can''t hide my red eyes, but dying my hair would help a lot right now. Sneaking through all of these places with my veil is going to be a nightmare, and I don''t even know what is in those giant walkways yet.

    I run over toward the shop but the lights become too much to bear. After a quick glance around I remove my veil and walk up to the shop.

    Oh shit! Wait one second for me Arkaios. I''ll be right back.

    I back up and rip the artifact off my back, placing it in the dumpster behind me. The last thing I felt before letting go of the artifact was Arkaios''s obvious disgust at what I had just done. Next, I command the artifact armor(currently a necklace) to turn into a pretty black dress. After it''s done I turn around and enter the shop. The bell on the door rings as I enter. One of the girls working here looks over at me while cutting a customer''s hair.

    "Damn! You look kind of spooky, and I love it!"

    "An Elf...?" The older man getting a haircut said.

    "Um, I was wondering if you have hair dyes?"

    The girl made a disgusted face, "Why?! That white hair looks amazing on you! Bah, I don''t know who dyed it but they did an amazing job. You shouldn''t get buyer''s remorse now." The girl sighed, "Never mind... My mom has told me a million times not to tell the customers what to do. I really think you should keep it though..."

    An older lady comes out from the back, holding a small platter full of glass bottles.

    "These are the dyes dear. Which one did you want?"

    She looks between my eyes and ears while quirking an eyebrow.

    Yeah... Viktor wants nothing to do with the Elves, so I wouldn''t be surprised if barely any of them are part of his... Faction? Nation? Faction is probably a better term for whatever the hell he created. I''ll need time to research it, but that''s for after I rescue my friends.

    "I''d love black. That''s my original hair color, and I really miss it." It wasn''t, it was brown.

    The lady spins a chair toward me, motioning for me to sit. She leaves directly after that, walking back to where she came from. Meanwhile, the girl had finished the man''s haircut and he was now paying her near the register.

    Damnit... I forgot about money. Should I just kill everyone here? The problem is that Xelba had alarm runes that activated when souls disappeared inside of most business buildings... It''s way too risky.

    The man walks past me and leaves the store. I follow behind him, picking up a metal rod near the dumpster and enhance both it and myself. The man spins around with a confused look on his face as I smash the rod into the side of his head. The man, apparently having not enhanced himself at all, goes flying into the stone wall to my left, splattering blood everywhere.

    Shit, shit! I don''t have time for this. Nobody else come down this alley please...

    I go through his pockets until I find his money. After that, I throw him into the dumpster next to the artifact.

    Jingle

    "You''re back! I was wondering why you suddenly left." The girl said.

    "Ahh, sorry back that. The man dropped some of his money and I wanted to return it to him."

    The girl pats the seat her mother offered to me earlier, "Now isn''t that sweet of you... You wanted black, right?"

    I nod and sit down. The girl begins rubbing something hot into my scalp.

    "I thought dye required a wet scalp and, um, something else..."

    The girl chuckles, "Not anymore silly. Those ones take hours, while these will be done in a few minutes. It uh, it''ll hurt a little bit though. Your last dye was with the old method huh? She did a great job then... Even your roots are white. I''ve never seen anyone do that good of a job before."

    "........."

    Well, this is perfect then. I was planning to hide on the outer edge of the city here while the dye did its job, but with only a few minutes nobody should see all that blood. It''s kind of hard to see with the red bricks that make up the building next to this one anyway, but anyone whose mind isn''t preoccupied with something else will probably notice the blood.

    A few minutes later the girl rinses my hair, and after a thorough drying with a towel, she pulls it off and shows me my new black hair.

    "Ta-da! It''s a waste, but this looks amazing on you too, especially with your red contacts."

    Contacts? I''ve never heard that term before, but it must be something that goes into your eye.

    I walk over to the counter and hand the girl a few bills I don''t recognize. Her eyes go wide.

    "Wow, really?! This is one crazy tip... Thank you very much!"

    Thank the man in the dumpster.

    I leave the shop and glance both ways. Nobody around yet, whew.

    I flip open the dumpster and grab the artifact that now has blood splotches all over it.

    {.......}

    Extremely unpleasant feelings flow to me through the artifact. They slowly dissipate as Arkaios begins speaking.

    {... I understand why you had to do that. However, purity is important for the artifact. You must cleanse it before we are to proceed.}

    I thought it was going to be hard to communicate with me through only the artifact?

    {It burns the stored energy. Now stop wasting.}

    Ahh... That''s not good then.

    I put the artifact down and run back into the shop, asking the girl for a slightly wet towel and also if she has a large bag or backpack for sale. She hands me the towel and a suitcase on wheels before going back to her TV. "They''re free. You already gave me a ton of money." She says with her back to me. I miss having new shows to watch...

    I run back into the alley and clean the artifact. After that I shove it into the briefcase. Once it''s secured, I zip it up and begin walking toward the center of the city.

    Alright then, let''s see if I can get through this place without any more incidents.

 Chapter 44 - Prelude to the Nightmare

    I finish wiping up the blood off the wall and bury the towel underneath a bag in the dumpster.

    Okay, now I''m ready. Taking the time to clean up the wall, bury the man deeper into the dumpster, and eat his soul was worth it. I need to slow down and not rush this. Also, I didn''t realize how starved my core was until just now. I may have kept most of my strength after the revive, but apparently I lost most of the sustenance I received from the Chimera.

    That''s a problem... If I enter a starvation state my core will start to eat away at my strength and mana to fuel itself. I should be fine for a few more days, but after that I''ll need to find some people or monsters to eat. A couple of human souls are nothing but a pittance to me at this point unless I need their memories or sustenance, so I didn''t bother with the two men operating the platform. Hell, it didn''t even occur to me because of how insignificant they are at this point.

    I grab the handle on the suitcase and restart my walk toward the bridge in the distance. Once I exit the alley onto one of the main streets I see people out and about everywhere. The most intriguing part of all is the people driving around in windowless single-person vehicles that are pulling medium-sized hauls behind them.

    Actually no, the ones with hauls are turning left toward the bridge, while the ones returning have nothing behind them. So this city must shuttle a lot of goods to the other ones? Hmm, this was also the only city where I saw people descending into the darklands. Whatever they''re doing here, it all ties back to that.

    I cross the thoroughfare and walk in the direction all the hauls are going. On the way I pass by street performers, guitarists, and hundreds of other people.

    Same as Xelba, Viktor doesn''t withhold information so these people definitely know what happened to the rest of Urza, and they couldn''t care less. Most don''t anyways. The ones who do care, and make the mistake of voicing their discontent, will all mysteriously disappear, while any others keep it to themselves.

    I cross the last street into a massive lot surrounding the bridge and immediately I see a major obstacle for going forward.

    Of course there''d be a bunch of fucking skeletons at attention with an active bone engine in the middle of the bridge''s entrance and people are swiping some kind of card to pass through the turnstile. Two problems I can''t overcome without starting a fight, or...

    I look at the ''bridge'', scanning it from the top all the way down to the sides, looking for places devoid of people.

    There are no people-free zones, but there are a few places I may be able to improvise. On the side of the bridge there is a large rest area full of street vendors cooking food. There are a couple of spots close to the bridge with a few people reading books, but the major problem is the lights. That''s a problem concerning this whole city though aside from the edge. There are lights everywhere.

    Breaking a light so I can turn invisible and scale the bridge works, but people will both see and hear that. It would be best if I could find a place without light to turn invisible... after that I can just leap over the lights. But where? I don''t see anything damnit. Nothing but benches, people, food, and little patches of grass here and there.

    I sigh and walk over to one of the vendors.

    "Hello, Miss! What''ll it be for you?"

    "Give me four hotdogs and bury them in ketchup and mustard." I used to love these as a kid. I wonder if they''re as good as I remember.

    The vendor''s eyebrows shoot up as he looks me up and down. He shrugged soon after that and began to put my order together.

    Why did he... Oh. The hotdogs he''s making are huge, so he''s surprised that I ordered four of them. It might be a bit much for a girl with my frame.

    "Here you go! The drink is free by the way. I do that for all my new customers." The man holds out my drink and a rectangular paper plate barely holding my food.

    Liquid isn''t necessary but I do feel a little better if I remember to drink something every day. I wish I didn''t forget to do that all the damned time.

    Attempting to not make the same mistake again, I hand the man only one bill this time. He accepts it and says hello to the man waiting for his turn behind me. I walk through the rest area until I reach a road with four lanes far in the back. Perfect, I can see the back of the bridge here.

    I sit down on a bench nearby and begin eating while scanning the backside of the bridge. Behind it is a large sidewalk next to the road, and of course the damned thing is lit-up. But there are no benches and foot traffic is kind of low.

    I peel my eyes away from the bridge and focus on enjoying my first junk food in fifty years.

    My god, this is a hundred times better than I remember... And I don''t need to worry about getting fat either! When I''m in a comfortable enough position to relax all day and eat, I''m going to find ways to burn through my energy reserves just so I can keep eating. Assuming that day ever comes.

    I devour the rest of my meal and down the water. Ugh, I was hoping it was soda. After that I throw the remains away in a trash bin nearby and stride over toward the bridge until I reach the backside.

    Okay... A few people in the park could still see me if they happened to look this way as I turn invisible, but that shouldn''t be a problem. The distance is rather far after all. The issue is the vehicles passing through, and the seven people walking this way after the light turned green. Most problematic of all is the streetlight above me of course.

    I rest against the back of the bridge, waiting for the seven teenagers to pass by. They all give me weird looks as they walk past me, and a few giggle while pointing at me. Eventually, they turn to the right and disappear behind the bridge. No one walking this way from my right, and the people waiting for the light on the left are talking to each other.

    After a few more seconds of waiting for traffic to thin out, I enhance myself and pick up the suitcase, throwing it into the light above. As the light shatters I jump up and catch the suitcase, quickly turning invisible before the sound alerts anyone. Immediately I jump onto the bridge and begin wall jumping vertically plus a little to the left. After I''m fully on the left side of the bridge I continue jumping up while avoiding the lights shining out from different windows dotting the massive bridge. I hear loud moans from one of the windows as I pass by it. Ugh... Are there hotels in here? Maybe even brothels too.

    It takes a few minutes but eventually I reach the top of the bridge. I drop my enhancements and begin walking toward the next platform. It''s slightly angled up but somehow I''m not slipping at all...

    The bridge is made from the same material that was covering that flower room at the bottom of the mountain. Except this is much harder while somehow keeping my feet from losing traction. It could be something they extracted from the darklands, but I''ve seen strange structures built by the Xerath before, so this is probably their handiwork.

    Nearing the apex of the bridge, I get a good look at the rest of Jericho. There are fourteen platform cities, with one other being as big as the one I''m currently on.

    Thinking about it now, if we hadn''t stopped Fin, he and the grinning Demon might have actually destroyed this place. Kellog died in the end anyway, so if we weren''t there... I don''t like this line of thinking, but I also don''t want to lie to myself. Of course, they still had one gigantic problem to overcome. Nothing in his diary mentioned it, but you don''t just sacrifice people and that''s that. The Demon, regardless of what type it is, will need to channel that energy into the attack for it to actually accomplish its goal.

    The Satyr Keith summoned didn''t just snap its fingers and turn the land to lava while casting hellfire simultaneously. There''s no way in hell the Xerath, who control the fucking sky, and whatever sensors the cities have wouldn''t notice the grinning Demon sitting in the mountains channeling a spell big enough to destroy Jericho in one spell.

    I stop at the top of the bridge as it begins to slant down.

    This one exits at the very edge of the city, so there is no backside this time. Hmm...

    Enhancing myself, I turn invisible and start walking down, and while my feet are sticking to the surface, the more the bridge slants, the harder it becomes to stay upright. Deciding to just risk it, I sit down and lift my feet. I begin sliding forward slowly but it quickly ramps up, so every few intervals I stomp my feet down to stop myself.

    After about two minutes of this I''m finally nearing the bottom of the bridge, but the next arc is almost entirely vertical.

    I stand up and walk to the right, scanning the area below. This one has people lounging about eating junk food from the vendors too, but there are far fewer citizens around this time. I drop down onto my side and begin sliding until I start to fall off the edge. Every so often I kick off the wall as I drop down, keeping my acceleration to a minimum. Nearing the bottom, I glance down and see only one person below, a young male writing something on a bench nearby. It should be fine.

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    As the lights come into view I remove my aura and jump below, landing about twenty feet to the young man''s left. My feet absorb most of the sound, but a little still echoed out as I landed, making the young man look in my direction.

    I wave at him, "Sorry about that, didn''t mean to disturb you."

    He looks at me for a moment before shaking his head and going back to his notebook.

    Turning to my left, I walk through the rest area, giving the entrance a wide birth, until I''m at least one hundred yards away from it. I activate my tracker at max range and spot Ishar''s silhouette moving toward the left.

    The left... That direction leads to the bridge that''s connected to the mountains.

    Alright, now that I know which way they took him, I want some more junk food and several liters of soda before I finish the rest of my journey. After I''m sufficiently overeaten, it''ll be time to see where that bridge leads.

    <hr>

    Fortunately for me, the top of the bridge going into the mountains had about a ten-foot gap above it so I didn''t need to come up with a plan to walk through it. I''m outside the bridge now on the other side, looking at what I believe is the real capital of Jericho.

    It''s honestly amazing...

    Both sides of the interior are lined with hovels full of light, and the main city at the back of the cave looks to be at least half the size of Viseux. There''s a large swath of area between me and the city, but I can''t really see what''s down there because it''s covered in fog. Most impressive of all though is the circular white opening above the city.

    It''s shining brightly and I swear I see something inside of it... There''s also smoke shifting around between the top of the city and the... portal? I really think it''s a portal, but the only way to prove it would be to jump through it, which I''m not going to do unless Ishar''s silhouette ends up going that path.

    Not willing to risk whatever dangers lay below, I run to the side of the interior and begin wall-jumping toward the city. Whatever vehicle was carrying him went below, I can even see the road going into the fog, but I''d bet anything he was taken to the city and not some random house in the fog.

    I pass above and under dozens of hovels full of people on their ''balconies'' chatting with other people nearby.

    The closer I get to the city, the more I realize that the light from the portal isn''t hurting me. I wonder if it''s light from somewhere else shining through, and that''s why it isn''t affecting me?

    I reach the back-left side of the city and slowly descend toward an area full of buildings that are obviously warehouses. Looking around, I see nothing nearby except some loader trucks.

    After placing the suitcase under a truck I run straight ahead toward an open garage in the distance. I''ll be right back Arkaios, there''s something I need before we proceed forward. Passing under the garage doors all I find is a bunch of trucks and one man smoking a cigarette on a couch, watching TV. After one quick glance around, I remove my veil and go to snap this man''s neck too but he barely dodges it and whips a gun around in my direction.

    I grab his wrist with both hands and break it sideways, the gun goes off as the man begins screaming for help. I jump over the couch and kick him in the side of the chest, sending him flying backward into the TV. I jump on top of him as he attempts to stand. Pressing my knees hard against his forearms, I over-enhance my right arm and punch the man in his face as hard as I can. The fight lasted long enough for him to enhance himself so the first punch is mostly blocked, but the impact damage alone knocks him out, eliminating his enhancements. I quickly destroy his head and rip his soul out, gobbling it down before running out of the garage, back the way I came.

    Invisible again, I rip out some blood and create enough mesh to hide inside. I grab the suitcase - flickering my aura so it turns invisible too - and begin to scale the wall behind the warehouse just as I hear noises from the garage. Soon after that lots of lights flare to life and an alarm begins blaring from somewhere deeper in the citadel. Once I''m high enough, I stick the mesh to the mountain and camouflage it as I crawl inside. While all the madness is going on down below, I turn the soul into memories, but I don''t dive into my soul realm yet.

    In the large parking lot below, people begin sweeping the area with flashlights and a multitude of different weapons. Mostly large rifles, but there are sword and mallet users as well.

    Honestly, this might be my most broken ability? At least with the invisibility all you have to do is shine a light on me. However, you''ll never find me in my mesh without running into me directly or hitting me with a ranged attack. The mesh reacts harshly to outside sources of mana or hard impacts. I could turn it into armor, but armor can''t be camouflaged, making hiding in it much more difficult. I''m also happy to see that there aren''t any security cameras. Viktor hates surveillance inside his own cities. Luckily for me, that part of him hasn''t seemed to change.

    After a few hours the men thin out, with most of them dispersing through the fog below, apparently believing I ran that way. Okay, time to take a look at this man''s memories.

    <hr>

    After scouring the man''s memories for a few hours, I was able to find a few notes of interest, with one of them being of particular interest to me. The people who brought supplies to the guardhouse behind the citadel had all become sick with something, so this man had to do their duties for a few weeks. Also, as a side note, the reason he responded so fast to my ambush was because anyone who works in the citadel needs to go through a highly intensive training course before they can work here. Even as a warehouse worker.

    Two things stood out to me immediately when I reached that part of his memories. First off, the ''guardhouse'' is massive and is responsible for guarding almost a dozen different portals. The other is the prison on the first floor. When you walk through the front door, there are two massive cages in the back full of lots of different people I''ve never seen before, and two I had seen before. Ishar and Nisha.

    Unfortunately, the man wasn''t on shift during the time the Demons assaulted the citadel, but now that I know this area is filled with portals, it all starts to make much more sense. Arkaios said they were taken to a different moon, and it''s not hard to imagine how that happened when there are a dozen portals back there. Now I just need to figure out which one he was taken through.

    The large gate I''ve seen watching slowly begins to ascend. Finally, I''ve been waiting hours for someone to come through here. I''ve already stuck Arkaios to my back again, it''s time to finish this. I come out from my hiding spot behind a bunch of broken bicycles and run through the gate, passing by a massive truck. The inside is the same as I saw in the man''s memories. A long tunnel with dim lighting, but at the opposite end a bright orange glow can be seen. As I near the tunnel exit the light starts to hit me, forcing me to remove my veil. Once I exit the tunnel I dive behind an emergency communication booth near the wall on the right.

    Holy shit, I can''t even imagine how much people are paid to work in here. It''s got to be closing in on eighty-five or ninety degrees in here. The area itself is covered in smoke, but it''s nowhere near as orange as it was in the man''s memories. It feels kind of dim right now in comparison. Looking toward the guardhouse, the first thing I see is a seven-foot-tall werewolf in power armor. Now there''s a fucking scary opponent. I really don''t want to fight something like that right now.

    The werewolf is bitching about something while watching some workers in the tunnels on the left side. I activate my tracker and immediately find what I''m looking for. Ishar is floating high in the air, in a weird pose that I don''t even know how to describe.

    Looks like they''re taking him towards the right-side tunnels, but there''s no way I can activate my veil in here. It''s convenient that they''re doing something in the other direction, but if that werewolf turns around, things are going to turn south fast.

    The portals themselves were the source of all the lighting in here, but suddenly the area behind the smoke begins to turn a bright orange as well. Immediately I can feel the temperature in the area spiking.

    "SEE?! THIS IS WHY I SAID TO HURRY UP!!" The werewolf shouted as he sprinted toward the workers in the distance. That was awfully convenient for me...

    I leave the tracker up and begin running down the right-side tunnel. After a quick sprint while keeping an eye behind me, I arrive at a large set of stairs going up.

    Somehow the smoke isn''t covering the stairs... This is rather strange, but it''s not the only strange thing back here. None of these portals look like any of the portals I''ve seen before, and there are way too many of them. Also, the aesthetics of the guardhouse back there shares no similarities to anything else I''ve seen in Jericho.

    I''m getting the feeling that this place belonged to something else, and Jericho claimed it for itself at some point. All this smoke and heat coupled with the fact that Arkaios said Demons had attacked this place... I think I know who originally created this area. That''s a complete guess, but I''d wager it''s an accurate one.

    The top of the stairs opens up to a small area filled with smoke and a single blazing orange portal. There''s a bare path to it just like the stairs behind me. Next to the portal, I can see the final image of Ishar being carried through it. Looks like this is it.

    I walk the rest of the way while eyeing my surroundings, expecting some kind of detection magic or security here since Demons had invaded through this portal in the past, but there''s nothing I can see. If there is something here, then it must be hidden behind the smoke. I would have already felt it if something pinged me though.

    I reach the portal and stop.

    Okay, I need to time this right. There''s no way in hell I''m jumping through this thing without my veil, but the light from this portal is hurting me with my veil down. I already know what kind of pain awaits me if I turn invisible right next to this thing, so I need to time it just as I hit the portal.

    I take a few moments to calm myself and focus. Once I''m ready I jump toward the portal and activate my veil a split second too soon, causing an ungodly amount of pain to ripple through me, but I stifle any scream that''s about to escape me as I arrive on the other end.

    I hit the ground on all fours the second I land, scanning the area around me. It''s a large forest with a bright blue sky, but the trees are blocking the light where I am.

    There aren''t any Demons or wildlife nearby, but I hear something that''s making a really creepy noise. What the hell is that?

    I scan the trees until I find the culprit, one of them at least. It''s a finger-sized insect with wings, making this loud droning noise that fades in and out over and over. I''m just glad to see it wasn''t an unknown monster.

    A strong pulse of energy hits my core and wraps around it, dragging a sliver of my soul downward soon after. I can feel it moving very far down until it feels like it hits the core of the planet. Normally I''d be freaking out about what just happened, but I felt the pulse come from Arkaios'' artifact.

    What was that?

    {Reset point. Find my ancient temple. Five tries.}

    Five tries... As in, if I die I''ll be brought back here? And you have a temple here? I don''t even know where the hell we are.

    {Yes. Abandoned.}

    Taking that as a yes to both. The fact that he thought it was necessary to blow through the artifact''s energy reserves to give me more chances to reach his temple is worrying to say the least. I knew Demons came through here, but I didn''t fully understand the danger awaiting me apparently.

    A small blue ball of light appears in front of me, flying diagonally to my left a little, disappearing shortly after. That way huh... I wasn''t sure where to start so that helps a lot.

    I stand up and begin running in the direction Arkaios had just pointed me towards. Don''t worry guys, I''ll be there soon enough... I hope.

 Chapter 45 - Reunited

    ... Is this really supposed to be a dangerous journey, Arkaios?

    {.......}

    Even though I''ve been running in this direction for hours, I''ve yet to see a single Demon.

    I continue sprinting through the forest, weaving through the shade as I go. The only thing I hear is the sounds of wildlife, and that strange bug, but I think that droning sound is starting to grow on me.

    About twenty minutes later I finally hear something out of place in this serene forest. It sounds like two large beasts are going at it. Despite the distance, I can feel some of the sounds reverberating in my chest.

    I pivot to the right a little, heading directly for whatever is battling it out right now. Not long after that, a large Demon comes rolling through the trees up ahead, smashing several of them over in the process. As it finishes its roll, it swings backwards with its massive axe at an opponent I can''t quite see yet.

    I know this Demon... It''s a Minotaur. I only saw one of these in the other realm, and I only know its name because I asked Viktor if he had seen one before. Surprisingly, he had. It''s about thirty meters tall and made entirely of muscle. It can''t cast spells but it obviously doesn''t need to. One swing of that axe is all it needs, or it should be all it needs... What the hell could possibly be fighting this thing?

    The Minotaur leaps out of view and I hear the sound of its axe smashing into the ground. My curiosity piqued, I circle around the left side and come out to a small clearing where I see the Minotaur exchange blows with a creature I''ve never seen or heard of before. It''s also around thirty meters tall, but it''s wielding a long serrated greatsword with one hand instead of two. I quickly realize why when I see it only has one arm. Its head vaguely resembles that of a lion with a long white mane, but nothing else about it makes sense. It has pure white eyes with blood dripping down them, shark-like teeth, and its jaw is completely unhinged.

    It could be an Eldritch Lord, but something in my gut is telling me that''s wrong. Everything about this creature feels off, including its weapon. When the two of them stopped exchanging blows for a moment I noticed something that''s really creeping me out. The serrated part of the lion''s(?) sword is moving. The pointed ends are wiggling around as if they''re alive...

    What the hell is this thing... Do you know, Arkaios?

    {Unknown.}

    Even he doesn''t know...

    The Minotaur, now bleeding from nearly every part of its body, tries to roll to the side again, but the lion-thing was one step ahead of him. With one swift strike from above, the creature brought its blade down onto the Minotaur mid-roll, cutting his head cleanly off. After the Minotaur''s body stopped moving, the lion bent down and put its mouth near the Minotaur''s chest. It didn''t take me long to understand why it was doing that. I could see the Minotaur''s soul that was about to explode get sucked into the lion''s mouth. However, much to my surprise, there was no explosion from inside the lion after that. It stopped the soul from exploding? This is all so bizarre...

    With the battle over, I turned around and restarted my sprint for the temple. But as I ran, I couldn''t help but glance over my shoulder multiple times to make sure the creature wasn''t following me. This isn''t my usual carefulness. I''m scared of that creature on some level...

    <hr>

    Is this it?

    {Yes.}

    It took a few more hours, but eventually, I found the temple. There are no other buildings nearby, nor is it outside of the forest. It''s literally just a very old abandoned temple sitting in between a bunch of trees.

    I walk up to the temple and head straight through the doorless entrance. The inside looks like your usual temple ceremony rooms, except it is a little larger than I''m used to seeing. I reach the altar and place the artifact on top of it.

    {... Empty. Need more bodies. Need Nisha.}

    Empty... As in the energy here is completely empty? And where is Nisha? I''m guessing you want me to grab her and Shana first before looking for Ishar. They''d know where to find him anyway.

    {Yes. Follow light. Leave artifact, connecting to core.}

    Another blue light comes out from the artifact. I follow it outside and it immediately turns to the right. After that it goes straight for a bit but it doesn''t disappear this time, instead it speeds up. Oh right, I don''t have the artifact so he wants to make sure I don''t get lost on the way.

    About twenty minutes later the light suddenly stops. I look around and see a familiar sight. Heh, feels like it''s been ages since I''ve seen one of her mana lines... I follow the mana line up high into a tree, where I find Shana sitting with her back against the tree, deep in meditation.

    Her clothes are ragged and she''s covered in dirt... How long have these two been stuck here deep in this forest?

    I sit down and remove my veil. "Hello, Shana."

    I must have scared her quite a bit because she immediately banged her head against the tree while attempting to grab her daggers. After a few seconds of freaking out she stopped and began to give me a thorough look-over. Her eyes flitted between my hair and eyes several times before she finally said, "... R-Rei....?"

    I nodded and lifted some of my hair up, "Yeah, I had to dye my hair to get through Jericho." I smiled, "Even caked in dirt you still look beautiful as ever."

    An indescribable emotion appeared on her face for a moment as she relaxed and put her daggers away. She hung her head down, saying nothing for a while.

    "S-Sorry, it''s just... it''s just been a long time, Rei. I''m having a hard time believing this is real..." Shana said, still looking down.

    "It''s fine, take your time. I don''t know what you have been through but Arkaios gave me some minor details here and there, so I think I know how you ended up here."

    Shana''s head whips up, "Arkaios?! You spoke to him? Does he know what is happening here right now?!"

    I shook my head, "No. We just got here, and judging from his attitude when we arrived, he thought I was going to end up fighting Demons to reach his temple. Instead, all I saw was one Minotaur getting killed by... I don''t even know. Something else."

    Shana sighed when I said that. "Something else is a good way to describe those things... I''ll explain back at our hideout. Nisha is begging us to return. She sounds happy, which is a tone I haven''t heard from her since the day I rescued her."

    Shana leaps to the next tree over, waiting for me to follow her. I jump over as well and she quickly jumps to another tree. She does this for a while until we eventually reach an area of the forest with trees that are completely covered in mini-branches and leaves, making it hard to navigate forward.

    Fortunately, we didn''t need to make our way through these trees for long. Shana jumped directly up through a large bundle of leaves, so I did the same. Once I passed through all the leaves I saw her hanging off of a branch so I grabbed onto it as well. Looking around, I saw we were in a large room completely hidden from the outside, but it still had enough light penetrating from above to light the room up. Shana and I swung onto the floorboards ahead.

    Nisha, who was lying down on a makeshift bed of leaves exited her meditation and stood up. She quite literally began jumping while squealing in joy.

    "I didn''t think you''d be this happy to see me, but it does confirm one suspicion I had back then. I always had this feeling that you were in love with me..."

    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    "Oh god, I forgot how weird you were," Nisha said, still holding the biggest smile I''ve ever seen. "You said ''we'' back there, so Arkaios is here too, right?! So you definitely brought the artifact. It must be back at the temple... You have no idea of what this means, Rei..."

    "We can bring back your original party members and Markus''s templars, right?"

    "Yes! We''ll bring back Markus and his templars first, they''re much better at praying than we are. They''ll fill the artifact up much faster, and we''ll need to repair the temple too... It''s defenseless as it is. In fact, let''s hurry there now. We can''t let anything take or destroy the artifact." Nisha said.

    Shana nods and grabs some of the hand-woven bags sitting in the back of the room. Nisha and I grab the others and head back to the hole we jumped in through. The two of them take one last look at the room with solemn looks on their faces.

    "We''ve been hiding here for a long time Rei... It kind of hurts to be saying goodbye to it so suddenly." Nisha said.

    I can understand that. I''ve lost plenty of temporary homes over the years. Hell, I even felt sad saying goodbye to that first hole in the ground I woke up in long ago.

    Shana looks at me, "We''ll explain when we get there. For now, we need to hurry."

    "Wait, isn''t Nisha super slow?"

    Nisha nods and ties her bags onto her shoulders, jumping onto my back after she''s done. "... I know how bad I smell right now. We haven''t had much of a chance to clean ourselves."

    "Eh, don''t worry about it. I''m more concerned with running into one of those creatures."

    "There shouldn''t be any over here, but my clones have seen some near the temple. The last sighting was a few days ago." Shana said right before she jumped down below.

    "Aren''t you going to grab my legs or something?" Nisha asked.

    "No need. You haven''t noticed? I already made it so the parts you''re touching are stuck to you. You won''t fall off unless something rips you off."

    After answering her I immediately jump down below and follow behind Shana as she begins jumping through the trees again.

    <hr>

    "It''s really here..." Nisha said as we entered the temple. I released her from my armor and she ran over to the artifact. Soon after that, she entered a prayer pose.

    I looked at Shana, "You going to have your clones keep watch while we pray to this thing?"

    Instead of answering me, Shana walked over and hugged me. It took me by surprise, but I quickly hugged her back. We stayed like that for a while before she finally began speaking. "I''m sorry, Rei. I feel like it was ages ago when you disappeared..." After saying that she pulled away and sat down on a nearby bench. I walked over and sat next to her.

    "Can you tell me what happened?"

    Shana nodded, "After we left Aresa''s manor I tried to keep an eye on our surroundings, but we were ambushed from a place I didn''t expect. Men from Jericho came running out of one of the nearby homes as we passed by it. As you''d expect, Nisha was subdued almost instantly, but unfortunately I was too... They hit me with several shots from a gun that electrocuted me. My barrier didn''t block it and in my panicked state I didn''t enhance myself fast enough, which led to them knocking me out."

    Shana continued, "Next thing I knew they were loading us onto a strange-looking wagon, something I now know is a ''vehicle''. They took their hands off me for a split second as they were locking me into the manacles, which gave me a chance to swap positions with one of my clones. They only realized their blunder at one of their ''checkpoints'' inside of Jericho. You saw all their security at the start of those bridges, right? Those bone things we ran into under Kellog had scanned my clone, giving the game away. It didn''t matter though. They just killed the clone and kept going. As a result, it took me forever to figure out where they took Nisha."

    "Did you blend into town like I did?"

    Shana nodded, "I should have dyed my hair like you did, but my tail grows out pretty fast, so it would have been difficult to maintain. Anyway, I found Nisha''s location and even saw Ishar with her, but breaking them out was proving impossible. The cell didn''t use keys, it was some kind of digital thing that I struggled to understand. I broke into several homes to try and teach myself about all the new technology around me, but I still couldn''t find a workaround for the ''retinal scanners''.

    "Oh shit, I wouldn''t know how to get past those either. The gate into that area had fingerprint scanners, but all I had to do was wait for a truck to come through. Which I''m guessing you did the same."

    Shana smiled, "Not quite. I hid on the truck that was going into the portal area."

    "Clever as always."

    "I need to be. Unlike a certain someone else, I can''t turn invisible. It sure would be nice though! I found myself thinking about you during my time in Jericho. I was constantly wondering just how easy it would be for... Wait." Shana narrowed her eyes at me, "How long did it take you to make your way through Jericho and discover where everyone went?"

    "... I did it all in a couple of days. I had to hide after killing someone in the citadel that leads to the portal area. Plus, I needed time to look through his memories. Oh, and uh, I also had the Chimera''s tracking ability that showed me exactly where Ishar went, which helped me a lot."

    Shana put her head into her hands, "It''s all so unfair..."

    I reach over and rub her back. She looks up at me with her first genuine smile yet, "I''m really happy you''re back, Rei..." I went to respond but Shana cut me off, "Oh, I haven''t got to the important part yet. Arkaios was right, there was Demons here. They were everywhere in fact. The Demons were forcing Ishar and all the other prisoners to dig for something. I tried torturing the humans who were working with the Demons, trying to get any information I could out of them, but they didn''t actually know anything. All of their followers only knew one thing, that their masters were looking for something here."

    "Looking for something...? Also, what do you mean by ''masters''? Humans who summon Demons are almost always the masters. Actually, how the hell did they summon that many Demons?"

    Shana shook her head, "They were Demon worshipers. I know that sounds strange, but apparently, they exist, and not only that, there is a large Demon civilization being built on another moon right now, and this was merely a detached force of theirs. The Demon leading them sent them here to dig something up, and while they were doing this, Nisha and I were formulating a plan to free everyone. I was close to achieving it when suddenly those creatures appeared and began killing all of the Demons. I can''t even get close to the dig site now with all those creepy creatures crawling around..."

    What the hell? Back when Arkaios told me about my friends being on another moon, I obviously had no idea of what would be waiting for me, but I never in a million years would have expected this.

    "Okay, well... What should we do now? I can probably reach Ishar and see if he and the other prisoners are okay."

    "No." Nisha cut in, "Arkaios says we need to bring Markus back first. If the three of us pray we should have enough energy to bring him back around the same time Arkaios has fully connected his temple to the moon''s core. After that, we can start to formulate a plan."

    Shana looked at me and I just shrugged. We both stood up and walked over to Nisha, sitting down on both sides of her. Before long, all three of us were meditating while focusing all of our energy into the artifact.

    <hr>

    "Okay, um, I think only I need to do this next part?" Nisha said.

    Shana literally falls over from her sitting position and rolls herself onto the bedding near the wall. "That''s it, I''m done. Never doing this again..."

    It''s been a long week, no doubt about that. It was supposed to take way longer, but Arkaios managed to connect to the moon''s core and has been siphoning energy from it directly. According to him, all temples do it, but if you try forcing it past the natural amount you''re supposed to take, like he''s currently doing, Eldritch will come in droves and destroy your temple. So normally he wouldn''t do something like this, but since this moon is owned by Demons or whatever the hell is killing them, he says we shouldn''t need to worry about any Eldritch showing up.

    Both Nisha and the artifact begin to glow, giving off a bright white light that grows larger with every passing second. I began to wonder just how long it was going to take when suddenly the light on both of them disappeared out. All three of us immediately noticed what the light was replaced with. Markus was lying there on the stone floor between Nisha and the artifact, completely nude.

    "Uncle Markus!" Nisha shouted, smiling yet again.

    Oh wow, I completely forgot that these two were related.

    Markus groaned as he rubbed his temples. "Nisha? Why are..." Markus jumps to his feet and reaches for his sword, which is obviously not there. He stares at his nude body with a perplexed expression. Next, he slowly looks around the temple before finally settling his gaze on us. "Ah shit... I remember now. Fucking embarrassing that I''d try and get revenge on Rai''ga while the city was being invaded."

    Nisha tilted her head, "Revenge?"

    "The fucker killed my men. And I know that for a fact, because after Rei released me from prison I immediately returned to my temple and found that none of their souls were tied to the artifact, which meant something had absorbed them. So unless Lady Aresa ate them, the only other option was Rai''ga. I went to his temple but he wasn''t there, and he wasn''t fighting the Xerath either. I ended up dying to two of those tall purple fuckers while I was looking for him." Markus said.

    "Wait! Something you just said stuck out to me. You''re saying that if an Eldritch or Xerath absorbs Keith, he''s gone forever? I thought Arkaios would pull their soul back before that happens, like how the Tengu saves his Lords."

    Markus nodded, "Correct on both fronts. However, there are times when my Lord cannot retrieve his subject''s souls. A powerful Eldritch locking them down would be one such time."

    Damn, I thought they were all immortal warriors under Arkaios, but it looks like there are some caveats in that ''immortal'' title.

    "Alright, give me the rundown. Where the hell are we? You two look like shit and Rei dyed her hair for some reason." Markus said.

    Before we could speak, Markus reached out and touched the artifact. He began to shine a bright white again but this time when the light went away, there were no extra bodies in the room. Instead, Markus was in his original templar gear again.

    "Whoa, now that''s impressive!"

    Markus smiled at me, "Damn right it is. This is one of the perks of serving my Lord. I get to wear some of the best armor around, although it does drain quite a bit of energy to create or repair it. Odds are you three could''ve summoned me much earlier, but I would have been half useless without my armor and weapon."

    Markus sat down next to his niece and began praying. "Now speak, I can both pray and converse at the same time."

    I sure as hell couldn''t do that...

    Shana and I took turns explaining to him everything that had happened up until this point.

 Chapter 46 - Full Reset

    "Tsk..." Shana shook her head and leaned back against the wall.

    "How close did you get this time?"

    "Barely half the distance I covered the first time. They always find my clones and kill them with ease. Normally I''m good at evading attacks..." Shana said.

    "Are they moving in this direction or was it by chance that they found your clones early this time?"

    Shana closed her eyes, thinking about the question a bit before answering, "... I don''t know. I didn''t even see them this time until it was too late."

    "The fog?" Markus asked, still in his praying pose.

    Shana sighed, "Yes... It''s getting thicker, and it''s doing more than blocking my visuals. I can''t sense anything through the fog."

    Well, it''s definitely not a normal fog then if it''s also blocking our ability to sense mana signatures.

    It''s been almost a week since we revived Markus. In that time Shana has been trying to get close to the dig site with her clones, while Markus and Nisha pray to the artifact. For my part, I''m directly pouring mana into the artifact whenever my mana is capped. According to Arkaios, I''m horrible at praying. I was barely contributing when we were working to revive Markus. So for now I''m pouring mana into it directly so he can at least get the barrier up and running again. Sadly, we might be needing it soon, but it''s nowhere near ready.

    I planned on scouting out the digsite personally, but everyone asked me to wait. Once Nisha''s whole crew is back and the temple is up and running again, they''ll be able to set our reset points to the temple. Going out there before then would be rather stupid, so I agreed to wait. If I go out there and die, who knows how long it''ll be before I revive again. They can''t afford to lose me right now.

    "Okay, close your eyes everyone," Markus said.

    The same light show as last time plays out between Markus and the artifact. Once it''s finished I can see Keith lying there on the ground. He slowly sits up and looks around the temple. Eventually, he looks down with a vexed expression on his face.

    "... Damnit."

    Markus laughed, "Don''t worry about it kid! I''m sure my death was much stupider than yours was."

    Keith shook his head and stood up. He approached the artifact and equipped himself through it just like Markus had before, however, his gear was rather lackluster in comparison. After that he sat down and heavily breathed in and out, preparing himself.

    "Alright... where are we?"

    <hr>

    Several more weeks went by and Keith''s whole crew was finally back to the realm of the living. They''re all going to stay behind and keep praying to the temple just in case we need the barrier or more reset points for others. We don''t know what kind of condition Ishar is in after all.

    "Rei." Markus waves me over.

    I walk over and sit next to him. "Something happen?"

    Markus nodded, "Arkaios has decided to do a full reset instead. Do you know what that means?"

    "No?"

    "Thought so. Basically, he''s locking down this entire region. Everywhere from the portal you came in through, Shana''s tree fort, the temple, and even the digsite, plus a few more miles in each direction. When he activates the reset, everything resets to the point it was at before, including inanimate objects."

    "... Honestly, that sounds ridiculous. Can he really do that?"

    Markus laughed, "Only for small areas. Normally it would require a temple to be in peak condition and for there to be at least fifty well-trained templars constantly praying to dissuade some of the costs required with such a feat. However, the most problematic part is the Eldritch and Demon threat. This power draws their attention, especially the Eldritch, because it requires Arkaios to siphon the moon''s life force, which makes you enemy number one in their eyes."

    "What about Terra''ka?"

    "He also greatly disapproved of such an ability, but he didn''t explicitly say not to use it."

    He''s probably more concerned with rooting out Xerath and Demonic corruption. Arkaios slowly killing any world he''s on by siphoning its life force is also a problem, but there are times when it''s necessary, like right now.

    "Arkaios is going to start soon. You''ll know when it''s finished. After that, we want you to go scout out the digsite for us. Hopefully you can find Ishar too, but at the very least we need to know what is waiting for us over there." Markus said.

    I''ll know, huh? That means the enemy will probably know too. Assuming they even have intelligent thoughts at all.

    Shana sits down to my right and rests her head against my shoulder. "I''ll keep trying to get my clones closer to the digsite so they can back you up, but far from gaining ground, I''m losing them much faster as time goes on. Whatever is killing them is coming this way."

    "Hmm... I think I''m going to follow one of your clones so I can see how and what is killing them."

    "Good idea. I''ll keep one on the ground---"

    The air itself seems to ripple for a split second, followed by a loud cracking sound that echoes throughout the world around us.

    "There''s your cue." Markus continued, "Oh, I almost forgot. Only the people here will remember what happens between the resets, so if you find Ishar but end up needing to reset, he won''t remember anything from the prior reset. The same goes for the creatures out there as well."

    "If I bring Ishar back here, I assume Arkaios can make it so he also remembers what happens between the resets?"

    Markus nodded.

    Perfect. Now I see why he decided to do a full reset, which is basically the same as rewinding time. With the creatures getting closer, merely returning here alive wouldn''t mean much if they are also learning from any encounters with me. Plus, this should prevent them from destroying the temple, unless Arkaios ends up running out of energy before we can kill them.

    "One last question. How long will this reset last?"

    Markus shrugged, "It depends. Setting a reset point drained some energy, but right now it''s costing almost nothing. What does cost energy is the act of resetting. If we end up needing to do it a bunch of times back to back, that will be a major problem. Arkaios can only siphon so much from the moon to make up for what we are lacking in prayer."

    Markus continued, "Also, uh... Not to worry everyone here, but there''s another reason he never does full resets. Breaking causality to that degree will draw the attention of Meizha''thul and Eremnon. They won''t notice it right away, but with every passing reset, we risk them turning their eyes toward us. It doesn''t help that Eremnon just lost a bunch of Demons here, so he might even notice us much faster than he normally would."

    Albel stopped praying and whipped his head around, "A-Are you being serious right now? What do we do if either one of them decides to assault this temple?"

    "We''ll deal with that when the time comes," Markus said.

    In other words, he doesn''t know. Not that I blame him. No one could possibly know how they''ll ''deal'' with us if they decide to attack us. And Arkaios is draining the moon, which means Meizha''thul has even more of a reason to want us dead.

    Shana removes her head from my shoulder, allowing me to stand up. After that I wait for her to create more clones. I stare at Shana for a few minutes as she meditates, until eventually two clones split off from her. The second they both fully materialize they run out of the temple. Alright then, here we go...

    I chase after the clone on the left, activating my aura after I''m outside the temple. The clone sprints from one tree to another, stopping only for a split second to peek out from behind a tree, scanning the area for enemies.

    I doubt she can see very far though. The fog is unbelievably thick at this point... I didn''t plan on following her from this distance, but I don''t have much of a choice. I''m barely sixty feet behind her.

    This continues for quite a while until a large spear hits the clone in the chest, pulling her deep into the fog. I immediately stop moving and stare forward, hoping to see something, but even my eyes can''t pierce fog this thick. However, I can hear loud footsteps. It''s something with a large stride that makes the ground shake as it walks... And that spear was bizarre. After it pierced Shana, claws came out of the end of the spear and dug into her back, allowing whatever speared her to pull her back towards it.

    I wait until the footsteps are far enough away that I can no longer hear them. It went to the left, so I shouldn''t need to worry about running into it...

    I restart my sprint forward. Unlike my first trip through the forest, I no longer need to worry about the sun hitting me. Instead, I''m doing my best to avoid stepping on any twigs. My feet aren''t very good at blocking the sound they emit when I step on them. Fortunately, I can still hear all the insects and wildlife that are associated with forests. It would''ve been even creepier if this place was completely silent.

    If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    <hr>

    An hour later I''m standing on one side of a river, watching the Lion creature drinking from the river on all fours. There are other creatures here too, but I can''t fully make them out yet. They''re just out of range through the fog. All I know is that they''re as large as the Lion is. Shana said the digsite is on the other side of this river, so that explains why I''m suddenly seeing two enemies together after not seeing any up until this point. I heard a few on the way here, but they were pretty far away from me.

    I walk along the river until I don''t see any enemies on the other side. After that I hide behind a tree and enhance my legs. Once I''m ready, I jump over the river and continue my journey, except this time I move much slower.

    It should be really close now. She said it wa---

    I stop in my tracks as a vile but familiar feeling washes over me. I look up, and while I can only see fog, I know the presence that''s currently up there looking down at the world below it. Eremnon''s great eye.

    How does he have enough influence here to manifest his eye in the sky?! I know this area was owned by Demons but still... I can feel him regarding me with curiosity. I don''t know if he remembers me, but at the very least he finds my presence in this area to be quite interesting. The emotion I felt before he noticed me was pure hatred. Whatever is here, he doesn''t seem to like it very much.

    I pull my attention away from the eye in the sky and begin moving forward again. It doesn''t take long for me to exit the trees, finding myself in a wide-open plain. And the digsite should be a little beyond this.

    As I''m walking through the short grass, I can hear someone screaming in pain diagonally to my right.

    Okay... The digsite is on the left side of the area, and the prison is on the right side. So whoever is screaming is in the prison. I suppose I should take it as a good sign that the people here are still alive, but it''s hard to be overjoyed at the sounds of someone''s bloodcurdling screams...

    I turn and head straight for where the screams are originating from. An old stone building comes into view, but there is also a shaggy gray three-headed dog creature resting in front of the entrance. The ''dog'' is forty meters tall and three times as long. Worst of all however, is the fact that it has no eyes. That''s making me even more wary of it.

    Hopefully it just has better hearing or sense of smell to compensate, but for an unknown creature like this, I bet the damned thing has an amazing detection ability. I''ll try and see if I can walk around it, but if that fails I''ll jump on top of the prison and look for another way inside.

    I give the dog-monster a wide berth, walking toward the wall on the left side. After I reach it, I creep towards the entrance. I''m about halfway there when the dog''s six ears all perk up at the same time. It raises all three of its heads and looks this way. They begin snarling as the dog stands up. God damnit, I knew it...

    I leap backward repeatedly, creating more and more space between me and the creature. Immediately the dog stops snarling and leaps forward to where I was originally. One head begins sniffing the ground, while the other two look to and fro, trying to find me. Using this chance, I run around to the other side of the creature, giving it a wide berth again so it can''t sense me. But apparently I was still close enough for it to sense me when I neared the gate. It whipped around and leaped for me, but I was already inside the prison by the time it jumped into the air. After it landed, all three of the heads began barking and snapping at the entrance behind me.

    The inside is barely lit. There are a few torches on the walls going, but it''s still rather dark inside. A man who was resting by the wall to my right stands up and walks toward the entrance. I move further inside to avoid him, but as I''m passing by him I get a good look at how disgusting he is. His body is completely ripped and riddled with scars, but everything about him feels *off,* just like the other creatures I''ve seen so far. As the man is looking up at the dog another man walks into the room from one of the connecting hallways. What the hell? He looks exactly like the other guy... Are they twins?

    The new arrival looks between the man and the dog for a split second, before continuing on his way toward the hallway on the left side. I walk toward the hallway on the right(the one he first appeared from), peeking around the corner as I arrive. In both directions there is minimal lighting and only a door or two. I enter the hallway and jog through it until I reach the end. It turns to the left, but there''s also a door here. The screams are coming from the left, but I''ll check any doors I come across just in case.

    I reach for the handle and it doesn''t turn at all. Locked, of course. I could break it but I''ll hold off for now.

    I turn to the left and proceed deeper into the prison. Eventually the hallway opens up to a large room with two large cells on each side. I walk through the room and scan the cells, looking for anyone I recognize, and surprisingly, it''s not just Ishar I find.

    There''s Ishar, sitting down with his back against the wall, looking just as horrified as everyone else in these cells. But that''s not all. I see Greyson as well, the werewolf I encountered back in Thule.

    More screams erupt from an area deeper in the prison, but this time it sounds much more clear. It must be close, maybe even in the next room over.

    I walk up to Ishar''s cell, and after one quick glance in both directions to check for enemies, I remove my aura. A few of the people jump back from the bars, while a few others freak out as well, causing Ishar and Greyson to look up.

    "Ishar, Greyson," I whisper, waving them toward me.

    Greyson looks confused, but Ishar''s eyes nearly bulge out of his head. He stood up and ran over to me. "Rei?! How, how are you... No, never mind. I know how..." Ishar chuckled lightly, "You have no idea of how happy I am to see you... Do you know what is happening here?"

    I shook my head, "Nope. I just arrived on this moon a few weeks ago. I brought Arkaios'' relic with me and then found Shana and Nisha as well. We''ve already revived Keith''s group and Markus, now we just need to break you out of here."

    "... Best news I''ve heard in years." Ishar said in a way that almost made me tear up.

    ... Now that I see him up close, he''s covered in scars and looking much thinner than the last time I saw him. His eyes are completely gaunt as well... Fucking Demons.

    Another scream erupted from the next room over. Ishar jumped with the others and gripped the bars hard. "... There''s a ghost-like spider taking us one by one into the room back there. I don''t know what it does, but whoever is its victim for the day ends up screaming like that for about twenty hours before finally going silent. Fortunately, most of us are going to die of thirst before it''s our turn." Ishar continued, "But now that you''re here, we might actually be able to get out of here... How far away are the others?"

    "About an hour in that direction." I pointed toward the temple. "... I don''t think I can save everyone here Ishar. There is a bunch of building-sized creatures out there roaming around, and the entrance to this prison is guarded by a three-headed dog that we would struggle to beat."

    Ishar looked around the cell. Fortunately, nobody was even listening to us, aside from Greyson, who was now standing up and walking over here.

    "I remember now... You''re that white-haired girl who killed Charles. Except your hair is black now it seems. You''re here to save this Crotian? Didn''t think I''d ever see the day that someone stuck their neck out for one of their kind..."

    "Well... He is a friend, and I''d love to hear about how you two ended up here, but for now I need to get you out of here. How do I open these bars? I barely touched them and they began sapping my mana, so I already know that breaking them is impossible."

    Ishar nodded, "You''ve seen bars like these before? This was my first time encountering them, so I don''t know what they are, but we can''t even dent them."

    "Forget about that! Girl, go save my prince!" A man said from the cell behind me.

    Greyson sighed, "The man the ghastly spider took was important to them." Greyson motioned toward the other cell, "Ignore them. Helping us is the same as helping them, so if they know what''s good for them, they''ll shut the fuck up and wait."

    "She''ll need to steal the keys from the guards, and who the hell knows which one has the keys. They all look the same now!" The man said.

    Looking back, I saw that most of the people in the other cell were wearing the same type of garb that Shana wears. I think Ishar called her a ninja? So are these people all ninjas?

    The ninja scowled, "Look, I''m going to make this simple for you. You either save our prince right now, or I''m going to shout for the guards. I saw you turn visible earlier. I don''t know how you acquired such a powerful ability, but our people know better than anyone else that stealth abilities don''t mean much if the enemy knows of your presence, and I will make sure they know you can turn invisible. Hopefully the spirit will turn its attention towards you and then you''ll have no choice but to deal with it."

    ... This bitch.

    Both Ishar and Greyson looked like they wanted to bite the Ninja''s head off, but before I could decide on how to respond, I heard footsteps coming down the hallway opposite of where I came in. I quickly turned my aura back on and hid near the hallway I came in through. It didn''t take long for me to see that the new arrival was one of the guards I saw at the entrance. Probably the one who was patrolling the hallways.

    "Ten seconds girl." The ninja said, making the guard glance at him for a second as it walked by their cage.

    Fucking ninja. Do whatever you want. I''m not saving your prince.

    The guard turned left, walking past Ishar''s cage and straight ahead from where I am.

    The ninja clicked his tongue, "So be it. GUARD! THERE''S AN INTRUDER HERE AND SHE CAN TURN INVISIBLE!!"

    The guard stopped and merely looked at the ninja for a second before it continued walking forward again.

    Did the guard think he was lying...? It didn''t seem like that though. If anything, it looked like he couldn''t even comprehend what the ninja was saying.

    A sharp whistling sound passed through the room, making everyone in the cells hit the ground. Ishar and Greyson were doing their best to hold their composure, but they were clearly struggling, and I could understand why. Multiple green ethereal human hands crawled through the wall Ishar''s cell was connected to. They stuck to the ceiling, pulling themselves forward until the spider''s torso finally appeared. The creature itself was built like an arachnid, but its limbs ended in human hands, and the entire creature was ethereal to the point that I could see the ceiling behind it. Three large human eyes swirled around its torso, scanning the room every which way.

    Is it looking for me? The guards couldn''t understand the ninja, but this thing apparently can...

    Eventually, all three eyes stop on the ninja who yelled out.

    "S-She''s really here! She was talking to those two right there!" He pointed towards Ishar and Greyson. The spider''s eyes regarded them for a few seconds. After that, it seemed to either lose interest or decided I wasn''t worth the trouble. Instead, it grabbed the ninja, pulling him through the bars and dragging him into the back room. I heard the ninja whimper out a ''No, please...'' before he disappeared.

    It made the ninja ethereal too... That''s one hell of a problematic ability. It''s already a threat by itself, but if it can make its allies walk through walls, then nowhere is going to feel safe. Attacks could come from literally anywhere... Putting aside the ninja and his prince, we do need to kill this creature. It''ll make everything from here on out a nightmare to deal with if we don''t.

    Soon after that, both the ninja and his prince began screaming. The remaining ninjas looked like they were completely broken. A few looked angry, but the rest had tears rolling down their faces as they tried to cover their ears. I waited a few minutes before walking back to Ishar''s cage and speaking to him with my veil still up. No need to remove it now. He already knows I''m here.

    "So if I heard that correctly earlier, one of the guards has the keys?"

    Ishar nodded, "Yes, but hell if any of us know which ones have them. The guards all changed after these creatures took over. Now they''re just mindless minions who continue to ''guard'' the prison and nothing more. They all look the same now too, so I have no idea of which one the warden is. He had a big keyring hanging off his belt, look for a guard with one of those."

    I went to reply to Ishar but I could feel my body go into fight or flight mode. Unsure of why I suddenly felt eyes on me, I looked around until I saw it. One of the spider''s human hands were poking through the wall near the ceiling with its palm facing me, and on its palm was one of its eyes I saw earlier. However, this time, the eye was shining a bright gold. I felt nothing enveloping or piercing my veil, but somehow I knew the creature could see me, or at the very least see some part of me, like my veil itself.

    Testing it, I moved to the right a little and the palm tracked me to the right. Upon seeing this I immediately turned and ran back the way I came in, but the spider was on top of me nearly instantly. The second its hands grabbed me I knew why everyone it took into the backroom ended up screaming in agony. The spider''s soul locked onto my core and began to siphon from it directly. It hurt a little at first but it quickly ramped up to the point that even I was going to start screaming.

    Just as I was about to reach that point, I found myself back in the temple with Shana leaning her head against my shoulder.

 Chapter 47 - Full Assault

    "You died that fast...? Things must be much more dire than I was expecting." Markus said.

    Shana tapped my leg, "Did you make it to the digsite?"

    "Yeah, but I ended up dying soon after I entered the prison. A ghastly spider-like monster saw through my veil and grabbed me." I continued, "Actually, hang on... I wasn''t dead yet, so why did it reset? The spider is slowly siphoning the prisoners souls, and I was about to become one of its next victims."

    "Our Lord must have determined you were in a dire situation from which there was no escape, and it sounds like he was right," Markus said.

    "Is the prison mostly empty?" Keith asked.

    "No. I don''t know about the rest of the prison, but the two large cells past the entrance have at least fifty people inside of them. Ishar and Greyson were inside one of them, and the other cell had a bunch of ninjas inside it."

    Shana lifted her head off my shoulder and looked at me, "You... You really saw ninjas? Are you positive? Ishar told me about them, but I''ve never met anyone else who had abilities like mine. Outside of my grandfather of course. He taught me everything I know."

    "They wore clothes like yours, but I wasn''t able to see any of their abilities. So far my only interaction with them has been one of the male ninjas threatening to reveal me to the guards if I didn''t save his prince from the spider. I figured he was bluffing, but it turns out he wasn''t... The fucker called for the guards just like he said he would, except none of them responded to him. Instead, the spider came into the room and captured me."

    "What the hell? Did you leave something important out there? That makes no sense... Why would he sick the enemy on you?" Albel said.

    "To ''save'' his prince, according to him. I don''t know what he thought was going to happen, but he was clearly just desperate, because like you said, it made no sense. There''s no way in hell I can beat that thing. Actually, to be precise, I don''t know how any of us are going to kill that spider. It''s ethereal, so it can move through anything, and when it touches you, you also become ethereal." I sighed and continued, "When it touched me I immediately lost control of my body... It''s like I was paralyzed. I couldn''t move, use abilities, channel mana... Nothing would work."

    Keith hummed, "Hmm... Elemental spells or abilities from far away sound like our only option. How much room is there to fight inside the few rooms you saw in the prison."

    "The entrance and first cell area are all I saw before I ''died'', but they were pretty big. However, the spider is massive, so by the time its torso was inside the room, its hands could already reach anyone it wanted."

    "Hands?" Nisha asked.

    "Yeah, its arms and hands are shaped like ours, but much larger."

    Nisha sighed, "That sounds just as nightmarish as all the other creatures Shana and I have seen so far..."

    "I know we''ve already talked about this, and our lord doesn''t seem to know either, but seriously... What exactly is it that we''re fighting here?" Albel asked.

    Everyone went silent. After all, no one here had an answer to that question.

    "Wait... I didn''t think about this until now, but it''s awfully odd that Arkaios just so happens to have a temple barely an hour away from where this is all going down. Is it really a coincidence?"

    Markus tried to respond but Arkaios cut him off. {Yes. There used to be a large nation Northwest of here hundreds of years ago. My missionaries found the nation and they agreed to let them build a temple here, however, they were only allowed to build it near the prison. You see, my missionaries offer gifts in return for allowing me to spread my influence, and lots of nations accept my offerings, but find convenient excuses to put my temples in places nobody will ever see them.}

    "Did you have a lot of followers here, My Lord?" Markus asked.

    {No. There were a few prisoners and guards who worshiped me, but the nation fell before I could build a foothold here. Another nation razed it to the ground and they were led by an Eldritch who had no interest in anything I was offering, so the few followers I had acquired all ended up leaving this moon. One of them is still alive actually. I asked him what he knew about the prison and if there was anything underneath it. He said it was mostly a normal prison, but there were all sorts of rumors about how deep the prison went, and there seemed to be real substance behind those rumors. The guards found it weird how only those in charge were allowed to go down the stairs in the back of the prison. Also, every few months the higher ups would take a dozen or so prisoners down below, and that''s the last time anyone would ever see them.}

    "Sounds like this has been going on for ages. That nation must have known what was down there, but nothing came of it until the Demons forcibly unearthed... Whatever the hell all of this is." I continued, "Oh, I forgot to mention something important. The Demons have a shocking amount of influence over the area surrounding the prison. In fact, they''ve corrupted it so much that Eremnon''s eye is in the sky looking down on the prison."

    Markus stared at me agape. "How is that possible...? I''ve never heard of Demons having that level of influence over our world. It was already shocking enough hearing about how they''re building their own damned nation on another moon, but to hear that their god has some level of access to our world is..."

    {It has always been possible. That is why despite our innate desire to destroy one another, I work with Eldritch like Terra''ka. There are many forces out there just like him who understand that keeping the Demonic and Xerath threat under control is far more important than whatever squabbles we may have with one another.}

    Keith stood up and willed a sword into his hand. "Alright, I''ve heard enough. Please lead us to the prison, Rei."

    Markus bolted from his sitting position, punching a fist into his palm. "Agreed. I know our initial plan was to just pray while Rei attempted to bring the others back here, but I say we try and bring them back by force. Also, it sounds like she''s going to have a really hard time getting them out of the prison, let alone dragging them back through a monster-infested foggy forest."

    Shana sighed, "... I don''t like this plan. My clones can''t sense any attacks through the fog. I dodge some here and there, but they always end up dying in the end." Shana continued, "Rei, how many enemies did you encounter on the way to the prison?"

    "Hard to say... I heard very loud footsteps every so often, and if I were to count all of those encounters, it would be uh... Maybe ten or so enemies? But those were just the ones moving around. I have no idea of how many monsters are out there lying dormant, waiting for prey to come to them."

    "There might be none," Lindon said.

    "And there might be dozens," Albel added.

    "Let''s just try and see what happens, okay?" Nisha said as she laid down. Soon after that I saw a blue mana line connecting to everyone here but me.

    "Shouldn''t she do that for me too?"

    Albel raised his hand, "She says she tried back in Kellog, but it wasn''t working. The most she could do was get a vague sense of where you were." Albel continued, "Wow... So that means you must have let her connect to you sometime after I died? I thought she wanted to kill you back then but I guess I''m remembering that part wrong..."

    I vaguely remember that. I know I invited her into my soul realm to show her something, but I don''t remember her trying to activate her ability when she was connected to me. My core must have completely blocked it out.

    Shana tapped my leg again, "You never did tell me how you first met Eremnon. Normally I wouldn''t ask in this situation, but since his presence is nearby..."

    The others looked at me with surprised expressions after she said that.

    "... Yeah, it was in the Xerath''s realm. I spent most of my days just skulking around. When I didn''t need to eat anyone, I''d follow random people or sneak into cities to see what their Xerathian god had planned. However, one day, I came across a pack of Imps. I tracked them back to a long wooden bridge that connected to a settlement on top of a plateau. I hesitated for a while before deciding to cross it. After all, I could see a lot of Demons on the other side, so it wasn''t an easy decision to make. There were dozens of Satyr and all kinds of other Demons milling about. My curiosity was piqued though, so it was inevitable that I''d cross the bridge, and the second I reached the settlement I fell to my knees. There was something in the sky crushing my core... I couldn''t move an inch."

    "Eremnon?" Shana asked.

    I nodded. "The Demons began laughing at the idiot who thought they could intrude into an area dominated by Eremnon. Eventually, one of the Demons picked me up and carried me into some kind of altar room, where Eremnon and a small hunchbacked Demon prodded my core. I don''t know how long I was in there, nor do I know what they were attempting to do, but it all came to an end when a nearby nation attacked the settlement. The hunchbacked Demon must have thought they''d win because it kept investigating my core up until the point a Xerath spawn leaped into the room and began eating it. At that point, Eremnon''s gaze was fully focused on the battle raging inside the settlement. Thanks to that, I was able to turn invisible and escape."

    "He can prevent you from moving if he has enough influence to manifest his eye in the sky? What''s to stop him from doing that to us then?" Lindon asked.

    "I don''t think he will. He''s projecting his disgust over the entire area over there. Apparently, he isn''t very happy with the creatures roaming about killing all of his Demons."

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    Albel raised an eyebrow, "But aren''t the Demons responsible for those creatures being there in the first place?"

    I shrugged.

    "They might not be what the Demons were after. Regardless, I doubt he''ll stop us from killing his enemies, and that''s all I care about." Markus continued, "Now, I think we''ve discussed everything that we need to, so unless you have something else to add Rei, I suggest we get going."

    "Just one more thing. There''s a three-headed dog guarding the entrance to the prison. It has no eyes, but it''s powerful enough to sense me through my veil. I''d say it''s about the same height as the Tengu."

    "Holy fuck when does it end... Are all of those damned creatures massive in size?" Albel said.

    I''ve been wondering the same thing...

    "I see... Then we''ll have no choice but to kill that dog first if we want to enter the prison. That''s assuming we even get that far." Markus continued, "Alright then, let''s move out."

    Everyone but Nisha and Shana walked out of the temple. Soon after that Shana''s clones ran ahead of us and began jumping through the trees.

    "She''s going to use herself as bait so we know if there are any enemies around us," Markus said.

    Thank god for Shana. Without her we''d have no way of knowing what''s waiting for us past the fog. I can only scout in one direction after all.

    <hr>

    One of Shana''s clones drops down in front of us, halting our jog.

    "One of my clones on the left side just died. I think I saw a spear hit me right before I lost vision."

    "That''s how it died last time too. After that, I waited for about ten minutes for the monster to walk away."

    "We''ll try waiting as well then," Markus said, walking over to a tree and hiding behind it.

    Everyone did the same, picking a random tree to hide behind. Except me of course. Instead, I activated my veil and watched the fog ahead of us. I stared for several minutes, waiting to hear the same footsteps as last time, but all I heard were the sounds of the forest.

    Off to the side I saw Keith roll to the right just as a spear smashed through the tree he was hiding behind. Seeing this, everyone came out from their hiding spots. Albel immediately fired off a medium-sized fireball straight for where the spear originated from. A large explosion sounded out from the fog, which pushed the fog away for a split second, giving us a small look at the entity barring our path.

    "A Minotaur?! Shouldn''t the Demons be fighting the fucking creatures coming out from the digsite?!" Lindon yelled.

    No... That''s not a Minotaur. Not entirely anyway. I only saw it for a second, but it looked eerily similar to that Lion creature from earlier. This Minotaur also had pure white eyes with blood dripping out of them, and its mouth was completely unhinged. At first I thought the Lion was just another creepy creature, but maybe it was originally something else that was turned into a puppet upon its death? That would mean any Demons who died here are probably puppets as well...

    Another spear came flying through the fog, heading directly for Markus. The greatsword in Markus''s right hand shined a bright white as he slammed it down onto the spear, shattering it completely.

    Damn... I''ve never actually had the opportunity to see Markus fight, and I see I was missing out. That was rather impressive. He''s even handling that massive sword with only one hand.

    The Minotaur leapt through the fog with both of its hands raised high above its head. Markus jumped backward just as the Minotaur brought its fists down onto the ground he occupied moments ago. Keith appeared to the right of the Minotaur, cutting deep into the Demon''s ankle. As a result, a bunch of blood sprayed out of the cut, covering Keith from head to toe, but Keith ignored it and sprinted behind the Demon, slicing its other ankle before the Minotaur could muster up a response.

    "Uh, guys? I think there is something wrong with the Minotaur''s blood. My mana is draining at an alarming rate." Lindon said.

    At first I didn''t understand what he was trying to say, but then I saw the blue shimmer around Keith. And not only that, there was also a sizzling sound emanating from the Minotaur''s blood. The grass and trees hit by its blood all began to melt as if someone had splashed acid onto them.

    Lindon continued, "I''m being serious! We need to get that blood off of him, and fast! I''m already down to seventy percent of my mana!"

    Keith heard this and dove onto the ground, rolling around in an attempt to get the blood off of Lindon''s barrier, and he was mostly successful.

    "Whew... Okay, it looks like the damage is subsiding from the remaining blood. My regen can handle the rest." Lindon said.

    The Minotaur, now unable to stand up, grabbed the ground with one hand and pulled itself toward Markus. It raised its other hand high into the air, attempting to smash him again, but Markus just repeated the same backward maneuver as last time and completely avoided the attack. At this point Keith was already on top of the Minotaur''s back. He quickly sliced into the back of the Demon''s neck. However, this time, he rolled out of the way before he was covered in blood. The Minotaur''s head went limp as its face planted firmly into the ground.

    "Okay... What the hell was that?" Albel asked.

    "... I''m not sure. It had way too much blood and when it landed on Lindon''s barrier, I could hear it sizzling all around me as if I was being cooked in a buttered-up pan." Keith said.

    "And it seemed much weaker than what I was expecting... Did it look sluggish to anyone else?" Albel said.

    Large footsteps echoed out from the left, right, and ahead of us. All of them were clearly heading in this direction.

    "That was a short scuffle, but it looks like that was more than enough to alert everything here to our presence. Either that or they knew about us through the Minotaur." Markus said.

    Telepathy, or maybe something connected to it like Nisha? It was a puppet after all, so I bet he''s right.

    "What''s the plan, Markus?" Keith asked.

    "We either run back, hold our ground, or rush ahead while attempting to kill any enemies who get in our way. I say we go with option three." Markus said.

    Keith nodded, and that was enough for the rest of us. We all began to sprint ahead, except the second we did that, we could hear a cascade of loud footsteps from our left.

    "Bah, the fucker to our left doesn''t seem interested in letting us run away. Let''s turn and kill it first so we don''t get pincered between it and the enemy in front of us." Markus said.

    We all pivoted to the left, running toward the heavy footsteps shaking the ground beneath our feet. It reached a point where it sounded like the monster was literally on top of us, but none of us could see anything. It was only a split second of confusion on our part, but that was all it took. For no apparent reason, Markus'' body was suddenly crushed into the ground. His beautiful white armor shined a bright red as it broke under the weight of whatever it was on top of it.

    "How?!" Albel yelled, shooting a large fireball at the area above Markus. The fireball flew through the air, harmlessly hitting a tree off in the distance. I removed my veil and fired off the sonar ball of light I stole from the Kellog knights. I didn''t aim it at Markus though, I instead fired it far to the left, where I could see a slight shimmer in the air. The ball stopped in mid-air as if it stopped on nothing, but the second the sonar activated we all saw the aura of light enveloping around something that was shaped like a feline. And of course the damned thing is just as oversized as everything else we''ve encountered so far.

    I thought maybe the monster had leapt backward after it killed Markus, but then I saw its thirty meter long tail extended outwards, hovering over where Markus'' body lay.

    The feline''s head swivels to the right, looking directly at Keith. I was getting ready to support him when a large explosion occurred behind me, which made me jump in surprise. I turned around and saw two massive bronze-armored arms extending outward through the fog. The bronze ''hands'' on the monster were in the shape of bells, and underneath the bells were the crushed bodies of Lindon and Albel.

    The next thing I knew I was back inside the temple. To my left I can see Markus, Lindon, and Albel all gasping for air.

    "... Okay. I think we need a different plan." Keith said.

    "Y-Yeah... Holy... fuck..." Lindon stammered out between gasps.

    I turned and looked at Shana after she lifted her head off my shoulder. "Did you not see that armored monster coming at us from the other side?"

    Shana shook her head, "Sorry... I really don''t know how it got past me. I had one clone keeping an eye on the monster in front, and my last one keeping an eye on the armored monster approaching from the right. But it just... I don''t even know, Rei. It was there, and then it wasn''t."

    "Warp ability?"

    "No... It''s hard to explain but I know it didn''t physically move from one point to the other. It''s almost as if it was always behind us, but we perceived it as much farther away." Shana said.

    Markus finally stopped gasping for air and sat up. "Well... Shit. That was pathetic on several different levels." Markus shook his head, "What are our other options? We need to retrieve Ishar and the others so we can set a new reset point. There''s Ishar, a werewolf, and apparently a bunch of warriors like Shana waiting for us over there. With all of them aiding us we should be able to kill all of the monsters between us and the prison. One at a time is also an option thanks to Rei. Because of her, we can pick them off one by one."

    "Can''t you just make a new reset point every time we kill one? Obviously I''ll absorb them anyways so we don''t need to, but in that regard, you don''t really need me."

    Markus shook his head, "Nope. Setting a new reset point is far more taxing than actually resetting. It''s already ridiculous enough that we''ll be doing two back-to-back, even if it''s necessary. We need to bring back any and all possible allies from the prison as soon as possible. I know you can probably manage to open their cells, but after that... I really don''t know how you''ll bring them back here."

    "Can Nisha warp them?"

    "I can''t. First off, I''d need to be able to fully connect to your soul, which isn''t possible. Next, I''d need to be close enough to create portal marks around you, which as you all just proved, is impossible. And lastly, my trap portals have a much shorter range. So, yeah... It''s impossible." Nisha said.

    I sighed.

    This is obviously not going well... Just like Markus said, I already know I''ll be able to find the keys for their cells, but then what...? The dog alone is going to be a nightmare to bring down, and don''t even get me started on that fucking spider. Plus the ninjas aren''t going to leave without their prince, so we''ll have no choice but to fight the damned thing. The only option I can think of is looking through the prison for more allies that can aid me. Ones who aren''t guarded by an ethereal spider. Outside of that, there''s no way to---Ah... Wait a second...

    "Um, just out of curiosity... Arkaios, may I ask why you were killing the Tengu''s Lord when I first met you guys?"

    "Huh? Why are you suddenly bringing up that abomination?" Markus asked.

    {The Tengu is an unknown variable that causes untold amounts of mayhem everywhere it goes. Some of its Lords don''t follow their god''s creeds, so there are a few who are amiable and even something I''d happily ally with. However, most of the Tengu''s Lords are as Markus described them. They''re abominations.} After a slight pause, Arkaios continued. {I''ll admit, I''m also curious as to why you''d ask about him right now of all times.}

    "Because we need help, and the Tengu''s connection to my soul is still there. If I prod it a little he might---"

    Markus jumped to his feet, "ABSOLUTELY NOT!! ARE YOU INSANE?!"

    Shana began laughing so hard she was doubling over. Keith looked between me and Markus, scratching his cheek.

    "W-Wow, Rei... I knew you were unique, but to think you''d suggest allying with the Tengu..." Shana continued, still laughing. "Count me in! I can''t wait to see how this ends... Pfft!"

    {... Hmm.}

    Markus looked horrified, "M-My Lord, surely you aren''t considering this...?"

    {I am. Like I said, some of the Tengu''s Lords are honorable. I know how strange that must sound to someone who came from a moon that had only been assaulted by the evil Lords that serve their god. If we''re lucky, there may be an amiable Lord on one of the nearby moons, or maybe even on Veca itself.}

    "Veca?"

    {The name of this moon.}

    Markus sat down, "I... see... This is a hard truth to accept since I spent many years of my life hunting down Tengu Lords, but I refuse to hold us back due to my prejudice. If one of those abominations can assist us, that would be a massive boon to our cause. Actually, a single spawn would go a long way too... But I''d really prefer to have nothing to do with anyone brainwashed by the Tengu."

    {The good Lords don''t create spawn. So that is one moral barrier you won''t need to overcome.}

    Markus sighed in obvious relief and then looked at me. "Well, there you have it... Please reach out to him, Rei."

    "I can''t say I have much hope regarding this, but a Tengu Lord could most likely clear a path for us if we backed it up..." Keith said.

    From what I saw in Kellog, he''s probably right. Honestly, I''m still shocked they actually approved of this plan. I figured they''d all rebuke it the same way Markus did... But I''m glad it was affirmed. Now all that''s left is to see what the Tengu''s response is going to be...

 Chapter 48 - Unlikely Alliance

    "Wait," Markus said, stopping me just as I''m entering my soul realm.

    "What''s wrong?"

    "Instead of relaying to us what he said after the conversation is over, or showing it to us in your soul realm, I''d rather we were all there from the start. Also..." Markus looked down, "... I really want to see the Tengu god in person."

    ............

    {I know what you''re worried about, Rei. However, fret not, Markus won''t ruin the meeting.}

    "... Markus is seasoned enough to not make a mistake like that, but I''ll admit I''m slightly worried that his emotions may get the better of him." I looked at Markus and continued, "Your god says you won''t be an issue though, so that''s good enough for me."

    Shana poked my thigh, "Has that ever happened to you?"

    "Losing my cool and acting irrationally? Of course. That''s why I ended up attacking Xelba after all. It was a ridiculous plan now that I think back on it, and it''s hard to believe that I actually succeeded in destroying that place. It''s a shame I wasn''t able to kill Vikt---Wait..." I looked at Shana and Nisha, "Why were all of you captured and not eaten like the rest of Viseux''s citizens?"

    Nisha chuckled, "You''re a little scatterbrained sometimes, Rei. You had weeks to ask us that." Nisha paused for a moment then continued, "Actually... Didn''t we already tell you?"

    Keith shook his head, "No. You told us about what had happened while Rei was out looking for food. I figured you had already told her before the rest of us had been resurrected, but it seems I was wrong."

    "Oh... Whoops." Nisha leaned back against the wall, "Um, well, I''m afraid there isn''t much to say. Someone had told them to capture anyone connected to ''The group who was staying at Euphemia''s manor''. The person who told them that was supposed to show up and ''collect'' us, but he or she never did."

    "What the hell? So they were specifically targeting our group that had helped Kellog?"

    "That''s what the guards said. They were having a party in the guardhouse to celebrate their captain''s retirement, and thanks to that they had a little too much to drink, which resulted in them telling us why we were there." Nisha said.

    I looked at Shana, "And how''d you save Nisha?"

    "After the Demons assault I was finally able to sneak into the portal area since most of the restrictions were gone. Jericho''s people were focused on repairing the guardhouse and trying to figure out what to do next." Shana continued, "It didn''t take me long to catch up to the Demons but when I did I realized that Nisha was the only person I could help. They had her at the back of the procession with barely any Demons guarding her because she gives off almost no mana signature."

    Ahh, because she seems weak they probably just stuck some imps around her, and they weren''t even wrong. By herself she can''t do much.

    "Alright, you got your answers Rei, now let''s say hello to the crow," Markus said, visibly shaking.

    He doesn''t seem scared. If anything, he appears to be excited? It''s not quite the same, but I suppose I''d be the same way if I knew I was about to meet Viktor.

    I hold my hands out to the side, signaling for the others to gather around. One by one they sit down and grab each other''s hands, forming a circle. Once they''re ready I focus inward and enter my soul realm, pulling the others inside as well.

    "... This makes me wonder how Godwin and his family are doing," Markus said as he gazed at the Xerath growing out of the ground.

    Oh that''s right... Long ago Markus was inside my soul realm along with Godwin''s family. I hope they managed to escape Urza.

    {Please begin.}

    "... Alright. Here we go, everyone." Even at this point it''s still surreal that we''re actually doing this.

    I focus on the small connection the Tengu left behind during our last meeting. At first nothing happens, but eventually I started to see my soul realm change. The world itself began to dim until the light was nearly blotted out, and that''s when I felt the Tengu''s connection flare to life. Immediately, the Tengu''s massive form appeared in front of us. As usual, it dug deep into the ground as it peered down at us.

    "It has no legs...?" Markus mumbled.

    I didn''t notice it last time, but he''s right... That''s definitely odd.

    {ALIVE... HOW?}

    So he knew I had died in Viseux? Either that or he just assumed.

    "I don''t know..."

    The Tengu looked around at everyone here, ending with him staring at the sky.

    {THE DAWN GOD... FASCINATING.}

    And it seems he also knows Arkaios is here...

    "Tengu, we... No, I, wanted to ask for your help."

    The Tengu looked back at me. While he''s not quite as readable as people are, I could clearly see how confused and stunned the Tengu was. The idea that someone might ask him for help was probably not even a possibility in his mind.

    "Do you know where we are right now?"

    The Tengu closed its large golden eyes and re-opened them about ten seconds later.

    {VECA... LOST... USELESS... ANOTHER DEMON STRONGHOLD.}

    "They have that much power here on Veca? We only know that they were near... uh..." Shit, what was the nearby nation called?

    {Belfor. We are in my temple near the ruined nation of Belfor.} Arkaios said.

    {BELFOR... WHY?}

    "Demons brought my friends here and forced them to dig for something. Now the area is covered in a dense fog and there are unknown large monsters prowling around everywhere. Also, this is just a suspicion on my part, but I think anything they kill turns into a puppet of something else here."

    "What?" I heard both Markus and Keith say as they turned toward me.

    "The Lion and Minotaur; they both had pure white eyes and blood drizzling out of them, and like Albel said, the Minotaur was weaker than it should have been. I don''t know if the Lion was originally stronger though."

    It was almost imperceptible, but I noticed the Tengu react to two specific parts of that back and forth. The Demons digging for something, and my description of the creatures I believed to now be puppets.

    {............}

    The Tengu closed its eyes again.

    {... I HAVE ONE CHILD ON VECA... HE DOES NOT LISTEN TO ME... BUT I WILL RELAY YOUR REQUEST TO HIM...}

    ''Does not listen to me''... Just like Arkaios said, there are some Tengu Lords who follow their own path.

    "What is he doing on Veca?"

    {KILLING DEMONS... THREE CONTINENTS NORTH OF YOU...}

    "Shit... Even if he agrees to help, it''ll take him ages to get here." Lindon whispered, but the Tengu heard him anyway.

    {NO... FOUR... OR FIVE DAYS...}

    Tengu Lords can cover that much ground? Either that or this specific one is much faster than the others.

    ... Honestly, I''m surprised at how smooth this conversation is going. It''s not like I had any idea of what to expect, but there must be a reason he is relaying our request to one of his Lords. Possibly something related to the digsite...? But it could also just be on a whim since we''re the first people that have ever asked him for help. I don''t know that for certain, but I''d be shocked if we weren''t.

    {HE HAS AGREED... THREE DAYS...}

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    "Why are you helping us?" Markus asked.

    The Tengu looked at Markus and narrowed his eyes.

    {TEMPLAR...} The Tengu leaned down and turned his head sideways so one of his eyes was a few feet from Markus, {YOU AND YOUR GOD... ARE FOOLS...}

    Markus gritted his teeth, "And why is that?"

    {RAI''GA... TSUKIKO... SHIVA... DO YOU TRULY NOT UNDERSTAND?}

    "Huh...?" Markus was clearly puzzled. He was not expecting the gods of Urza to be mentioned in this exchange.

    {Can you please elaborate?}

    {YOUR ''BRAND'' IS NOT SPECIAL... ELDRITCH ALSO INFUSE HUMANOID SOULS... MAKE THEM A PART OF OURSELVES... MAKE THEM IMMORTAL...}

    "Everyone knows that! What does this have to do with the gods of Urza?!" Markus yelled.

    {LIKE I SAID... FOOLS... I REPEAT... MAKE THEM IMMORTAL...}

    "And like I said, we already know that..." Markus replied.

    "Wait... By ''immortal'', do you mean complete immortality? As in the Eldritch can secure a line to their worshipers and revive them whenever they die like you do with your Lords?"

    {INDEED... SAW THROUGH VIKTOR... AS EXPECTED... THE OTHERS SHOULD SEE THROUGH ELDRITCH TOO... SIMPLE CREATURES... EASILY CONTROLLED...}

    Lindon scratched his head, "Um, can someone explain it to me? I''m one of the ''simple creatures'' apparently... I don''t get it at all."

    "My Lord?" Markus said.

    {... I had wondered about this long ago, but none of the Eldritch were saving their people from Meizha''thul, so I figured it was impossible for them to protect souls in the same manner that I can. There are always exceptions of course, so that''s what I considered the Tengu. Nothing more than an exception.}

    {YOU TRULY DID NOT KNOW...? FOOLISH INDEED.}

    If what he is saying is true, then... Shit, that changes everything. It would mean the Eldritch who form nations aren''t doing it out of some desire to create kin of their own that they can nurture and assist, but instead they''re more like a bunch of farmers fattening up pigs to feed to the queen of all monsters. Except that raises another question, why the hell would the Tengu care about any of this?

    "Why would any of that matter to you?" Keith asked before I could.

    {MEIZA''THUL... MOTHER... THEY ARE MY ENEMY... YOU PAWNS ARE IN THE WAY...}

    The vitriol with which he said ''pawns'' speaks volumes about his feelings towards all the different races who worship Eldritch and form nations around them. Ahh shit, now that I think about it, that means Terra''ka is probably the same way... That could become a major problem. But for the time being I won''t bring it up around Ishar since he looks like he''s already been through hell and back. The last thing he needs right now is to hear more bad news.

    "Mother..." Nisha trailed off.

    ... Yeah, her name being dropped here didn''t slip by me either. I heard theories in the past that Mother was actually an Eldritch, but everyone always laughed those people off as if they were crazy.

    "Mother is an Eldritch...? How is that possible? She''s a planet." Markus asked.

    The Tengu pulled the claws from his right hand out of the ground and proceeded to draw four circles on the ground. A massive, large, medium, and a small-sized circle all lined up next to each other.

    The Tengu pointed at the massive circle. {MEIZA''THUL...}

    He pointed at the large circle next. {MOTHER...}

    The medium-sized circle. {PLANETS... AETHERIA...}

    And finally the small circle last. {MOONS... URZA... VECA...}

    Everyone went silent as they digested the horrors of this information. But I had one more question nagging at me.

    "Eldritch are created through these moons and planets, right? Is their spawn rate tied to the corruption level by any chance?"

    To my right I could see Keith whip his head in my direction. His eyes were wide open in shock.

    I''m not surprised that he was the first to realize why I was asking that. After all, he''s the one who ended up sacrificing people in a vain attempt to escape Urza. And why did he do that? Because Eldritch and some Demons were popping up everywhere, which led to the death of many of his friends and a few loved ones. And that was all thanks to Xelba and Jericho. After all, they are the reason the corruption level of Urza kept on rising. Keith''s Demon ritual just so happened to be the tipping point.

    Surprisingly, it all leads back to Viktor...

    The Tengu looked at me but he didn''t say anything. It was hard to tell, but he appeared to be happy. After that he looked up into the sky.

    I really doubt Aresa knows about any of this. Shiva died the moment Aresa was born, so the only other Eldritch who could have told her was Rai''ga. Whether he did or not, I don''t know, but she believed he lied about everything, so she would''ve thought the same thing concerning this information as well.

    "One last question. Why are you trying to capture Aresa? She''s only a lord."

    {SHIVA NEEDS HER... ANCHORED HER SOUL TO THE GIRL...}

    So it was to prevent Shiva from coming back... I didn''t know about the anchor part, but I had a feeling it was related to Shiva.

    {ONE REQUEST FROM ME... SAVE THE NINJAS...}

    Shana, who had remained silent up to this point, was obviously surprised at the mention of ninjas from the Tengu.

    "Why do you want us to save them?" Shana asked.

    {WHY...? THEY BELONG TO ONE OF MY CHILDREN... THIS GROUP... LED BY A FOOL... BUT SAVE THEM ALL THE SAME...}

    I thought Shana was going to say something else, but instead she just sat down and went silent again.

    "... Are we done here?" Markus asked.

    Instead of answering, the Tengu lifted himself up a little and promptly disappeared. Shortly after that I could feel his connection to my soul close shut.

    "Looks like we are..." Lindon mumbled.

    I exit my soul realm, ejecting everyone from it in the process.

    "So the ninjas serve a Tengu Lord? Now that I think about it, the girl I got this artifact armor from originally had the artifact in the same aesthetics as your armor, Shana. It was kind of dark in that home though and I only saw the outfit once, so I didn''t connect the dots until now."

    Nisha walked over and sat down next to Shana, "You okay?"

    Shana shrugged, "It doesn''t bother me. If anything, I''m happy knowing a little more about my grandfather. I don''t know the exact reason he fled to Urza, but it''s not hard to guess based on what he was working under."

    "So are we just going to wait for the Tengu Lord to show up?" Albel asked.

    Markus sat down and began praying, "That''s exactly what we''re going to do."

    "Actually, I''m going to head over to the prison and scout it out some more. I can''t help Ishar and the others yet, but it can''t hurt to know what else is inside the prison."

    "Good idea, we could always use more information," Markus said.

    Nisha looked up at me, "I don''t understand... Are you never scared? I know you can turn invisible, but the area over there is filled with monsters who can still see you under the right circumstances."

    "Scared, huh... Sometimes I am. I''m definitely afraid of the spider capturing me again, but I know Arkaios will save me."

    {It was close, Rei. Very close. I felt something locking onto your soul, and if it succeeded, you wouldn''t have reset back here. Anything that affects the soul can intervene directly in the reset. That ''prince'' is most likely dead by now, and because of that, the timeline is going to get a little weird over there. The spider is going to know something is up after the next reset. One moment it''ll be eating the prince, and the next moment it''ll be eating someone else.}

    ... Thanks for the pep talk, Arkaios. Now I''m a little scared, but I still think I should scout the prison out. As Markus said, any amount of information going forward will be useful. Unless we destroy the prison, the Tengu won''t be of much use inside of there, since it obviously can''t fit. We might actually need to do that though... I really don''t like the idea of fighting that spider without the Tengu''s support.

    "Alright, see you guys in a few hours. Hopefully I return by foot this time."

    I waved at everyone and exited the temple.

    <hr>

    Well... I circled the prison, and I found another entrance, but I think I''ll just need to get used to evading the three-headed dog. There are dozens of Demons strewn throughout the courtyard in front of me, and while I''m not sensing anything from them specifically, there are hints of another type of aura here and there.

    Traps...? Yeah, it''s probably traps, and lots of them. This fog is messing with my senses so I can''t really pinpoint them, it''ll be risky to go this way. Plus, I severely doubt these Demons aren''t puppets. I bet if I trigger one of these traps... Actually, let''s just test it.

    I walk over to a small barrel and tip it over, causing a bunch of wine to come spilling out. After most of the wine is gone, I kick the barrel forward, making it roll toward a ''dead'' Satyr sitting with its back against a well. The barrel got about halfway to the Satyr before it suddenly sprang to life, leaping at the barrel and destroying it. The Satyr immediately sits back down but I can see its head, and the heads of every Demon here, darting back and forth as they scan for enemies. This is so unbelievably creepy... As if I needed yet another reason to be disgusted by Demons.

    ... I really want to know what is in this side entrance. I can see that it leads directly to a set of stairs going down. This is an information-gathering mission, so I might as well just risk it.

    I run to one side of the court and begin throwing the wine-filled barrels at the Demons on this side of the courtyard. In response, every single Demon springs to life and begins sprinting in this direction. Immediately I pivot back the other way and try to run through the other side of the courtyard that''s now devoid of Demons, but I barely get ten feet in when I step onto a trap that explodes. The artifact armor absorbed the damage from the blast as the impact sent me flying forward. I landed near the entrance, rolling as I hit the ground. I immediately jumped to my feet and dashed through the door.

    Upon hearing the blast, the Demons had all turned around and sprinted back to where the trap went off, but I was already long gone. That tactic went much smoother with the dog out front...

    I run down the stairs until I reach a large corridor filled with cells on both sides. They''re all filled with mutilated corpses... The stench in this room will be unbearable for the others. Hopefully they won''t need to come down here.

    I walk through the corridor, scanning all of the cells for anything of value, but all I find are rotting corpses...

    About halfway through the cells, I spot a girl on her knees. Her hands are wrapped in chains above her head, and the top of her chest all the way down to her belly button is completely ripped open. Demons did this...? It looks like a surgeon had opened her up and just left it like that. What a horrible way to go...

    The door to the cell is slightly ajar. I push it open and sit down next to the girl. Light brown skin, black hair down to her waist, and a very pretty face. Her hair looks just as silky as Aresa''s... Was this girl also a noble?

    As I''m looking at the girl''s vacant eyes, I feel a sense of disgust and dread crawl up my spine, and that''s when I realize that the girl''s eyes are slightly moving. Next her lips open ever-so-slightly, and that''s when I hear her whisper something. This girl is alive?! How the hell is that possible? She must be inhuman like me... Otherwise this just makes no sense.

    I put my ear next to her mouth. Because of how low she''s talking it takes me a while, but I eventually figure out that she''s saying ''Ring''.

    A ring...?

    I look up at her hands wrapped in chains, and sure enough, there''s an indent on one of her fingers suggesting a ring had been there until recently.

    ... So what exactly is going to happen here if I find this ''ring'' for her? And I''m also surprised at the fact that she knew I was here. It''s one thing if massive monsters with souls far more powerful than my own see through my veil, but when this should be dead noble girl senses me, I''m really not sure what to make of this.

    She''s definitely piqued my interest though... If I find this ring of yours, I''ll bring it back for you girl.

 Chapter 49 - The Tengu Lord

    ... Even though I just made that declaration, how would I even find a ring in this hellhole? The Elves have tools for locating metal, but I obviously have no such tool on me, and I doubt I''ll magically find one lying around in this prison.

    I look back at the girl.

    You know... I think my body looked just like that when the Demons were dissecting me. If I find one of those little hunchbacked fuckers, I might find the ring too. I''m sorry girl, that''s about the only idea I can come up with at the moment. Not that I even know why a single ring would matter for her right now, but then again she''s alive when she shouldn''t be, so everything about her is a mystery at this point.

    I could try carrying her back to the temple... Except that sounds impossible. Even so, when I run out of places to investigate here I''ll at least try and see if I can.

    I begin moving forward again and open the door ahead of me. It opens up to yet another dreary hallway. Fast-paced footsteps approach from the right, causing me to duck back into the room. I keep an eye on the hallway until two people sprint by me. It was a ninja being pursued by one of the guards, and I thought the ninja was moving rather fast until I saw the guard blaze past me. The guard was moving at double the ninja''s speed, which meant it wasn''t long before I heard a loud cracking sound emit from further down the hallway.

    I ducked into the hallway and crept toward the duo. The guard was picking up the ninja''s limbs and breaking them one by one. For his part, the ninja wasn''t responding at all, which made sense. Half of his head had been completely blown off after all. The other half now decorated the walls of the hallway. I could see part of his scalp slowly sliding down the wall until it fell to the ground, creating a sickening splat sound as it landed.

    After the guard had fully delimbed the escapee, he picked him up and carried him back the way they came. I returned to the previous room, waiting for him to pass by before I re-entered the hallway. After the guard opened the door at the far end of the hallway, I could see a set of stairs going up, and I also heard a new voice screaming from above, this time it was a woman screaming. Arkaios was right, the prince is dead, and now the spider is eating someone else. Fortunately, it wasn''t Ishar or Greyson, and that''s all I care about right now. I feel bad saying that, but there''s only so many people here that we can save...

    I go through the hallway, opening one door after another(most of them were already half-open though). There were a few more rooms full of cells, containing nothing but a bunch of mummified corpses, and there were a few storage rooms as well, all full of grain and rice. There was a half-mummified corpse near one of the rice bags. I found him lying on his back with a mouth full of dried rice. Someone either forced them down his throat, or he willingly choked to death on rice. If it''s the latter, he chose an interesting way to go...

    Next, I open one of the last remaining doors(next to where the ninja was just pummeled to death). Oh? Finally, something worth of value.

    The room is clearly an office designed for a single person. I circle around the desk and look at the picture on top of it. There''s a man in a highly decorated guards uniform holding a black cat, standing next to an older couple. Probably the warden and his parents?

    I open one desk drawer after another, finding a lot of useless things, and a few useful ones, like a 9mm with a case of ammo next to it. This moon had guns? I guess most of them would by now... My knowledge is probably skewed thanks to how medieval Urza was.

    Next to the handgun was a small notebook. I picked it up and sat in the warden''s chair. Flipping through it, I find that most of it is just the man complaining about his superiors. Turns out, he''s not a warden, but a go-between for the prison above and the altar below. He was given this position because he could be trusted, or so they believed. Over time he became fed up with how things were handled here. It''s kind of amazing seeing how fast his adoration for his superiors turned into pure vitriol.

    His complaints begin around here. {Why do they delay? Why are we just sitting here feeding them these worthless prisoners? WHY DO WE NOT DESCEND???!!! Over and over they feed me the same bullshit excuses, and I''m tired of hearing them. ''We must bide our time, Jeremy. Do not be hasty, for our time will come. First, we must eliminate the Crotia from Veca, and then, and only then, can we move on to the next stage. We cannot allow them to interrupt us during the great advancement.'' Fuck off, just... Fuck off. I''m tired of waiting. We all know that the war will never end, so what''s the point of waiting?!}

    His words after this slowly change. The man, Jeremy, was clearly descending into some form of madness. Eventually, he reached a point where he couldn''t wait anymore. He wrote a long rambling message that ended with ''No more waiting, I''m going down below to be with the great ones. The rest of you scum can rot away in your mortal shells while I take my rightful place under our true masters'', and that was his last entry.

    Hmm... I''m tempted to dissect every part of this but I think I''ll wait until I''m back in the temple. It''ll be better if I talk it over with the others instead of just ruminating inside my own head.

    I exit the room and look at the last door in the hallway. I open it, and sure enough, it leads to a set of stairs going down. So the ''Great ones'' are down here...?

    I start to walk down the stairs, but I come to a halt when I''m only four steps down.

    ... Something is really off here. The lower I go, the more distorted everything feels.

    I restart my descent, and by the time I reach the bottom my whole body feels heavy, as if something is pushing, or maybe pulling me down. I don''t like this... Every fiber of my being is telling me to run away. I''m just going to scan the room for anything useful and then get the fuck out of here.

    The room itself is rather simple. It''s nothing more than a large stone room, with a fireplace and an altar near the back.

    I walk up to the altar and find that it''s surprisingly pristine. In fact, the whole room looks like it was cleaned recently.

    No blood anywhere? I thought they were sacrificing people on this altar, but if they really were then I should be able to see dried blood somewhere in here. Except there''s none... Not even a tiny little dots worth of blood. And my eyes would find it too if there was.

    I touch the altar and immediately I find myself back inside the temple.

    "What the hell? Did I die just from touching that altar?"

    {No. I was already worried enough with all the heavy miasma covering your soul, but then something I''ve never felt before grabbed your soul, so I immediately reset everything in the hopes that it would save you in time.}

    Shana lifted her head from my shoulder, "What altar?"

    "There''s an altar in the basement over there. The more I descended the steps to it, the heavier my whole body felt. I tried touching the altar and the next thing I knew I was here." I continued, "So something grabbed onto me through the altar? I didn''t feel anything."

    {You would have, had I delayed even a little bit.}

    "... Hmm. I wonder if that''s why the whole room was clean to the point you could call it pristine? There was a diary that suggested they were sacrificing prisoners there, but the altar had no blood on or around it. Instead, something must be grabbing anyone who''s on the altar, which probably brings them deeper underground?"

    Markus hummed, "Miasma... My Lord, was the feeling anything like what we experience out there inside the fog?"

    {Yes. The sickly aura covering everything outside was much thicker and heavier as Rei descended the steps toward this ''Altar'' she describes.}

    "Rei, anything else?" Keith asked.

    "Hmm, there was a girl that should be dead, but she wasn''t. I entered through a side entrance which led down to a cellblock full of mummified corpses. She was inside one of the cells with her hands wrapped in chains above her head. Her sternum had been completely ripped open, and she was covered in dried blood, but when I walked up to her she began to whisper the word ''Ring''. Apparently she was alive and could sense me through my veil."

    Markus sighed, "That''s obviously not something a living human can do... Was there anything else about her that seemed off?"

    I shook my head. "Isn''t that enough by itself?"

    "Heh, true..." Markus chuckled.

    Shana poked my thigh again, "Let''s find that ring after we kill the spider. I want to see what happens..."

    "I''m curious as well." I continued, "Oh, most of that diary was just the daily duties of the man who ran the altar, but he spoke a little about the ''Great ones'' who lived deep underground. Belfor was sacrificing prisoners to those ''Great ones'', and had plans to move underground to live with them in something they called ''The Great Advancement'', but they were waiting until the Crotian threat on Veca was taken care of."

    {There was a large nation of Crotians here that was constantly assaulting the nation of Belfor, but at the time I thought nothing of it. After all, Crotians love war, so there was nothing odd about what they were doing. At least, nothing that would warrant a closer look.}

    Lindon looked back at me, "Wait, you think they were after whatever was underground as well?"

    "I''m not sure. The man''s superiors were adamant about removing the Crotian threat before advancing their plans to the next phase. They said they couldn''t risk the Crotia ''Interrupting them''."

    Everyone went silent for a bit until Markus eventually decided that it was too risky for me to go there alone again, and I didn''t disagree. We all unanimously agreed to wait here for the Tengu to show up before making our next move.

    <hr>

    {He''s close. Prepare to greet him.}

    Yeah, we know he''s close... We could hear him battling something up until a few moments ago.

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    A minute later the Tengu Lord came into view. This one''s feathers were mostly light black and red, and its staff was more akin to a totem pole. It had weird drawings on the end of it that reminded me of the staffs the shamans of the Lizardmen race were wielding. And finally its armor was a mix of wood and bronzed metal, with a few talismans hanging off of its chest.

    The two Tengu Lords I saw on Urza looked rather terrifying and gave off an aura that matched their looks. This one however... I can''t believe I''m saying this, but he looks heroic. Even his aura feels light and comforting. It''s hard to believe that he''s the same type of Eldritch Lord as the other two...

    Markus stepped forward, "Mister Tengu, My Lord wants you to touch the barrier so he can speak with you."

    The Tengu nodded and reached out with his left hand, placing his palm on the barrier. He closed his eyes for a bit as he conversed with Arkaios. A few minutes later he reopened his eyes and stepped through the barrier. Looks like Arkaios has decided to trust him.

    {He knows nothing about this area aside from the fact that the main Demon stronghold to the north had sent a small contingent down here to Belfor half a year ago, and then suddenly a few months back they sent a much larger contingent down.}

    "Either requesting backup, or maybe they decided this area had much more value than they originally assumed?" Keith said.

    "Demons truly are stupid. I''m not surprised that they felt the aura down in that altar room and thought it was valuable. Their obsession with new and unique things led to their downfall."

    "You think that''s what happened, Rei?" Nisha asked.

    "What I think happened is that the ''Small contingent'' was meant to establish a foothold here and get revenge on Viktor, but at some point they noticed the unique aura coming up from below the prison. I doubt they stole the prisoners from Viktor as a means to secure diggers, they have large Demons to do that after all, but once their captives whom they probably planned on torturing for entertainment were back at the base, they decided to use them for digging instead."

    "... Wait, why''d they dig next to the prison instead of straight down through that altar room?" Shana asked.

    "No idea. Maybe the stone is impenetrable? It wouldn''t be the first time something was invincible underground."

    {We can talk about all of this after you''ve rescued the others. Good luck everyone. Hopefully you can bring everyone back here this time.}

    I hope so as well... I''ve been worried sick that Ishar and Greyson might have been chosen to be the spider''s next victim, but there was nothing I could do until this Tengu showed up.

    The Tengu turned around and started jogging through the forest, heading straight for the prison. Same as last time, everyone but Nisha and Shana ran into the forest, following behind the Tengu Lord.

    "Remember everyone, it''s been three days since the last reset, so everything is going to be a little different from our last attempt at this," Markus said.

    We all thought the same thing, up until a spear came flying through the fog at the Tengu''s head. He beat it out of the way with his staff and then did an overhead attack into the fog ahead of us. We couldn''t tell, but he must have killed the Minotaur because the Tengu was now whipping his head to the left and right. We all knew why at the same time the Tengu did. The same footsteps as last time approached us from all three directions.

    "How the hell is everything playing out just like it did last time?!" Keith yelled.

    Markus bent down in preparation to dodge any incoming blows. "Get ready everyone! We never did figure out what was in front of us, and I refuse to die to this invisible fucker on the left again!"

    The biggest issue is the armored monster that crushed Albel and Lindon. Shana''s cryptic thoughts on the whole thing didn''t help much, but I do know what she was trying to say. When the armored monster first appeared, it felt like a much more condensed version of the fog, so it''s not a stretch to say it felt like the armored monster was all around us from the very start.

    The Tengu raised his staff high above his head and began to twirl it sideways. I, Shana, and Keith all knew what he was about to do. I kicked my feet deep into the ground and sat down while burying my fingers into the ground as well. To the side I could see Keith stab his sword into the ground as Shana''s clones dug their claws into the nearby trees.

    "What, what?!" Lindon said, looking around in a panic.

    "You two were already dead so you didn''t see it, but the previous Tengu used this attack on us. He created a large vacuum by twirling his staff above his head."

    "He''s going to pull the fog and the enemies to us?! We already can''t see anything with how thick the fog is!" Markus yelled.

    However, what we saw soon after that was the fog blowing away from us. The Tengu''s staff spun faster and faster until the nearby trees began to rip out of their roots and tip over. Soon after that he stopped and slammed his staff into the ground. I glanced around and was shocked at how much of the fog had been blown away. The sky was still hidden behind the fog, but there was at least a one-mile gap between us and the fog on all sides now.

    "H-Holy shit... Thank you, Keith." Lindon said.

    I looked in that direction and saw Lindon clinging onto Keith with his legs and arms wrapped around him. If the situation weren''t so dire I would have burst out laughing at how ridiculous it looked.

    Markus practically growled as he said, "There it is..."

    Far off to the left I could see a slight shimmer in the air approaching us head-on. I looked to my right next but the armored creature was nowhere to be seen.

    The Tengu sprinted forward as I was turning my head to look in that direction. Through his legs I could barely make out the Lion I saw battling the Minotaur before. Shouldn''t that thing be near the prison? It has to be a different one... Which means there is more than one of these lions roaming about.

    "Anything?!" Markus yelled back at us.

    "No! I can''t see the armored monster anywhere." I said, firing off the sonar ball of light at the monster. Just like before, it connected and outlined it so we could all see it clear as day.

    Markus'' blade shone a bright white, "Tsk... We''ll just have to fight the invisible fucker while praying we don''t get attacked from behind again."

    Dozens of small finger-sized fireballs flew past me, hitting the monster in different parts of its body.

    "I didn''t see a barrier flare up anywhere on its body!" Albel yelled.

    Oh, so that''s why he did that... Very clever.

    As it reached us the feline''s tail whipped through the air, aiming straight for Markus, obviously with the intention of splattering him into the ground again. This time though, Markus could see it. He dodged to the right and sliced backward. A bright white light exploded near the portion of the tail he cut off, but what surprised me was the white fire it left behind on the monster''s tail. The monster roared in pain as the white fire spread up toward its body. Soon after that its invisibility faltered, allowing all of us to see what we were fighting.

    "Is everything here going to be this fucking creepy?!" Lindon yelled.

    It was shaped like a feline, but that''s where the similarities ended. The monster was covered in furry black blisters, and its head was completely devoid of everything except black fur. No eyes, mouth, or ears, and it was pristine, making the rest of its body even more disgusting in comparison. Just as I was wondering how it roared mere moments before, it leaped backwards which allowed me to see the large row of teeth on its underbelly.

    While it was in midair a green ball shot out of the monster''s creepy belly-mouth. The ball exploded onto Markus just as Lindon placed his barrier over him. Acid splattered out towards the rest of us, but everyone except me was able to get away in time. I was way too close to Markus when it exploded, and as a result I could see smoke rising from different parts of my blood armor, and while my artifact necklace had managed to block most of the damage, parts of my face around my mouth still melted away before I could get the acid off of me.

    Electric daggers rained down on the monster as I sprinted toward it. Keith, now draped in Nisha''s blue aura, blazed past me and circled around the back of the monster. The monster looked between me, Keith, and the green ball to my right that was shining a bright white(Lindon''s acid-covered barrier on Markus) before deciding to leap to its right and attempt to blast me with a ball of acid, but just as it aimed its stomach at me, one of Albel''s fireballs flew past me and arced right into the monster''s mouth. The ensuing explosion was disgusting, to say the least. A large blast of bile and acid spewed all over the grass, but the damage didn''t stop the monster from spinning around and smacking Keith out of the air. He was mid-leap in an attempt to get on top of the monster, but now he was slamming into a tree a hundred yards away.

    The monster''s tail whipped down toward Markus again, but just like last time he cut a little bit of it off while dodging to the right, except the attacks didn''t stop this time. The tail that was now completely on fire, repeatedly attacked Markus, who was now focusing solely on defense. He tried attacking the tail without his light enhancement, but as a result his sword almost got stuck inside the tail, so he stopped attacking and focused on dodging while waiting for his ability to recharge.

    Now focusing almost entirely on me, the monster tried to squash me with its right paw as I over-enhanced my legs. I kicked to the right and immediately jumped up and grabbed the fur on its right collar. Before the monster could respond I kicked the side of its face with both of my feet at full strength, making the monster''s head whip to the left with so much force that its whole body fell onto the ground.

    The monster, apparently now seeing me as a bigger threat, went after me with both its front paws and its tail as it was falling sideways. Instead of battling the creature to hold my position like it probably expected, I jumped far away onto the grass behind me. Markus, now free to attack, was waiting for it as it landed on the ground. His blade wrapped in light blew half of the monster''s head off, and soon after that the monster''s head literally fell off of its body, rolling harmlessly sideways a little.

    At first I was confused, but then I saw Keith walking out from behind the monster''s now lifeless head.

    Albel and Lindon ran up to us while keeping their vision behind them. The armored monster didn''t attack us this time, it must need the fog.

    "Hell yeah, everyone! Nicely done!" Lindon said.

    "Everyone okay?" Markus said as he stood up from the ground. He was just rolling around in the grass to remove the acid from Lindon''s barrier -who was now deactivating the barrier since he didn''t need to worry about the acid anymore-.

    Keith sighed and sat down, "No. I''m limping... The mere act of walking is sending waves of pain up my spine. I think I might need to return. If I try and ''tough it out'', I''ll probably just end up dead, which will force Arkaios to reset."

    "Not that I''m downplaying the whole ''dead'' part, but for your group, does it matter all that much? Can''t we just bring you back right away?"

    Markus shook his head, "Sadly, that''s not how it works. Our Lord needs time to repair a soul after he tethers the part inside of Keith back to his realm. We''ll lose him for a few weeks minimum, and it could extend up to two months."

    Ahh shit, we definitely can''t go without him for that long.

    We all turn toward the large footsteps approaching us. The Tengu stops next to our group and sits down. At a glance I can tell that the only damage he sustained was from the monster''s acidic blood. Parts of his armor are singed here and there, but for the most part he seems fine. He lowers his staff and points at the end of it.

    Markus nods, "Interesting... His staff that''s made of wood sustained no damage from the monster''s acid."

    A cacophony of stomping feet rings out from our left and right flank.

    "Oh, now that''s just fucking wonderful," Lindon said.

    "Nisha is going to bring me back. I''m sorry you guys... Hopefully I can heal up in time to help you with the spider." Keith said, looking down.

    Markus put his hand on Keith''s shoulder, "Don''t beat yourself up over it kiddo. Unlike a certain someone else we can''t keep pushing forward even when parts of our face are melting off. You''ve done good, now hurry back and heal yourself."

    "... It''s that bad? All I know is that I can feel a bunch of wind blowing around in my mouth even when it''s closed."

    Keith looked at me and chuckled, "Not as bad as my back, but yeah, it''s pretty bad..."

    After saying that he waved at us and promptly disappeared into a ball of blue light.

    Markus looked at the Tengu, "Alright boss, what''s the plan?"

    The Tengu pointed at himself and then both the left and right sides. Next, he pointed at us and then toward the prison.

    Does he want to take all of the monsters on while we attack the prison alone? That can work if the monsters all come after him, but what if half split off in our direction?

    "I see the dissatisfaction on your face, Rei, but this is pretty much our only option." Markus continued, "Can you eat these monster''s souls before we leave? I''d rather not fight them again."

    "I can''t. The Minotaur never had one to begin with, and the cat''s soul disappeared the second we killed it."

    "Disappeared?"

    I nodded, "Yes, it quite literally disappeared, but not like how the Tengu saves his Lords souls. The cat''s just went poof. I obviously don''t have any proof yet, but I feel like it''s gone for good."

    "I''ve never heard of that happening before... But I hope you''re right." Markus continued, "Alright you four... Wait, where is Shana?"

    "One of her clones told us she''s running ahead to scout for us." Albel said.

    "Perfect, that girl always knows what to do without me needing to tell her." Markus continued, "Okay, as I was saying, we''re going to sprint straight for the temple. With any luck, our next enemy should be the three-headed dog outside of the prison."

    The four of us ran past the Tengu as he began firing off magical arrows into the fog. He''s probably trying to pull the monsters onto himself. Hopefully it works, because we can''t fight multiple large monsters at the same time.

 Chapter 50 - Demonic Support

    "You alright, Rei? You''re hobbling a little." Albel said.

    "Yeah, sorry... I over-enhanced both of my legs back there when I kicked that monster in the face because I thought I''d have some downtime to heal them before we had to run again."

    Markus glanced at me but he didn''t say anything. After that, we all remained silent as we continued our sprint through the forest. For the most part, all we could hear was the sounds of the forest and the occasional explosion from somewhere behind us.

    About thirty minutes later one of Shana''s clones came running through the fog ahead of us. Everyone slowed to a stop as we neared her.

    Shana pointed towards our left, "The other clone is being chased by one of those lions and another monster. I managed to pull them away from the river."

    "Rei, how many did you see by the river? I don''t remember you stating a specific number." Markus said.

    "Because I didn''t, but if I count the ones I caught glimpses of through the fog then it was probably around seven? Those are all the ones I saw as I walked along the river, and that was over the course of about five minutes. But that''s not all, I heard other monsters as well... So I really have no idea of how many are loitering around here."

    Markus looked back at Shana, "Your other clone only saw two? Can you send this one ahead of us and try to pull away any others you find?"

    Shana nodded and sprinted back the way she came. After a brief wait, we followed behind her. As we neared the river we could hear the sound of something large stomping off toward our right. Looks like she found another, but that''s all she can do for us at this point. The rest is up to us... And pure luck.

    We all jumped over the river and continued sprinting ahead for about a hundred more feet before something stopped us in our tracks. Markus stabbed his sword into the ground to keep himself upright, while both Albel and Lindon dropped to their knees.

    "S-Shit... This is far worse than I was expecting..." Markus trailed off as he looked up into the sky.

    It felt like we were trapped there for an eternity as Eremnon sneered at us, but it was probably closer to twenty seconds. After that, the weight lifted off completely, and it was replaced by something none of us could have ever possibly anticipated. A heavily armored ten-foot-tall Demon fell from the sky with enough force to break apart the ground beneath it, but the Demon stayed upright as if that ultra-fast drop meant nothing to it. It merely cracked its neck and willed a seven-foot-long greatsword into its hands.

    We immediately prepared for battle but the Demon merely waved us off with a disgusted look on its face. It then pointed toward the direction the prison was in.

    "No fucking way... Is this Demon implying it''s going to come with us?" Albel said.

    "It wouldn''t be the first time you had a Demon for an ally."

    Both Albel and Lindon scoffed at me as Markus put his sword down. "I don''t like this... Not one bit. But odds are it''ll either attack us or stick with us regardless of whether we want it there or not, so it''s not like we have much of a choice in the matter. Unless the three of you believe we should try and kill it? Let me be the first to say that I''m against such an action. There are already two powerful enemies waiting for us up ahead. Adding a third onto that list would be unbelievably foolish."

    "Eremnon still holds enough influence here to lock us down if he wants, so we couldn''t beat this thing even if we wanted to."

    "Then how come he didn''t do the same thing to the monsters here? The Demons would have won easily." Lindon said.

    "Hmm... This is just a guess, but I think he isn''t able to dominate non-humanoid souls. When the Xerath attacked the Demon stronghold I was trapped in, I didn''t see Eremnon doing anything other than watching the battle." I continued, "Also, like you just said, with his help the Demons should have been able to defend this place, and yet... They didn''t."

    "I doubt the presence of his eye is as omnipotent as we believe it to be, but let''s table this discussion for another day." Markus continued, "Our goal is to save the prisoners, not fight any random Demon we come across, and especially not one who isn''t attacking us. So let us continue forward before another monster find us."

    No one responded to him so Markus took that as agreement and began running toward the prison. We, including the Demon, followed behind him until the prison came into sight. Vicious snarling could be heard from up ahead before we even saw the prison, and the very second it came into view, we could hear the dog stampeding in this direction.

    Unlike my original plan to assist Markus in the front, I decided to protect the two in the back instead. So when the dog began to advance toward us, all I did was crouch into the grass while keeping an eye on all of our surroundings. No point in risking the chance that I''ll be killed or maimed by the dog when that Demon is here. It''s best that I save myself for the spider while making sure these two don''t die again.

    Lindon put his shield onto Markus just as the dog came into view. It was apparently barreling down onto him much faster than he had anticipated, because his attempt at dodging accomplished nothing. He was hit head-on as the center head chomped down onto Lindon''s barrier, all the while still running forward. As a result, Markus began to slide backwards along the ground after he was slammed hard into the dirt. Between the dog''s biting strength and the damage he was sustaining as he was being crushed into the Earth, I could see Lindon''s barrier cracking all over already.

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    The dog suddenly let go of Markus and jumped to the side, just barely avoiding a lethal strike on its left head from the Demon.

    What the hell was that? The Demon sliced at the dog as it ran by him, but he was at least two dozen feet away, so his sword was obviously nowhere near close enough to hurt the dog. But despite that, the dog must have noticed something I didn''t, because it hastily leaped away from the attack. And even then it still ended up with a large cut along one of its necks.

    Markus, now free from the dog, rolled to his feet and ran over to us. The shield around him looked like it was about to break into a hundred pieces but I could see it quickly repairing itself now that Lindon was channeling onto it.

    "I don''t know what that attack was, but that''s one head down thanks to the Demon," Markus said.

    I looked back at the dog and sure enough, the head that I thought had survived, was now hanging there limply as blood continued to pour out of its neck. The two remaining heads were snarling at the Demon, but the one on the right quickly whipped in this direction as a large fireball flew past me toward the dog. Instead of dodging, the dog merely chomped down on the fireball and turned its full attention back to the Demon.

    I could hear Albel snort behind me, "Pfft... I''ve had my attacks absorbed before, but I''ve never had them entirely dismissed as if they were nothing. I''d of done more damage throwing a rock at the damned thing."

    The Demon bent down again, placing its sword behind it in preparation for another attack, but just before it swung, a guard came bolting through the fog and punched the Demon''s right ankle with enough force to knock it off its feet. The Demon quickly punched the ground and rolled away before the dog was on top of it, but it was now on the defensive as the dog and guard attacked it from different sides.

    Every hair on my body stood up as I felt something sinister appear behind me. I immediately turned around and grabbed both Albel and Lindon. I leaped away as two large bronze bells slammed down onto the ground they had occupied barely one second ago. Markus'' blade flashed a bright white as he cut deep into the bell on the right before it disappeared into the fog. Albel had fired off a small fireball as well, but it flew forward unabated into the fog, missing the monster entirely.

    "The fuck was that?! There was nothing inside of it!" Lindon yelled.

    So he saw that too... Markus cut a big opening into what I thought was the monster''s left hand, but the inside of the bell was completely empty. And this fucking monster must have been following us this entire time while it waited for us to be distracted. That''s twice now it had tried to kill our backline soon after we entered battle with another monster.

    "I thought it had faded into the fog and hid from us, but I think it quite literally dissipated into fog. That would also explain why we can''t see its body. There is an insane amount of fog covering the monster when it appears."

    I had flipped these two around so I was holding onto the backs of their leather straps now, and that''s why I could feel Albel filling his lungs with air. Oh, I remember this... This is what he used to incinerate me long ago.

    Albel exhaled, releasing a large cone of fire as he swiveled his head back and forth, blanketing the entire forest behind us in fire. Despite the hard battle it was currently enthralled in, I could hear the Demon laughing behind us. Nothing makes these fuckers happier than seeing something or someone bathed in fire.

    "Wha---?!" Lindon yelped as I jumped to the left, barely avoiding yet another crushing attempt from the armored monster. Markus'' blade wasn''t ready yet, so he didn''t even bother retaliating. If he struggled to cut through the fleshy cat monster from before, then there was no way in hell he was going to damage the hardened bronze metal attacking us. Albel however, did manage to hit it with a fast medium-sized fireball, but it didn''t appear to do any damage.

    "Alright, I''m done playing around... Be ready Rei. This one is probably going to hurt you when it explodes." Albel said as he created a small fireball between his palms. It quickly began spinning, growing brighter with each passing second. Is this the spell Jasper used to kill that moon Eldritch? He''s casting it alone though, so it shouldn''t blow up an entire town like that one did. Plus, he has nobody to help him condense and control it. I can see it flaring up even now... The longer he channels onto it, the more unstable it''s becoming.

    "It looks like it''s going to explode right now, Albel. Are you sure you can handle that?"

    "It... It should be fine... Probably... So long as the monster appears again... And hopefully very very soon."

    "......"

    Albel''s hands began to shake as he looked around the fog wildly for the monster, but it was nowhere to be seen.

    "Fuck, fuck, fuck!! TURN ME REI!"

    I did a one-eighty, aiming Lindon and Albel at the other battle taking place. The fireball immediately shot off toward the dog, who attempted to chomp down on it again, but the fireball exploded about ten feet from it, causing its right head to completely disintegrate as the rest of its body was blasted backwards. The shockwave hit us hard too, knocking all three of us backward. We were midair when I saw a large bronze bell descending onto us from above. I kicked the ground hard with my right foot, forcing us to pivot wildly to the left, but the monster was already attacking us again with its other hand.

    Yet again, I kicked the ground and forced us to dodge in another direction, where yet another bell appeared, but this time it was coming from the side. Just as I was about to dodge forward, the Demon appeared and quickly cut the bell off at its wrist. We got a much better look this time, and sure enough, the armor was completely empty.

    Now that I was no longer under attack, I was able to stand all three of us up. The first thing I saw was Markus finishing off the guard. Apparently, Albel''s fireball had completely scorched the man and blew off his limbs. I saw something shooting out of his mouth towards Markus, but it must not have done anything, because he easily deflected it and then cut the man in two.

    For its part, the dog looked like it was on its last legs, almost literally. Its front right leg was gone, and while Albel''s fireball had cauterized all the damage it did, the damage itself was more than enough. Even now I could see the dog wobbling back and forth as it struggled to stay upright.

    "I-I think I''m gonna be sick..." Lindon said, holding his hand over his mouth as he bent over.

    Ahh... I was in a panic back there trying to keep us alive, so I wasn''t thinking about what those kinds of movements might do to a human. I kind of forgot that suddenly jerking people back and forth like that is going to be hard on their brains and stomachs. Not that I had much of a choice in the matter.

    The Demon strode past us, patting the bladed part of its sword against its palm while laughing at the dog. I thought it was going to flee, but instead, the dog just fell over. I heard one final exhale from the monster, and that was the end of it. It went completely silent after that. The Demon looked rather annoyed, but the rest of us were more than satisfied.

    We''re finally there... Hang on Ishar. I don''t know how we''re going to beat the spider, but I refuse to leave him here, so killing that ethereal abomination is our only way forward.

 Chapter 51 - Spider Raid

    "So this is it..." Markus said as the prison finally came into view.

    The Demon promptly turned left and walked alongside the prison until he was fully obscured by the fog.

    Lindon put his arms out to his sides, "Where the hell is he going...? I was hoping he''d help with the spider."

    "Remember the side entrance I told you about? It''s guarded by a bunch of zombified Demons. From what I saw in the Xerath''s realm, Demons hate it when anyone else takes their corpses. I don''t know why it bothers them so much, but I imagine that''s a major reason why Eremnon is so enraged at what is happening here. All of the dead Demons are being used as puppets after all."

    "Uh, guys? I have some bad news." Albel whispered, low enough that I barely heard it.

    Markus looked back at him, "What''s wrong?"

    "... I''m out of mana, and I kind of damaged my soul using that spell. I''ve only used it one other time, but it worked out fine back then. This time though, I was in a panic, and not properly focused on the spell, so..."

    Markus sighed, "So it almost backfired... You could have killed all four of us. We currently have the reset, but we aren''t in a good enough position to completely rely on it. I understand that having such an omnipotent spell backing you up makes you think that taking risks is okay, but please don''t do that again. We really don''t know how long we''ll be on Veca, and if we end up accidentally killing the moon because we drained too much of its life force, then we''ll all be fucked."

    "That can happen...?"

    "Yes. My Lord told me of a time long ago in the past when someone had completely killed one of Mother''s moons, and for whatever reason, that led to it losing its gravitational pull completely." Markus continued, "Well, now that I know Mother is an Eldritch, it probably means that she purposely disposed of her child since it was no longer alive. After it died, the moon promptly disappeared into the sea of clouds below us, which is what will happen to us if we kill Veca. Not that I know how many resets it would take for that to happen, but My Lord said the Demons are currently draining the moon of its lifeblood, so Veca is already on borrowed time as it is."

    "Oh that''s just fucking fantastic... Do we really not know how much, uh, life, Veca has left?" Lindon asked.

    Markus shook his head, "There will be signs, like the forest dying and the number of natural disasters skyrocketing, but until it reaches that point, we really just don''t know."

    "All that aside, I don''t care for our odds versus the spider right now. We really need Keith... Is he on his way here?"

    "Hang on," Albel said as he closed his eyes. He reopened them about a minute later, "My sister said he tried to rejoin us, but there was a problem. The monsters battling the Tengu had sensed him coming this way, and apparently, there is a shocking amount of monsters over there right now, so the Tengu has been doing a hit-and-run strategy to fight them all off, but that kind of strategy won''t keep them away from Keith, so he had no choice but to return to the temple."

    God damnit...

    Markus rubbed his chin, "You do have a point, Rei. This is going to be a hard battle, and magic damage is usually how you kill ethereal monsters, but our caster is currently out of commission."

    "Not entirely! I''m just having trouble channeling mana right now, and it''s regaining much slower than it should... Can we find a place to hide so I can try and meditate?"

    "Hide?" Lindon looked around, "Where exactly? The spider is just past this entrance, and we can''t stay out here with that bronze monster still hunting us. The Demon only destroyed one of its... Hands? I don''t even fucking know."

    "Let''s just go inside and have Albel hide behind the desk on the right side. And we''ll need to be swift in killing the guard who patrols the area, otherwise, the spider will definitely hear us." I continued, "You''re right Lindon, it probably won''t work, but we really need Albel or Keith for this battle."

    "Should we try the side entrance instead?" Markus asked.

    "Hmm... I suppose it would be empty if the Demon successfully killed all of his zombified brethren."

    Taking that as affirmation, Markus turned and followed the same path the Demon took. The other two sidled up to him while I walked behind them, keeping my eyes behind and above me the entire time.

    "Just a warning, it smells really bad down there. To the point that I''m not even sure you guys can handle it."

    "... We''ve been around plenty of bodies in our time. We''ll be fine." Markus said.

    Heh, we''ll see about that.

    As we rounded the corner the sounds of battle reached our ears, but no Demons could be seen anywhere as the court came into view. Well, alive ones anyway. There are several sliced-up zombie corpses here and there.

    Markus pointed toward the fog opposite the court, "Looks like he pulled them away in that direction. I thought we''d have to fight our way through here, but looks like luck is on our side for a change."

    Albel sidles up to me, "Rei, you said that Minotaur Demon ''Had no soul to begin with''... Right?"

    I nodded.

    "I wonder how it''s controlling them then... All summons require a connection through the soul, otherwise, how would you retain control of the summon? And not only that, but how would you maintain them without a connection? I''ve never heard of a summon that can self-sustain before now..."

    "Except I already prove that last part wrong. I can create ether carriers who generate enough ether to keep themselves and a few other skeletons alive indefinitely."

    "Indefinitely?! I don''t remember seeing anything like that during the Tengu battle."

    "Because I had them hiding inside the village cellars behind us. They''re very weak and slow after all. But they do need a connection to the other skeletons to supply them with ether... Plus, the zombies are weaker, but I don''t see any of the other signs that suggest they are generating ether, like a mana signature. I can''t sense any of these zombies, so... Yeah, I really don''t know the answer either."

    We entered the side entrance and walked down the steps. We got about halfway down when I saw both Albel and Lindon covering their faces from the nose down with their shirts.

    "H-Holy hell, you weren''t kidding, Rei..." Lindon said weakly.

    Upon reaching the holding cells Markus immediately looked at me. "Alright, I admit you were right. There''s no way in hell Albel can relax and meditate in here."

    "It''s brutal, isn''t it? But don''t worry, I know where we can go."

    I led them toward the hallway but I felt all three of them stop behind me. Turning around, I see them looking at a certain someone.

    "So that''s her?" Markus asked.

    Lindon walked up to her and immediately I could see her lips shaking again.

    "Whoa... She really is saying ''Ring''... This is so creepy, and it''s made even worse by how ungodly beautiful this woman''s face is. I''m sure her body was the same way, but, uh..."

    Yeah, it''s hard to tell when most of her torso is ripped open... It was only a slight curiosity at first, but when I think back to what the Demons did to me, I feel a much stronger urge to help this girl.

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    Albel sighed, "The ring aside, let''s bring her back with the others. That way her reset point is the temple and not this hellhole."

    "I planned on doing that from the start. Now let''s go." I said, walking to the door and pressing my ear against it. I can hear the sound of footsteps going up the steps on the right.

    I waited a few moments to make sure the guard was completely out of ear sight before opening the door. I walk out into the hallway and lead the others to the office I was in before. Once inside, Albel immediately sits in a back corner and begins meditating. I go through the desk and hand the diary to Markus.

    "Here, this is the diary I was talking about."

    Markus grabbed it and sat down in the chair behind the desk. Lindon stood behind the chair and read along with him. For my part, I sat with my back to the wall, thinking about nothing in particular. Merely resting, while waiting for the inevitable battle to come.

    <hr>

    Albel stood up, "Sorry guys, that took longer than I had expected, but I''m ready."

    Markus, who was lying down in the chair with the diary over his face sat up and put the diary on the desk. "About time... I even fell asleep a few times."

    I pointed toward Lindon, "He is asleep."

    Markus sighed and stood up. He walked over to Lindon and shook him awake. While the three of them prepared themselves for the battle ahead, I ran it through my mind several times. Kill the guard, then go upstairs, and then ambush the spider while it''s busy eating someone else.

    "I really have a bad feeling about this. If we don''t kill it right away..."

    Markus looked at me, "I know, Rei. This is going to be an impossibly difficult battle if we don''t finish it right away. We might even have to figure out how to escape with everyone while it hunts us. The only blessing is that ethereal creatures can''t go through the ground. So long as we get everyone outside, it''ll have no choice but to come at us head-on. There''s also the chance that it believes it can beat us without doing any of that, so it will hold its ground and fight us right there in that room."

    "Putting aside that convenient last scenario, that means it would be for the best if we found the keys to this place first. If the guard who patrols this area doesn''t have them, should I go look for them first? So long as that dumb fucking ninja doesn''t see me, he won''t call out for the guards, which means it should be okay for me to snoop around."

    Markus went silent, thinking it over for a bit. "... We''ve already taken too long, but that is the best course of action. We''ll go with that plan."

    We waited until we heard the guard pass by this room. Markus opened the door and ran out first, but immediately I saw him duck as a backhanded fist smashed through the stone wall near the door frame, just barely missing Markus''s head. I over-enhanced my whole body and grabbed the guard''s fist, putting my feet up against the wall to use it as leverage as I held the guard in place.

    Markus slashed at the guard, but despite the amount of power I was using to keep the guard in place, it still managed to pull away enough so his arm was cut off instead of his torso getting slashed. Lindon applied his barrier just before the guard''s blood hit Markus, and immediately I could see it sizzling again. Greyson and the others said the guards were changed, and while they are obviously fucked up looking, this is proof right here that they have been altered in some way. They''re just like all the zombies now.

    All I saw next was the guard''s other fist smashing into Lindon''s barrier, sending Markus flying backward. I ran out the door and threw the guard''s dismembered arm at his face, he batted it away as I kicked hard at his right ankle. He buckled a little, but quickly threw a high-speed punch at my face. I bent to the left and weaved below it, kicking his right ankle again, causing him to buckle a little more.

    The guard continued to try and punch me, but I kept dodging out of the way while kicking his ankle as hard as I could. Eventually, the simple-minded guard figured out that this wasn''t going to work and attempted to charge me, but he took one step forward and fell toward the ground, just barely catching himself with his knees and right hand. Markus, now ready to attack again, used this opportunity to cut the man in two, quite literally.

    "... Good job killing him, but I''m not excited at the prospect of looking for keys in this mess now."

    Markus chuckled, "Apologies my dear, I''ll help you look. Lindon, keep your barrier on me."

    We bent down and scoured the guard''s pockets, and much to my shock, we actually found the keys.

    "I''m not sure whether to be annoyed or satisfied. I might have been able to kill this guard alone, but... Yeah never mind, no point in going down that line of thought."

    "Best to just be happy with what we got so far! Hell, I''m ecstatic, that means we''re finally ready to do this." Lindon said, pumping his fists.

    Markus nodded, "I''m ready. How about you lot?"

    "Personally I can''t wait to burn this spider... I haven''t met it yet, but the very idea that this monster even exists is grating on me." Albel said.

    "Heh, well said. You''re going to hate it even more after you''ve met it."

    Markus turned around and walked up the steps. Once we were on the ground level, he led us to the cells, where everyone looked at us in shock. And of course the sounds of screaming could be heard from the room in the back.

    I went over to the cage on this side and whispered, "Ishar, Greyson, we''re here to kill the spider. Also..." I showed them the keys and continued, "Want to help?"

    Ishar''s eyes went wide. Soon after that he looked down and chuckled, "... I haven''t seen you in ages, Rei, and this is the first thing you do..."

    For his part, Greyson wasn''t moving. Just like before, he was trying to figure out who I was again. Ishar walked to the entrance of the cage and stood tall with his back straight, looking just like he did when I first met him. "Open it up. I''m ready.

    Now that''s more like it... It was killing me seeing the hunched-over gaunt version of Ishar. I''m sure he has his own internal demons to deal with now, but hopefully we can help him get over them. Starting with him assisting us in murdering this spider.

    I walked over to the cell and unlocked it. After that, I walked over to the other cell. "Well? What do you lot want to do? Your Tengu asked us to save you, so whether you help or not, I''ll be letting you out of here."

    The ninja who previously ratted me out looked at me with a stunned expression. "Our Lord sent you here...?"

    "No. He asked us to save you as a reciprocation for assisting us. One of the Tengu''s Lords is out there fighting monsters for us right now."

    The ninjas all glanced at each other, but they didn''t waste any time debating whether the information was true or not. They immediately agreed to help us.

    "We have our own little quarrel with the spider..." The first ninja said as he exited the cage.

    All of a sudden the screaming stopped. I looked back and was met with a horrific version of Dejavu. A ghastly palm was sticking through the wall with a large eyeball on it staring down at us. The speed at which the spider entered the room and grabbed a dozen people was almost impossible to track. It immediately whipped them into the wall with enough strength that I saw blood splattering everywhere. It reached for another group just as I hit it with the sonar ball of light, causing it to stop in its tracks for a moment as it gauged what I had just hit it with.

    The spider''s whole body lit up through the wall. It was gripping multiple points in the previous room to hold itself up as its torso hung low near the floor. Markus, Ishar, Albel, and a group of ninjas ran into the room in the back. The spider kept attacking the people out here, but its attention was obviously focused on the group trying to attack him directly. I could hear explosions of fire as I dodged the two hands currently trying to grab me. Oh my god, why is this thing so fucking fast?!

    I turned ethereal for a split second as its fingers repeatedly grazed me. With every attempt it came closer and closer to grabbing me. This isn''t going to work, and I''m not helping anyone by doing this. Deciding to just risk everything, I grab one of its hands as it passes by me and pull myself up onto it, and that''s when I realize how I can actually damage this thing.

    It should have been obvious in hindsight... It turns you ethereal so it can touch you, so clearly that means you can touch it as well.

    I punch the arm in front of me with all my strength, causing my fist to go all the way through the spider''s arm. The arm wrung in pain as the other hand grabbed for me. Several of the ninjas clung onto the arm and began to rip into it with their fingers, tearing bits of the arm out until it hung there limply. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Greyson rolling dice on a blue ethereal board. What the fuck is he doing?! Is that his ability...?

    Now that I wasn''t under attack, I dashed toward the room in the back. Inside, I could see Markus doing his best to parry multiple attacks coming at him as he guarded Albel. For his part, Albel was attempting to breathe fire onto the spider''s torso, but it was currently creating webs at a much faster rate than he could burn through them.

    On both sides I could see Ishar and several groups of ninjas battling the spiders arms while killing them one by one. At first glance it looks like we''re doing great, but all of its hands are slowly regenerating, and even now I can see it growing new arms from the top of its torso...

    "WHAT A PERFECT ROLL FOR THIS SITUATION HAHAHAHA!!" Greyson laughed wildly as he entered the room. "Now watch this bitch burn!"

    He walked to our right and aimed a long metal hose at the webbing in front of us. This is obviously a gun, but I''ve never seen one like this before? He has a large metal backpack strapped to him that''s connected to a long hose... And is that a small blue flame at the end of the hose?

    Greyson pulled the trigger and immediately the area in front of him was covered in liquid flame. Albel''s ability is amazing, it really is, but it''s nothing compared to what I''m looking at right now. The spider also realized it was fucked if it didn''t stop him. Its webbing was disappearing at an alarming rate with both Albel and Greyson torching it. Whatever hands it had left descended onto Greyson as Lindon''s barrier flared to life around him.

    I, Markus, Ishar, and even the ninjas ran to his side and attempted to keep any hands we could off of him. Two still managed to grab him and under the might of their grip I could see Lindon''s barrier cracking all over. Greyson just kept laughing maniacally as he burned the webbing.

    "MARKUS!" I yelled and pointed toward the webbing. He knew what I was saying without even confirming it, as he enhanced his feet and blitzed forward with his sword shining a bright white. He cut straight through the last vestiges that remained of the webbing and the torso behind them as well. His sword flared as he was halfway through the torso, causing it to burst into a ball of white flames. He rolled out of the way as Greyson continued to pour flames onto the torso, but it was already over. The hands of the spider lost their grip on the ceiling, all falling to the ground one by one.

 Chapter 52 - Trapped

    "What are you looking for?" Ishar asked as I threw another body off the pile.

    "A hunchbacked Demon. Did you see one during your stay here? Its mouth is perpetually open and it has no teeth."

    Ishar gritted his teeth, "... Yeah, I''ve seen one of those. We all have."

    Ahh, that response... The Demon was probably torturing them for fun. I''ll try not to bring it up again after this.

    "Where did it die? There''s no way it survived this mess, so it must be dead somewhere in this prison."

    "No clue missy. The last time we saw it was before everything went to hell." Greyson cut in.

    God damnit... I''m sorry girl, but there''s really nothing more I can do if I don''t find it in the rest of the prison.

    Markus walked up to me, "You ready? We''re leaving soon."

    "No. I want to check the rest of the prison real quick for a hunchbacked Demon to see if it has that girl''s ring. It shouldn''t take too long."

    Markus shrugged, "There isn''t much left to check unless you plan on digging through all of the bodies. But go ahead, it shouldn''t take you too long. We''ll be at the entrance. Right now they''re trying to stabilize the girl who was being eaten by the spider so they''ll probably be happy for any amount of time they''ll be given to repair her soul."

    I can still hear her crying from here... That poor girl. I was only given a slight dose of that pain so I can only imagine what she''s feeling right now after being subjected to that for hours. Albel is out there trying to help her too. He didn''t say anything, but it''s obvious that he holds himself partially responsible since we had to wait several hours in that office because of him.

    I ran out of the room, and much to my surprise, Ishar and Greyson followed behind me. Ishar saw me glancing back at him and he just smirked.

    "There''s no fucking way I''m just going to sit quietly at the entrance and do nothing again. I''ve done enough of that since the last time I saw you... I feel alive for the first time in ages!"

    Heh... Works for me.

    <hr>

    I sighed, "Oh well. Thanks for trying to help me you two."

    "Not a problem, but why are we going downstairs?" Greyson asked.

    "There''s one last person we need to bring with us."

    The two of them glanced at each other but said nothing in response. Once we reached the cell, Ishar winced a little but Greyson practically fell backward as he attempted to escape the smell.

    "Oh hell no! I''ll wait for you two near the steps." Greyson said as he ran back toward the staircase.

    Wasting no time, I walked into the girl''s cell and broke the chains holding her hands up. Before she crumpled to the ground I caught her and began wrapping her in my blood mesh.

    I was about to strap her to me when Ishar intervened, "Let me carry her."

    He really wants to be useful right now, huh? Well, I''m not about to deny him that.

    "Should I make you the same armor I''m wearing? Your old armor is long gone after all. But I won''t be able to do that until we''re back in the temple. It''ll take a few hours."

    "The artifact spear that I painstakingly raised for over ten years is also gone... It''s like they took my son from me. God damnit just thinking about it really pisses me off!" Ishar sighed, then continued, "But by all means, please make me some armor. It looks kind of weird, like a skinsuit, but anything is better than nothing."

    "Hey! It''s much better than nothing. My armor scales with my personal strength, so it should be on the level of mana-infused chainmail right now."

    "Oh? That''s better than I expected..." Ishar said as I wrapped a mesh around him and the girl.

    Before heading upstairs I quickly ran into the office at the end of the hallway and stuck both the gun and bullets into a sack nearby before slinging it over my shoulder. After that, all three of us walked toward the meeting point.

    "Anything?" Markus asked as we reached the entrance.

    Most of the people in the entrance were healing everyone who had been smashed into the walls by the spider. There''s only a few who look like they''re going to need help traveling. We''re really fortunate considering how hard the spider threw them. They must have enhanced themselves as quickly as they could, otherwise they''d all be paste right now.

    "Nope. Just more food and dead bodies." I continued, "We''re in a warm forest but there aren''t any insects eating away at the corpses or the food. It''s... bizarre."

    "Now that you mention it, I haven''t seen a single bug inside the prison since everything changed..." A ninja said.

    Markus clapped his gauntlets, "Alright, let''s get going people. We have a long way to go, so please keep an eye on your surroundings. I doubt that bronze fucker is the only thing that will be hunting us."

    After saying that he turned around and left the prison. As the rest of us followed him, I saw the spider''s victim haphazardly strapped to the back of another ninja. That cloth is barely holding onto her... I guess it couldn''t be helped since their very own clothes were already raggedy and falling off here and there.

    I pull a long strip of blood out and turn it into soft mesh. The girl and the ninja carrying her watched me as I did it.

    "Here. This will be better at holding her onto you. You won''t even need to use your arms to hold her."

    I wrapped the mesh around the both of them, securing her to the ninja. At first the ninja seemed a little weirded out, but after it was on, the two of them merely glanced at each other before thanking me. Sadly, I could barely hear the girl. Even that little attempt at talking seemed to cause great pain to her.

    "You killed that?" Greyson asked, jerking his thumb toward the three-headed dog''s corpse as we walked by it.

    "We did, yes. Unfortunately, we couldn''t kill the armored monster attacking us from behind though. I''m sure it''ll attack us again at some point, so just be ready. I''m sure it''s waiting for us to enter battle with another monster, just like last time."

    The ninjas who heard me all began to look around with a slight tinge of panic on their faces. Markus already told them about the bronzed fucker, but I guess hearing it while you''re out here as we walk by a giant dog monster''s corpse it''s going to affect them differently.

    <hr>

    "Incoming!" Markus yelled as he drew his sword.

    The ground shook as something ran straight at us from up ahead. It didn''t take long to see what it was. One of the lion monsters appeared through the fog and immediately leaped into the air, swinging its greatsword down onto Markus. Markus enhanced his legs and dodged far to the left, but I heard him scream in pain despite the fact that he had clearly avoided the attack.

    Lindon quickly applied his barrier to Markus, "What''s wrong?! I was saving my barrier in case he attacked the backline, and it didn''t look like he was going to hit you!"

    "F-Fucking sword..." Markus said as he fell to his knees.

    As I looked at Markus, I noticed he had a strip of flesh missing from his neck, and it was quickly turning purple. That''s when I remembered what I had seen while one of these monsters fought a Minotaur during my first day here.

    "Careful everyone! I think it''s the serrated part of the lion''s sword! See the serrated part wiggling around?"

    "Shit... I see it now. Did those things poison Markus?!" Lindon yelled.

    I glanced at the bag but decided against it. I better save the gun for when I truly need it... And a gunshot here will attract every monster for miles.

    The ninjas spread out while two of them pulled Markus toward the middle of the pack.

    "Bah! What a shit roll..." Greyson said, holding up a slingshot.

    "... You went from a ''Flamethrower'' as you called it, to a slingshot?"

    Greyson shrugged, "You win some, you lose some."

    "That looks like one hell of a loss..." Ishar said as he kept his eyes behind us, waiting for the other monster to show up.

    I dropped the sack and ran forward, stopping directly before the lion. "I have yet to find a poison that harms me, so whatever is on that blade shouldn''t be an issue for me."

    The lion, who hadn''t moved an inch after attacking Markus, suddenly sprung to life and jumped over me. Turning around, I saw that it was swinging at Markus again. It wants to finish him off first?!

    The lion''s head whipped back as Greyson hit it with something blue from his slingshot. At the same time, a few of the ninjas jumped onto the lion, but that had apparently been a bad idea, as I could see them struggling to get off the lion''s mane, and none of their attacks were damaging it. Shit... I can see something wriggling about inside the lion''s mane and it''s all converging on those four ninjas.

    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

    The lion continued to swing away at Markus as the two ninjas holding him up dodged back and forth. I was about to attack it from behind when the lion''s mane suddenly burst into flames. On instinct the lion pushed itself backward toward the ground, smashing itself onto the dirt. Luckily, the ninjas were able to free themselves just before it crushed them, but none of them were attempting to move away from the lion. That''s when I saw the little worm-like creatures biting into their legs, causing them to turn purple.

    Their closest brethren put the fire out on their clothes and killed the creatures poisoning them. They then picked them up and carried them to the back next to Ishar. The lion, still on the ground, whipped its sword around it in a circle, forcing everyone to jump over the blade, but a few of the people here didn''t jump as high as they should have, leading to the tentacles on the blade tearing into their legs.

    For my part, I had jumped toward the lion. It rolled to the left to avoid me but I kicked hard into the ground chasing after it. I quickly punched it in the back of its head before it could evade again, sending it reeling forward. I dodged backward while holding my arms in front of me as some of the acidic blood sprayed out in my direction.

    I looked down as I felt something biting my arms and I saw several worms trying to bite through my armor. I ripped them off and threw them onto the ground, crushing them with my feet soon after. Fucking gross...

    Albel incinerated the lion before it could get up, covering the entire thing in fire. But despite that, it still stood up and looked directly at him, clearly picking him as its next target. To my right I could hear something smash into the ground. Looking in that direction, I saw the bronzed monster dissipating into the fog again after its failed ambush on Ishar and Lindon. All of the damage we did earlier is repaired... Both of the damned things hands were intact.

    The lion raised its sword high, but two ethereal purple arrows pierced the back of its knees before it could attack Albel, causing the lion to fall forward. It caught itself with its left hand but it was barely given enough time to glance backward to see what had attacked it before a large wooden staff came crashing down on its head. Acidic blood splattered everywhere, but everyone was able to evade in time.

    "Oh thank god... I never thought I''d be this happy to see a Tengu Lord before now..." Lindon said. He was about to sit down in relief but he suddenly went alert and looked behind him. I don''t think the armor will attack us now. Not with the lion dead and our support here. But he probably should stay vigilant like that just in case.

    The look of pure joy on the ninja''s faces almost made me want to smile as well. Wow... They really love the Tengu, huh?

    "My Lord!! Thank you for saving us!" One ninja said.

    The Tengu Lord glanced at the ninjas. The disappointment and disgust it felt toward the ninjas couldn''t be more obvious.

    Oh right... The ninjas serve a Tengu Lord, and it''s most likely an evil one. So this heroic Lord isn''t going to be very pleased with them.

    However, if the ninjas noticed his feelings toward them, they clearly didn''t care. Even the ones that were poisoned and unable to move looked like they wanted to start dancing.

    Most of the Tengu''s armor is banged up and covered in dried blood. His feathers are singed all over as well... Just how many monsters has he killed since we lost sight of him?

    Greyson walked up to me, "Demon girl, what''s the limit on the amount of rope you can create?"

    "Rope? Do you mean my black mesh? I can make a good amount but nowhere near enough for what you''re about to ask, there are just too many people injured. Most of these people who were poisoned will need to be carried the old-fashioned way. I can make enough for some slight support, but not enough to strap everyone in securely."

    It actually is possible, but that would require me to channel mana into my core to replenish my blood supply as I go. The problem is that I haven''t done that since I was a little girl, and I can''t for the life of me remember how long it takes to forcibly create new blood. I feel like it took a while... But I''m not positive. It''s too risky to sit out here while I fumble around making mesh when these people could just carry them normally anyway. All we can do is pray they''re not attacked on our journey home. Plus...

    I looked at the Tengu.

    He looks completely exhausted... So the sooner we''re back, the better.

    As quickly as possible, I created enough mesh to strap the poisoned people to their carriers, but when I was about seventy percent done, I suddenly stumbled backward and fell over. Ishar caught me just before I hit the ground. Damnit, I knew it...

    "... Too much?"

    "Yeah... Way too much."

    He helped me up as the Tengu turned and began to walk toward the temple. We followed behind him for what felt like ages until I suddenly saw a blue line connect to Ishar. His eyes widened, and soon after that he was chuckling while putting his right hand over his eyes. We must be close now. I''ve been completely out of it, so I don''t even know how long we''ve been walking...

    I glanced back at Markus. Albel and Lindon were dragging him along, but they weren''t as worn out as the others despite Markus'' unbelievably heavy frame and armor. I can see a slight shimmer of blue around them, Nisha must be empowering them.

    Just as I was about to face forward again, Markus turned into a blue ball and shot off toward the temple. The ninjas looked around in a panic at the unknown spell, probably wondering if we were under attack. Smart move. Might as well just bring him back since he wouldn''t be of any use if we got attacked anyway.

    <hr>

    Eventually, the temple finally came into view. Most of the newcomers stopped to register at the barrier as we walked right through it. Once inside, the Tengu immediately laid down next to the temple and passed out.

    Shana greeted us at the doorway. "My new clones have been keeping an eye on your surroundings. There were monsters coming for you, but about fifteen minutes ago they all turned around and went somewhere else."

    Avoiding the temple maybe...? I don''t know what else it could be.

    "Long time no see little ninja," Ishar said, then smirked and motioned toward the group behind us, "We saved your friends."

    Shana raised a middle finger at him, "Very funny, ass. You know better than anyone that I don''t know who those people are."

    "How come none of them scouted around us with clones? Shouldn''t they have the same abilities as her?"

    Shana said nothing as Ishar shrugged, "While I''ve only met a few ninjas before Shana here, none of them had the ability to split themselves. But enough of this, I want to eat damnit. Please tell me this place is packed with food?"

    Nisha appeared through the door, "It''s not, so you''re going to have to wait. We''re going to heal everyone as much as we can, and then we''ll fill everyone with food before setting a new reset point. So any resets we may need after that begin with all of us ready to go instead of starved and crippled. For now we are boiling all of the potatoes Rei found a few days ago, so everyone will have to make do with that until we''re ready."

    "Good enough for me," Greyson said, sitting down next to the temple entrance.

    The others slowly filtered in through the barrier and entered the temple. After everyone was properly fed and given water, they spent the next half a day healing their allies as best they could until they were certain they wouldn''t die in their sleep. Barely a minute later everyone had fallen asleep and they stayed asleep for almost an entire day.

    <hr>

    "Were you up the whole time?" Lindon said as he sat next to me.

    "Yeah, but it''s not a problem. I slept for several days before the reset, remember? I don''t necessarily need to sleep right now, and I have a few things on my mind that I want to think about."

    "And what''s that?"

    "Well... I suppose it''s nothing particular. More like this whole situation, and what we''re supposed to do next. We could go through the Jericho portal and jump into another one in that portal area before the people of Jericho find us, but what if we just end up in another Viktor-owned nation? We''ll all die pointlessly then."

    Lindon sighed, "Yeah... There aren''t any good options for us, is there?" Lindon went silent for a bit, then continued, "It''s kind of amazing. You never really know where your life is going to lead... Did you know that I used to be a bandit?"

    "No, but I''m not surprised."

    Lindon laughed, "That obvious, huh? I wasn''t the ruthless murderer type, but I did steal from lots of people, so long as they weren''t ultra-poor. That is, until I knocked a girl up. She was a weaver, but she wasn''t in any illustrious position. She would weave in a dark dilapidated room with the other ladies, making next to nothing every single day. I didn''t think much of her at the time, but when she told me she was pregnant..."

    "You saw her differently after that?"

    "I did... And somehow, all of a sudden, my profession disgusted me. I wasn''t sure what to do though since I had no other skills aside from fighting, so in what I thought was a pointless attempt, I tried to join the Guardians guild. But shockingly, I didn''t even need to go through any of the application process. Godwin saw my barrier ability and that was it, he said I was joining and I wasn''t allowed to say no."

    Hah... That does sound like Godwin.

    "Hang on, why did you end up with Keith then? He wasn''t in the Guardians guild. I thought he was an inquisitor who worked directly for Viseux?"

    Lindon nodded, "That''s right, and Godwin is the one who sent me to work for him. He wanted me to protect the up-and-coming rookie while keeping an eye on what Viseux was having him do. Keith knew exactly why I was there, but he didn''t mind at all. If anything, he idolized Godwin, so there was no way he was going to be offended by any assistance Godwin sent his way."

    The image of the current Viseux flashed through my mind. "... One more question. Where is your family now?"

    "Hmm?" Lindon looked at me, not a hint of pain on his face. "Oh! You''re thinking they were in Viseux? Hell no, I wasn''t allowed to leave, but inquisitors and Guardians were allowed to relocate their families to other places. I sent her away while she was still pregnant, but we did continue to exchange letters up until I died. My Lord had one of his agents inform her that I was on an extended mission and wouldn''t be able to contact her for a while. Better than telling her I was dead and waiting to be revived, right?"

    Keith entered the room through a nearby door, still cleaning himself with a wet towel. "The difference between Lindon and Gaz was night and day. After Lindon, I wasn''t too worried when the higher-ups said they were sending me more bandits to beat into shape. But those two ended up being a complete waste of space."

    Lindon scoffed, "They were fucking useless, and far cruder than I ever was. Thanks for killing them for us, Rei."

    "ALRIGHT EVERYONE, COME INTO THE MAIN HALL. LET''S GO!!" Markus yelled from nearby.

    One by one we all entered the main hall and sat down. Markus and all the other poisoned individuals are looking much better. Normally there''s no way in hell they''d be able to heal that fast... They''re lucky to be inside one of Arkaios'' temples.

    Markus stood up once everyone was present. "While I''m sure you still have your doubts, the reset we told you about earlier does in fact exist, and we''re about to set a new point. Hopefully we won''t need it since the only thing we need to do from here on out is leave this wretched place, but we''re obviously going to set a new point just in case. Understand? Our meal has just finished cooking, and after we''re done eating, that''s when we''ll set a new point. So enter the dining hall and eat, please. I don''t want to spend a second longer than I need to on this fucking moon."

    Everyone stood up and walked to the dining room, but Markus stopped me when I was halfway there. "One sec, Rei. After the new point is set, can you scout the area between us and Jericho''s portal? I''d prefer we didn''t have to go that way, but it can''t hurt to see how dangerous the journey there is."

    "I was actually going to suggest the same thing after eating."

    "Glad to hear it!" Markus slapped me on my shoulder and left to eat. I followed him into the dining hall, which was filled with people happily chatting back and forth. It''s been a while since I''ve seen people this happy... I can understand why though. Compared to where they were before, this place must be heaven.

    <hr>

    I immediately left the temple after we set a new reset point, and I''ve been running in the direction of the portal ever since, except...

    "........"

    I know I''m not imagining it... I''ve seen this same area several times now.

    I walked over to the nearest tree and punched a large chunk out of it. After that I continued running toward the portal, but twenty minutes later I came upon a familiar sight.

    ... It''s the tree I punched earlier. And there''s the rainbow-colored rock with a small circle of dandelions next to it. What the hell is this? I know this fog is messing with my senses but there''s just no way in hell I could run in circles like this several times in a row. Even if I was lost, what are the odds I''d end up at the exact same spot over and over?

    I sighed and began running in the other direction.

    Assuming I can, I''m going to return to the temple. Something is terribly wrong here, and the others will need to know about it. Hopefully Arkaios has a solution for whatever the hell is happening here.

 Chapter 53 - City of the Ancients

    {That''s not the only problem. When I first came to this moon and connected to its core, it felt odd to me. Something about it is different from all of the other celestial beings surrounding Mother. However, none of my followers nor their contacts had any information that could have helped me understand why Veca is different, and so I was left with no choice but to drop the matter entirely. In the grand scheme of things it didn''t really matter after all. But now that I''m here again, and all of this madness is going on, I find myself much more interested in knowing why Veca feels like an ancient version of Mother''s children.}

    ... Holy shit, I was not expecting to hear anything like that when I told him about how I can''t reach Jericho''s portal.

    What should we do then?

    {... You know what you all have to do, Rei. I can request you directly if that will help you resolve yourself.}

    Damnit... I was hoping he''d have another plan for going forward, but if he''s saying that, then I guess that''s our only option... We''ll have to go into the digsite and deal with the threat directly.

    While we did kill that spider, it still could have gone either way. The only reason we won so quickly was because the spider held its ground instead of vanishing through the walls. If that spider wasn''t one of ''The Great Old Ones'', then that means there are far more powerful enemies waiting for us below.

    {Indeed.}

    ...............

    {Your annoyance at my swift reply is evident, but I can add nothing more to this discussion. I provide a safe place for you all to eat, heal, sleep, and prepare, while also giving you a reset point. The rest is up to all of you.}

    ... True enough.

    {The others have been listening in. Now go discuss this with them.}

    I looked over at the girl we rescued. Her chest cavity is still exposed because we were unable to heal her. This girl seems stranger than I am. Infusing her soul with mana to heal her body wouldn''t work no matter how much mana we used. No one here had ever seen that happen before now.

    I said goodbye to the girl and left for the main hall.

    "Why are all of you so weak?" I heard Shana asking the ninjas as I entered the room.

    The ninjas looked at each other awkwardly before one of them finally answered. "We''re trainees... Our prince, er, that''s just a title of his, he was our leader during this training mission. He gave us a simple mission, all we had to do was infiltrate an Eldritch-owned city on Zhegu and blend in for a month. If we succeeded, they''d train us until we reached the next level. But uh..."

    The ninja looked down, saying nothing else. One of his comrades realized he wasn''t going to talk and continued for him. "Long story short. Demons attacked the city while we were living there undercover. Anyone who survived was carried along in chains through a portal to a city far to the north of here. Our prince managed to help us escape just before we reached the city, and our Lord provided us with directions to another portal that would lead to a place called ''Urza''. There was supposed to be minimal Demon activity down here, but we were ambushed near the portal, and, well..."

    And then they ended up in a cage basically.

    "And who are they?" I pointed toward the people who were in the same cage as Ishar and Greyson.

    "Citizens of the nation we infiltrated. Our word probably doesn''t mean much, but truly, they are just regular people." The ninja replied.

    One of the ''citizens'' stood up. "W-We''re all very grateful that you saved us from that nightmare. And... And I''m sorry that we can''t do much for you in return. It won''t be much, but we''ve all agreed to supply the temple with as much mana as we can every day. That way we won''t be entirely useless..."

    I did find it odd that the spider didn''t attack any of them, but it''s true that I can barely sense them even at this distance. That''s pretty normal when dealing with non-combatants.

    Arkaios is clearly pleased with what the man said, so that''s good enough for me. If he''s not worried about them, then I''m not either. I already have too many things to think about as it is anyway.

    "Trainees..." Shana whispered.

    "They weren''t helpless. I did see them killing the spider''s arms one by one. But they''re nowhere near as trained or powerful as you are, that much is obvious." Ishar continued, "Hmm, now that I think back on it, they did make quite a few rookie mistakes. A large amount of you jumped way too low over that lion''s sword attack, which led to you getting poisoned. You should have known better after what happened to Markus."

    A female ninja stood up but kept her eyes on the ground. "I-I know! I realized I made a mistake the second I jumped. I could see the sword moving in slow motion as my life flashed before my eyes..."

    "And it might have truly been over if it weren''t for Arkaios," Nisha said.

    The girl sat back down and buried her face into her knees.

    "So we''re going down below?" Keith said while checking over his swords.

    So Keith was the one to bring it up... I can see everyone in here tensing up. As expected, no one wants to go into the digsite after the shit we''ve already been exposed to.

    I looked at Shana, "For starters, I want to know if you saw any new monsters during our last outing."

    Shana shook her head, "Only those lions and some zombie Demons."

    I have a hard time believing that most of what we''re going to fight underground will be those lions...

    "How are we going underground? Through the digsite, or the altar Rei found?" Lindon asked.

    "Digsite preferably... Speaking of which." I looked at Ishar, "Can you tell us about the site and when the monsters first appeared?"

    Ishar shrugged, "It didn''t happen while any of us were digging. Everyone here was asleep in their cells when suddenly the sounds of combat woke us up. Honestly, we were really lucky that the spider decided to fight us head-on, because we''ve seen what happens when it wants to be crafty. The last Demon we saw alive was a Satyr that kept trying to channel magic but the spider would attack him through the wall when his channeling started. The Satyr also tried fleeing the cell area but a barrage of fists would smash him into the back wall every single time. That went on until the Satyr was too exhausted to move. The spider ate him first, and then..."

    Then it moved on to the people in the cells... So they really don''t know any more than we do.

    Greyson sighed, "The human guards were the weirdest part... They were Demon worshippers who came with the Demons from the north. When the monsters showed up they all ran downstairs, and the next time we saw them they had been altered into those malformed monstrosities."

    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    "Maybe they went to the altar room? I don''t know why they would, but if they were stupid enough to touch it, that would mean something down below had changed them."

    Greyson looked at me, "And then it sent them back up into the prison?"

    ... Yeah, that does seem a bit odd but it''s not like anything here makes sense anyways.

    Keith stood up, "Let''s just go and see what happens. Hopefully I don''t get killed or put out of commission again... I''m itching to fight these monsters."

    At least someone here wants to fight them. My curiosity about what is below us is as high as it could possibly get, but at the same time, I really don''t want to battle those creepy monsters. Their acidic blood is a pain in the ass to deal with as well.

    {Ninjas, I ask you to assist the Tengu Lord in purging the ground level of any and all monsters. According to Rei, their souls disappear after death. So any kills you manage should be permanent.}

    The lion''s soul, if I can even call it that, definitely disappeared after the Tengu caved his skull in.

    "Ishar, Greyson." I motion for those two to follow me into the room with the dead but somehow alive girl. Once inside I present them with two pieces of armor matching mine.

    "Well shit, I didn''t know you were making me something like this, but thank you all the same! Except, uh..." Greyson held his new armor up to himself, revealing that it was way too big for his frame.

    "Infuse mana into it after it''s on you. It''ll shrink until it fits you. If it''s too tight just tell me and we''ll adjust it."

    Nisha walked into the room after we had spent a few minutes getting their new armor onto them.

    "Wow. Those actually look kind of nice, Rei. I''m not a fan of all-black clothes, but they look great on these two."

    "Want me to make you one? It''d really lift the morale of everyone here."

    "The morale? Why would..." Nisha trailed off, looking me up and down before blushing, "Ugh, you really are weird... I''m not wearing an outfit that tight!"

    "That''s a shame. It really would look good on you..." In more ways than one.

    Greyson laughed as Nisha stomped out of the room. "Well, thanks again, girl. It''s nice having armor again after they took my fucking cloak. I can barely enhance myself after I use my ability so that cloak was necessary to keep me safe."

    "I understand your pain. They took my artifact spear as well. Not the Demons, but still, it hurts to think about how I''ll never see it again..." Ishar trailed off with a sigh.

    "Actually, how did you end up here, Greyson? The last place I saw you was in Thule and I swear you said you were leaving for the northern portal."

    Greyson scoffed, "The fucking cunts up north apprehended me and sent me to Jericho. I was in that cell for quite a while before your friends here joined me."

    "Wait... Khan Uluhm knew about Jericho and was sending people to them? Why?"

    "Hell if I know. Groups of people came and went from those cells all the time. We''d see a mass influx of people at one point, and then later on a large group of them would be sent through one of the nearby portals. I only had a month left before it was my turn, but then the Demons attacked... And you know the rest."

    It''s good that I didn''t, but damnit I wish I had visited Khan Uluhm before going to Viseux after I revived. I''d really like to know if that city was fully intact. It''s just bizarre hearing that the Dwarves main allies ended up working with Viktor in the end. But forty-two years is a long time, so I suppose leaders had changed in that time, and they just so happened to be people who worked with or under Viktor.

    "... Ishar, I''m struggling to remember this part. Was the north the main instigator in wanting to drive away the Lizardmen?"

    "Huh? Oh... I see where you''re going with this." Ishar closed his eyes, "It''s been so long, I''m honestly not sure... But I do vaguely recall my conversation with that one ''Freya'' woman. Actually, wait... Why the hell was I meeting with someone from the north? I didn''t put much thought into it at the time since little Aresa knew the woman, but I was supposed to be meeting delegates from Viseux, not that Khan Uluhm place."

    "Aresa..."

    I looked to the door and saw Shana looking down.

    "It''s been a long time since I''ve seen that naive but loveable girl. I hope she''s doing okay, wherever she is."

    "... I don''t want to dash your hopes, but without her chateau and worshippers, she''s just an Eldritch Lord in a human body. Even worse is the fact that she can provide others with an incredible amount of mana." Ishar said.

    "So you think she might be used as a mana battery? She had plenty of people with her though, and Alicia was still teleporting to the chateau once a year to check for me until just last year, so she can''t be in that bad of a position."

    Ishar chuckled, "So the rookie is still doing fine... I guess she wouldn''t be a rookie anymore though. That''s great, but also kind of sad at the same time."

    We talked for a little more as I explained to Ishar and Greyson how I had made it here, but it came to a stop when Keith walked through the door and told us that everyone was ready.

    "Arkaios, have you been in contact with the Lizardmen?"

    {I have sent an agent to tell them about what is happening here. Do not worry. They will tell this ''Alicia'' girl about everything that has transpired.}

    "Perfect... Then Aresa will know I''m back as well."

    Shana pinched my cheek, "I thought I''d be dead long before you came back. Surely she thought you''d be gone for much longer as well."

    "I''m just as shocked as you are. When Arkaios told me it had only been four and a half years, I almost didn''t believe him. It would be nice to know why I came back so much faster this time, or why I''m reviving like this, but that''s a mystery to solve for another day. Assuming I''m ever able to solve it..."

    "You''re immortal, Rei! You have plenty of time to figure it out." Lindon said, smacking me on my back.

    "Not if something absorbs me."

    "Bah, stop being so pessimistic. Although it does fit you aesthetically..." Ishar said, smirking at me.

    Off in the distance we could hear something exploding. I looked around and noticed there weren''t any ninjas around.

    "Are they out there fighting monsters right now?"

    {The Tengu Lord and ninjas are clearing a path to the digsite. You may leave any time you wish.}

    Markus, whom I hadn''t seen since I returned, came out from another side room. "Alright, let''s do this."

    "I haven''t seen you in a while, Markus. Been meditating?"

    Markus nodded, "This is how templars normally fight. We prepare in our soul realms until the very moment it''s time to leave."

    After replying to me, Markus turned and walked out the door. One by one the rest of us left the temple as well, heading straight for the prison yet again.

    <hr>

    Markus stopped as we neared the prison and looked at Ishar, "Where is the digsite?"

    "Directly to the left of the prison. It will only take a few minutes to reach it." Ishar replied.

    It was a walk in the park to reach the prison this time. The Tengu and the ninjas did an excellent job clearing the path here. We even have Shana''s two clones with us which are going to be invaluable going forward.

    A couple of minutes later we came upon the digsite. Wasting no time, Markus began to lead us deeper into it. Magic torches lined the walls, lighting our path.

    "Why did you make the tunnel so damn big...?" Lindon asked.

    "Minotaurs and other large Demons needed to be able to fit into here. We didn''t expand it though, they did." Greyson replied.

    We walked for much longer than I was expecting until we finally came upon a large stone room with two massive stone double doors that were wide open.

    Ishar looked around at our new surroundings, "... I''ve never seen this room before."

    "This must be what they dug up while you were all resting," Markus said.

    "... Are you guys okay?" They all look like they''re on edge. Which I know is normal for this situation, but I swear I can see Albel and Lindon visibly shaking right now.

    "No, I am not okay. The deeper we went, the more my body began to shake. This never happened when I was here to dig..." Greyson said.

    Markus gritted his teeth, "This place makes me sick. Let''s get this over with."

    We all walked through the giant double doors, but everyone stopped in their tracks when we saw what was on the other side.

    "The hell...? There''s a city down here?" Lindon said.

    It''s bigger than a city. We''re inside a massive open cavern filled with buildings as far as the eye can see, but thanks to the fog I can''t examine any of them in detail. At least, not at this distance.

    "Oh shit, look!" Albel pointed to a part of the ceiling far off in the distance.

    "Hah... Hahahahaha..." Greyson chuckled sardonically when he saw what Albel was pointing at.

    There are dozens, no... Maybe even hundreds of the ethereal spider we fought in the prison, all clinging to the ceiling. None of them are moving, and they''re at least a mile or two away so I''m not worried about them attacking us, but their very existence tells me that we really aren''t strong enough for this place.

    "We''re out of our element here... You''d normally need the entire order to raid a place like this." Markus said.

    "We have to do it though," Keith said, looking down at the city below us.

    Hah... Fucking heroes. He''s the only one here not shaking. Excluding me of course, but I''m not alive so I have a good excuse.

    "Where do we even begin? This... City, is never-ending. It makes Viseux look like a village in comparison..." Albel said.

    Nobody here is going to have an answer for that. For now, all we can do is enter the city and hope we find some answers.

 Chapter 54 - A New Age

    Both of Shana''s clones ran down the steps. Upon reaching the city they both split off in different directions, with the rest of us descending toward the city next. For the most part it''s eerily silent, but I can hear a sound echoing from very far away. I don''t know what the sound is though... It kind of sounds like something is cracking?

    "Some of the entryways on these homes are huge..." Albel said as he stared at one of the nearby buildings.

    A few of the doors are at least ten feet tall, while on average the others look to be about seven feet tall? I''m not an architect or a builder so I can''t tell what these homes are made of. They look like a mix of stone, brick, and mud, but that''s a complete guess.

    I activated my aura and slipped into the first home on the left that had the biggest entrance here.

    The inside is rather simple if you exclude the fact that everything in here is much bigger than I''m used to, and it is using an aesthetic I''ve never seen before. Jeez, these plates could hold half of an entire pig...

    I was about to leave when I saw something on the wall that piqued my interest. Whoa... They made a family portrait by carving into the interior of the home.

    The ''picture'' is surprisingly high in quality, which allows me to see its owners in great detail. They have long elongated heads, and while their heads are shaped like human skulls from the nose up, everything below that is half the size in width. Their large eyes are slanted at an angle near their nose, which from what I can tell, is just a small hole on their face.

    I''m not sure whether to be relieved or worried that the aesthetics of their clothes looks like something a noble from a desert town would wear. At the very least this tells me that it wasn''t just a bunch of barbaric cultists living down here. The tallest figure is wearing a fancy robe with bits of armor here and there, with his fancy pauldrons being the largest portion of armor on him. It''s honestly amazing seeing this... Now I know why Aresa was so enthralled as she listened to me explain the machines and our human origins.

    I leave the home and see my allies milling about at the first fork in the road, either unsure of where to go next, or waiting for Shana''s clones to return. I jump onto a home on their left and immediately I can see one of Shana''s clones in the distance hiding behind a barrel. In front of her is a small plaza and it doesn''t take me long to see why she''s hiding. I didn''t see it at first, but the tree in the middle of the plaza is moving...

    While it''s firmly planted into the center of the plaza, and it even has benches made of mud around it, it''s clearly no longer a tree designed for people to relax next to. It''s continually bending in different directions and scratching at the ground with its branches. After about a minute of watching it, Shana eventually gives up and comes back this way.

    "There''s a tree over there that I swear is moving. It looks dead, but it''s moving around as if it''s sentient." The clone said as it reached the party.

    Albel shrugged, "I could just burn it. It is a tree after all."

    "This side is clear, but I haven''t checked the homes yet." The other clone said as it arrived.

    Markus motioned toward the stairs going down in front of the group, "Check this path as well. We''re here to hopefully put a stop to... I don''t even fucking know. The fog? Regardless, I doubt it''s up here in the residential district."

    Lindon covered his ears, "I can''t take that damned noise anymore... Is it ever going to stop?"

    Yeah, that cracking sound is definitely getting to me as well.

    One clone ran down the steps while the other one jumped on top of a nearby building. Everyone was waiting in silence for her to return when I suddenly saw something walk out of a home on a street to my left. A Crotia...? No, it kind of has the same shape as one, but this one is covered in pustules... The damned things body is rotting everywhere.

    I jumped down from the building and ran up to the others. "There''s a Crotia-like creature in that alley over there. It just came out of a home wielding a large spiked club." I whispered after removing my aura.

    Markus moved to the left side of the group as his sword shone a bright white. Before we even saw the creature, we heard one of Shana''s lightning daggers stick into something behind us. I looked back and saw another one of the Crotia-creatures on its knees with two knives sticking out of its upper thighs. It fell forward after that and began pulling itself toward us. Keith moved to finish the creature when two more appeared down the street, which increased to four, then ten. Before we knew it there were over a hundred coming at us.

    "Back up the stairs!" Markus yelled.

    Everyone but Shana''s clone ran back the way we came. Once we were looking down at the city again, Markus and Keith stood in front of our group as Albel lobbed fireballs down at the creatures. A couple landed and killed quite a few of them, but more than half of his fireballs disappeared mid-air. Something on the wall to our right was grabbing them with its tongue. I looked that way and saw a reptilian creature with a devil-like face and horns looking back at me as it swallowed the fireball.

    Its tongue shot out of its mouth again, except this time it was coming for one of us. Keith tried to cut it before it hit Lindon, but its tongue wrapped around Keith''s sword and ripped it out of his hands. It then whipped it somewhere into the city below.

    "Alright, the noise from this may end our first foray into this place, but we clearly need some ranged firepower for this fucker. Don''t hesitate to use that gun of yours, girl." Greyson said, holding up a pistol he just created with his ability.

    I was hesitating, but he''s right. We could enhance ourselves and charge it head-on, but eh, we might as well just pull out all the stops and kill as many monsters as we can. After all, I could sense it when those Crotia-things died, their souls were all disappearing.

    I pulled the gun off of my waist and aimed it at the devil. I trained with this in my soul realm, but I didn''t have all that much time, and for some reason I''m much worse with handguns than I am rifles.

    Greyson and I began to shoot one round after another at the devil. The creature screeched in response as Greyson''s rounds pierced it while mine were leaving large bruised indents behind. As expected, normal guns need to drain their mana before they are effective.

    The devil tried to flee but one shout from Ishar stopped it in its tracks. Soon after that, my bullets began to pierce it as well, suggesting it was defenseless, which could clearly be seen by Greyson''s rounds that were now blowing large chunks out of it.

    Soon after that, the devil lifelessly fell from the wall toward the city below.

    "Looks like our time here is coming to a close," Ishar said.

    The spiders on the ceiling were all moving quickly in this direction, and the city itself had appeared to do a one-eighty from earlier. While it looked dead before, it was very much alive right now.

    "Kill as many as you can! Preferably the ones coming at us from deeper below!" Markus yelled as he continued to cut through one Crotia-creature after another. Lindon''s barrier on him was sizzling as a large amount of green smoke billowed off of him. It wasn''t long before I saw Keith fall back and hit the ground. He''s struggling to breathe... The fucking things are not only spewing acidic blood, but now they''re poisonous too.

    I was suddenly knocked onto my side as both Albel and Lindon literally exploded. Before Arkaios activated the reset I quickly scanned the enemies below us to see what had killed them, and that''s when I saw them. They were ten feet tall in heavy black robes. I couldn''t tell at this distance whether their exposed bodies were made of hardened sinew or that was merely armor, but I could see their hands swirling around as an ethereal sphere formed between them. I aimed my gun at one and shot my last round at it, which led to the creature whipping backward and to the right as the bullet slammed into its shoulder, but when it turned back around it was completely fine. The next thing I knew we were back in the temple.

    Albel and Lindon were flipping around on the ground, scratching at themselves as if there were bugs all over them.

    After they had finally calmed down, Lindon stood up and yelled, "WHY IS IT ALWAYS US?! THIS DOESN''T GET ANY EASIER DAMNIT!!"

    "Did you guys see who killed them?"

    Ishar nodded, "Yes. I couldn''t contribute much so I made sure to keep an eye on the battle in the hope that I may learn something useful. I''d say the biggest problem was the fact that most of them came from deeper in the city. Only one of the casters came from the first level."

    Markus walked out of the side room and sighed, "So in other words, we''re going to have to fight most of those casters. We''re going to need to get the jump on them first then. Or we could just sprint down the stairs and see where that gets us... I think we''ll try that for our next attempt."

    "Just to make sure. Your barriers weren''t already drained when they blasted you, correct?" Keith asked as he looked at his two allies who had just died.

    "Yes, and my barrier is far stronger than Albel''s, so if I couldn''t block that spell, then he definitely couldn''t," Lindon replied.

    "It was strange that we could see inside of that cave despite the fact that I couldn''t see a single light source down there." Greyson said.

    "Right... It was still pretty dark, but it should have been pitch black."

    "I hate that I can''t help at all... You''re all too far away and underground, so I''d need to be there with you. Are you sure I can''t come with, Uncle Markus?" Nisha asked.

    Markus shook his head, "Your abilities would be extremely helpful, but we can''t carry you around everywhere. Leaving you in one of those homes is also unacceptable. Somehow those fuckers sniffed us out, so there''s a good chance they''d find you too, which means we''d either have to carry you or leave someone to guard you."

    "Hmm... She has almost no mana aura, and that has to be how they found us. I could make one of my makeshift hiding places for her."

    "And if they can see her mana connections the same way you can?" Markus asked.

    I shrugged, "Just figured I''d offer. I think it''s worth trying. If Arkaios has to reset early because the creatures are coming for her, then we''ll know not to bring her. But if they don''t come for her, she''ll be invaluable."

    Markus looked at Keith, "Thoughts?"

    "Bring her with. I was struggling to assist you against the..." Keith looked at Ishar, "Crotia?"

    "I thought they looked like Crotia too."

    Ishar rubbed his chin, "So it wasn''t just me... I thought I was losing my fucking mind after the pain I''ve already endured here."

    A ninja walked in through the entrance, "Um, our Lord found another hole in the ground a few miles away from the digsite. We think monsters are coming out from there, and that there may be more of them."

    "That leaves the question of why they didn''t just dig a path out long ago. Why wait until the Demons found them?"

    "The Demon who ran this place would correct the direction we were digging sometimes. He would often say we were ''Going off course''." Greyson said.

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    "Strange as hell that was. It''s almost like he knew exactly where to find that door." Ishar followed up.

    Something in the city was probably guiding him... But why? The only idea I can come up with is that they needed someone from the outside to open the door.

    "Alright, let''s head out, but we''ll go down the steps much faster this time after securing Nisha inside one of those homes," Markus said before he stood up and left the temple.

    After he left I watched Ishar and Greyson equip their armor to make sure they could do it alone. Once they were ready we all followed after Markus.

    <hr>

    "See anything?" Nisha asked.

    The rest of us were scanning the double doors, seeing if we could figure out why it was so important that the Demons opened them.

    Markus shrugged, "I''m honestly not sure. There''s a bunch of symbols carved into the door, and I sense something from them, but I think whatever energy was embedded into this door is long gone."

    "I''m picking up on something as well, but it''s too vague to get a real sense of what it is." Greyson took his hands off the door, then continued, "You''re right, this is a waste of time. We''re not going to figure anything out by examining this door."

    Markus looked at me, "You said you''re going to take her into the first home on the left, right? We''re going to move fast from here on out, so pick her up and get ready."

    I walked over and picked Nisha up. I placed one arm around her waist, and the other under her knees. She wrapped her arms around my neck as Markus ran through the door. The rest of us quickly followed behind him, running through the door and down the steps. Most of us weren''t making much noise, but Markus''s boots were making half the noise our guns from earlier did. I understand wanting to move faster, but we''re going to need to do something about his boots next time. We''re going to end up in the same position as last time if he makes that much noise.

    Once we reached the home I was in before, I dashed through the entrance and up the stairs. On the second level I found a bed in one of the rooms and quickly hid her under it, placing her near the corner of the wall.

    "Thank you, Rei..." Nisha whispered.

    ...?

    It''s not that she thanked me, but the way she did it. There was a tone that felt completely out of place in this situation...

    "No problem..." I said, placing the mesh over her and camouflaging it to match its surroundings.

    Once she was secured I turned invisible and ran out of the home. That was fast... I already lost sight of them but I know they''re down the stairs because I can hear Markus'' armor clinking loudly in that direction. And annoyingly I''m already seeing a few Crotian-creatures heading for the staircase.

    I ran past the Crotians and down the steps, catching sight of the team just as they were engaging one of the casters that killed Albel and Lindon last time. It must have taken them by surprise because the initial plan was to prevent them from casting, but I could already see one of its ethereal spheres coming at them. However, it wasn''t coming directly at him, instead it was curving back and forth, making Lindon panic as he tried to figure out who he was supposed to save.

    As the sphere reached the team, it curved one last time toward Greyson, and while he attempted to dodge it, it ended up being a pointless maneuver, the sphere followed after him and slammed right into Lindon''s barrier. The barrier shattered, and while the sphere had disappeared, the problem was that it must have had a secondary effect upon expiring, because Greyson was subsequently launched into a nearby home. I barely caught sight of him moving, all I saw was the newly created hole in a nearby home and a large amount of noise echoing out from inside of it.

    Ishar shouted at the caster but the caster simply deflected it with a wave of his hand. Seeing that his shout did nothing, Ishar ran into the home nearby to help Greyson as Markus and Keith sprinted at the caster. The caster raised its hands, palms up, creating an ethereal sphere around itself. Keith destroyed it in one blow, but he was also blown away just like Greyson was, except Keith was able to stab his enhanced sword into the ground, just barely preventing himself from smashing into the home behind him.

    The caster attempted to float backward to get away from Markus, but Markus must have over-enhanced himself because he was on top of him immediately. One slash of his sword was all it took, the caster''s head went flying as his body crumpled to the ground. Markus didn''t stop moving though, he pivoted toward the stairs while yelling back at us, "Hurry!! We can''t waste any more time here!"

    And he was right, I had yet to fully descend the stairs so I could still see all the different streets to my left and right, up until the point that the fog obscured them that is. Currently, I could see at least a hundred Crotian-creatures, two casters, and two thirteen-foot-tall monsters we hadn''t encountered yet. Those last two were crawling up from a large hole in the ground about five streets to our left.

    "??????? ?? ?????" A caster twenty feet to my left said as I passed by it. I glanced at him and saw a small green flame in the palm of his hand. What the hell language was that? I felt an extreme amount of pressure hitting my eardrums, but I couldn''t make out any of the words.

    Just as I was about to look away from the caster, the small green flame turned into a spear. It floated about ten feet into the air before it suddenly launched itself toward Lindon. It was by no means slow, but it normally wouldn''t be considered fast enough for him to avoid it, however, he was already dodging attacks from multiple Crotian-creatures as he ran down the steps, so even if he saw it coming, and he did, there was only so much he could do.

    Keith, surrounded by Nisha''s aura, grabbed a nearby Crotia and threw it into the spear. The Crotian was immediately engulfed in a green flame, and no more than two seconds later it had been completely reduced to ashes.

    As Markus reached the next level down, he sprinted for a tall marble building at the back of the square where one of Shana''s clones was battling a couple of Crotians. I was about halfway down the steps when one of the thirteen-foot-tall monsters charged past me, killing multiple Crotians along the way. Now that I was able to get a good look at one of the tall monsters up close, I realized that I had seen them before. So that dead tree I saw on the upper levels wasn''t the only one... And apparently they can uproot themselves.

    The tree monster held its right ''hand'' out toward the group, leading to several branches extending outwards at double the speed my friends were running. Keith moved to the back of the group and cut the mass of branches to pieces, but they quickly regrew and tried to wrap around Lindon again. Keith continued to cut them down, but they were regrowing faster than he could deal with them. Albel, who I thought would deal with the tree, was in the middle of dodging one of another caster''s spheres. He had Lindon''s barrier on him, so he''d survive if it hit him, but the sphere kept coming at him at an angle that would result in him getting blown back in my direction. If that happens he''s done for...

    Greyson began firing a rifle at the caster, but the other caster erected a sphere around his ally, mostly protecting him from Greyson''s bullets. The impact was still knocking the caster backward, which was clearly making him struggle to control the sphere, but it still wasn''t enough.

    Seeing this, I jumped on top of the building to my right and continued jumping back the way I came until I reached the second caster. I was still invisible, but when I landed on the building the caster was currently occupying, its whole body shifted in my direction.

    "D????��??????????????u????????????????????????"

    This time I could kind of understand what he was saying, but I had no time to analyze it. I ran toward the caster and removed my aura so I could enhance my body as much as possible. This gun isn''t strong enough to take this caster down in one clip, I can feel it from his aura. I''ll need to engage him directly.

    I fired the gun at him, and sure enough, every bullet knocked him backward a little, but it wasn''t anywhere near enough damage to get through his naturally enhanced body. At the very least the impacts were preventing him from casting, and I believe that''s because he was still focused on shielding the other caster. However, once I was about two-thirds the way to him, he realized that he needed to focus entirely on me, so he dropped the barrier on the other caster and immediately created a sphere around himself.

    As I was putting the gun back onto my waist I could hear the other caster''s death throes as Greyson and Shana attacked him. I don''t know what he said as he died, but it was loud... I could feel his words reverberating inside my head. I did my best to ignore the rattling in my head and punched the sphere as I reached my target, but it didn''t react in the way I expected. Normally impacts would stagger people through any barriers they create, but this one held strong. The caster was completely unfazed by my attack. That was only a random punch I threw, but I feel like even an over enhanced punch wouldn''t be enough, and I''d rather not throw two of those just to break a barrier. I have another idea though... But I don''t know if it will work.

    I think back to the metal ball ability I stole from one of Kellog''s knights and summon it into my hand. The caster glared at the ball, clearly wary of it, but he can''t cast anything while he keeps the barrier active. Instead, he attempts to flee to another home, but before he''s able to move I hit him with the ball and it immediately sucks him into it. The ball itself starts to crack all over, telling me it won''t even last five seconds if I don''t pour a massive amount of mana into it. Mana I don''t have, which is why I want to try something else.

    I picked the ball up and threw it as high as I possibly could. I watched the ball float higher and higher as the spiders beyond it slowly descended from the ceiling using their webs. The ball eventually shattered, leading to the caster reappearing at least two hundred yards above me. There was no reaction from the caster as he fell, but about halfway down he removed his shield and swapped to a floating spell, greatly reducing his fall speed. He had no choice, but now I''m just going to kill him in another way.

    I had turned invisible after throwing the ball into the air, so I could see him looking back and forth trying to find me, but even if he did know where I was, it wouldn''t have mattered. With my body still enhanced, I jumped up high enough to be above him, and just when I hit my apex I removed my aura. After that I brought my heel down onto his head, crushing his sinewy skull before he even had a chance to look up. Purple blood spewed all over my right leg, but much to my surprise, it wasn''t acidic. The caster shot downwards at an extreme speed, smashing through the homes roof and splattering on the ground below.

    After I landed next to him I did a quick check of his body to make sure he was dead. Yeah, he''s done for. And I see that I was right about the caster''s bodies, they''re made entirely of hardened sinew... This is so fucking gross.

    Suddenly I could feel eyes on me. I quickly reapplied my aura and dove into a corner, but the intensity of the glare did not dissipate. I''m inside one of the few homes that has a door, I''m invisible, and there''s nothing else in here except this dead caster! How the hell could anything be looking at me... Eremnon? No, he loses vision of us every time we walk through the doors to this place, so it has to be something else.

    Over time I became unsure of whether there was vision on me or not. And for the first time in a long time, I felt very afraid of everything around me. That''s when I realized that something was eroding my core''s defenses, allowing the aura of this place to finally affect me. This is what the others have been feeling inside of this city? I''m impressed at how well they are handling it...

    I jumped through the roof and checked to make sure my allies were okay. All I could see was the two tree monsters attempting to reach their branches through the entrances into the marble building down below. They must have made it, which means it''s my turn next.

    As I was jumping from home to home, one ethereal spider after another landed on the nearby roofs, and one even landed no more than a few feet from me. After that they all spread out, with only a few of them heading for the marble building. Where are the others going...? Also, I caught a glimpse of one of Shana''s clones far off to the left as it jumped from one home to another. It wasn''t long before I lost her in the fog though. She must be using her other clone to scout as much as she possibly can before the reset, which is a really good idea.

    Upon reaching my destination, the roof of a home built on the outside ring of the plaza, I waited and watched the spiders. Most of the spiders disappeared into random buildings or homes, but there was one that crawled down into something behind the marble building. Well, I can''t get into the marble building with those tree fuckers covering the entire entrance, so I might as well see if that leads to the same place my friends went.

    I jumped into the plaza and ran through it, weaving through the Crotians as I went. But just before I passed by the marble building, I saw a caster on my left, so I decided to use this opportunity to test something before descending. I slowly walked toward him, and when I was about thirty feet away from him, his head whipped in my direction. At first, he seemed confused, but he eventually entered a combat stance as his head bobbed a little to the left and right. He''s wary and afraid of something in front of him, but he''s not entirely certain of where it is. So that settles it. These fuckers can sense me through my veil...

    I backed up so the caster couldn''t sense me anymore and continued moving toward the spider''s last location. It''s also good to know that the spiders can''t phase through the ground here. If they could, there really would be no way to handle this place without killing every single one of them.

    The first thing I saw upon reaching my destination was a hole, but it was nowhere near as big as I had been expecting it to be. So the vile things can squeeze into openings that it shouldn''t be able to fit into... Just like a real spider.

    I made my armor sticky and began jumping from one side to the other, descending at a slower pace than I liked, but I didn''t want to risk jumping into the spider. Even in here I can still see where I''m going, but it''s still quite dark.

    I kept going like that for several minutes until I saw the exit. There was more light in the room below me so I could see what was below me, but the problem was what I saw. ... Where the hell is this? The walkway is maybe a thousand yards below me, and that''s not an exaggeration. I assume the spider is crawling around on the ceiling, so I''ll do the same for now until I can figure out where to go from here.

    Once I reached the exit, I crawled around it until I reached the ceiling. It was a massive cavern with a singular building in the middle sitting on the only pillar in the area. I could see the exit that the spider was moving toward, which is where my allies probably were, but my mind was completely focused on something else in the cavern.

    Arms... Six of them, reaching up from the dark abyss below. Each one of them was at least three miles long, and they were as wide as several of Aresa''s chateaus lined up next to each other. Their hands were grabbing onto different parts of the wall and ceiling.

    And the hands were the creepiest part... They each had a different number of fingers. Some were reptilian, others human, and some were another type of furry mammal... There were dozens of different types of fingers, including some from a species I couldn''t recognize at all.

    And that''s when I finally realized where that cracking sound was coming from. It was extremely loud as it echoed back and forth throughout the room. The arms were covered in some type of hard gray coating that had strange symbols lit up over all of it. However, the parts where the symbols weren''t shining, were crumbling. I watched as several symbols dimmed moments after the area surrounding them began to crack.

    With the little information I had access to, I was still able to understand a few simple facts. Something was sealed down here, and that very same something, was now breaking free.

 Chapter 55 - God of the Abyss

    ... We''ll never be able to kill whatever the hell this is. There''s no other choice, we''re going to need to find another way out of here. I don''t know how, but truly, there just... Is no other choice. Unless...

    I looked around and noticed that the fog was suspiciously absent from this cavern. I suppose another monster could be responsible for trapping everyone here... I''ll keep scouting the caverns just in case, but it''s looking like we''ll need a different plan going forward.

    Down below I saw the spider reach the ground before it sped through a nearby hole in the wall. That''s the direction the marble building was in, it must be planning to attack the others from behind. They''re going to need my help then, and fast.

    I crawled on all fours along the roof, following the same trajectory as the spider until I reached the exit below. I ran forward, entering a long tunnel that eventually opened up into a pure white marble room. Inside there was a massive set of stairs going up, and I could even see the spider about ten floors above me, but it currently wasn''t moving, and it definitely wasn''t fighting anything. That''s odd... Why isn''t it hunting the others?

    I ran up the steps until I was only a few floors below the spider. What is it doing...?

    The spider was on the stairs, using eyes on its palms to scan the top floor, but that''s all it was doing. It''s at the top level, so it should have ran into the others by now. But if the spider can''t find them then maybe they fled through another exit...?

    About a minute later the spider put its hands down and crawled up the rest of the stairs. I followed after it, crawling on all fours until I reached the top. Upon reaching the last step, I peeked up and saw the spider through the building''s entrances as it walked around outside with its palm-eyes darting back and forth. It was clearly looking for something.

    ... Everything about this scene is wrong. Where are the trees? The Crotian-creatures? The casters... Why the hell is everything back to---

    And that''s when it hit me.

    Why everyone was gone.

    Why the spider looked just as confused as I currently was.

    Arkaios must have activated the reset... But I and the spider were left behind? Is it because we were underground? Or maybe it''s because we were near that thing...

    Eventually the spider walked away toward the left, leaving my view completely. It must have given up. Without knowledge of Arkaios or the reset, it has to be infinitely more confused than I am right now.

    I walked toward a marble bench against the wall and laid down on it. I meditated for a little bit, attempting to push away the aura encompassing my core, but I was barely able to alleviate the fear I was feeling. And it''s not just that. I''m starting to feel heavy as well...

    .........................

    ... Okay, what should I do? I could wait for my allies to come back, but now that I know the most powerful being in this place is far stronger than anything we could ever hope to beat, we''ll either need to pray something else is preventing us from leaving, or find another avenue of escape.

    Either way, we need to find something, which isn''t easy when we''re running around as a group while fighting constantly. So it''s pretty clear what I should be doing right now. But it''s... Risky. Checking underground means if anyone dies down there, they''re gone for good, since Arkaios won''t be able to save them. Shana''s clones could go too, but... No, she''ll have a much harder time. An old god like Arkaios lost contact with me underground, so there''s no way she''ll be able to retain control of her clones down there. The most obvious option is that I need to be the one to check the underground for anything of value. At least if I die, I''ll come back one day. The others won''t be so fortunate. Even the branded crew will be lost for good, since the tether Arkaios has them on will break when they come underground. Maybe that''s why he activated the reset? He probably felt his connection to them breaking when they reached the underground.

    I got off the bench and began walking down the stairs. Yeah, I need to be the one who scouts out the underground. I can''t risk the others dying down here...

    The city was completely silent, as were my footsteps. The only thing I could hear was the loud echo of something cracking from below me. Once I reached the bottom I walked into the cavern again, but this time I had a purpose. That large building in the center platform is extremely suspicious. It''s the only thing in here besides three long wooden bridges connecting to different exits out of here.

    Whatever was coating the arms continued to crack and crumble as I strode toward the home in front of me. Some of the crumbled bits even fell past me, only a dozen or so feet to my right. A strange odor hit me as they did. It didn''t smell all that bad, but I still felt like I never wanted to smell that odor ever again.

    After stepping off the bridge and onto the platform, I stopped for a moment to marvel at the building in front of me. It''s made of pure white marble just like the building behind me. They''re both of a much higher quality than any of the homes I''ve seen up until this point.

    I walked up the building''s steps to one set of its three double doors and pushed them open. The room was pitch black at first, but by the time the doors had fully opened, the room was fully lit. However, I couldn''t see anything inside that could be considered a light source.

    Moments later my aura was ripped off as an ivory monster''s head appeared in front of me. I jumped back in response, preparing to fight, but the creature just tilted its head at me in confusion. That''s when I noticed that while it had one of the creepiest heads I had ever seen, its body was that of a human girl, and she(?) was wearing a pure black dress.

    The... Girl, continued to tilt her head at me, clearly not understanding why I had just fled from her. She could have done some serious damage to me if she wanted, that''s how fast her ambush was, but... She didn''t. I really need to know what is inside this building, and she''s the only monster down here who hasn''t attacked us yet, so...

    I forced myself to relax and walked up to the girl. "Sorry about that, you took me by surprise there, so I kind of panicked." And you stripped my aura... As if I wasn''t frightened enough as it is. I hate not having access to my aura damnit...

    The girl''s strange monsterous eyes closed in a way that made them curve upwards. Their appearance made her look like she was smiling. In fact I was almost positive she was smiling.

    "??''? ????!" she said as she bowed. After that, she motioned for me to come inside.

    I think she said ''It''s okay'', but it was really hard to understand. It sounded like three people said it back to back and with three entirely different tones.

    I entered the building, and the first thought that came to my mind was museum. The inside was like an exhibit, except at the center there was something sticking up from a hole in the floor, and there were hundreds of archaic-looking pillows surrounding it. The thing in the middle is a fleshy round ball, or at least half of it is. I don''t know what the rest of it looks like below that hole.

    The girl made no further motion, she just stared at me as if waiting for me to do something. Well, I don''t know what she wants, so I guess I''ll just have a look around the room.

    I walked over to the back left corner of the room. There is one long mural on the wall back here, and there is podiums here and there with books on top of them. I''m guessing those are for when you want more context on that specific part of the mural? I''ve never actually been inside of a museum before. I only remember seeing them on TV and my Uncle ranting about one of them.

    Immediately, I recognized the creatures depicted at the start of the mural. It''s the Crotia... So we were right. They''re bigger and a little scarier looking than the Ishars of today, but these must be his ancestors.

    At first, the mural depicted the Crotia living completely ordinary lives. Farming, eating, breeding, and surprisingly, no hint of war. Or they just didn''t show it on the mural. The next part of the mural showed the Crotia finding a massive underground cavern, and soon after that, they were building a great city inside that very same cavern. They flocked there in great numbers, all lining up to worship something that rested deep inside of Veca. Something with many hands, and many eyes.

    The underground city was barely ten percent finished when the mural showed something new. A fleet of large metal vehicles came down from the sky, and what exited them was the creature I saw inscribed in the home I left Nisha inside of. Their ships were barely functional. They were heavily damaged as if something had been attacking them, and the aliens themselves were also gravely wounded. The Crotia took them in and gave them homes while they recuperated and attempted to repair their vehicles.

    However, the aliens soon found themselves enthralled by the creature the Crotia were worshipping. That from the abyss soon became their everything. The mural showed the aliens destroying their vehicles, grinding them into dust before they joined the Crotian society, all choosing to live underground with their new god. This part of the mural ends with the God of the Abyss spawning multiple smaller gods.

    I flipped open the first book. It showed that there were dozens of major and minor gods, but none of them had entered this realm. They had all remained in the abyss with their god, spreading their influence from there. Some of them however would create splinters of themselves and send them into this realm, but their purpose was unknown to me.

    The next pages showed images of planes with circles around them. Words I could not read surrounded each circle. They each pointed to different parts of the circles as they explained something I couldn''t understand.

    Fortunately, the next page had illustrations, and the second I saw them my whole body froze. Next to one of the circles, there were several drawings of monsters that were molding Crotia and other aliens into their own image. The next plane''s illustrations showed a large eye in the sky, and most of the creatures below it had horns or spikes on their different colored bodies, but most of them were red. The last plane was filled with faceless creatures who were forcing different races to love and obey them as they waged war on one another in their never-ending drive to feed and grow stronger.

    Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    There were also small images of the gods of the abyss with lines next to them pointing toward the different planes. Did they attack the Eldritch, Demon, and Xerathian planes? And just how long ago was this... Ishar was clearly surprised by the existence of the Crotia down here, and he''s a well-renowned warrior in his tribe, so if his elders knew about this place, they probably wouldn''t have kept it from him. Odds are Terra''ka does know though, he looks like he''s on the verge of becoming an old god, so he has to be unbelievably old.

    I closed the book and moved to the next part of the mural. Large parts of it were depicting different main gods, and there was a book in front of each god that explained everything about that specific one. Not that I can read any of this.

    One of the books showed a god bestowing something upon animals. There was an image showing the god placing a golden aura around animals, which was making them happy, but I did not know if it served any other purpose. However, the next image did look familiar. It showed the god turning regular animals into monsters. None of them had any eyes, but they were all given different abilities and very powerful detection powers. That explains the cat and three-headed dog monster we fought...

    Each god seemed to signify something special and important. The first major god made sure that all souls from our world did not reach the Eldritch realm. It even illustrates a planet-shaped Eldritch stealing souls from our realm, and it showed how this god prevented that from happening. The next god is shown intertwined with the first, she took those souls and created new life from them. A god of weather was next, and a god of harvest, and so on.

    It continued like that until it reached the minor gods. Those ones however proved hard to understand from the illustrations alone. They looked hyper-specific in design, and most of them just didn''t make any sense. Oh, I know this one though... There''s a minor god who, shockingly, looks human. She has black hair and pure white eyes with blood dripping out of them. There''s even an illustration of her turning the bodies of the dead into puppets.

    There''s also a minor god who looked like he was purely built for war. A large lion who commanded armies of smaller lions who looked just like him. Their swords are serrated but I don''t see any of the wriggling tentacles or leeches that we encountered. It''s either another god who did that, or... Well, I''m honestly not sure.

    As I''m flipping through the book I come upon one that makes my core ache. A tall slender god is standing in the illustration, wearing a black hooded one-piece that covered its entire body. Its face couldn''t be seen. There was only darkness inside of its hood, signifying it was more attuned to the god of the abyss than most of the others were. One part of the book showed the god turning bones into skeletons. It also depicted this god as one that supported the lion.

    Battles are illustrated side by side. They show the lion slaying hordes of enemies while the black god supports him from behind. She is turning the bodies of their enemies into allies, and sending in invisible spies to collect information. Next, it showed the black god draping black cloth everywhere as it turned an entire area into an impenetrable maze.

    .........................

    In a panic, I returned to the first book and flipped it open to the page depicting the realms. Next to the Xerath realm there were four minor gods depicted. The lion was the first. The next one was a god I was unsure of as it only showed food around him and a connection to the main god of harvest. The third was the puppet god who looked like a human girl. And the last... Was the black hooded god.

    ... I... Know what this means, but...

    The monster girl grabbed me and guided me toward some benches built into the walls. She sat me down and then stepped six feet away from me, returning to the stance she had up until now. Holding her hands in front of herself while closing her eyes, waiting for me to need her in some capacity.

    I rested my head against the wall and closed my eyes.

    ... I don''t understand. Even if that black god was in the Xerath realm, how did...

    I froze again, unwilling to contemplate the rest. I sat there for a long time in silence, maybe a bit too long, before I finally opened my eyes and looked at the monster girl.

    "... Is it your job to show people around this place?"

    The girl had not expected me to talk to her, so at first she opened her eyes in surprise, but then she quickly placed her hands together as her eyes smiled at me again. "???! ? ???? ??? ??? ???? ?? ????? ??? ????????? ?? ??? ???????! ????? ??????? ????... ?? ??? ???? ?????? ?? ????? ??? ?????????? ????."

    Past the ''Yes!" I understood absolutely nothing else she said. She seems happy that I talked to her though, so it''s still a victory I suppose.

    ...........

    ... It''s just so hard to accept. I''m happy to know what changed me, I really am, but the truth is... I never actually expected to find any answers related to myself. After all, it seemed impossible. The Xerath realm is a place I never want to return to, and even if I did... Then what? Only war and misery awaits me there. And it''s definitely not the kind of place I could bring people to investigate my origins. Which I kind of still need to do if I ever want to fully understand what happened. Merely knowing the existence of the god I was corrupted by is only half of what I want to know. There was nothing in my little cave I called home that suggested a black god from the abyss lived there damnit. And it wasn''t a fast transition, it took a long time, so it''s not as if the god took me by surprise while I slept and then left before I saw it. So how the hell...

    I stood up and went back to the book. The last information on the black god was mostly in text form, but there was one illustration of a halo with lots of text underneath it. I''ve never had a halo before now though? Is it an ability I have yet to unlock? Hmm... It could also be something that only the god has access to.

    "Hey, do you know how I can use this?" I pointlessly asked the monster girl.

    The girl walked over and glanced at where I was pointing. She then looked at me and nodded before she sat down cross-legged. After that, she closed her eyes and went still.

    ... I think she''s pretending to enter her soul realm, but I already know that''s where most people unlock abilities, so this doesn''t help me much. Although... Hmm, I did unlock one active and one passive ability back in Xelba. However, I was never been able to figure out how to activate them. Could this halo be one of them? If it is, and now that I know exactly what the ability is, just maybe I could...

    ...........

    I sat down next to the monster girl and prepared to enter my soul realm, but before I could she reached out and rested one of her hands on mine. Oh? She wants to enter my realm? Normally this would be a stupid idea, but somehow I know that she isn''t out to harm me.

    I entered my soul realm and pulled her in with me. She looked around the environment and nodded at the Xerath popping out of the ground. So it makes sense to her that she''d see Xerath here, huh... That''s just further proof of my origins.

    I focused on my mana and tried to create a halo with it using the dormant ability, but nothing happened. Next, I tried it with the passive, but yet again... Nothing... Oh well, it was worth a shot.

    The monster girl, having noticed I had just given up, came over and shook her head at me. She then pointed at me before motioning her hands all around me, and then she ended her instructions by pointing above my head. Hmm...

    I closed my eyes and thought about it for a bit, but the only idea that came to me was my aura. That''s the only thing that goes ''All around me'' after all. I''m supposed to use that to create the halo? But I won''t be able to turn invisible if I do that... And everyone will be able to sense me again. I''m still going to try it since I''d like to know what kind of powers the halo brings, but ugh, I hate the idea of losing my aura.

    Once again I focused on both my mana and the untapped ability, but this time I also brought out my veil. Barely one second into channeling all three into the vision of a halo was all it took. I felt the ability activate as my veil took its new rightful place above my head.

    "Holy shit, it actually worked! Thank you, mon---Girl!"

    The girl''s eyes smiled again as she happily clapped for me.

    After that, I spent the next ten minutes testing out my new ability. I only needed three or four actually, as it was rather simple in function, but it''s always best to err on the side of caution with new abilities or spells.

    The halo basically allowed me to operate as if I was always over-enhanced. My strength and speed were phenomenal, as was the defensive power of my armor thanks to my new strength, but there were a few drawbacks.

    Lack of invisibility is the obvious one, but the next one is also problematic. The longer I use this ability, the harder I''m hit with the consequences of over-enhancing. From what I can tell, the halo greatly limits the damage over-enhancing does to you, but there is still some, and it adds up. Once I remove the halo, I''m hit with all of the reactionary damage at once. I need to be really careful with this ability going forward. Any random nobody will be able to finish me off if I overuse it and end up lying on the ground helplessly.

    I exited my soul realm, but not before noticing that the Tengu''s connection was currently inert. So even he can''t penetrate the area this god resides in. And speaking of the god...

    I went back to the first book about the gods and flipped open to the first page. At first I only thought it was kind of strange, but now I feel a certain deep-seated horror when I look at this page. The multi-arm god reaching out from the abyss has no text, nor does it have a name. It''s just a single illustration that shows arms reaching out from the abyss, with a dozen large eyes just barely peeking out from the darkness.

    I walked to the last book again, scanning over the Black God''s pages in the hopes I might be able to understand the text, but like everything else, it was just a bunch of symbols. A language I knew nothing about. I flipped open to the next page and felt a sense of dread, and that''s when I realized that everything about the next ten pages had a completely different aura. The pages were darker, and there were more illustrations that were all unbelievably creepy. The first god on the new list was especially disturbing.

    It''s a god made of wood with a single eye on the middle of its face. It looks disturbingly happy, but everything about it is making me feel ill, including its joyous attitude. The rest of the illustrations are of the god and its creations fiddling with the bodies of all sorts of different living beings. One drawing is of a horse going through several stages of alteration as they take it apart and change it. The final product is something the god is happily presenting, but the horse is so vile-looking that I can''t imagine anyone would be happy with what he turned it into. Seriously, this fucking god makes me sick.

    Unable to look at any more of that god, I skipped to the next one, which only had a few illustrations. I could only see his head, which looked like a mix of hardened sinew and black smoke. He also had an innumerous amount of eyes on his head, but that''s all we were allowed to see of him. There were a few illustrations of Humans and Crotia on his page too, but I wasn''t able to understand what any of it meant. It showed two Humans standing next to each other with arrows pointing from one similar-looking Human to the next. As I was unable to read the text, it was impossible for me to discern any more info regarding this god.

    Oh, she''s been really helpful so far, so I wonder if she''ll answer this?

    "Um, do you know what is creating the fog that''s covering the entire area down here and above ground?"

    The girl nodded and presented the fleshy ball in the middle of the room with her hands. She then sat with her knees on one of the pillows and motioned for me to sit next to her. I did as she requested, and she immediately closed her eyes and put her hands in front of her in a prayer pose. Hesitant as I was, I still copied her, as we desperately needed to know what was trapping us here and how to escape this hell hole.

    The very second I finished entering the prayer pose, the eye before us opened up. My eyes were closed, but I could see it as if they weren''t. There were no emotions associated with its gaze, it merely existed. It gazed upon me for what felt like days, but I had no way of really knowing how long I sat there. Eventually, I was released, and I saw the monster girl happily smiling at me. For my part, I felt exhausted, scared, but also invigorated.

    I knew it was the God of the Abyss who was responsible for that. He had, for completely unknown reasons, fully replenished my soul. As a gift? A natural response to a prayer? Or maybe something he gave to all the creations of his children? I did not know, but I was dangerously low on sustenance, as my last meal was a soul from one of the knights of Kellog. That was my final one, and since the souls of everything here disappeared upon death, I was beginning to panic a little.

    Worst case scenario I was going to need to either force myself to hibernate while the others carried me out of here, or I''d need the ninjas to sacrifice themselves to me one by one. Either way, the God of the Abyss had just spared me from going down either of those paths.

 Chapter 56 - Realm of the Abyss

    The ivory monster girl waved at me as the doors closed. It felt a little awkward considering where I was, but I waved back at her anyway. She was the only thing down here not hostile so far, and she helped me quite a bit. So there''s no reason I can''t be cordial with her. I really wouldn''t want to fight her though... Her aura was quite terrifying, and it kind of reminded me of that armored monster that kept attacking us above ground.

    With my aura reapplied, I walked around the building and looked at the two bridges behind it. Hmm... The exit on the left leads to a long tunnel, and the exit on the right leads to another set of stairs going down. For now, I should try and clear everything on this floor before going further down into the abyss. Also, I really don''t want to go down there, so hopefully I can find something up here instead...

    I ran over the bridge and straight through the tunnel which turned out to be much smaller than I expected. It ended in a single storage room, but if there was anything here before, it was all gone now. Was it meant to store food? I see large chests here and there though... I don''t think people store food in those. I feel like they''re designed for valuables or trade goods, not food.

    I sighed and returned to the ''Museum''. Unwilling as I was, I forced myself over the other bridge and immediately began descending the steps once I reached them. The deeper I went, the more I could feel the terrifying aura of this place stifling my every step. But despite the overwhelming aura crushing me, I kept moving forward while cursing this place in my head.

    These stairs never end... Just how far down is the next level?

    I kept walking at a normal pace for fear that I may run into something. The tunnel was barely big enough to fit three people side by side, so if a monster appeared, then I may not have much time to respond, as the stairs kept twisting in random directions, which only allowed me to see on average fifteen yards ahead of me.

    <hr>

    Finally...

    The stairs ended in a two hundred yard descent, and I could see a bright light coming out of the exit. Odds are I''m about to lose my aura. I''ve been fortunate up until this point, but this was bound to happen I suppose. The halo wasn''t damaged by light in my soul realm, but I''m a little hesitant to run around an unknown area with it on considering what the repercussions will be.

    I reached the bottom, but surprisingly, the light didn''t hurt me. Actually, should it be all that surprising...? After all, whatever I am is from this place. So it makes sense that the creatures of the abyss wouldn''t be harmed by any light produced down here.

    I walked forward a little but quickly stopped in my tracks. Is this outside...? It can''t be. Except it feels like I''m outside, or in an area that mimics the outside. The fog has also changed, it''s now a yellow-orangish tint. And strangely enough, the ground is made of sand...

    I could hear something in front of me, but I couldn''t quite make out what it was. I jogged forward while keeping watch around me. I can''t sense anything down here. The aura from this fog is overbearing, it''s all I can feel damnit.

    A monster the size of a Tengu Lord appeared through the fog. It was wearing a long tanned hooded cloak, but its face was in full view. Pitch black like the abyss, with a single white dot zipping back and forth as the monster looked through the piles of assorted goods around him. Its left hand was abnormally long and it ended in a scythe-like weapon, so it used its right hand to pick through everything in front of him.

    At first, I thought he had nothing from the torso down, but then I saw the fleshy tentacles writhing around the ground. They extended far to the left where they were poking through what looked like a portal. After a little bit they''d return and throw whatever they found into the ever-growing pile in front of the monster. For his part, he was sorting it all but I couldn''t find a rhyme or reason to any of it. There was furniture, bodies of monsters and humans, jewelry, gold, and I even saw a large weapon that I swore I had seen before.

    That gun must be from the Elven continent. The creatures of the abyss have reach there? I recall no such monsters, but my family did try and shield me from anything that would be considered bad for a child. They were really upset with my Uncle when they caught him watching the news next to me. Thanks to him, I knew what machines looked like, and I had nightmares for weeks afterward.

    The ''Collector'', placed the gun next to a large pile of cotton, a bunch of scraps of wood, and several mummified corpses.

    ... Seriously, if there''s a logic to these piles, then I don''t see it. Regardless, I want that gun.

    I snuck toward the pile and picked the gun up, and as soon as I did, the white eye on the collector''s head quickly turned toward me. I removed my aura and was about to reapply it to myself and the gun when the collector''s eye looked elsewhere. After that he began picking through the assorted junk in front of him again. That was... Surprising. Perhaps he''s fine with me taking the gun?

    I ran back the way I came until I was far away from the collector. Once I knew I was safe, I checked to make sure the gun even worked. Hmm, so this is an energy gun... I''ve never actually held one before, nor do I know anything about them outside of the fact that they need power cores.

    It took a bit but I eventually figured out how to turn it on. The cracked display still worked, but the numbers were a tad hard to read. However, I could read the power number, and it was at seventeen percent. Better than nothing. I''ll take it.

    I aimed the gun at a large rock and pulled the trigger. The gun merely shook for a second instead of firing, so I tried again, but the result was the same. I began to wonder if it was broken until I decided to try something different. I held the trigger down and the gun began to shake more and more until it finally fired out a large blue ray at the rock, completely obliterating it. I hadn''t expected it to be that big of a blast so I checked the power, and sadly, it read ten percent.

    S-Seven percent already gone... So I only have one more shot?! Ugh, it couldn''t be helped though. I know nothing about this gun so testing it in my soul realm would have meant nothing... Oh well, at least now I can test it in there.

    And that''s exactly what I did. I turned invisible and entered my soul realm for a few minutes, blasting different Xerath mounds into pieces. I won''t know how strong this is against the monsters until I hit one of them, but at least I know how to use and aim it now.

    I exited my soul realm and ran past the collector. For nearly ten minutes I saw nothing else, but eventually, I came upon an abomination inside a deep yellow lake. The creature was entirely black with several golden eyes on different parts of its body. Saying it has a body feels like a stretch though... It''s just a mass of writhing tentacles.

    Finding nothing of interest outside of the creature, I continued my sprint through the barren environment. The next thing I came upon was something that looked like an outside auditorium, except it was built down into the sand. Large statues of two gods adorned the area, and I recognized them thanks to the murals. They depicted the god who ruled over souls and the god who created life with those souls.

    I walked down the auditorium''s steps a little, but not enough to disturb its occupants. Whether they were dead or alive I didn''t know or care, but there were a hundred Crotia on all fours in the same full-body prayer pose. They were all looking at an illustration placed on a wall of sand in the back of the auditorium. It showed the god collecting souls and sending them to the god of creation who would create new life with them.

    Yet again, finding nothing that could help us escape Veca, I ran forward, leaving the auditorium behind. Almost an hour after running along a mountain I came upon a hole, and inside of it was a massive set of stairs going up. Holy shit, even the Tengu Lord could easily fit in here... This must be how anything large traversed between this area and the city.

    I stared at the stairs, unsure of what to do next.

    ... It would be nice to know where this leads to, that way the Tengu could come with us. The ninjas did say that they found different holes in the surface that monsters were exiting through, so if the Tengu Lord can fit through one of those, then that means he could not only enter the city, but also come down here, and he''s already proven how invaluable he is in combat. Plus, I don''t want to leave him behind after he came to our aid.

    I turned around and ran back into the desert. It''ll be easy to return here, and I really want to find something of value before I return to the others. Otherwise, we''ll just be blindly running around looking for clues, and even the Tengu will have his limits. Who knows how many abominations there are like that creature I saw in the lake.

    <hr>

    It could have been twenty hours, or maybe eighty, it was hard to tell down here, but I was currently resting against the wall of a lone home surrounded by nothing.

    I can hear something from my left, and I will check it out, but I doubt it''ll be anything related to my mission.

    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    Two vultures landed nearby and began drinking from a small pond near the home.

    This place is honestly amazing, but the average... No, everyone would consider this place a nightmare to traverse or live in. I kind of love it here though. I''ve long since adapted to the aura, so once the fear dissipated, I was able to see this place for what it really is. A desolate landscape full of wonders. I didn''t think I''d like deserts, but apparently I do.

    I stood up and ran in the direction of the sound. A few minutes later a massive black building came into view. Yet another aesthetic I don''t recognize... Like I said, this place is full of wonders.

    I descended the black stone steps into a tunnel. The walls were adorned with idols, and I recognized a few of them. These are depicting some of the minor gods. The one that made me sick, the one with eyes all over his head, and a few others that were described in the book after those two. Is this a collective temple created to worship these four gods?

    I reached the end of the tunnel and found myself in a large chamber full of benches. I looked at the creatures sitting on the benches in shock. For the first time yet, I found myself in a room with living beings that didn''t look like they were zombies. The room is filled with ancient Crotians and those aliens. They''re all well-dressed and clearly healthy-looking. This is so bizarre... I figured they were all dead, especially since I found nothing but corpses of theirs down here, but apparently, some of them had survived. And they all look a little different... I assume it''s because they''ve been living in this place for ages.

    They''re all facing the wall on the left side, which has four intricately designed sculptures sitting in front of it. That family portrait I found was nothing compared to what these worshippers were looking at. There were four sculptures that were so well done they look looked they were alive. I didn''t see images of the two minor gods on the right, but the two on the left are in the same pose they were in the book''s illustration of them.

    There were statues of random monsters in the room too. They were also impressive, but they were rather ordinary compared to the sculptures.

    Several casters entered the room from an entrance near the sculptures while I was watching the procession from the back of the room. They stayed near the front of the room though, so I was well out of their detection range.

    "???????????? ???????? ????????????.?? ???????? ????????????????.?? ???????? ????????????????.?? ???????????? ???????????????? ???????????? ????????????????.?? ???????? ???????????? ???????????????????? ???????????????? ???????????????? ???????? ???????????? ???????????????? ???????? ????????????????????????????????????????,?? ???????? ???????????????? ???????????????? ???????????? ???????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????? ???????????? ???????????????????????????????? ????????????????!?"

    Ahh, I think I know what is happening now that I know of my origins... Because of what I am, my soul can interpret their language on some level, so it''s attempting to translate it, but the result is me hearing their real voice on top of a half-assed translated version, making it all the more impossible to understand them.

    Both the casters and the audience clap their hands in front of them at the same time. Hmm... They''re all humming now and I can feel their auras coalescing together, but what are they casting? It''s not an obvious group spell like when Jasper was casting that mini-fireball.

    The humming grew louder and louder as the aura in the room grew ever stronger. I backed up into the tunnel behind me, preparing to run in case this went south, but it wasn''t the only reason I was backing away. Something terrible was approaching from below, but I didn''t know what it was. Wait... Are those sculptures moving? They kind of look like they are, but...

    Any remaining doubt I had was wiped away when the wooden god of change began to move his entire body. Soon after that the other three gods began to move as well. The second the last god came alive, he and the three casters all whipped their heads in my direction. That''s when I noticed the similarities between the casters and the god. Shit, are they creations of his?! The awakening of his splinter must have empowered them, allowing them to sense me.

    "??a???k???e???s??" One caster said, pointing at me while motioning to another caster who was tilting his head at me.

    I immediately turned around and bolted. I removed my aura and activated the halo so my speed was nearly three times as fast. I ran through one room after another looking for a hallway that led to the left or right, but there continued to be no such side paths.

    At last a large hall appeared before me with paths to the left and right, but something else I saw in the room took my attention for a moment. There was a Demon, but it was dead no matter how I looked at it. And yet, despite its rotting flesh and bones sticking out everywhere, it was moving around channeling mana into several different Demon portals. As I looked around the room, I noticed that it was filled with the dried husks of Demons. Are these the Demons from above...? Then the one opening portals is the leader that commanded the digsite, right?

    As I neared the right side hallway I spotted several hunchbacked Demon corpses piled on top of one another. I quickly ran over and ripped their pouches from their sides before running into the hallway. At the speed I was going it didn''t take me long to reach the outside, but...

    The god of change''s splinter was waiting for me outside. He looked me up and down, his face slowly changing to the joyous version of himself I saw in his illustrations. I stuck the pouches to my armor and aimed the gun at him. He had begun to walk at me with his arms spread out as if welcoming me, but once I aimed the gun at him he looked at it and rubbed his chin. As the gun began to shake something about it must have interested him, because he opened his arms wide again, but this time he had a sickeningly gleeful look on his face.

    The gun discharged, firing a blast of energy at his chest. In the split second between the gun firing and the blast hitting him, I saw all the joy disappear from his face as he quickly attempted to dodge. He was able to move enough to dodge a fatal blow to his entire torso, but his left arm and a large chunk of his torso on that side were gone. Confusion was the only emotion on his face as he reached over with his right arm and touched the missing parts of himself in disbelief. However, that confusion was short-lived. A look akin to pure ecstasy took over as he stared at my gun.

    Right... This fucker loves change and altering living beings. I bet the Elven lands would be heaven for him.

    Now that the gun was empty and I had no hopes of finding another power core I tossed the gun at him and ran past him. He made no attempt to stop me, as he was far more interested in his new toy. I glanced back only once and saw two things. The god of change''s left side was already regrowing, and three casters were exiting the temple. They were all coming straight for me of course.

    Seeing that, I pivoted toward the home I was resting at previously. The casters were able to keep up with me but they couldn''t attack, as they were using a spell to float and speed themselves up. Looks like escaping them through running is impossible. This is good to know for when we all come down here together as a group.

    I reached the home and ran around it toward the cellar doors nearby. I quickly opened them and jumped into the cellar before closing the doors again. Odds are they can sense me, but I checked this cellar earlier. It leads to a long tunnel heading in the direction I need to go. So if they find me and decide to ''Siege'' this cellar, then good luck assholes. I''ll just flee through the tunnel and collapse it behind me when I reach the other end.

    Outside the cellar I could both hear and sense the casters as they swapped to an offensive spell. Soon after that I heard the house exploding. They attacked the house...? I thought I''d be easier to sense with my veil gone, but maybe it''s not as extreme as I thought? Either way, I want to try and kill these fuckers before I leave. That''ll make for three fewer casters to deal with for later.

    The sound of sand and rubble collapsing could still be heard as I felt the closest caster move in this direction. Once he was near the cellar doors I bursted through them and grabbed his head with both hands. A short squeal escaped the creature as I crushed his head. The other two casters began to cast two ethereal spheres. As usual, once they were finished channeling, the spheres came at me in a zig-zag pattern, but when they both turned to hit me from both sides, I dashed forward with the dead caster still in my hands. This resulted in the spheres coming close to one another as they pivoted to chase after me.

    I immediately whipped the dead caster into both of the spheres. As the spheres exploded I turned and dashed at the caster on the right. Between my speed and the boost the explosion gave me, I managed to grab his ankle before he had finished casting his ethereal barrier. I picked him up and whipped him into the other caster. That caster had managed to summon his barrier, but I apparently had thrown his ally hard enough destroy it, as the barrier exploded, resulting in the caster flying back in my direction. I raised my right foot high into the air, heel out toward the approaching caster. Once he had reached me, I stomped toward the ground, connecting the caster''s head with my heel on the way. His head exploded into a pile of viscera as I smashed it into the sand.

    The last caster went back to his floaty speed spell in an attempt to flee, but yet again I picked up the caster at my feet and threw him at the fucker trying to run. He tried to avoid his oncoming ally, but the speed at which I threw him was too much. The dead caster smashed into his ally, knocking him straight onto his ass, causing him to slide backward along the sand for a bit. By the time he was able to move again, I was already on top of him, crushing his head just like I did to his friends.

    Something smashed into me and exploded before I had time to relish my victory. I flew into the cellar door, flipping over it and down the steps in the process. Groggily I looked at my body and saw that I had lost several of my fingers and other parts of my body were completely exposed as well, including my core. I had only seen it for a split second, but the fog had completely parted between here and the temple, and on the other end I saw the god of the casters. That fucker must have hit me with something... Shit, I''m struggling to move. My halo spell obviously deactivated after taking a hit of that caliber, so the rebound is tearing into me on top of whatever damage he just did...

    It took me longer than I had liked, but I managed to stand up. Once I was up, I ran into the tunnel, all the while keeping my eyes behind me. Just as I was about to lose sight of the cellar entrance, something big blocked the light coming in from outside. It descended the steps and immediately I knew it wasn''t a god, but it was still powerful enough to kill me in my current state. I pushed forward as hard as I could, running until I came upon another cellar. This one also had a tunnel leading somewhere else, but I chose to escape to the surface instead.

    I exited the cellar and found myself next to a couple of ruined homes. They were all abandoned of course, but I didn''t feel safe hiding here regardless. My veil had returned enough to turn invisible, so that''s exactly what I did as I ran past one of the homes until I reached a part with several large rocks. I dug as fast as I could between them, which was difficult with low mana and only a few fingers, but I eventually dug up enough that would allow me to bury myself in the sand. I didn''t bother creating a mesh this time, as it was unnecessary. I sat down in the small hole and did my best to bury myself before placing a medium-sized rock over the hole.

    It wasn''t long before I heard something stomping around above me. I didn''t know how close it was, but it didn''t matter, as any noise was going to feel too close with how injured I was right now. Several hours went by as footsteps came and went until I eventually heard nothing but the shifting of the sand. I think the fact that I have practically no mana left is a major reason I''m still alive. Even those casters would have a hard time finding me when I have no aura to detect.

    I entered a deep meditation, spending many hours healing my body one part at a time. I''ll be back soon enough guys, just hang on a bit more. Thanks to that Demon general, I think I know how we''re going to get out of here. But at the same time it''s problematic knowing that the Demon is a puppet creating portals for the creatures down here...

 Chapter 57 - The Last Respite

    I slowly lifted the rock off of me and peeked around. After confirming that there was nothing around, I placed the rock next to me and stood up.

    ... I really want to check behind that temple and see just what is back there. All of those living Crotia and aliens must have come from somewhere in that region. The casters entered from the back exit, so there must be a city in that direction. But it''s too risky... I don''t know if the splinters are still there. And if the caster''s god is still around, then I''d most likely die this time. Especially since I''ve only managed to fix enough of myself to move. I''m nowhere near in combat shape, but I desperately need food. My core is starting to feed off of my soul, which means I need to make it back to the others now.

    I turned and began running in the direction of the stairs. Thankfully they''re inside of a long mountain. Odds are I''ll end up nowhere near the stairs, but I can just run along the mountain until I find them again.

    <hr>

    About five hours later I found the mountain, and then it was another hour before I reached the staircase. I recognized a few things on the way back. So long as we run into something I''ve seen down here, I''ll be able to steer us toward the temple. Plus, the aura leaking out from that temple is growing in intensity. It was vague when I first reached the temple, but by the time I left my hiding spot the aura that place was giving off could still be felt almost ten miles away.

    I ran up the stairs and passed by several plagued Crotia, monsters we hadn''t seen yet, and one dead tree monster that was tumbling down the steps. But eventually, I reached the city.

    I immediately jumped on top of a building and looked around. It''s completely silent in here, so the others must not be in the city. I can see a few plagued Crotia here and there, but they''re just staring at walls lifelessly. So long as I can avoid the casters, I should be fine. The other problem is that I don''t know where any of these ''Holes'' are... I''m looking up but I don''t see any. The only thing I see up there is a bunch of fucking ethereal spiders hibernating in different spots on the ceiling.

    I dropped into the plaza in front of me and began running to the left, keeping to the main thoroughfare. The Tengu will know where the holes are, I just need to try and guide them back to these stairs. If I can vaguely measure how far away they are from the main doors, then hopefully we''ll be able to quickly find the stairs. Unfortunately, the area around the doors looks just as bland as the rest of the city. No monuments or anything else that would stick out for us.*

    As I was running I spotted something I hadn''t seen before. What the hell is that? It looks like a coffin that was placed upright. I stopped running and walked toward the coffin. I was about halfway to it when it suddenly opened up, revealing a caster who immediately turned his head in my direction. I jumped backward and continued running toward my original destination. So that''s where the little fuckers are coming from... They are placed randomly around the city in hibernation. They''re sentries basically.

    I glanced back and saw the caster floating back and forth above buildings as it searched for me. ... I wonder why they care if the ''Darkness'' approaches them? Shouldn''t they be allied with the god who created me? Instead, they appear to be afraid when they sense me.

    <hr>

    Ahh, there it is...

    I kept running forward and pivoted to the right when I reached the stairs. After that I ran straight up the stairs and past the door, blazing all the way through the tunnel until I reached the surface. Once I was outside I did my best to ignore the curious gaze hitting me from the sky. I rested against the digsite, marveling at how free the outside felt. I can''t believe this fog used to feel oppressive. I did love the Abyss realm, and I thought I had gotten used to its aura, but there''s just no beating how good it feels being in an area that''s not constantly oppressing your soul.

    After I was done resting, I stood up and ran toward Arkaios'' temple, but I had barely made it a mile before running into the Tengu Lord. He was currently sitting on a monster''s corpse while cleaning his staff. It looks like another animal that was corrupted into a monster.

    I walked to the front of the Tengu and removed my aura. He looked at me and nodded.

    "Did you know I was stuck down there for a few days? Or was it a week or two... I''m honestly not sure. Either way, is everyone okay?"

    He nodded again before picking me up and placing me on his shoulder. Knowing what he had planned, I made what little was left of my armor sticky so I wouldn''t fall off. He began running soon after that, easily weaving through the trees despite the extreme speed he was moving at. It took barely twenty percent of our usual travel time for us to reach the temple. I repaired what I could of my armor in that time so I wasn''t exposing myself yet again to others.

    Once we were inside the barrier I jumped down and the Tengu immediately turned around and ran back the other way. Hmm, I wanted him to know about the stairs and the abyss, but it''s going to take me multiple days to heal myself, so the others will have plenty of time to tell him.

    I walked into the temple and everyone was already sitting down waiting for me.

    Markus smiled at me, "Well. I already have a pretty good idea of what happened. You were underground during the reset, weren''t you? I don''t know how the hell you managed that when those fucking trees were blocking the entrance to the building we were in, but I''m sure you have more than that to tell us considering how long you''ve been gone."

    I sat down on one of the empty pillows, recalling everything I could of the Museum, but before I could speak, Shana moved her pillow next to mine and sat down. "... Just because you can turn invisible, that doesn''t mean you should disappear."

    "Clever wordplay, but you''re right, I''m sorry..."

    Shana nodded and rubbed my head the same way I used to rub Aresa''s. This feels awkward... But it''s also kind of nice.

    "Anyways, uh, I followed an ethereal spider into a hole behind the marble building you guys were in. It led down into a massive cavern that... Honestly, it''s kind of shocking when I think about the amount of things I need to tell you guys. I was playing it by ear, but in hindsight, the things I found were all ridiculous in scale."

    "It''s that bad...?" Lindon asked as he put his face into his hands.

    "Eh, I don''t know how bad it is, but maybe Arkaios will know? Arkaios, have you ever heard of the ''God of the Abyss''?"

    {I have not. Although, I am not surprised to learn that there is a god down there. Is it an Eldritch?}

    "No, it''s..."

    Actually, what is it?

    "Honestly, I don''t think it fits any of the three categories you''re all thinking of."

    Nisha quirked an eyebrow at that, "Huh? How is that possible? Are you saying it''s not an Eldritch, Demon, or Xerath?"

    "It''s not. There was a Museum down there, although it''s probably a temple since you can pray to the god there and he rewards you with something. He filled my soul up so I don''t need to absorb anyone for a long time. Oh, I do need food though. I''m absolutely starving, can someone get me something?"

    Shana split off a clone who quickly ran into the dining room. Soon after that I heard her cutting something up.

    {And?} Arkaios urged me to continue.

    "There''s an Abyss down there, and the god is reaching through it. There was a thick layer of something coating his arms that was covered in symbols, but it was breaking apart. I initially thought he was sealed but now I''m not sure. Regardless, something is changing down there, because I also witnessed several of the gods he spawned come to life through sculptures his followers had created of them. They were just tiny splinters of their true forms, but one blast from the caster god while I was over-enhanced was all it took. I''m still severely damaged and going to need a few days to heal."

    Keith raised his hand, "Rei, I''ve noticed you do this often, you bounce from one point of the story to the next. Start from the beginning and continue from there."

    ... I can''t deny that.

    "Alright, I followed the ethereal spider as it climbed the stairs of that marble building, but it was clearly confused when it reached the top. It was looking everywhere for you guys, but it couldn''t find you. That''s when I noticed that the outside of the building had returned to its normal state too. There were no enemies anywhere. It hit me at that moment that you must have reset, which means that everything below the city wasn''t affected by it. It made sense after I saw the god, and it made even more sense after I saw what was further down past him."

    I continued, "Before that though, there was a building in the cavern where the God of the Abyss''s arms were, so I entered it in the hopes I''d find something of value. I was met at the entrance by a girl with an ivory monster head. She was rather strange-looking I''ll admit, but she was quite nice and not hostile at all. She attended to me while I looked at the murals on the walls and read the books in front of them. Well, not read exactly, since I couldn''t read the words, but the illustrations and murals were so well done I was able to glean quite a bit from them."

    Markus rubbed his chin, "I would love to visit this building, but My Lord said his connection to us is lost down there, and you have sadly proven it."

    "We''re going to need to go down there though... I found a way out. The God of the Abyss is creating the fog, and we''ll never kill him, so we have no choice but to go through the portals the Demon General is creating for them deep in the Abyss realm." I looked at Keith, "To be fair, he did force me to go out of order."

    Keith chuckled, "Very true, but putting that aside. By ''Demon General,'' do you mean the Demons are assisting them? I thought they were..."

    I shrugged, "That''s what he looked like. I assume it was the Demon running the digsite. He''s about twenty-five feet tall with large black wings. He''s dead by the way. They''re using him like a puppet to create portals. At least I assume that''s what they''re doing... The only part I know for a fact is that he''s dead and creating portals."

    "That''s him alright. So the fucker is dead and still managing to make things worse..." Greyson sighed.

    "The last time we went into the city my body wasn''t shaking nearly as much as the first time we entered it, but now we''re supposed to go much deeper than that? Will we be okay?" Albel asked.

    "Oh, that reminds me. We forgot to tell you, Rei." Markus continued, "Since you left we''ve been going into the city and killing as many of the fuckers as we could. Most of the area around the stairs has been purged. Excluding the spiders on the ceiling of course."

    "Ahh... That is nice to hear, but uh..." I rubbed the back of my head, "The stairs we need to reach are about a twenty-minute run to the left of the doors we go through."

    "What? Is that how you entered this ''Abyss Realm''?" Lindon asked.

    "No, it''s how I left it. There were stairs that led to the Abyss behind that building dedicated to the gods. But the stairs I used to return to the city were unbelievably massive. They were designed in such a way that any monster I''ve ever seen would be able to traverse them."

    "I still don''t understand why we would... Ah!" Albel looked toward the entrance, "You mean to bring the Tengu Lord with us?"

    Markus smiled, "Now that''s a damn good idea. The ninjas found several more holes while you were gone. From the sounds of it he could fit into a few of them. You should rest up Rei, while we find the hole that''s closest to these stairs of yours. Can you tell us what is around them? Any notable landmarks?"

    "Pfft, no. The fucking area is just as bland as the rest of the city. It''s going to be a pain in the ass to find, but please do." I continued, "Oh, two other things. I found a coffin in the city, and when I got close to it a caster popped out of it. So if you see any coffins, just know there is a caster inside of it. And the last thing I can say is that the part of the Abyss we''ll be running through is pure desert. It feels like you''re outside, and on top of the aura crushing your soul, it''s... I won''t say super hot, but it''s definitely hotter than it is up here."

    Markus nodded and stood up, "Coffins huh... One last question for now. Where are the portals in this desert? Outside? In a building?"

    "In a temple, and while most of it is closed off, the portal area had no ceiling and was in a rather wide room. There were about nine portals, with seven of them being big enough to fit the Demon General. The last two were big enough to fit the Tengu Lord. I don''t know where any of them go of course."

    "I see... Thank you, Rei. You did a great job. Now go relax for a bit, we''ll take it from here." Markus replied before leaving the temple.

    Shana picked me up as her clone came out of the dining room. She then carried me into one of the side rooms and laid me down on one of the makeshift beds we''d been sleeping on. "I can still walk you know..."

    Shana grabbed the pile of ham from her clone and sent her to follow the others. "Hush. Tell me about what else you saw."

    Ishar walked into the room and sat next to me with his back against the wall.

    I looked at him, "Not going with the others?"

    Ishar shook his head but said nothing.

    I grabbed a huge slice of ham and was about to shove it into my mouth when I saw that Shana was just staring at me.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "... I''ve never had someone stare at me while I eat before. I see why people say this feels awkward."

    Shana just smiled in response.

    ... Fine.

    I began to eat as Shana stared at me and Ishar sat there with his eyes closed. When I was about halfway done Arkaios spoke to me.

    {Rei. Did you find that girl''s ring? I can feel a connection between something in one of those pouches and the girl.}

    "For real?! I grabbed them just in case but I didn''t have any expectations..."

    Shana ripped the pouches that were dangling off of my armor and emptied them onto the ground. Practically everything that fell out of the pouches was made of gold. So that''s why the fucking things were jingling so much. I thought it would be coins or something. I''m lucky they weren''t blasted off when the god of casters blasted me. But maybe some were? I swear I had more pouches than this initially.

    After sorting through the scattered gold pieces, Shana eventually picked up a gold ring with a bright ruby at the end of it. "Whoa... My fingers feel weird holding this..."

    Shana then stared at the door for a bit until her clone returned with the girl in her arms. I''ll never get used to seeing this. I really hope she isn''t as conscious as she appears to be. Or at the very least she better not have been in extreme agony this whole time. But knowing the way this world works, she probably was...

    Shana''s clone sat the girl down and held her up so she didn''t fall. Shana''s main body then walked over to her and slid the ring onto one of her fingers. Almost immediately the room was filled with the sounds of cracking and popping as the girl''s chest repaired itself. Within less than ten seconds the girl''s whole body had been healed. Ishar whistled while Shana looked at me with her eyebrows raised in surprise.

    {... I see now. That ring is the highest quality artifact I''ve ever borne witness to. She tethered her soul to the ring, so she''ll live so long as the ring survives. It''s risky though, as you have all witnessed. Without us, she may have been trapped in a half-dead state for tens to hundreds of years.}

    The girl hit the bed hard and turned away from us, burying her face into a blanket. We could hear her struggling to breathe as she cried. Well, that was to be expected... I''ll leave her be for now and focus on healing. I need to be ready for when we leave anyway.

    I quickly finished my ham and downed a big pitcher of water before laying down. Shana sat down next to me and began meditating at the same time I did.

    <hr>

    Almost an hour later I could hear the girl snoring. Quite loudly too, which made me happier than it should have. I don''t know this girl, but I''m glad we were able to return her to a place where she could rest peacefully like this.

    "Did I ever tell you that I have a mate?" Ishar suddenly asked me.

    I looked over at him and he was lying down with his arms behind his head.

    "You told us when we arrived in Kellog about how men and women work in your culture, but I don''t think you said anything about having a woman of your own?"

    "He did not. I was trailing you two with my clone." Shana added.

    Ahh, I remember now. She surprised the two of us at that assembly. That''s when we found out about her cloning ability.

    Ishar chuckled, "Well I do, and I love that little workaholic. She''s the main assistant to the leatherworker in our village and she''s damn good at it."

    Ishar went silent, continuing a few minutes later, "I enjoyed this life. Serving Terra''ka and rooting out corruption. But while I was sitting in that cell or digging, the only thing I could think about was my home. And then when you disappeared again, something about it felt like the final straw. I realized it''s time. I''m going home after this and going to transfer to the darklands border. They''d happily welcome me in. You spend a month there, then a few weeks at home. It''ll be heaven compared to this fucking nightmare."

    "Heh, tired of the countless horrors and battles huh? You''re still going to fight horrors at the darklands border though, aren''t you?"

    Ishar scoffed, "BAH! Those are structured battles with prior warning thanks to our sensory system. We already know what most of the monsters are in our darklands, and even the surprise here and there almost never results in us losing warriors. I''ll still be able to battle, but it''ll be more of a pseudo-retirement, ya know? Plus, my shout is highly sought after when it comes to battling large monsters, so they''ll treat me real good."

    "Speaking of your shout. I saw a caster deflect it in the city below and Mia was completely unaffected by it back in Kellog, why was that? I mean shit, you locked the Tengu Lord down several times."

    "I never should have used it on that Kitsune girl while she was being empowered by the nearby broodling. I wanted to punch myself after I did it." Ishar shook his head, "The closer the broodling''s... Pets are to him, the stronger they are. And at that distance, no debuffs of any sort were going to work. The shaman gave me shit for it after that battle as well. He was asking why I tried to stun her. But as for the caster deflecting it, all I can say is fuck if I know. Before that very moment I had yet to see my shout canceled out like that. And did you see the way that cunt did it? He just backhanded it as if I had thrown a cotton ball at him."

    I couldn''t help but laugh at the way he said that. Shana was chuckling as well, but I could also feel her poking my thigh again.

    "What''s up?"

    "Did you fight casters down there too? I saw in the city that the one caster you killed had sensed you while you were invisible."

    "That was a really small interaction in the middle of a load of mayhem, I''m shocked you noticed that little detail. But yeah, the fuckers can sense me, and when their god appeared their ability to sense me was strengthened. I ended up having to flee the temple thanks to that, and even had to battle three casters and a splinter of the god of change. I damaged the god with the Elven energy gun I had and killed the three casters soon after that, but that''s when the god of those casters nearly killed me from several miles away. We need to be really careful of him if he''s still there..."

    Ishar whistled, "Three casters all by yourself! Damn girl, I always knew you were strong given the right situation, but killing three of those fuckers. That is something else..."

    "Oh, uh, that''s because..."

    Ahh, I wanted the others to hear this too after I was sufficiently rested, but telling these two first just feels right.

    "There was something else I discovered in that building dedicated to the gods. Well, a few things, like something I really do need to tell you Ishar, but first I should..." I thought back to the book describing the black god, "... There are dozens of minor gods, and one of them was draped entirely in a black cloth. The illustrations showed her creating skeletons from bones, and even had drawings of a halo above someone''s head. Which normally wouldn''t mean much. But uh, the monster girl in that building assisted me and I was able to create that very same halo. I lose the ability to turn invisible, and there is a large rebound afterward, but it''s very powerful and overall a net gain for me."

    Neither of them said anything. I looked between them and could see that they were both lost in thought. Eventually, Ishar was the first one to speak.

    "So you''re created from some god that belongs to the Abyss? Ahh shit, that actually makes sense when I say it like that..."

    "I am, but not all of the gods have an abyss theme to them. The puppets we fought were from a human-looking girl. And the lions were from a massive lion god. In the illustrations he is easily five times bigger than the lion spawn we''ve been battling."

    "... I really hope he''s not down there waiting for us. Even if it''s just a ''Splinter'' as you call them. Ishar said.

    "Rei," Shana said, causing me to look at her. "That makes no sense. You were in a different realm, and these gods here are just waking up... Right?"

    "There''s more to it. The books showed the gods assaulting different realms, but I don''t know when any of that happened. What''s important, is the fact that the black god was sent to the Xerath''s realm." I continued, "Oh, by the way. I''m just making these names up as I go. Like how I call that one I battled ''The God of Change'' because it showed illustrations of him altering living beings into creepy monsters."

    "Heh, I figured. You did say you couldn''t read any of those books after all. So it was either that or the monster girl told you their names." Ishar said.

    I shook my head, "I could only understand a few of the words she had said. Even if she told me their names, I doubt I would have understood her."

    "Did you see anything like your god while you were there? Anything that was pure black?" Shana asked.

    "Hmm... Nothing that I can remember. And the only invisible enemies I came across were completely different from me. They were like that cat, you could see a haze when the light passed through them. Plus, the books said the black god was supporting the lion god in the assault, and I know I didn''t see any massive lions running around killing the Xerath."

    Honestly, I really don''t know how it happened. The whole fucking thing is a mystery. I''d need to return to that cave, and while some part of me misses my little hidey-hole, I would only go back if I knew I could return to this realm.

    "Arkaios, I''m just wondering, but uh, can you send people to the Xerath realm and bring them back?"

    {I know why you''re asking, but I would advise against it. Sending you there would be simple. I could do it this very moment if you so desired. I had even considered it as a last resort if you all weren''t able to find a way to escape Veca. However, it''s the return part that would prove... Problematic. I wouldn''t be there with you, as it would be a direct warp through the artifact. Meaning, you couldn''t bring it with you. And it goes without saying, but I have no temples in the Xerath''s realm. Anyone I''ve sent there, has sadly, never returned.}

    Ahh damnit I knew it...

    "U-um..." A voice I had never heard before said.

    We all looked toward the girl.

    "I''m sorry, did we wake you?"

    The girl nodded and pointed at Ishar. "That one did. He''s loud."

    "True. He is loud, isn''t he..." I said, smiling at Ishar.

    He just waved it off and laughed. "Sorry about that little lady!"

    "Want us to go into another room?" Shana asked, causing the girl''s eyes to go wide.

    "N-no! Here is fine. Please, here..." She said, pulling the blanket up to her mouth.

    Doesn''t want to be alone, huh? Makes sense, and I''m just glad she''s talking. She must not have been as conscious as I initially thought. Otherwise, she''d need some serious rehabilitation. Maybe she only became aware when a soul came within a certain distance of her? Surely they''d have some sort of defense against an existence of torture, like forcing her into her soul realm where she''d wait to be rescued. In fact, I bet that''s exactly what happened, but I can''t ask her about it. Not right now anyway. The last thing she wants to be reminded of is her chest cavity being ripped open.

    The girl looked between my eyes and hair several times. She was about to ask me something but seemed to decide against it. She laid back down soon after that and immediately fell asleep.

    Shana laid down, resting her head on my stomach, "You''re the reason she''s able to sleep like that."

    "Heroic feats come simple for me."

    Shana flicked my nose, "You ruined it... Smugness bad."

    Nisha entered the room, "Hey. You all resting?"

    "You''re here too? I thought you left with them."

    "Not this time. And Rei, you really don''t need to heal yourself. You''ll be part of the next reset now that you''re back here."

    "Oh? I thought I was decoupled thanks to me going underground."

    {No. The link was merely blocked. My mark is still on you. Although I did remove that girl''s mark, so she doesn''t revert to her previous condition.}

    Shit, I was so preoccupied with everything I didn''t even think about that. Good thing he took care of that.

    "Arkaios, how old are you? Did you know the Crotia and aliens living here?"

    "Aliens?" Shana and Nisha asked in unison.

    {I did not. Contrary to what you may believe, I am not like Meizha''thul or Eremnon. Nor did I evolve to power like Terra''ka has. I merely exist. I was not there one moment, and then the next I was. I had a single thought, a drive to purge corruption while bettering the living beings who prescribe to order. I did not speak, nor think, until I had my first worshippers. My manner of speaking is human-like, because they make up most of my followers, which in turn influences how I interact with the world.}

    Nisha''s eyes went wide hearing about her gods unique origins. I didn''t expect to hear that either.

    "Did you do anything else or just spread your influence while rooting out corruption?"

    {Only one time. I corrupted humans that were living in a hellish environment, hoping to give them a better chance of surviving. It worked. But strangely enough, very few of them worship me now. My temples are mere afterthoughts to them.}

    The emotion with which he is speaking isn''t sadness, but amusement. Apparently, he finds the situation involving those humans to be rather funny.

    {... There''s a problem. I''m initiating the reset now.}

    Immediately, everyone but the girl reverts to where we were during the second reset point. And just like they said, all of my injuries were healed.

    "W-What the hell was that?!" One of the ninjas yelled.

    Markus looked at him, "What happened? We were in the middle of battling those Crotians when the reset happened. There was nothing wrong on our end, so it must''ve been for you lot?"

    Another ninja nodded, "We were at our stations, a few hundred yards away from a hole. That''s mostly what we''ve been doing lately. Watching holes and then signaling our lord when a monster appears. But this time something came out of the hole and immediately blew up half of us. I don''t know how he did it! I didn''t see a fucking thing."

    "... Did you see what he looked like? Any of you? Did he happen to have a large head that was completely covered, aside from a slit that showed his single golden eye?"

    "That''s what I saw! It was only for a split second but I remember that golden eye because it reminded me of our God''s golden eyes."

    Right. The Tengu has golden eyes too, so I suppose these ninjas wouldn''t make a mistake here.

    Keith looked at me, "It''s the ''God of Casters'' that you spoke of before, right?"

    I nodded.

    Markus saw that and sighed, "So they''re going on the offensive... I don''t know how powerful that splinter is, but it''s natural to assume that he won''t be alone. Expect at minimum several dozen casters."

    "How many foot soldiers? That city is never ending and we''ve only cleared out one little part of it." Albel said.

    "No way of knowing until they leave the underground. They could empty the entire city---"

    Arkaios cut off Ishar. {Strange. They are already topside. The reset would have placed him next to wherever he was when he ascended from the abyss, but I can feel a powerful force above ground, and it''s growing in strength at an exponential rate.}

    Markus stood up. "Okay people. I thought we''d have more time to explain this, but we''re leaving in ten minutes. My Lord, do you agree?"

    {Indeed. I do not want to risk all of you versus a powerful caster. Beings like that are very good at locking down souls. There''s a good chance he''ll grab one or more of you before I can reset. Plus, there''s no need to defend this position. Keeping a temple on Veca would be a waste of resources. Prepare to leave, and grab the artifact.}

    "You heard him folks, so get ready! We''re going to make a mad dash for the portals Rei found underground. It won''t be easy, so do your best to keep up, and most important of all, survive!" Markus said before he turned around and picked up the artifact. He and Arkaios began to explain to the regular citizens that they were going to send them to Arkaios realm temporarily. Souls attached to living bodies reject his realm, so they can only stay there for a few days, but it should be more than enough time for us, so they all agreed and were subsequently warped to Arkaios'' realm. Markus then put the artifact in a backpack Nisha was wearing.

    The first place I went was the room we left the girl in. She was obviously awake again, and looking rather scared.

    "I''m sorry sweety, it looks like we won''t be able to give you the time you need to recuperate. We''re abandoning this place with the plan to jump through some portals with unknown endpoints. It sounds like a horrible plan when I say it out loud, but I''m sure it''ll be fine! Don''t worry, we''ll get you back to your family eventually."

    The girl meekly nodded.

    Hmm...

    I walked over to her and sat down. "What''s your name?"

    "... Vi"

    She looked at me sideways while pointing at me.

    "Reimia."

    Her eyes went wide when she heard my name.

    "S-So you are her! Between your eyes and your friends calling you ''Rei'' I began to wonder, but your hair is black... Dad said you had pure white hair."

    "You''ve heard of me...? And my hair is dyed. I had to do that before coming here for, uh... Reasons?"

    Vi only nodded in response.

    "Can you tell me who your dad is?"

    "Ah..." Vi clenched her lips and looked away, "Um... I feel bad, but uh, can we talk about this after we escape from this place? I don''t want to cause problems for the people who saved me..."

    Problems huh... It must be someone from Xelba. What a strange moment this is. Normally I feel the urge to snap the necks of anyone from Viktor''s nation, but I don''t feel that at all toward this girl. If anything I feel repulsed at the idea of harming her. Perhaps because I saw her as only a scared and damaged girl? Under normal circumstances, she''d be just another citizen living the good life while pretending her nation isn''t exterminating worlds for her benefit. I keep calling her ''girl'', but she has to be in her mid-twenties at minimum.

    I rubbed the girl''s hair. "That''s fine then! We''ll talk about it after we find a new safe haven. Hopefully the portal we take leads to a civilized area." Unlikely. But even I am hoping for that. I want to take a break from all this fighting and find Aresa. Plus, we need to get Ishar back to his home and wife.

    ... The others however, they are on their own. I remember right before Viseux fell, Keith was telling us that Arkaios wants to abandon this realm and move everything he owns into Gaia. The path to Gaia requires you to traverse Mother, and that path is going to be filled with unbelievably powerful Eldritch blocking their way. I want no part of that. I need a long break, and then maybe I''ll take Aresa to the Elven city. She''ll love that place, but I''m going to be a little disappointed if she already went there without me...

    I could hear Markus striking his sword against his shield, signaling it was time to go. I have yet to see him even use that shield. I can understand why though. His shield would be just as useless as my artifact armor has been so far. It''s barely blocking the damage these monsters can dish out.

    I stood up, "Alright then, looks like it''s time. Want me to carry you?"

    Vi nodded and lifted both her arms in my direction.

    I meant it when I said she''s in her mid-twenties. She''s acting like a kid, but after the ordeal she went through, I''m not surprised in the least that she''s being this dependent.

    I bent down and presented my back to her. Without hesitating she climbed on top of me and wrapped her arms tightly around my neck. She''d be choking a normal human right now with the way she''s crushing my neck, but eh, I''ll be fine.

    I stood up and walked toward the main area. Alright... Here we go. No more resets. We only get one shot at this, so we can''t afford to screw this up.

 Chapter 58 - The Escape

    Shana looked me up and down, "Your armor is still tattered all over. You going to be okay?"

    "I''m planning on sticking to the middle of the group as much as possible, so it should be fine." I looked back at Vi, "But just in case, you should be prepared. I''m sure I''ll have to join the battle at some point."

    Vi nodded, then looked over at the Tengu Lord who was waiting for us to give the go-ahead.

    After that I helped Ishar strap Nisha to his back.

    "Do we know which direction the enemy is approaching from?"

    {I can say with sixty percent certainty that they are around twenty miles left of the digsite.}

    "That''s probably near the hole we saw them come out of before." A nearby ninja said.

    "But that means we''re the ones who will have to worry about being blown away..." Another ninja said with a sigh.

    "Huh? Why is that?" Vi asked.

    Shana looked at her and smiled, "Because we''re going to the digsite, while the ninjas are going with their lord to jump down the closest hole they''ve found. If we over-enhance ourselves I''m sure we''ll survive the fall, but then we''ll have no mana left and have to deal with the rebound of taking massive damage while over-enhanced. It''s just not worth it. The ninjas other than me, have a short floating spell they showed me. I never learned such a spell though, so I''m with you guys."

    Vi''s eyes looked like they were sparkling as Shana talked to her. Is all of this really that interesting to her? That part of her is reminding me of Aresa... She probably had a sheltered upbringing as well.

    All of the ninjas jumped onto different parts of the Tengu Lord. When they were settled in, he turned around and began sprinting through the forest.

    "ALRIGHT, WE''RE NEXT! LET''S GO!!" Markus yelled before he began running toward the digsite.

    Everyone but one of Shana''s clones chased after him. Her clone took off in the direction the Tengu Lord had run.

    "Scouting the enemy out?"

    "Yes. We need to know if they delay the Tengu, or worse, kill him." Shana replied.

    Hmm... I don''t think they''ll be strong enough to kill the Tengu. He''s a large target so they won''t miss him, but I''m more worried about the ninjas.

    <hr>

    "Where do we turn left, Rei?!" Markus yelled as we descended the steps into the city.

    "The first left! The stairs are near the top layer of the city!"

    We all pivoted to the left as we reached the first row of homes. We continued running forward for about five minutes unabated before a pair of casters appeared.

    Lindon glanced over his shoulder at them, "Fucking cockroaches, I''m so sick of dealing with them!"

    Shana and her clone threw daggers at the casters, forcing them to drop their flying spell in favor of the ethereal sphere. Another caster flew up from one level down but he was also forced to do the same when Albel began firing a barrage of mini-fireballs at him.

    Ishar laughed, "We''re used to dealing with them, as you can see. I and Greyson deal with the trees, while Markus, Keith, and Lindon deal with the Crotia."

    "The casters only become a major problem when they''re allowed to freely cast. So, we just make sure they aren''t allowed to do that." Shana said as she tossed a couple of more electrified daggers behind her.

    From far ahead of us I could see legions of plagued Crotia coalescing together at the next plaza. However, about a minute before we reached them, we could see the Tengu fall from the ceiling, landing right in the middle of the plaza. He immediately did one large sweeping blow, knocking all of the Crotia far into the city below. After the attack, he turned around and sprinted in the same direction we were running. Perfect... He''ll find the stairs long before we do, and he''ll be able to keep the area clear for us. But where is the force that was attacking Arkaios'' temple?

    As we ran, the number of casters behind us tripled, and while the group was still managing to lock them down, it was looking kind of dicey. The casters were apparently getting fed up with the situation and attempting to swap to offensive spells, only to eat a dagger or fireball for their efforts. One of these times a caster is just going to say ''Fuck it'' and take the hit while blasting us. It might even influence the others to do the same. This situation looks really risky to me but nobody is saying anything so maybe they''ve dealt with this before...

    Not willing to risk it, I whispered to Vi ''Hold on tight.'' I then slowed down my pace, falling behind the others. All of the casters kept moving at the same rate, but they were all looking at me now, obviously wary of the lone person approaching them. When I was about two-thirds the way back toward the casters, I sped up enough to stay at that exact distance from both groups, and then I waited for my chance.

    None of the casters swapped to offensive spells after that. They continued to swap from the barrier to the flying spell to keep up with us. But eventually, one of them became impatient, and as soon as he dropped onto a building to cast one of his offensive spheres, I activated my halo and leaped right at him. He panicked and attempted to swap back to his barrier, but I was already on top of him, kicking him right in his face. His whole face caved in and blood sprayed everywhere as he went flying into the city below. I turned and looked at the other casters but they were all backing off, clearly much more wary of me than they initially were.

    I deactivated the halo and sprinted toward the group which was pretty far away at this point. Albel must have seen this as a chance to lock the casters down now that they had fallen behind, as I saw a barrage of fireballs arc through the air, all landing around the area the casters were occupying. They had no choice but to sit there with their barriers up, watching all of us disappear into the distance.

    Albel looked at me and laughed when I caught up, "That took most of my mana, but damn did it feel good! We should be down the steps long before they can catch up now."

    From what I''ve seen of their speed, I think he''s right. Eventually they''ll catch up to us in the Abyss realm, but the Tengu will be able to support us there.

    Speaking of the Tengu, I could see his towering frame stop moving in the distance as he looked down at something. He''s not attacking anything, so he must have found the stairs? Considering how far we''ve run, and how far ahead he is, it does look like he''s in the right area.

    "Rei, that was so cool!! You punted that monster like he was a toy!" Vi said.

    Hah, she really is like Aresa...

    "I realized what really pisses me off about this place," Greyson said.

    "What''s that?" Ishar asked.

    "Nothing we do here matters. Something had clearly done a number on these people, and now the city is a ghost town that merely repels us like an ant hive. We''re struggling to survive and these fucking ghosts from the past are only attacking us out of pure instinct. This place grates on my fucking soul."

    We haven''t talked about it much, as there really hasn''t been time, but this place is definitely odd. Even putting aside the Abyss elements, the city''s inhabitants are basically just zombified plague victims. Hell, even their pets were turned into giant monsters... Whatever happened here, it was done by beings who saw the citizens here as nothing. Mere objects for them to corrupt or kill. I wish I could have read the text in those books. Then I''d know which god could have unleashed this plague.

    We caught up to the Tengu and both groups immediately ran down the steps. The ninjas are still clinging to him, and they''re shimmering? Are they infusing him with mana? That''s one way to make yourself useful I suppose.

    The Tengu would run ahead of us until we could barely see him, and then he''d wait for us to catch up. This repeated for a while, with a few battles taking place that were quickly ended by the Tengu. Behind us, the casters, who were now double in number, were finally coming into view, but they were still far behind us. Just like I thought though. They''ll catch up at some point in the middle of the Abyss. How annoying.

    "Ugh, I already fucking hate this place..." Lindon said as he almost stumbled over his own feet.

    Looking at the others I could see the descent toward the Abyss was doing a number on them as well. Even Markus looked like he wanted to sit down and take a nap. From there on out a small blue aura flicked on and off from the group(except me of course). Nisha is empowering them for a split second to push the Abyss''s oppressive aura off them. Even if it''s only for that short amount of time, it''s clearly working. They''re all running better already, albeit not as well as they were back in the city.

    The exit came into sight, and only about a minute later we were leaving the stairs behind and entering the Abyss realm.

    "Holy shit you weren''t kidding! The fuck is all of this?! It feels like we''re outside..." Lindon said, looking to and fro as we continued running forward.

    "Rei! Which direction?!" Markus yelled back at me again.

    I ran to the front and led the way until Markus was aligned with me, and then I slowed down until I was in the middle of the pack again.

    The air to our left rippled as sand exploded everywhere, blocking everyone''s view in the process. All I could see was the Tengu blocking something with his staff. It had hit him with such force that his upper body rocked backward enough to where he almost looked like he was going to tip over.

    When the sand was out of the way I could see who the attacker was. It was the God of Casters, but surprisingly, he only had five casters with him. The number is going to skyrocket soon though. Now that we''re not moving, the dozens of casters behind us are going to catch up to us fast.

    "... Not bad. I''ll take it." Greyson said from my right, holding up a sniper rifle before he continued, "Just so you know, this one drains my mana by a shitload, but I''ll be able to pick off quite a few casters in the back. Someone, please infuse me."

    I walked over and knelt down next to him as he was entering a prone position. I and Vi put our hands on him. He fired off a round soon after that, dropping one of the casters in the distance. The rest immediately spread out, and out of the corner of my eye I saw the God of Casters glance at Greyson, but he wasn''t able to spare any more time past that, as the Tengu Lord was barreling down onto him.

    The Tengu did a sweeping strike toward the God, and in response, the God clapped his hands near the sand at his feet. I was wondering what the hell he was doing when he suddenly whipped his hands in an arc toward the sky, and immediately I could see the Tengu''s staff fly backward as if something powerful had just deflected it. Undisturbed by this, the Tengu kept attacking him, which resulted in his attacks being deflected in the same manner.

    Albel and Shana were attacking the four casters near him, with Shana forcing three of them to retain their barriers while the fourth one was bombarded by Albel. It didn''t take long for him to burst the caster''s barrier and kill him, but he dropped to one knee after that, and the reason was obvious. He didn''t have enough time to recover his mana. Nisha is supplying him, but it''s going to take time for him to burn through the other three casters.

    Greyson continued to pick the casters off one after another, as they were down to a dozen now, but I could see the same signs Albel was fighting off now assaulting Greyson, except he had already passed his infusion limit.

    Markus and Keith were attempting to attack the God, but apparently, he did not have the same limits his spawn did, as he was able to maintain a powerful barrier while still dealing with the Tengu.

    Hmm... There''s no way in hell this is going to work, but it has just enough soul left for one more use, so might as well try.

    I summoned the metal ball ability into my hand and threw it at the God. He didn''t even spare it a glance until it hit his barrier. The sphere surrounding him began to vibrate until part of it was sucked into the ball. That''s all the ball did before expiring, but it was more than enough to give Markus a moment to attack the God. His sword flashed a bright white as he slashed at the God, but his attack went through nothing, as the God had disappeared.

    I saw the Tengu looking up, so I did the same and there he was. The God was floating high into the air, looking down at us. He clapped his hands again, but this time he began to do it over and over, to the point I began to wonder if he was quite literally clapping for us, but then he suddenly stopped and pointed both of his palms at an area in front of the Tengu. The air rippled again, leading to another shower of sand hitting us, and when it had passed, I saw the abomination from the lake sitting there. He summoned that thing here?!

    The abomination began to wildly flail around, whipping a dozen massive tentacles at the Tengu. In response he leaped to the side, but the abomination was shockingly fast, it slid over the sand and continued its relentless assault on him as the God unleashed what looked like a shower of rain on top of him. However, when the ''Rain'' landed on the Tengu or the ninjas, each little splash exploded. The explosions were by no means large, but when there were hundreds of them back to back, the damage was adding up fast, especially on the ninjas.

    The God clapped a few more times. Chains made of hardened sand bursted out of the ground and wrapped around the Tengu''s wrists. The Tengu dropped his staff. It began to glow a bright green and it whipped in a circle, smashing through the chains before returning to the Tengu''s hands. Good thing he could break out of that, because not only would the ninjas have been dead if they were trapped under that rain, but the Tengu probably would have been too.

    Unfortunately for the God, the abomination was apparently dumb as hell. The attempt to lock him down failed, so the Tengu retreated backward from the rain, and the abomination willingly walked into it. The Tengu then stood his ground and fought the abomination while the rain obliterated it. The God continued to cast spell after spell at the Tengu, but instead of leaping backward, he kept circling the abomination, so the mindless creature would just sit there in the exploding rain.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    The casters on our side were finally in range to attack us, and as I was preparing to engage them, I saw Keith literally disappear. Markus was looking up so I did the same, and that''s when I saw Keith slicing down at the God. Oh shit that''s right, given enough time Nisha can warp others to specific points like how he finished off that one Tengu Lord.

    The God raised his hands to deflect it, but he didn''t make it in time. I thought Keith would hit a barrier, but surprisingly, the God didn''t have one. Instead, his sword slammed right into the God''s head, sending him barreling down toward the sand. In that split second I saw the God clapping his hands, either creating a barrier, planning to fly, or maybe even warp, but it was for nothing. The Tengu caught him mid-air with his staff, smashing him so hard I didn''t even see the God after that.

    "Fuuuck did you see that! He was moving so fast he didn''t even leave a trail!" Lindon yelled while laughing.

    But I''m more worried about the fact that I was right... The aura surrounding the temple was so much stronger between the Gods awakenings and when I left that hole. I was worried that meant their splinters were becoming stronger, and it looks like I was right. It might just takes them time to acclimate their new bodies to our realm, slowly absorbing ether as their souls expand. If the Elven gun had originally blown part of the God of Change apart, there''s no reason that the Tengu''s full-powered smash attack wouldn''t turn the God of Casters into paste. But... It didn''t. So that means they are already far more powerful than they were when I first saw them only a few days ago.

    Lindon''s barrier appeared over me and Vi. "Go on, you''ve already shown that you can kill them."

    I turned toward the casters, but instead of the ethereal spheres I was used to seeing them cast, I saw a green flame appear in all of their palms. Shit, I haven''t seen them use this since our second foray into the city. I don''t know why they waited, but I know that none of us will survive a hit from that spell.

    I activated the halo and infused it to the max. Markus was attacking the two casters on the right, preventing them from turning the flames into spears, and Greyson was finally able to pick off another caster in the middle, causing the other two to panic and put barriers back up. But the ones on the left were still channeling the green flames, so my future victims had been decided for me.

    I bolted toward the middle of the three casters on the left side. He tried to cancel the flame but I quickly grabbed his wrist and pushed the flame into his face. The caster''s scream reverberated in my head just like it did back during that second dive into the city. I shook it off and turned to my right while throwing a punch into the caster''s face. He flew backward and began rolling head over ass through the sand. Markus simply cut the caster in two as it rolled by him before continuing his assault against the last caster on his side.

    I heard Ishar finally release his shout, but the shockwave from it landed behind me. I turned around and saw the caster rolling around in the sand trying to put the green fire out that was engulfing him. Hah, that''s actually kind of funny. I don''t know what that spell is, but it must engulf them if they mess it up. Being stunned by Ishar would certainly ruin some spell caster''s day if they were in the middle of channeling mana into a spell.

    Behind me, I could see Markus rolling through the sand after destroying the last caster''s barrier, but he had nothing to worry about, as Greyson backed him up by putting a bullet through the caster''s head.

    "Rei, let''s go! That massive creature is dead, it''s now or never!!" Markus yelled at me as he shook a bunch of sand off of his armor.

    I looked over at the abomination, and sure enough, it had been reduced to a large pile of goo.

    "You don''t need to worry about me, you know?" Vi said as I deactivated the halo and ran after Markus.

    "You''re saying I shouldn''t worry about you getting hurt?"

    "It''ll heal anyways..."

    ... I''m sure that''s true, thanks to your artifact, but I''m carrying you so you''re in a place where you won''t be damaged like that again so soon. At least that''s what I''m attempting to do.

    "Shana, did your clone lose sight of them?"

    Shana shook her head, "I never saw them. I couldn''t find them anywhere."

    Maybe they returned and waited for us when they saw us leave the temple? This would be the best place to ambush us after all. Although it didn''t really work out for them.

    Albel was lagging behind us, and just as I was about to say something, Ishar ran over and tossed him onto his back.

    "Sorry... I need a quick break. Just give me five minutes back here."

    "Think nothing of it, boy! I''m glad to be of use right now when all I have is my shout. But your sister isn''t very pleased with you it seems..."

    Albel grimaced before entering a meditative state.

    To our right I spotted a large stone tablet.

    "I know that stone tablet! Turn right a little, that should take us to the next landmark!"

    Everyone did as I said, with the Tengu taking the lead again. I could see several ninjas on him with open wounds, but all of them looked alive at least.

    "See? They were terrifying at first, but after battling them over and over, they became rather easy to deal with once we knew all of their spells and attack patterns." Greyson said.

    A loud bang rang out as something slammed into the Tengu''s left side. He fell toward the ground but caught himself before he crushed the ninjas clinging onto his right side.

    The yellow-orangish fog had departed for a split second, but I couldn''t see anything in that direction.

    "His range increased with his spell power it seems! That means the fucker is going to be hitting us from very far away now."

    Honestly, we''re lucky that he''s hitting the Tengu. He must be thinking if he slowly kills the giant raven Eldritch, he''ll be able to finish the rest of us off up close.

    One of the ninjas lost his arm completely in that attack, so I ran up to them and tied him to the back of another ninja. They were all clinging to the Tengu''s legs now, which was rather silly looking, but much safer if the God was aiming at the Tengu''s torso or head.

    After that we continued running toward the temple. Every now and then a blast would smash into the Tengu. He always caught himself, but it was clearly taking its toll on him. He was moving slowly so we could keep up with him up until now, but he was now forcing us to move a little slower so we didn''t outpace him.

    "I assume not, but I''ll ask just in case. You can''t use your barrier on him, Lindon?"

    "I wish, Rei. He''s way too big. I can''t alter the size of my ability shield, or I''d slim it down and put it near his left-side torso. But as it is, my barrier won''t fit over that massive frame of his."

    "This is so fucking annoying. I hate that we can''t do anything about this." I paused for a moment then continued, "Actually..."

    Markus looked back at me, "Whatever you''re thinking entirely banks on the possibility that you can kill or at least maim him before he warps away. I''m sure you understand that, but it really needs to be emphasized just how risky a confrontation with that God will be."

    "... Vi, can I hand you to Greyson?"

    Vi poked her head over my shoulder and smiled at me, "Of course. Good luck, Rei!"

    I was moving to place Vi on Greyson''s back, but Ishar beat me to it by placing Nisha there. I looked at him as I placed Vi in Greyson''s arms.

    "You''re coming with I take it?"

    Ishar merely smiled at me as Keith walked up to us, "I''m ready, let''s do this."

    So Keith is coming as well. Now this is going to be interesting...

    "Kill the fucker, please. I and Shana will make sure any casters that appear won''t trouble us here." Albel, who was rested enough to run and cast again, said to us as we began to run toward the direction of the blasts.

    "Rei, do you still have that uh, sonar ability?" Keith asked.

    "Nope. I wish I did but I used the last charge on that spider fight in the prison." I continued as I split off from the two of them, "I''ll look for an opening. Good luck you two."

    I turned invisible and kept a good distance away from them while running toward the God. About a minute later the fog split as a blast shot over our heads. There you are fucker...

    Surprisingly, there weren''t any other enemies around him. He''s certain that he doesn''t need help it seems. I''ve seen enemies all over the place down here, so I know he could have brought several of them to his side by now, but he chose not to.

    Once the God was close enough that the fog was no longer obscuring him, a blue aura wrapped around Keith as he leaped at the God. The God completely ignored him, focusing on charging his next blast. And for good reason too, as I could see a massive ethereal barrier around him.

    However, the barrier disappeared the moment Ishar shouted at him. The god froze up for a split second and the barrier faltered, allowing Keith to slip inside. The barrier returned, but now Keith was inside it with the God and he was already attacking him in full force. The God narrowed his eye at him and begrudgingly began deflecting his attacks.

    I can''t believe that actually worked. I thought he''d deflect the shout like his spawn did when they weren''t already preoccupied. Is that why it worked? He was channeling a spell after all...

    The God went to deflect another one of Keith''s attacks, but was forced to retreat backward and deflect Ishar''s shout instead. However, his back was now against the barrier, leaving him no more room to run. Before Keith could attack again he clapped his hands hard, which led to the barrier disappearing. It looked like he was going to clap again after that, but he attempted to float to the left instead while whipping his head in my direction. Unfortunately for him, I had already jumped on his back and was using all of my strength to try and lock his arms down.

    Did the barrier prevent him from sensing me? I figured he was ignoring me, but his reaction just now tells me otherwise.

    He tried to clap his hands but with my halo ability at max strength, he was barely able to move his arms. So instead his head creepily turned all the way around. His single golden eye locked onto me as I could feel something in his soul grab onto mine. Shit! This is another problem with the halo! The veil is gone so my fucking core is exposed.

    I lost all the strength in my grip almost immediately and fell off of him as a result. Keith was in mid-swing about to hit the God, but he clapped his hands and disappeared right before Keith''s attack connected. Almost immediately I heard Ishar shout. Both Keith and I looked up in the same direction Ishar was, and we saw the God falling toward us. Did Ishar take him by surprise? It can''t be just that though. This stun is lasting far longer than the first one.

    Keith jumped up and brought his sword down onto the God, repeating the same attack as earlier. And just like before, the God shot down toward the ground, except no Tengu was here to attack him this time. He slammed into the sand hard. The sand obscured him for a split second, and by the time I could see him, he was clapping again. I managed to bring my heel down onto his chest before he disappeared again. In that small moment between my attack landing and his warping, I swore it looked like he was grimacing.

    "Hey! I don''t know why, but it didn''t feel like I was hitting a brick wall, and I swear he looked like he was in pain."

    Keith landed in the sand near me, "Strange... It felt like my blade was hitting a rock, so his enhancements were still there when I hit him. Maybe he''s finally running out of mana? The Tengu hit him hard and he''s been channeling attacks ever since then as well."

    Maybe... The only way to find out is to keep attacking I suppose.

    I looked up but the God wasn''t there. That''s when I heard Ishar shout again. Looking down, I saw Ishar trapped in a barrier with the God, and his shout must have been deflected because he was now creating a big green flame between his hands.

    Both Keith and I knew what that meant so we charged the barrier and attacked it. Inside the barrier I could see Ishar charging the God, despite the large green flame growing in his hands. The God seemed startled by this brazen move, as he was slowly backing up. When Ishar was about twenty feet away from him, the God tossed the flame into the air and attempted to warp away, but that''s when Ishar hit him with something I had never seen before. It was still a shout, but this one was more of a full-body one. It practically burst my eardrums and I could even see the barrier rippling.

    What mattered the most though, was the fact that the God had been fully stunned. I could even see him face planting into the sand. The green fire overtook the inside of the barrier as both Keith and Ishar turned into blue balls that flew off toward our party. I removed my halo and turned invisible as I ran in the same direction the two balls had flown.

    Behind me I could see the God stand up as his barrier dissipated. The cloth he wore over his whole body was mostly melted, and his dark purple skin continued to burn, but he just looked at it with a hint of mild annoyance. He cast something that made the fire disappear, and a few moments later he had completely disappeared. He must have warped somewhere else. Hopefully we did enough to forestall him for a little while, but I really have no way of knowing how much damage we just inflicted. Maybe it was nothing, maybe it was enough to force him to rest for a week.

    <hr>

    "This is the home I talked about!" I said as I pointed at the rubble of the home.

    "It''s just a pile of wood at this point..." Greyson said.

    Well yeah, the casters destroyed it trying to kill me.

    I ran in the direction of the temple with the others trailing behind me. We haven''t been attacked by the Caster God since then, but there''s still a chance he''s waiting for us up here.

    The temple slowly came into view, but that wasn''t the only thing we saw. To the left side of the temple there were at least a hundred Crotia and aliens lined up. They watched us approach but made no move to attack. They made no move to do anything actually. Even the emotions on their face were completely empty as we ran past them.

    "What the hell was that?" Lindon asked.

    No one''s going to have an answer for that... All that really matters is that they didn''t try and stop us.

    I led the group forward until the Tengu jumped over the temple and landed somewhere in the middle of it. We must have arrived.

    Soon after that I saw the entrance and ran through it, continuing forward until I reached the portal room. The others joined me and we all watched as the Tengu picked the Demon General up and threw him somewhere into the distance. Under normal circumstances that would have made me laugh, but at this point I was beyond exhausted.

    Markus walked up to the two massive portals, "Alright... Which one we taking?"

    "Flip a coin? I have the gold coins that Rei left back in the temple." Lindon asked.

    His bandit instincts are still as strong as ever I see. But that''s fine, I am the one who left them there after all. I can always make more money elsewhere. What matters most right now is getting away from this fucking place.

    Markus pointed toward the left portal, "Heads."

    Lindon flipped the coin, grabbed it, and smacked it onto the back of his left hand.

    "Heads."

    "Looks like we have our portal," Markus said. After he was done saying that he jumped right into the portal.

    One by one the rest of us jumped through it as well, with I and the Tengu being the last ones. I landed on the other side and had to put a hand over my eyes to block the blinding white light aimed at my face.

    "I REPEAT! DISARM YOURSELVES AND GET ON THE GROUND!! I WILL NOT ASK A THIRD TIME!!!" A voice yelled at us through a loudspeaker.

    More panic and yelling could be heard after the Tengu Lord jumped through the portal.

    While Markus yelled back and forth with a man in the distance, I slowly looked around and took in our surroundings now that the large spotlights were mostly aimed at the Tengu.

    The land around us was littered with the dead. Plagued Crotia, casters, tree monsters, a couple of monstrous animals, and a half dozen other monsters I didn''t see in the Abyss. Well, now I know why they''re so on edge... The creatures of the Abyss have been attacking this place, or trying to anyway. Looks like they failed rather miserably so far.

    About twenty yards in front of the party I could kind of see Markus talking with a man in power armor. The glare was still annoyingly strong.

    The Tengu was sitting down in a relaxed posture behind the party, not showing an ounce of hostility. At one point I could even hear Markus say ''He''s a righteous one, I swear on My Lord''. They must know of the Tengu Lords and are obviously wary of him as a result. He looks nothing like his evil brothers do though, so that should give some credence to what Markus is saying.

    "What do you think?" Ishar asked after sitting down next to me. Vi dropped off of him and sat in front of us.

    "So far so good. I''ve only been able to pick up pieces of dialogue thanks to how loud their machinery and alarms are, but it seems like they know of Arkaios. That man in power armor touched the artifact for about thirty seconds too, so you know what that means."

    "Does that let you communicate with the god you guys follow?" Vi asked.

    "We don''t all ''follow'' him, but... Ahh, never mind. I was going to say ''Maybe we should follow him'', but he wants to leave for Gaia, and I won''t be going there for a long time."

    Ishar rubbed his chin, "I completely forgot about that. Keith told us outside that building you broke into, right?"

    I nodded and Vi chuckled, "Were you stealing things, Rei?"

    "Nah. Just breaking some allies out of prison." I laughed and pointed at Markus, "In fact, there''s one of them right there. But he died soon after I freed him. Ironically, he actually would have lived longer if I had left him in that cell."

    "Well, how the hell did you die? I had just killed one of those Xerath spiders when something hit me from behind. The next thing I knew I was strapped into a chair on some massive platform that was carrying me over the darklands." Ishar said.

    "I uh, was shot out of the sky. Something slammed into me hard, knocking me through several buildings before one of those dark purple Xerath stomped me to death. But I really don''t know what hit me out of the air." I continued, "And you must be referring to the entrance of Jericho. I rode that thing alone. It was surprisingly fun to ride."

    Vi''s eyes lit up, "You''ve been to Jericho?! Did you like it there? I love that place!"

    I looked at Ishar and I could see the wheels turning in his head. Heh, he knows where she''s from now, that''s for sure.

    "We weren''t exactly there to sightsee Vi... But yeah, under normal circumstances and if I didn''t know which faction the town belonged to, I would have loved that place."

    Ishar chuckled, "I spent all of my time in a cell. So hell if I know whether the city was nice or not."

    "Ahh..." Vi trailed off. "I''m sorry... I didn''t know they treated you two like that. It''s weird though. Dad said he liked you, Rei."

    "I''m sure it''s complicated. There were plenty of people in Xelba I liked, that I, uh..." Killed.

    The man talking to Markus walked a little away from him and began talking into a handset. A radio huh... Now that''s really bringing back memories.

    "Looks like they''ll either be letting us go or locking us up soon," Ishar said.

    Most likely the latter. Then again we do have Arkaios with us, so it could go either way...

 Chapter 59 - Xethra

    "Oh right, I wanted to ask you something. Who killed the four or five casters that were standing around the God when he first appeared? We killed the ones in the back, but I lost sight of the others after Markus breached the God''s barrier."

    "Uh, I think that was..." Ishar looked up into the sky and went silent.

    Shana sat down next to me and chuckled, "The God killed them. When he summoned that abomination it smashed all of them with its tentacles."

    Now that''s just sad... Poor bastards.

    Shana continued, "And sorry if I seemed absent. My clones were playing decoy for some other monsters who tried to approach us. One of them I swear was a living sand monument on four legs. The creepy thing was fast as hell despite being as big as that abomination. That clone nearly died dozens of times before the monument finally crushed her. We''re lucky it didn''t come back for us."

    "Shit, that wasn''t the only one. There were far more dangerous entities nearby than I was comfortable with. One of them was following us the entire time we traversed the Abyss... Only the God attacking us means that we probably used up all of our luck for the next hundred years." Ishar continued, "Our resident ninja here pulling a few away from us was also a huge relief. Thanks for that by the way."

    I heard a beeping sound behind Vi, and when I looked in that direction I saw several women of this nation''s military placing a device in front of everyone''s face one by one. Face scanners huh... They''re using it on Keith right now but I shouldn''t have anything to worry about. I was in the database but I was just a kid... Then again, if it does show me they''re going to want to know where I''ve been and why I look the way I look.

    Normally I could just stealth out of a place like this when the spotlights aren''t on our group, but I can''t leave everyone behind. These people will obviously find it suspicious that I disappeared and that''ll make it even more difficult for Markus and the others to leave. And odds are they''ll just want an account of what we saw through the portal. Probably by forcing us to show them through our soul realms. Which is something I don''t blame them for, I''d do the same if a portal suddenly appeared in my nation and unknown monsters came flooding out of it.

    The man in power armor approached our group with the two women assisting him. One bent down in front of me and Shana, while the other scanned Vi and Ishar.

    "This will only take a second you guys, don''t worry. We rarely find anyone that warrants a closer look." The woman said as she scanned Vi.

    While both of the women had scanned us without a single hint that something might be wrong, it was obvious that they had in fact found something. As the man in power armor was now looking back and forth between his datapad and Vi. It looks like he''s glancing at Ishar and Greyson too...

    Ishar had obviously picked up on this and was signaling me with his eyes to be prepared. But there''s no escaping this place as a group. There are hundreds of guns aimed at us and spotlights everywhere. So I assume he''s motioning for me to slip away and break them out later. It won''t be easy though... If I had originally found them jailed in the middle of Jericho then breaking them out would have been annoyingly difficult. And in the worst-case scenario that''s what I''ll have to do here.

    The man in power armor continued to discuss something with the two women out of earshot. While that was going on, Markus walked up to our group and sighed. "Don''t do it, Rei. I know what you''re thinking, and indeed their actions are a little suspicious, but you''ll only make things more difficult. Lord Arkaios spoke to the man and the nation here seems to have quite a high appreciation for him. They don''t worship him, but they do allow branded members to pass through and stay in their nation. So whatever problems just arose, it won''t be a large hindrance to us."

    I hope he''s right... In a situation like this my instincts are screaming at me to flee, so forcing myself to stay put is killing me.

    The man in power armor walked over to us and looked at Vi. "Miss, would your name happen to be Vi?"

    Vi worriedly looked over at me. The man saw that and panicked a little. "Apologies Miss! There''s no need for you to be scared. It''s just that our---Your Father has been worried sick about you ever since your convoy was hit by Demons."

    Wait... That means this place is...

    Vi''s face lit up when she heard that. "Oh! We''re in Xethra?!"

    Yet another city or nation name starting with ''Xe'' for Xerath... Xelba was built on the abandoned city of ''Thelba'', so he just mashed the two words together. Viktor''s obsession with the faceless monsters knows no bounds... That aside, I think we''re royally fucked here. I can see Ishar and Greyson are also looking back and forth for a way out of this. Markus noticed our expressions and is even starting to look a little worried himself. He doesn''t know the exact context yet, but he trusts our judgment, so he knows something bad is about to go down.

    The man smiled and nodded, "That''s right Miss Vi! You''re back home now. So just come along with us and we''ll put you in a nice hotel where you can rest until your Father comes along to pick you up. The moment we scanned your face, he would have been made aware that you were found, so I''m sure he''ll be here in the next couple of days."

    Vi looked over at me. "Isn''t that great, Rei! And don''t worry, I''ll tell my dad what you did for me, I''m sure he''ll forgive you for whatever problems you two had in the past."

    "Oh you really don''t need to do that, Vi. It''s best to leave things in the past where they belong, the past. So just tell these nice men and women that we saved you and then we''ll be on our way." There''s no way in hell that whoever it is will forgive me, regardless of how much they love their daughter and appreciate what I did for her. The others are going to be dragged down along with me too... Shit, this couldn''t possibly get any worse. Why couldn''t the coin have landed on tails...

    Vi scrunched her face up in disapproval. "I really wanted to spend more time with all of you, but I can tell you''re busy and have other places to be..." She then looked at the man in power armor, "Can you please let them go? The Demons had tortured and left me... Broken. But these people saved me! I wouldn''t be here without them."

    The man scratched the back of his head and looked down at his tablet. "Hmm... Honestly, I''d normally allow it and even reward them handsomely. But we really do need to know why this portal appeared out of nowhere, and why your group appeared through it. You won''t have all the answers, Miss Vi. So at the very least, we''re going to need them to stay for a little while."

    One of the women behind the man approached him and whispered something into his ear. He nodded and then looked back and forth between Ishar and his tablet several times, before finally sighing and putting the tablet away.

    "I can only promise to let them go so long as they answer all of our questions and allow us to see their recent memories in their soul realms. If they do this, then they will be free to leave." The man looked at the Tengu Lord, "He will also need to stay somewhere until we can confirm that he''s a ''Righteous Tengu Lord''... I''m having a hard time believing that such a Tengu exists, but he does feel and look different from the two I saw in the past..."

    Okay good, we still have a chance to get out of here... Maybe. After all, I don''t know how high up the chain this man is, so if he''s just some grunt and someone higher up decides his word means nothing...

    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    The man then motioned toward the ninjas resting near the Tengu''s legs, "Who are they?"

    "They serve the Tengu. Once you scan them you''ll understand. They''re still trainees and not all that strong yet, so they helped by infusing the Tengu as we escaped that realm." Markus said.

    Looks like they''re taking turns helping the ninjas who lost limbs. I can see stumps forming already as they take turns healing one another. That exploding rain really fucked them up. They must have been focusing their enhancements onto their torso and heads while ignoring the rest of their body just so they could survive, and it worked thankfully.

    "I see... Well, it looks like they''ll need a place to rest and heal, so maybe it''s for the best that we give you lot a safe hotel to relax in for a few days."

    ''No need, we''ll be more than happy to leave right now...'' Is what I''d love to say, but I already know what kind of response I''d get.

    The man walked away and was quickly replaced by the two ladies. "Now then, if you''ll all kindly follow us, we''re going to take you straight to the hotel. The sooner the better, since we need to be back here in case any more invasions take place."

    "What about him?" Markus asked as he pointed at the Tengu.

    Before the girl could respond, the Tengu pointed at himself and then down at the ground. He then did it again by pointing at his staff and the portal behind us.

    "You want to stay and battle anything that comes through the portal...?" The girl asked, amazed.

    He still wants to fight huh... That''s all he did when he was with us too. Fight, pass out, eat, and then start fighting again.

    The Tengu nodded.

    The two girls looked back at the man and he just laughed in response. "By all means! We''ll accept any help we can get." He looked at Markus, "If he really does battle those creatures with us, it''s going to be much easier to convince the higher-ups to let him go."

    Markus glared at the ninjas, "Don''t even think about trying to stay here with him."

    "We know! We''re useless here, that much is obvious even for us..." A ninja replied.

    Surprisingly mature of him. I guess even they realize that they''re too damaged and untrained to support an army using this amount of firepower. Plus, they''d literally get in the way. The Tengu will survive some bullets hitting him, and even an explosion here or there, but the ninjas would die quite easily if they stayed near the portal.

    "With that out of the way, shall we proceed?" The lady asked.

    I, Ishar, and Shana stood up and followed behind Markus'' group. On the way, Greyson slowed down until he was right next to us. One look at his face and I could tell he was ready to bolt right there and then.

    Greyson leaned over toward us and whispered, "We''re out of range of their encampment. I say we run. There''s no guarantee that anything that grunt said will come to pass. What are we going to do if someone above him, some fucker who sits at a desk all day, decides we should be detained? They know who I am. Hell, they know who Ishar and Nisha are too. I... I can''t be stuck in a cage again... Not again."

    I looked at Ishar, "What do you think we should do?"

    "I''m more interested in what you think we should do. Aren''t you the one most at risk here?"

    "True... If Viktor finds out that I''m still alive and relaxing in one of his cities, I''m nearly one hundred percent positive he''ll kill all of us."

    Greyson''s eyes shot open, "Who is this Viktor and how worried should I be? I''m already freaking out as it is. I don''t know if you''ve experienced what it''s like being in a sweltering hot prison for years on end, but it was horrible, to say the least. Although the food was surprisingly good..."

    "... He''s the creator of this nation. I don''t know what title he''s using, but it''d be on the same level as a ''King''. And he''ll want me and anyone connected to me, dead. Loose ends are something he rarely allows to exist. We won''t be one of those exceptions, in case you''re wondering."

    "Oh good, one more thing to worry about..." Greyson sighed.

    "Well? What do you want to do, Rei?" Ishar asked again.

    "I feel we should run, but..." I glanced behind us and looked at the Tengu Lord. Only his head was visible from up here, as the portal is on the lower end of the valley below.

    "You think they''ll look harshly upon him if we leave? They might, but honestly, if he wants to run, he''ll be able to get away from here just fine."

    Most likely, yes. I just can''t help but want them to see him for what he is, and not what he was created from. If he''s known and respected, he''ll be quite the ally for any land requiring aid in erasing corruption. Knowing Viktor he won''t be on great terms with other countries, but the deeds of this Lord will still spread.

    I looked forward and spotted something in the distance. Enhancing my eyes, I saw about four different people on separate wooden platforms watching us with some type of equipment. Those buildings look rotted or burned, normally no one would expect people to be up on top of them... Are they built to look like they''re abandoned?

    "Well, this discussion is over. They just ended it for us. There are four people watching us from those ruined towers a mile or two ahead of us."

    The three of them looked between the towers.

    Greyson shrugged, "I don''t see anything? And those towers are way the hell out there. Are you using an ability?"

    "Something like that. They''re all laying down and looking at us with equipment through that small gap below the wood."

    "There''s more," Shana said.

    We all looked at her and she jutted up with her chin. After looking up, I saw a few mechanical objects flying through the sky. There''s one small round object with an antenna sticking out of it, and a massive airship floating high above it. Yeah... We''re not running away from here. I could, but Vi already said she''s going to try and smooth things over with me and her dad, which means they''ll know who ran away, and everyone will end up dying whether I''m there or not. I guess the others could try and convince her not to, but that would depend on whether they even have access to her.

    "Okay, what if I disappear and you all convince Vi not to mention who I am? I''m worried that they''ll put her somewhere else though and you guys won''t even be able to talk to her."

    "And that''s exactly what is going to happen. Even if we did save her from that hell back there, there''s no reason for them to put her in the same hotel as us. Assuming we even are going to a hotel..." Ishar trailed off and shook his head.

    Greyson began rubbing his arms, "Ahh god damnit, I just want to be free again and not have to deal with this shit. Fuck this nation and fuck this ''Viktor''."

    I can understand his frustration. While I don''t know what it''s like to be locked up like that, we did just go through a long... I don''t even know. A month? Regardless, it was a long battle to get the hell out of a place I''m sure they all found to be rather frightening. It was by no means a normal area that''s for sure. And immediately afterwards we''re tossed into this shit... I just want a break damnit, and I''m sure these guys need one far more than I do.

    A few minutes later Ishar suddenly started chuckling sardonically. "Yeah... I see them now too. Rei can still slip away, but honestly, I''m not sure what the correct choice here is..."

    "I don''t either, so I say just come with us, Rei. Knowing you, you''ll be able to stealth away later if we need you to." Shana said.

    I looked at Greyson and he just shrugged. "Might as well just come with us. As the ninja girl says, we''ll find a way to get you away if we need be so you can save us later. Hopefully it doesn''t come to that though..."

    Just like the coin toss from earlier, there''s really no way of knowing what the correct option here is. For now I''ll just go with the others and pray it doesn''t backfire like that coin toss did.

    <hr>

    "This is it! We put our guests who are still under scrutiny on the first three floors here. So you''ll be in a nice place, but we''ll still be watching everything you do." The lady said, showing off a fifty-floor hotel. At least she''s honest about it...

    "And Miss Vi?"

    The lady looked at Vi, "Oh goodness no. We''ll be taking her to where our VIP guests are accommodated." Of course you will be... God damnit I knew it.

    "What?! But I want to stay here with everyone here!" Vi yelled into the lady''s face almost point blank.

    "I''m sorry Miss Vi, but we cannot allow you to stay here. However, you will be free to visit your... Friends, during the day." The lady looked at us and continued, "Now everyone, please enter the hotel. The staff already know you''re coming so they''ll immediately take you to your rooms. Feel free to get cleaned up and rested."

    This group does smell quite bad. I don''t have a natural stench like the others, but all the dried blood and whatever the hell else is on me isn''t doing me any favors.

    Vi stared the lady down for a bit but she eventually relented and followed her down another street after telling us she''d come visit us tomorrow.

    After that we entered the hotel and right away I could tell that if I had to break out of here it was going to be a major pain in the ass. On top of the whole area being lit up, there were guards and cameras everywhere. The front desk is on the left, while the right is weird a split between a lounging area and a cafe. There are people just sitting around on couches and recliners eating large meals while talking with one another. No more than ten feet from most of them is a heavily armored man with a gun half the size of his frame. And they''re apparently fine with that? I''d personally hate it, but maybe it makes these people feel safe...

    "A beautiful new prison. Lucky me." Greyson said.

    Markus was already at the counter talking to the people behind it. One of the armored men reached out and touched the artifact after Markus presented it to him.

    Alright then, time to see where this all leads...

 Chapter 60 - At Long Last

    "A halo doesn''t fit your theme, Rei. Even if it is red like your eyes and black in the center." Lindon said as he cut up his steak.

    "Even if you say that, it''s still my ability... And not some random one I unlocked, but one that anyone connected to the black god is supposed to have."

    A waitress walked over to our table, placing a large pizza and a fancy glass bottle of soda in front of me. I put a few slices on Ishar''s plate while he poured a little soda for himself. "This ''Pizza'' looks delicious, but why is the liquid bubbling?"

    "That''s called carbonation... I think? Don''t worry, you''ll get used to it, and trust me, it''s amazing."

    For the most part, everyone stuck to what they were used to eating, but they did at least try the soda. While I had expected everyone to love it, Markus and Keith literally spit the soda out and swished liquor around in their mouths to get the taste out.

    "I can understand not enjoying it, but to have that extreme of a reaction..."

    Greyson laughed, "Nah, that''s a normal reaction. Carbonation is hard to get used to at first. Also, those drinks are way too sugary for some people."

    "You''ve drank soda before? Oh wait, that''s right... You did say something about ''returning'' from another world when we first met."

    "I''m surprised you remember that! Indeed, I had attempted to find the location of all the other werewolves who scattered after the Tengu killed the Kitsune god. Most of us were still well hidden inside the forest next to Thule, but our people were too freaked out after the loss of our greatest ally. We were unable to reason with them, and so as a result we could only watch as they left to find a new home. Somewhere the Tengu wouldn''t be able to find them." Greyson said before taking another sip of his wine.

    "Hmm, I saw a few in Jericho, and I swear I read something that mentioned werewolves living underground near Kellog... But I can''t remember what it was that I read?" Suddenly I remembered Teifa, and that''s when it clicked, "Never mind it was actually a Teifa. They''re uh, Goblin girls who can speak our tongue and send souls to the afterlife. Also a bunch of other things but the point is, she spoke of werewolves briefly when we met."

    Greyson nodded, "We were on friendly terms with the Goblins. They loved our peanuts and timber, so we traded them for other types of food they grew underground."

    "Did you see the Goblins on your way to Jericho, Rei?" Keith asked.

    "I didn''t. I wanted to stop by Euphemia''s manor and grab some supplies before checking in on the Goblins, but the obelisks were still there in Kellog. It would''ve been too risky to do anything in that nation. And the last time we saw the Goblins, the Xerath were encroaching onto their area. The best-case scenario would''ve been both the Goblins and Merman forgiving their previous grievances and forming an alliance so they''d have a better chance of surviving, but I had no way of knowing whether that happened or not without actually going underground. I didn''t want to risk dying down there when I still needed to find you guys."

    "You made the right call, but..." Keith put his fork down, "It... It would have been nice to know that someone had survived on Urza."

    ... True. That''s a major reason I wanted to check in on them, but I never brought it up to Arkaios. I didn''t want to hear him telling me I could go if I wanted, because if anyone had pushed my back like that, I probably wouldn''t have been able to stop myself from risking death just to see if they were still alive.

    Ishar looked around the room and chuckled. "These people are only projecting two emotions. Disgust and curiosity."

    We''re currently eating in the entrance... Or lounge area? Whatever the hell it''s called. The room is filled with people, and a large amount of them keep glancing over at us. Our party is rather weird though, so I suppose it makes sense.

    "You and I are still wearing the armor Rei made for us, so that isn''t helping much," Greyson said.

    Markus wiped his mouth and looked at Greyson, "Did they not offer you new clothes? As you can see, everyone except me is wearing the clothing of this nation. It might be considered rude, but I don''t feel comfortable being out of my armor in foreign places."

    "Oh they offered, but this armor of hers is way too damn comfortable once you get used to it. And being able to control its temperature is a godsend for someone like me covered in fur. I can''t return to my human form anymore after... Well, I just can''t. So I''m not taking off this armor until someone destroys it damnit." Greyson replied.

    Before him and Aresa I had never put much thought into the temperature part. But when I actually think about it, being able to warm or cool your clothes at any time must be quite convenient for the living.

    "They''re coming," Shana said.

    I looked back and saw two men and one woman walking straight for our table. Ahh, they''re definitely here for us... One man is in power armor while the other two look like the kind of people nations send out to be diplomatic with foreign leaders visiting their country.

    The man reached our table first and immediately bowed, "I apologize for interrupting your breakfast everyone, but we would like to begin as soon as possible. There were some... Problems, at the gate last night."

    Gate? Does he mean the portal?

    Markus stood up and walked over to the man before removing his gauntlet and shaking the man''s hand. "May I ask what the problem was? I am not very knowledgeable when it comes to guns, but you had a lot of them, and the Tengu Lord stayed behind. Very little of what we saw in the Abyss should be flagged as a ''Problem'' before a force like that."

    "Ahh, I''m going to have to disagree with you there, Markus." Markus and the new arrivals looked at me. "From the moment I entered the Realm of the Abyss, until the moment we left it, I could tell it was changing. Just like how the splinters of those Gods were becoming stronger over time. I think everything over there is... Hmm, I''m not quite sure how to word this. It''s almost like everything is slowly waking up. I assume it''s because of what is happening with the God of the Abyss."

    The man looked back at the woman and smiled, "Looks like you were right."

    "Why didn''t you say anything until now?" Markus asked.

    "I didn''t fully understand it when I was down there the first time. And while I slowly figured it out later on as we ran through the Abyss, it''s not like we''ve had time to really talk about it until now. Everyone passed out the moment we reached our rooms last night."

    Markus chuckled, "Alright, fair enough. You''re right."

    The woman stepped forward, "We''ll let you folks finish eating, but once you''re done please tell Frederick here that you''re ready." She motioned toward the man in power armor, "We''ll be waiting for you in the counseling room."

    The nicely dressed duo left the room while the man in power armor followed them until they disappeared into a hallway. He stopped there and put his back against the nearby wall before closing his eyes.

    "This is so good..." Shana said before biting down on another slice of my pizza. The look on her face is priceless... She is loving the food even more than I am. I don''t know where we are yet, but if we''re not on a moon owned entirely by Viktor, I''ll be able to show her all types of other food in a safer location.

    We spent another ten minutes eating before standing up and telling Frederick that we were ready. He nodded and proceeded to lead us to another area that looked exactly like the lounge we were just in. Excluding the front desk of course.

    The man stood up from the couch he was sitting on. "Welcome everyone! I apologize for rushing you, but we really do need any information we can get, and preferably sooner rather than later."

    The duo then walked over to another couch and sat down, but they left a human-sized gap between them. The girl looked at Shana, "Now then, we''d like to start with you. Can you please sit right here and invite us into your soul realm?"

    Shana seemed taken aback at being singled out first. Instead of moving toward the duo, she looked around at us in confusion.

    The woman saw this and merely tilted her head. "Why are you surprised that we''re picking you first...? What''s left of your garb suggests you''re a ninja, so you''re the most obvious choice here. Next, we''ll pick the red-eyed girl there who mentioned being in this ''Abyss Realm'' before everyone else."

    This argument seemed to persuade Shana as she looked much more relaxed after that. She immediately walked over and sat down between the duo. "Um, why aren''t the other ninjas here? We haven''t seen them all morning."

    The woman''s eyes went wide. "Goodness, you weren''t informed? The hotel staff was supposed to tell you that your friends were taken to the healing center. We''re fixing their limbs while they show us their memories. And after the two of us are done here, we''re going to convene with our colleagues and put together what we found."

    "Assuming there isn''t anything in your recent memories that could suggest you''d be a danger to our nation, we''ll be letting all of you leave tomorrow morning. We''re kind of in a bad situation here, so the sooner you''re gone, the better. No offense intended." The man followed up.

    "None taken. I''d want any outsiders gone too if my city was currently being invaded." Markus replied.

    It didn''t look like a bad situation last night, so it must be related to whatever problem they hinted at before. Also, so long as everyone here only shows them memories related to the Abyss we''ll be fine. After all, I can''t imagine anyone in this group being dumb enough to show them the conversation we had about Viktor last night.

    Plus, I''m more than happy to teach them about the Abyss realm, even if this is Viktor''s nation that I wholly want to destroy. Any information I give them won''t make much of a difference in the end, if any. The beings there are becoming increasingly more powerful and there might be several more Gods waking up over there even as we speak. Actually, isn''t this great for me? Hopefully they have more than one portal into Viktor''s lands. And it''d be even better if the information we give them makes them think they should invade the Abyss realm.

    The woman looked at us as she grabbed Shana''s hand. "You can all rest on the couches for now. I''m sure you know this will be a long process unless time moves slower inside your soul realms?"

    Only Nisha, Markus, and Albel responded to her. So those three can control their soul realms to that degree huh? I tried to achieve the same feat back when I lived in Xelba, but I failed miserably. All I did was unlock an ability that turned out to be the halo, so it was definitely worth it in the end.

    I walked over to a couch and sat down. The others followed suit, with Markus being so heavy I thought he was going to break the part he was sitting on. Assuming nothing goes wrong, we''ll be leaving long before Vi''s Dad shows up. That''s the one thing I''ve been worried about, and I still kind of am for one specific reason. That ring she was wearing. I''ve never seen an artifact that powerful before, so her dad must be unbelievably rich... Or powerful. Probably both? Meaning he''s most likely in a position where he can drop everything to come see his daughter right away. Ugh, I wonder if they''ll let us leave tonight...

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    <hr>

    "Thank you very much, Miss Shana." The man said with a smile.

    His words woke everyone up. Literally everyone but me and Albel had fallen asleep. She wasn''t kidding when she said this was going to take a while... Did they watch her memories like they were a fucking movie? Absolutely no skipping? So much for leaving tonight...

    Shana came over to our group and sat down on a nearby chair.

    "Hmm..." The woman said, looking down at her notepad as she wrote.

    "''Hmm'' indeed... It''s not like I didn''t have any ideas of what may be invading us, but this is..." The man replied.

    A few minutes later the woman put her pen down and looked at me. "Miss, would you mind being next?"

    "I''m fine with it." I stood up and walked over to the duo before sitting down between them. Immediately they each grabbed a hand and rested their heads against the back of the couch. I did the same and entered my soul realm, pulling the two in with me.

    "Oh my! Do you also love the Xerath?!" The woman said, wide-eyed as she scanned the land around us.

    "... Something like that." I continued, "Now where did you two want me to start?"

    The man looked at the woman, "I was tempted to ask her if we could speak to the Tengu God, but now that I''m here I''m having second thoughts..."

    The woman narrowed her eyes at him, "And you should be! Our souls are connected to hers right now, which means we don''t want him to be aware of us. I''m already worried enough that he can pop in at any time he wants..."

    I wasn''t sure if Shana was going to show them that part, but it was kind of hard to avoid. Obviously they''d want to know why there is a Tengu Lord with us.

    "Can you show us why he''s connected to you? Please understand, it''s very strange for you to have direct access to the Tengu God if you''re not a puppet of his." The man asked.

    Ahh shit, this is a problem... I don''t want to show them the part where I absorbed that guy in Kellog. And uh, didn''t I talk about Viktor with the Tengu God back then? I definitely can''t show them that...

    "That would reveal very pertinent facts related to my abilities, more so than anything you''d see in my memories of the Abyss. So can I please decline?" Might as well ask. Obviously we''re not in a position to say no to anything, but the Tengu should be the least of their concerns right now, so hopefully...

    "Of course Miss, I apologize if that sounded forceful. We''re really only here to learn of the Abyss after all, but I''ll admit my curiosity is eating away at me..." The man said.

    The woman saw that and laughed, "I also want to know, but like he just said, we really only need to know about the Abyss. So please show us what happened after you were split up from your party. That day when Arkaios rewound time but you were underground."

    Looks like Shana did all of the heavy lifting for us. Now they''ll only need to see parts that happened when she wasn''t around, which didn''t happen too often when I think about it?

    I replicated my memory of leaping through the tunnel until I reached the God of the Abyss'' area.

    "... My god." The man said as the two of them marveled at the multitude of arms reaching out from the dark Abyss below.

    "Can you please zoom in on one part of his arm? It doesn''t matter where. I want to see what is glowing up close..." The woman said.

    I did as she asked by enhancing the view until the glowing symbols were right in front of us.

    "Is there anything you found down here that gave you a clue as to what these symbols mean?" The man asked.

    "No, but it looks like it''s the same written language that was used here. Do you see that large white building on the pillar below? They have books with words in them but I couldn''t read any of it. The words were all symbols like these."

    The man looked down at the building. "I see... I was going to ask about that building, and while I''m glad to hear you went inside of it, I''m more surprised to hear that there were books inside of it. Was it a library? An area of knowledge pertaining to their god?"

    "If I had to compare it, I''d say it was more like a Museum...? Honestly, that''s the only really important part of my memories. You won''t care about much of anything else after you''ve seen what''s inside of there."

    The woman peeled her eyes away from the symbols and looked at me, "Oh? Now you''ve really piqued my interest! Please take us there then."

    I fast-forwarded the memory until I was standing outside of the Marble building.

    "The way you control your memories is fascinating... How are you able to manipulate them like you would a VCR?" The man asked.

    "You guys can''t do this...? I figured everyone who knew of TV''s would control their memories like this."

    The woman laughed while shaking her head, "Dearie no! Most memories are shown through stitched-together images. Very few have such delicate control as you do. It takes a large amount of skill and practice at viewing memories to pull off this level of control."

    Oh wow, that''s the first time someone has told me that... Maybe it''s because of my ability to take other people''s memories? I did do that a lot in Xelba after all, so I had plenty of practice.

    I restarted the memory and both of them freaked out when the monster girl appeared.

    "Heh, nice to see I wasn''t the only one scared by her."

    "What is that? It has a petite human girl''s frame below the creepiest head I''ve ever seen in my life..." The man said as he circled around the girl.

    "I''m not sure, but you''ll see she was shockingly friendly. I think she''s a protector of the museum? I went in with an attitude to learn while treating everything with respect, so in return, she was kind to me."

    The woman tapped her chin and hummed, "She''s wearing a dress I''ve only seen in civilized parts of human society, but everything I saw in Lady Shana''s memories suggests this is an ancient civilization that has nothing to do with humans?"

    "I found that part strange too, but maybe you''ll glean something from the information inside of the museum because I couldn''t tie anything of it back to her. At most, all I can say is that she had the same aura as the armored monster that was attacking us above ground."

    "The one who appeared through the fog and crushed your friends?" The man asked, then continued, "Come to think of it, she also appeared out of nowhere..."

    After that, I proceeded to show them the mural and all of the books. When we got to the part about the minor gods I wondered how I was going to handle it, but it went the same way as the Tengu God conversation from earlier. They found it fascinating that I had a connection to this place and wanted to know more about it, but they were far more interested in seeing the rest of the book depicting the minor gods.

    "Ah..." The man said when the memory of me flipped to another page. I paused it and looked at the two of them.

    "You both recognize this God? Is he related to your ''Problem''?"

    The woman sighed, "He is..." She continued, "This abomination appeared through the gate a few hours after your group was led away to the hotel. While he had come with several powerful monsters, the main problem was him. We have recordings of a couple of our men who suddenly began to speak incoherently out of nowhere, and soon after that they began firing on our forces instead of the monsters."

    "It was already a problem in itself that our foot soldiers were firing their rifles at their own friends, but the biggest problem was that one of the men who went mad was in charge of targeting the railgun on our airship. He was able to wipe out half of our forces at the gate before they were able to restrain him." The man followed up.

    Holy shit... That''s definitely not a minor problem.

    "What happened after that with the God depicted here?" I pointed toward the illustration in the book.

    "He disappeared... We lost sight of him after the dust from the railgun''s attack settled. And now we have reports of people in town acting violent, or descending into some form of madness." The woman replied.

    The man leaned down toward the book. "I expected as much, considering what we''ve seen up until now, but we can''t read any of this..."

    "But we did get what we came here for. We''ll show this memory to the inquisitors and hopefully they''ll be able to glean something from this." The woman said.

    "Won''t that be months away from now...? It sounds like you have a problem that needs to be taken care of right now."

    The woman put her hands over her eyes and sighed, "It can''t be helped... No one can find the fuc---Ahem. No one can find the God, so we''re scrounging for information."

    "And with that, I think it''s time we took our leave. The sooner we relay this to the others, the better. Not that this information is a game changer, but it''s still more than the nothing we had before." The man said.

    The woman agreed with him so I exited my soul realm. Immediately the three of them said goodbye and told us that an escort would show up around breakfast to lead us to the train station. They also left us with one extra bit of information before they left.

    "Looks like we''re on your homeworld, Rei," Markus said.

    "I was honestly shocked to hear that we are currently on Aetheria... But that also means we can go see Aresa and the others."

    Shana looked at me, "Is that what you''re going to do? It''s what I want to do..."

    "Hmm..." I glanced at Ishar, "It depends on what our soon-to-be-retired Crotian wants to do. Want to come with us for a little detour so I can visit your home with you after that?"

    "Well shit, I didn''t know you''d want to come with me! My tribe would welcome you with open arms, so hell yeah I''ll visit the little lady first before heading home. The rookie should be there too, right? So she''ll be able to teleport us back to my tribe when we''re ready to leave."

    Oh right, I forgot about Alicia... That''s even better then.

    "Isn''t everything advancing a little too smoothly...?" Greyson asked.

    "That''s because of Arkaios. Without our Lord, we''d all be sequestered and watched twenty-four-seven while our memories were fully scanned... Honestly, the list of things they''d do to us would be endless." Nisha responded to him before tossing another cookie into her mouth.

    Yeah, I figured we''d be fucked without him here. Thank god we didn''t lose the artifact on the way...

    Just as we were preparing to leave the doors opened up and Vi rushed through them. She practically tackled me with a hug and looked up at me with the biggest smile possible. "Great news, Rei! My dad arrived in the city an hour ago and he''s on his way here! I wanted to spend more time with you guys, but I know you have to leave, and looks like I do too, so let me give you my number so you can call me sometime. Please do call me, okay?!"

    Ahh shit, so the thing I was most worried about is actually coming true... All I can do now is pray that the fact that I saved his daughter will be enough to calm any resentment he will still feel toward me. Then again, my hair is black, so if I could get my hands on some eye contacts... That girl in Jericho spoke of them, she thought those ''contacts'' were the reason my eyes were red, so they must change your eye color.

    "I''ll definitely call you Vi, but uh, do you happen to know if they sell contacts anywhere in town?"

    "Why...? Oh, you want to hide your eye color from him? Won''t he recognize you anyway...? You have a very pretty face and elf ears, so even if you change your hair and eye color, I know I''d still recognize you right away. I''m sure my dad will too!"

    I looked back at the others and they mostly agreed with her.

    "... Truly, Vi. I''m begging you here. Can you meet your dad somewhere else? I really really don''t want to meet him. He can thank me another day." Somewhere safer that won''t lead to all of us needing to battle our way out of a kingdom that will be tracking us with airships and ''Railguns''. Whatever the fuck those are.

    "But that''s not my decision to make...? I know you don''t want to meet him, Rei. And I would never force that onto you. But my dad he... He''s not the kind of guy the mayor can say no to. He said he wanted to meet with all of you and reward you handsomely for saving me, so that''s what is going to happen. Nothing I say would stop that... I''m sorry."

    ..............

    I sighed and walked over to the couch and sat down.

    "You heard her. Whatever happens, happens... I just hope that my past doesn''t come down on all of you too..."

    Ishar slapped my shoulder and laughed, "Oh calm down already! I know of your past, but there''s no point in worrying about it like this. And look? You''re scaring the pup half to death."

    I looked at where he pointed and saw Greyson nearly shivering. "J-Just making sure, but her ''Dad'' isn''t going to be a man named Viktor... Right?"

    "What?"

    Viktor... A father? Him? Women obviously threw themselves at him because he was the ruler of Xelba and annoyingly good-looking. And that was on top of the fact that he was able to control monsters with an unknown ability. But despite this attention and adoration, he never once put his hands on a single woman. If anything, he looked at them with complete disgust... So I just can''t imagine him having a daughter. That''s why the possibility never even occurred to me until now. But... But what if he did find a woman he actually loved in the fifty or so years since I last saw him? It''s been a long time after all, and people do change in different ways over time...

    "... Vi, what is your Father''s name?"

    The doors behind Vi opened up as two men in artifact armor entered the room. They both sighed with relief when they saw Vi.

    One of them turned around and yelled through the open doors, "She''s in here!" He then looked back at Vi, "Oh thank god you''re safe Miss Vi... We thought..."

    The man looked like he was about to cry as his partner walked up to our group and knelt before Markus. "Thank you... Truly, thank you...!"

    God damn, just how powerful is their armor? I can feel them both radiating from here.

    A man quickly ran into the room and spotted Vi. He swiftly picked her up and hugged her. It should have been touching, especially since they were both crying, but...

    "He has elf ears..." I heard Greyson whisper.

    My mind was racing. Time itself seemed to slow as I tried to decide whether turning invisible and hiding in the corner of the room would be a good or bad idea.

    They''ve already seen me, and he might not recognize me... Plus, she already told him about me, so... Shit... Shit, shit, shit!!!

    The man put his daughter down and rubbed her hair while talking to her. It was only a glance, a simple glance in our direction, and I immediately knew that the man recognized me just as I had recognized him. Viktor''s face took on an emotion of complete disbelief and confusion as he stared at me. His eyes flicked between my hair and eyes a few times before he whispered something to his daughter.

    I could tell that my allies had already picked up on my ever-increasing panic, and now even Markus was starting to look a little worried. There are three windows behind us, we can easily escape through them, but then we''ll have to pray we find a place to hide so I can slowly map out an escape route for us from there.

    That''s our only option at this point. Because there''s no way in hell he''s about to forgive me... Even if he did sire a daughter that he much to my surprise loves, I know for a fact that he can''t risk letting us go now that he knows I''m alive. Actually, it''s made even worse by the fact that he now has a daughter he loves... I''m sure he remembers all of the horrible shit I did for him, so he''ll think of his daughter as a potential target, and... We''re fucked. All we can do at this point is flee.

 Chapter 61 - History Repeats Itself

    I had never felt time move this slowly before, and I imagine it''s the same for everyone else here. Viktor and I have just been staring at one another as he taps on Vi''s shoulder. Every now and then he''ll glance at her and grimace, no doubt torn between the fact that I saved her life and one other undeniable fact, he can''t let me leave here alive.

    For the most part everyone is just silently watching the other side. On our end half of our party knows what is happening and they are looking increasingly worried, especially Greyson. Ishar however looks like he''s not reacting at all, but at this point I know him well enough that I can tell he''s already primed to shout. If we''re lucky, he''ll be able to hit Viktor before anyone can react, including him. This might actually be a good chance to kill him... I''m sorry, Vi. It''s nothing personal against you, but your dad has to go.

    "D-Dad, please don''t hurt them. They saved me. She saved me! Rei is the one who found both me and my ring!" Vi said.

    Viktor looked at his daughter aghast, but it only lasted a moment. He looked quite enraged after that as he shifted his view between me and Vi several times. Eventually he calmed down and outwardly sighed as he pushed his daughter toward the guard who was on his knees earlier as he thanked Markus.

    "Terry, please take my daughter back through the portal to our home. I''ll be right behind you after I take care of this."

    The guard named ''Terry'' looked apprehensive but he did as he was told. He glanced back at our group with a look of pure regret and sadness before he walked over to Vi and picked her up.

    "DAD NO! I''LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!!"

    Viktor winced but quickly shifted back to a more serious expression as he began staring at me again. As Vi''s screaming faded into the distance, Viktor pinched the brim of his nose and sighed yet again.

    "Leave it to you to make things more complicated than they need to be, Rei."

    From the day I had revived on Urza up until this very moment, I had done a very good job of controlling my emotions, as I had learned long ago that losing control of them leads to stupid decisions and poor battle performance. But the second he finished speaking I could feel an explosive amount of rage building up inside of me. It must have appeared on my face, because Viktor began to laugh the second he saw it.

    "That look. It''s been so long since I''ve last seen it... How nostalgic."

    I slowly stood up, causing the man in power armor to enter a combat stance but I completely ignored him and looked at Viktor. "I''m merely going to repeat what your daughter said. We saved her, and all we want to do is leave. I know what you''re thinking Viktor, but I also know that you don''t spit in the faces of those who do good deeds for your nation. For you."

    "Tsk..." Viktor ground his teeth and began pacing back and forth.

    I''ve only seen him struggle like this one other time, and it was when the other faction in Xelba had told him that I was attempting to remove the curses on my friends. They knew I worked for him and because of that they had been looking for a chance to get rid of me for years. He couldn''t let that happen, as I was one of his few allies left at the time, and that''s why he told them that our punishment was delayed.

    I assumed he was doing that to give me time to remove the curses and leave, but a few days later I found out that all of my friends were being sacrificed at the temple. Again, I assumed the other faction was responsible, but Viktor and Ash were the ones I found inside the temple. He had never lied like that before. Not once to any of his enemies, so it really took me by surprise. Technically the existence of Jericho wasn''t a lie either. He just never told us about it. And I''ll admit, I''m a little impressed that he managed to build something like that without me or the other factions inside of Xelba finding out.

    Viktor finally stopped pacing and glared at me. "... Where did you find her?"

    "She was inside of a prison cell underground. The cells were filled with mummified and decaying corpses. Her chest cavity had been completely ripped open and she was left there chained up. I couldn''t help her until I found her ring among a pile of Demon corpses in the realm of the Abyss."

    "........"

    His reaction is about what I expected. He''s completely horrified at what his daughter went through. Hmm... Didn''t the people scanning our faces say her convoy was hit by Demons? So he already knew Demons took her... From his point of view, he probably thought she had died a gruesome death long ago.

    Viktor went silent for a while with his face buried in his hands. Eventually he pulled his hands down enough to look at me with his eyes. "... All the more reason that I cannot allow her to go through something like that again."

    "I''m not going to hurt her. Viktor, for the love of god, we just want to leave."

    Viktor scoffed, "I don''t know what you''ve been doing the past fifty years, or the reason why you never came for me, but I know it''s only a matter of time! Rei, I raised you, whether you want to admit that or not. I know what you''re capable of and what you''d do to punish me. Don''t bother lying. Even after fifty years had passed I was still alert enough around you to send my daughter out of the room."

    ... He''s not entirely wrong. I''d struggle to hurt Vi, she''s a sweet girl after all, even if she is a part of this nation. Definitely hypocritical, considering what I want to do to this place, but it is what it is. However, using her as a hostage? I was waiting for her to leave her father''s side so I could snatch her up and use her as leverage to force him to let us go, but like he just said, he knew I''d do that.

    "Sir, if I may?" Markus walked forward a little. Viktor motioned for him to continue. "I''ve heard of your feud, but it was a while ago so unfortunately I''m struggling to remember the details. However, regardless of how much you two may hate each other, we really are unrelated to this conflict. We saved your daughter and we haven''t done anything to you directly, and I''ve heard of your admiration for Arkaios, so I beg of you; Please let us leave in peace.

    It''s pointless Markus. The moment he said that he couldn''t risk his daughter going through another traumatic experience, all further discussion became moot.

    "If possible I would never harm an agent of Arkaios, but you cannot have a vision like mine without doing things you abhor from time to time."

    The man in power armor dashed forward, placing himself in front of Viktor. He quickly put his forearms over his face just as a hail of bullets ripped into the room from behind. I hit the deck as Ishar''s shout rang out and hit the man guarding Viktor. Seeing this(and hearing the gunshots stop) I jumped forward and knocked the frozen guard out of the way just as Keith appeared behind Viktor mid-swing. I could see something yellow glowing behind Viktor and yelled out in a panic "STOP KEITH!!" but it was too late. His sword connected with what appeared to be nothing more than a yellow glow, and immediately he was hit with a directed blast that ripped him apart. His body exploded into multiple parts that smashed through the door and fell onto the floor in the hallway.

    Shots rang out behind me that I suspected were from Greyson as I reached out to grab Viktor, but the last thing I saw was him grinning right before he warped away. Fucking annoying abilities! This is why I couldn''t kill him last time.

    I turned around and saw Greyson shooting at a large armored truck behind us through the partly destroyed wall with a rifle, and while it seemed pointless, he had already killed the shooter who was manning the gun on top of the vehicle, giving us a quick breather.

    Looking around, I saw that Lindon and Albel had been killed, while Nisha was bleeding out. Her eyes were already glazing over. Markus busted through the wall and slashed through the passenger side door of the vehicle. Thanks to his ability he penetrated the armor, which led to a large gush of blood spewing out toward him. The vehicle quickly fled the scene after that, but Markus was unable to stop it since his ability wasn''t ready yet.

    I bent down and picked Nisha up at the same time Ishar picked the artifact up. We ran outside toward Markus who was already running toward a large industrial building across the street. As we ran I could hear all sorts of different sounds come to life, and none of them were good. Sirens began to blare as an audio recording played over the loudspeakers informing the townspeople that ''Terrorists'' had infiltrated the town and that the citizens should hide until the threat was taken care of.

    We were halfway to the building when I realized I hadn''t seen Shana since the battle began. "Where is Shana?!"

    "She ran through the wall after the first round of firing stopped, right when you charged Viktor! But I don''t see her anywhere either!" Greyson yelled from behind us. I looked back and saw that he was losing more and more ground on us as we ran. Shit, I forgot that he can''t enhance himself all that much after he uses his ability. It was fine during our escape through the abyss since we ran at a brisk pace, but now we''re flooring it so he can''t keep up.

    Just as I was about to tell Ishar to pick Greyson up I saw several golden lights fly down toward him from the roof of the hotel. I knew there was no time so I held Nisha tightly against me with my right arm as I activated my halo. I maxed the strength on it and in one quick dash forward I scooped up Greyson just before the golden lights hit him. A large explosion occurred behind me but I didn''t bother attempting to run through it, as I already knew it was another one of Viktor''s abilities. Another annoying ability. While it is devastating, it also serves as a good obstruction thanks to the large energy field it leaves behind in its wake.

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    I pivoted to the right and kept running forward to get past the energy field, but I was forced to turn left into an alley when a swarm of armored vehicles turned toward us from a road fifty yards ahead. Bullets flew past us and even hit me a few times before I reached the alley. I was unharmed, but my mana reserves had taken a major hit.

    One of the trucks stopped at the alley entrance before I could reach the other side, and Greyson immediately shot the man in the gunner seat right through his jaw. I could see him screaming as he reached for his tongue that was now dangling out of his exposed jaw.

    "Rei, why not go up onto the roof?!" Greyson asked as he fired at the men climbing out of the armored vehicle.

    "Because Viktor will be up there! We can''t risk entering his line of sight! Not while I''m carrying you two."

    Upon reaching the exit of the alley I stopped around the corner and took a quick glance around. Grocery store, gas station, restaurant... Wait, that''s what we need.

    I ran to the right across the street, ignoring the honking horns as people suddenly stopped to avoid hitting me. I kept going like that until I reached my destination, a set of stairs that led down toward an artificially lit room full of people climbing onto a train. Strange... People are getting onto the subway, but nobody is getting off? ... Their emergency destinations must be somewhere else so they aren''t allowed to exit here. That''s the only explanation I can think of.

    People began screaming when they saw us, which must have made the engineer panic, as he closed the doors before everyone was on and the train began to move soon after that as well. One of the people left behind stupidly pulled out a handgun which left me no choice but to deal with them. I ran up to them and kicked their shin hard. After they buckled over I kicked them in the head, which caused it to pretty much explode thanks to the level of enhancements I was currently at. The people remaining in the area scattered, allowing me to drop down onto the tracks and run behind the train that just left the station. The people at the back saw me through the windows and began to scream again. Don''t worry idiots, I''m not coming for you. Not yet anyway...

    I kept running behind the subway until I found what I was looking for. I jumped up onto the walkway and kicked down the nearby door. Inside was a man sitting in front of a wall of monitors who had apparently been asleep. He tried to jump out of his chair, but just like the civilian before, I quickly dispatched of him and ran up the stairs behind him. I ran up the winding steps until I reached yet another door I kicked down, which exited into an underpass that was mostly devoid of vehicles. I could see one approaching from far to the left but that was it.

    After a quick scan of the buildings around us, I found one that would hopefully serve as a good hiding spot. I ran across the road and up the hill, jumping over the guardrail once I reached it, and quickly sprinting toward the apartments nearby. Several of the homes on the base level had no lights on, and one of them even had their curtains open, so I could clearly see that nobody was home. Once I reached the home I pried the sliding door open instead of breaking the glass so nobody would hear us. After that I entered the home and set both Greyson and Nisha down, with the latter being placed on the couch.

    Nisha, who had been going back and forth between crying and whimpering, was now coughing up more blood.

    "Rei, she''s..." Greyson said after he closed the sliding door.

    ... I know. I could tell the second I saw her that she most likely wasn''t going to make it, but I had to try.

    Greyson and I knelt in front of her and began to channel mana into her soul, telling it to heal. She stopped whimpering but it was obvious that she was too far gone. If anything, she probably stopped whimpering because she was losing all feeling.

    "Rei..." Nisha whispered. I looked up and saw her looking at me with half-closed eyes. "Brian would''ve liked you..... It hit me......... Back in the alien''s... Home..."

    The scene played out vividly in my head. I remembered hiding her under the alien''s bed moments before she thanked me in a strangely endearing way. And now I knew why she did that.

    "... I''m sorry I took him from you." I said. Nisha smiled sadly at me for a moment before her eyes closed. She was still breathing, but it looked like she had entered a deep sleep.

    And I really meant that. While he did deserve what happened to him, in fact, they all deserved to die back then, I can''t deny that it was obviously a mistake in the end... He would''ve been a valuable part of their team as they served out their sentence for the next couple hundred years. So would that young man named Jason as well.

    We continued to heal her for about a little while longer, but we were both forcibly stopped when her soul disappeared.

    "Ah... Arkaios must have retrieved her." Normally I''d wonder why he didn''t do it sooner, but I think someone said back in Aresa''s chateau that any pain they experience is part of their punishment.

    Greyson stood up and sat down on a nearby chair. "She stopped breathing a few seconds before he took her soul back. And even before that I could hear everything inside of her moving slower as well, but..." He sighed and rested his forehead on his left palm.

    I sat down with my back against the arm of the couch, right next to where Nisha''s head currently was.

    So aside from Markus, all of Arkaios'' crew is dead...

    "Rei, what are Viktor''s abilities? I doubt we''ll have to face him head-on again, but just in case I''d rather not have what happened to Keith, happen to me next."

    "... Right, better safe than sorry. Keith was hit with a counterattack. Viktor places the ability on one part of his body and if you hit that part before the ability times out, the damage is reflected back onto you at a much higher magnitude. It''s why Keith literally exploded."

    "Dear god, that is one hell of a deadly ability to go against if you don''t know what it does."

    "And you can''t just avoid it either. He can control where the light goes until it times out. So if you try avoiding it instead of backing off, like I think Keith did, it doesn''t matter. He just moves it in the way of wherever you redirected your attack to." I sighed and leaned back into the couch. "... The next one is the only ability of his that I don''t know much about. It''s obviously a warp of some kind, but usually those take time to charge up or there''s a condition that allows you to use it. Viktor however, doesn''t appear to have that limitation. I''m sure he does, I just don''t know what the conditions for it are."

    Greyson nodded and motioned for me to continue.

    "And the one he fired at you is part of his main attack. You couldn''t see it, but he has golden lights that circled behind him, and he cast spells through them. Annoyingly, as you''ve seen, he has a few unique spells tied directly to those lights. They launch out four to six different flares that create devastating explosions, but they also leave behind a massive energy wall that is impossible to pass unless you have strength on the level of the Tengu Lord. The wall is much larger than the explosion is by the way, as I''m sure you saw. It extends in both directions for a hundred or so yards."

    "... I see. Anything else? And if not, what are you planning on doing?"

    "I don''t know if he has more abilities, it''s been ages since I last saw him after all. However, I do know that he uses a plethora of different spells when the situation calls for them." A tinge of sorrow hit me when I realized what he was going to say next. "But the way you worded that... are you planning on going your own way?"

    Greyson nodded, "I like you guys, I really do, but I... I just feel like I''d be better off alone from here on out."

    I looked down, "... That''s your choice. I could say that you owe me for getting you out of that prison, but you assisted us quite a bit from there on out. I''d say you more than worked off your debt, not that I ever planned on holding it over your head anyway."

    Greyson sat back in his chair and laughed, "To the very end you''re much nicer than you need to be! Normally people would be quite pissed at me right now. Hell, I know I would be..."

    "From my position, it''s much better if everyone escapes instead of worrying about one another. After all, I''m the one who can most easily leave this place. Once you''re all free and clear, then I''ll be able to leave as well."

    "True... Except, doesn''t Viktor know about all your abilities?" Greyson asked.

    "He does, and I''m sure that once nightfall hits, which looks like it''s going to be soon, he''s going to blast lights everywhere. And while that is annoying, it won''t fully stop me. Viktor knows that too, so he''s going to be calling in every troop he can to find us."

    Greyson went silent after that. We both sat there for quite a while. I was deciding how to act from there on out when the TV suddenly turned on. We both looked at it and saw a single man reflected there. It was Viktor.

    "I must apologize to all of you, my dear citizens. Several vile people have invaded our great nation, and I have sadly allowed this to happen under my very own watch. I swear on my life that I will make it up to you once these terrorists are dealt with."

    Viktor then stood up and walked to the left. The camera followed him until he was standing in front of a cell. Inside of the cell I could see a few familiar faces. "But worry not! You will not need to wait for long. As our great defenders have already caught most of them here. There are only a few left now, and that is why I am broadcasting to all of you. Because I hope the terrorists will also see this. They should be informed that I have already captured their allies, and should the three who escaped turn themselves in willingly, I am willing to give them lighter sentences. This offer does not last long. So if they are smart, they will head to this location in the next hour."

    Several things were shown on the TV after that. First, it showed the captives, which were Shana, Ishar, Markus, and someone else I recognized but I was more confused than worried when I saw him. Next, it showed a map with directions. There was a red line going from the hotel we stayed at to where the prison was.

    "The ninja girl was captured...? Putting the others aside, that part actually surprises me." Greyson said.

    Me too, but I''m more concerned with the fact that Seifer was in the cell too. It''s already surprising enough that he''s here in the same city as us, but he was also counted as a member of our party? This is my first time seeing him since Viseux was attacked. And not only that, but he looked bad. Not wounded, but he almost looked dead. His eyes were completely vacant with dark bags under them, and his overall health made him look like a zombie. I mean shit, if he turned out to actually be a zombie, I wouldn''t be surprised in the least. That''s how bad he looks right now.

    Viktor appeared on the TV again with his arms outstretched. "Now then, I''m sure you don''t want anything bad to happen to your friends again, do you? And I also feel like it''s time we put an end to this, once and for all. Wouldn''t you agree, Terrorist?"

    After he finished speaking the broadcast was cut immediately. I and Greyson sat there in silence for a bit, but my mind was far from serene. The same sentence kept repeating in my head over and over. ''Now then, I''m sure you don''t want anything bad to happen to your friends again, do you?'' ''Again''... The fucker is straight-up taunting me by bringing up what happened to my last group of friends.

    "... Well? What are you planning on doing? I already know, but I''ll ask just in case." Greyson asked as he stood up.

    "The only thing I can do... I''m going to the graveyard."

    Greyson quirked an eyebrow at me, clearly not understanding why I had said that since he wasn''t there during the Tengu battle. But I didn''t elaborate, I was already inside my own head, going over all the things that worked in the Xelba assault, and all the things that didn''t. Refining the plan, one part at a time, until I was ready to repeat history.

 Chapter 62 - Lockdown

    "Hmm... I wonder if his men are trained purely to use guns and nothing else? You were able to pick them off quite easily, so they must not be very good at enhancing themselves."

    Greyson stopped short of taking another bite out of his breakfast bar, "No, they were definitely enhanced, but it was only a basic amount to prevent ranged weapons from hurting them. None of them knew I was using a gun created through my ability, which does far more damage than a regular gun. After the first death they probably assumed the guy I shot had forgotten to enhance himself. But after the second death? They''re going to be over-enhanced now when they see either of us. Which means I need to get the fuck out of here. All I''m good for at this point is draining their mana. Which would still be great if we were together as a group, but with just us..."

    If what he is saying is true, then I can see why he wants to leave. They''ll only be able to over-enhance for a small amount of time before they become completely vulnerable, but that''s all the time they''ll need to take him out.

    Greyson finished the rest of his cereal bar and then stood up, "Alright, I''m ready to go. But what about you? How are you going to find the cemetery?"

    I walked over to the phone and picked it up from the nightstand before bringing it back to the couch. I sat down and took the phone book out from underneath the coffee table. As I began to flip through it I heard Greyson say ''Ahh, so that''s how...''.

    "I hope that they are still there. From what I''ve seen, not everyone left to wherever the emergency shelter is. The apartments we''re in are full of people too." Even now we can vaguely hear the people above us arguing about something related to the lockdown.

    I eventually found the cemeteries in the white pages, and it turned out there were three of them.

    "Greyson, can you find some mail for me? I want to know the address of this place."

    Greyson pointed at the phone book I was using, "It''s on the back. I saw it before you placed it down."

    I lifted the phone book up and sure enough, the address was stamped on the back. 5512 N. Cedar Avenue, Xethra, Apt.#7...

    I flipped back to the cemeteries and one immediately stuck out to me. 2316 S. Cedar Avenue, Xethra... I picked the phone up and went to dial the number but I stopped when I heard an emergency report over the phone saying that the phones were down and that people should report to their designated shelter.

    ... So much for that.

    I closed the book and looked at Greyson. "Okay well, we''re at North Cedar Avenue, and I need to find South Cedar Avenue. Do you have any idea of which way north is?"

    Greyson shrugged, "Sorry Rei, I don''t have the spell that tells you where north is. And I have no idea of where we are on Aetheria, so we can''t use our visibility of Mother to---Wait, I suppose we could, but... Eh, I''m not smart enough to be able to figure that astronomy and direction shit out."

    I know nothing about that either sadly... Where I was in the Xerath realm there were landmarks everywhere I could use to guide myself. And I was almost always with my team when I left Xelba''s lands.

    "I guess all I can do is wander around and look at mailboxes. Or... Actually, never mind. I have a better idea. Wandering around right now is a bad idea after all."

    "Yeah... It feels like we''re back on Urza." Greyson said as he gazed outside.

    About an hour after the emergency broadcast, the sky turned pitch black. It wasn''t a gradual change either, it barely took ten seconds. I did see the very same bone structures pumping out smoke in the distance while we ran through the town, but the sky was completely visible... He must have some way of making the smoke transparent. Why he lets the people here live normal sunny lives while the people in Jericho need to live in darkness is beyond me though. Maybe they''re just used to it over there so they said fuck it?

    I glanced outside.

    There''s also a bunch of streetlights and spotlights all over the place too. Just like I expected, he''s trying to brighten everything up so I can''t stealth through town. The spotlights are moving rapidly all over the place, which is definitely something Viktor had ordered his men to do. They probably think it''s a bizarre order, but it''s very effective against me. All he has to do is hit me multiple times for a split second with a powerful light and I''ll take massive damage. ...God damnit, it really is annoying battling someone who knows all of your weaknesses.

    "Do you need help?" Greyson asked.

    "I assume you mean with my plan to figure out where the cemetery is? Nah, I''ll be fine. If anything, it''s probably for the best that you don''t see what I''m about to do. It''s normally not something I would actually do, but since we''re in one of Viktor''s nations..." I trailed off as I looked at the door leading to the hallway.

    Greyson followed my eyes and immediately understood what I planned on doing. "... I don''t approve of hurting civilians, but I know you have your reasons."

    I''m about to do far worse than that after I find the cemetery. Besides, while I only have Urza as proof, I already know Viktor is spreading his nation through conquest. And these people are all complicit in that, just as I was back in Xelba. I fully understand and accept why there are people out there who want to hurt or kill me. Cera, for example. So the people of Viktor''s nation should also understand that, but if they''re selfish to the point that they deny any culpability, then that just means I have one more reason to kill them. Don''t harm others if you can''t handle someone harming you back, it''s really that simple. Plus, we really did just want to leave in peace, so Viktor brought this on both himself and his people.

    Greyson walked over to the sliding door and turned around. Instead of leaving, he looked around awkwardly while scratching the back of his head, "Um, I''m not good at this... But thank you for saving me from that cage, Rei. I don''t know when, but I hope I''m able to make it up to you one day."

    "... You''re welcome, Greyson. See you later buddy." I smiled at him, knowing full well that we''d probably never meet again. Then again, I think I said the exact same thing the last time we parted ways.

    Greyson smiled and waved at me. He then turned around and opened the sliding door. After closing the door behind himself, he ran off toward the left, where I immediately lost sight of him. I didn''t know him for very long, but it''s still really sad to see him leave...

    I stood up and walked toward the door. I took a brief moment to wipe away the melancholy hitting me before exiting into the hallway. The lights were minimal so I activated my aura and enhanced my vision through the peepholes until I found the one I was looking for. Only one person and he''s passed out next to the TV...

    I removed my aura and enhanced my right arm. I slowly dug through the wall next to the door, trying my best to make as little noise as possible, and for the most part I had succeeded. However, when I reached the other end of the drywall, something fell off the wall and hit the carpet below, but I heard nothing else on the inside so it must not have woke him up.

    After my hand was fully through I grabbed the lock and turned it. With that done, I opened the door and entered the apartment before closing the door behind me. It turned out that the man had indeed been woken up by the sound as I could see him groggily looking in my direction. The second he saw me I could see his brain kick into fight or flight mode. He revved up to yell as he reached for a nearby pistol so I dashed over to him and clamped my hand over his mouth. It was a little too hard though, as I felt some of his teeth shift around. He attempted to scream in pain instead of horror, but it was completely muffled by the palm of my hand.

    "Sorry Mister, it looks like you are just really unlucky today."

    Right after I said that I heard something outside. I dragged the man toward the blinds and peered through them. There were firetrucks parked in different parts of the city blasting every single building''s walls with water.

    ... It really is annoying dealing with someone who knows everything about you. The fucker is checking to make sure I''m not hiding under my mesh somewhere. Water technically isn''t a big deal, but it''ll reveal the little camouflaged bulb I''m hiding inside, as people will see water gathering and dropping off a part of the wall that supposedly has nothing on it.

    The only saving grace is the fact that I haven''t seen a single camera outside of that hotel we stayed at. I assume the hotel was filled with cameras because he didn''t have a choice. Since that''s where diplomats, VIPs, and possible guests of honor like us stay.

    "Mmm!!"

    I sighed and dragged the man back to his chair. "I''m going to sit you down now and ask you a few questions. All you have to do is answer them, and then I''ll release you. Understand?"

    The man was clearly still panicking, but he slowly calmed down to the point where he was able to nod at me.

    "Good."

    I sat him in the chair and removed my hand. He went into a fit of coughing before breathing heavily for a bit.

    "Alright then, Mr...?"

    "J-Jones... It''s Jones... Ma''am?"

    Haven''t been called that since I was part of Xelba''s military...

    I looked around and saw an array of photos showing the man in his military uniform next to several people who looked like him.

    "You serve?"

    He nodded. "My whole life, but this is my day off..."

    "... Question number one. Where are we on Aetheria?"

    He was clearly confused that I was asking him such a simple question, but he answered it regardless. "Xethra, Ma''am."

    "No, I mean where. As in which continent?"

    "Oh, my apologies! We are in Vinya. Near the middle of the continent." The man responded. I could see his eyes constantly shifting toward the door.

    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    Vinya... That''s the continent furthest to the south. If you crossed the ocean to the south you''d eventually reach the Elven continent, but I don''t think anyone is dumb enough to do that. The waters are filled with unknown Eldritch and you''d have to hike it from wherever you landed to the Elven city, which means there''s a one-hundred-percent chance you''d be killed by the machines long before you saw the city.

    ... Unless you''re me? I could probably do it but I don''t want to risk the open water. Plus, I need to head north to Termia, that''s where Aresa should be.

    First things first though...

    "There is a cemetery in South Cedar Avenue. Draw me a map."

    "Eh...?"

    He looked at me dumbfounded. I ignored his confusion and walked to the nearby counter, taking one of his unopened letters and a pen before returning to him. I ripped open the letter and flipped it over, telling him to draw on the back of it.

    He reluctantly nodded and began to draw the most basic-looking map possible. Eh, so long as he isn''t lying, this should be good enough.

    Once he was done I scanned the map and immediately realized I knew where the cemetery was. The line he drew goes past a subway, a mall, a hotel, and an industrial area, until it finally reaches the cemetery which is about a mile past the industrial buildings. So basically, I have to go back the way I came... Hmm, I suppose this might be for the best? At least I know the way.

    "One last question. Why did only half of the people in town leave during the emergency broadcast? Shouldn''t all of you have left?"

    The man shook his head, "We should have, but... I mean, even I didn''t expect it to be an actual emergency..."

    As soon as he finished speaking I felt a sickly aura encompass my veil, followed by a familiar bolt sound hitting the ground outside of this man''s sliding door. Barely a few seconds later the skeletons I fought in Kellog smashed through the glass, and behind them I could see an obelisk firing off more and more red bolts in my direction.

    I ran toward the door and opened it just in time to see a skeleton appear in a puff of smoke to my left, but instead of attacking me it smashed into the stove and buckled backward onto the floor. Now I see why they don''t appear inside buildings. They aren''t good with walls or tight spaces.

    I exited into the hallway and closed the door behind me. However, instead of leaving, I ripped out some mesh and sealed the door up the best I could. The skeletons began to attack the door, but their attacks weren''t enough to cut straight through the mesh. I ran back into the apartment I was in earlier and straight out the sliding door. I activated my halo and glanced back to see that the skeletons were still struggling to get through the door.

    On the outside there were armored vehicles coming down both sides of the street in front of me. And behind me I could hear engines revving hard as they drove in this direction. As I ran for the underpass I looked around and saw obelisks here and there throughout the city, with another one forming far off in the distance. Very clever... They''ve slowly been building obelisks, starting from the outskirts of the city to prevent us from escaping. I hope Greyson is able to get away, but it looks like he''s going to have a hell of a hard time getting through that surveillance net.

    The sound of gunshots rang out as I reached the road. In response I blitzed straight through the door on the opposite side of the road, crashing hard into the wall and falling down onto the steps below. The sickly aura left me as I removed the halo and ran down the stairs. I stopped for a moment to check the monitors once I reached the room below. I wondered what purpose these monitors might have when I didn''t see a single camera in town... But now I get it. They''re all aiming at different entrances into the underground. Not the subway, but deeper into Aetheria. They must have a monster problem? Which is good to know if I need to escape down there, but hopefully I won''t need to.

    I exited into the tunnel and quickly looked both ways for enemies, but fortunately, there was nobody around. I can hear loud footsteps coming from both directions though... So it''s only a matter of time before I see someone.

    I ran toward the right and it wasn''t long before I saw flashlights, except they weren''t just aiming them forward. They were doing the same thing the spotlights were doing, they''re flicking them in every direction as they slowly advance. ... Those are some powerful flashlights, but I might be able to stealth through here if I want to. It''s risky though... There''s no way of knowing how many times I''m going to get hit before they pass. So that really only leaves me with one other option.

    I jogged toward the group with my invisibility on until their lights began to harm me, at which point I immediately swapped to my halo and leaped at the man farthest on the right. He had been sweeping the ceiling off to the left when I appeared so he was unable to react, but the man next to him got a few shots off in my direction and even connected a few.

    When I reached the man I quickly spun him around toward his team and snapped his neck. He went limp immediately, allowing me to pick him up and hold him behind me while I sprinted through the tunnel. His body and armor blocked most of the shots, but a few still managed to hit me. This is not good... I wanted to form an army and get going the moment I reached the cemetery, but once I remove this halo I think I''m going to be out for the count for a little while.

    I arrived at the subway platform and jumped on top of it just as another group of men came running down the stairs. I dashed forward while throwing the dead man in my right hand at them as hard as I could. They had been attempting to fan out when the corpse plowed into three of them sideways, smashing them straight into the wall behind them. One of the men''s shotguns discharged, hitting another ally of his right in the face. It looked like his enhancements had protected him, but the impact from a near point-blank blast had knocked him out cold, leaving only three men left. Who, unfortunately for me, had not been phased in the least by the surprise attack. They took aim at me and began firing two rifles and one large caliber handgun. I rolled behind a nearby pillar and put my back against it.

    I already miss fighting things like monsters... Dealing with guns is a serious pain in the ass. Truly, I''d prefer battling that armored monster who kept surprise-attacking us from behind over having to deal with this bullshit.

    That''s when I realized the men weren''t spinning their lights all around like the others. This group knows exactly where I am after all. I released my halo and almost collapsed right there and then from the backlash. It wasn''t easy, but I managed to activate my veil and climb up the pillar. Once the men were close to my pillar, I leaped off it toward the stairs in the back, landing near all the dead or unconscious soldiers I had hit earlier.

    I ran up the stairs until the lights were about to hit me and immediately dropped my veil. Peeking over the stairs, I found a few armored trucks with two men loitering between them. They were talking back and forth while sharing a large cigar. The drivers for the two groups I encountered below I assume. The alarms are blaring out here, so I doubt they heard the gunshots.

    Just as I was about to charge them, they both opened one of the side doors and started rifling through the inside of the vehicle.

    ... I really am way too lucky sometimes.

    I ran toward the men, getting hit by several spotlights along the way, but they were moving extremely fast and didn''t pan back in my direction so the men controlling them probably didn''t even notice that they had found me. Once I reached the two men outside the armored vehicle, I could tell they were discussing a premium cigar box that one of them had bought. It hurt like hell, but I forced the halo back on and before they could turn around I grabbed both of their heads and smashed them into each other. I leaped back a little to avoid the blood and viscera that splashed everywhere.

    Once that was done, I opened the driver-side door to one of the trucks, and sure enough, the keys were still in it. I started the vehicle and lodged one of the men''s guns in a way that the gas pedal was stuck, making the vehicle peel off down the street toward an apartment building in the distance. Most of the spotlights all turned toward the vehicle and its surroundings, giving me enough darkness to turn invisible.

    After that, I began running toward the industrial buildings again just as the men from underground came running up the stairs. They were yelling something into their radios as they watched the vehicle smash into the apartment buildings, but I couldn''t hear anything they said over the alarms.

    There were a few street lamps lit up here and there, but for the most part, the chemical plant or whatever the hell this place is, was very dark. I ran alongside the plant, heading for what I hoped was the cemetery, when I saw something that made me stop next to the chemical plant''s main doors.

    They were riddled with bullets and there was a splash of blood on one part of the door. ... If you exclude zombie Seifer, everyone looked fine in the broadcast. So this couldn''t have been a lethal hit.

    I slipped inside and followed the blood trail upstairs. On the second level it became harder to track thanks to the walkway being full of holes, but I still managed to follow the trail until I reached an office. The door was cracked so I had to push it open a little to get inside, but when I did that, it squeaked just a little, which was just enough to let the person inside know that someone else was there. A girl jumped out from behind the door and when she couldn''t see anybody, she sighed with relief.

    "Rei... Thank god. About time you got here." Shana said.

    I removed my aura, "What do you mean ''About time''? You''ve been here the whole time waiting for me? Oh, wait a minute... That means one of your clones was captured... That should''ve been obvious in hindsight."

    Shana smiled and went to give me a peace sign, something I hadn''t seen her do since Viseux, but she stopped and glared at me. "You didn''t come here to find me? I thought you knew I was here?"

    "How would I know that?! The last I saw of you was before a hail of bullets ripped into that hotel room."

    Shana sighed and sat down. "I was the one who signaled for Markus to run to this building. I had planned on using an ability of mine you haven''t seen yet to help us escape from here, but Ishar was wounded and the enemy arrived here much sooner than I thought they would. Plus, you and Greyson weren''t here..." Shana looked over my shoulder, "Where is Greyson?"

    "He left for good. He wanted to go solo from here on out. Don''t hold it against him, he has his reasons."

    Shana patted my head, "I''m sure he did~."

    "... So what was your plan?"

    Shana released me and sat down. "I can create clones of others, but it''s very taxing, and they can''t fight like mine can. So it was meant as a diversion for us to escape. There are other negatives to them, but it doesn''t matter anymore."

    I sat down next to her, "Did you see the broadcast?"

    Shana pointed at a very small TV on the table near the glass that overlooks the plant. So that''s a yes.

    "Oh, it wouldn''t matter anyway since your clone is there. That was a dumb question."

    Shana shrugged, "It doesn''t hurt to check. Also, uh, Seifer is weird."

    "Is he a fucking zombie? He looked dead on the broadcast."

    "He might be transforming into one... He''s saying weird things and like you said, he looks like he''s dying. But at one point he was lucid long enough to tell us why he''s here. He was a spy in the capital near the border to Termia, and as you can see, he was caught."

    "A spy? For Euphemia I assume, so she is still in Termia? And in a position where she''s sending spies for the country apparently..."

    "Sounds like it, but that''s all I know." Shana said, then continued, "What are you going to do?"

    "Heh, Greyson asked me the same thing. I''ll tell you the same thing I told him. I''m going to the cemetery."

    Shana looked at me in confusion for a moment, but then I could tell she realized what I planned on doing.

    "... Is that even possible? You needed Aresa before. I know you''re stronger after absorbing the chimera, but even Aresa was drained after supplying your army for a little while."

    "It''s always possible if I use the Ether Carriers and keep them safe, but I can''t do that this time. As soon as my skeletons make an appearance, Viktor is going to have his men fan out and look for them. There''s also the airship to deal with, but I''m not quite sure what to do about that."

    Shana leaned against me, resting her head on mine. "What does that leave you with then?"

    "The only other option I have, the one I did in Xelba. I don''t have a name for it, but it''s like an avalanche. It only works when there are plenty of biological materials and souls for the skeletons to feed off of. Otherwise, the army taps out on mana and dies, which will lead to me being useless for a long time."

    I''m already in a lot of pain from the halo and the bullets that hit me earlier. I really needed this breather, but we can''t stay here for long. It''s only a matter of time before an obelisk forms close enough to sense us.

    "In other words, you need to use the people here as fodder," Shana said, without a hint of emotion.

    "... That''s the plan. Does it bother you?"

    Shana shook her head, "Not in this place. Just tell me what you need me to do so we can save the four of them."

    "The four?"

    "Markus, Ishar, Seifer, and the artifact. I count the artifact as a person since everyone needs it to come back to life." Shana said.

    True... It seems like Viktor appreciates Arkaios on some level, so he''d most likely have the artifact sent to another temple, but it doesn''t hurt to retrieve it just in case.

    "Alright, give me a few more minutes to rest, and then we''ll head over to the cemetery."

    We may have to pick another one though. I wasn''t able to kill the man who gave me directions, so he probably told them where I was going. And if he hasn''t yet, he will soon enough.

    I relaxed and focused inward onto my core. And while I was mostly focusing on stabilizing myself, there was something else in the back of my mind that I couldn''t help but think about.

    ... I can''t believe I''m doing this again. You really never know where your life is going to take you.

 Chapter 63 - Skeletal Assault

    ... Hmm.

    I continued to stare out at my surroundings, expecting to see signs of movement, or maybe find someone hiding in the grass. But no matter how long I scanned my surroundings, all I saw was an empty cemetery that was hit by brief flashes of a spotlight shining through the trees.

    I don''t get it... There''s no way in hell that man I accosted didn''t tell them where I was going. I was one hundred percent positive I''d meet resistance here. Hell, I only came here so I could confirm that they were guarding the graveyards, which would mean I''d have to plan a more direct approach. Instead, this place is completely empty.

    Suddenly a thought occurred to me. One that really pissed me off.

    ... That scheming piece of shit. He wants me to do this. I have several memories of him using his enemies inside Xelba to further his own plans. I''m sure even he knows that allowing me to form an army is a complete gamble. There''s a chance I''ll win. So if my death was his end goal, he would never allow me to do this. That leaves me with one other conclusion; he wants me to kill the people here.

    Does he need justification for something that his nation''s citizens don''t want to do? Viktor can always force his plans onto them, but he vastly prefers keeping his people happy, as that makes everything much easier for him.

    Ahh shit, I''m just now realizing something else too... It seemed strange at the time when he said it, but it makes much more sense now. Taking everything I just realized into account, it''s painfully obvious why he''s calling me a terrorist.

    God damnit all... I hate him so fucking much.

    Now that I knew there wasn''t anyone waiting for me, I ran through the cemetery until I reached one of the doors leading to a crypt. I ripped the lock off the door and descended the stairs beyond, quickly finding myself inside a large hallway full of coffins embedded into the wall. I was expecting a small room but it looks like all of the crypt entrances lead to the same area. That''ll make this even easier then.

    I walked to the center of the hallway and pulled off the lid of the closest coffin. I then put one hand on the skeleton inside, and the other hand on the artifact dangling from my neck. ... I really don''t want to do this. Even if the creatures of the abyss'' souls were disappearing, the artifact was still siphoning off parts of their souls before they vanished. Putting that together with all of the people''s souls I fed it in Kellog, the artifact is damn near close to evolving, meaning it''d block way more damage, which is something I desperately need.

    I closed my eyes and focused on the chest area of the corpse. A deep black goo formed around its ribs, spreading out like a contagion, spreading from one bone to the next. And I''m about to throw all of that away to summon a Lich. The only other option is Shana and I confronting Viktor and whatever guards he has with him, but that obviously has a much higher chance of failing. Especially when I still don''t know how he''s able to warp around freely.

    The energy from the artifact drained at an alarming rate as a hard black cube formed inside the skeleton''s chest. The artifact tapped out just as the Lich finished forming. I could feel my mana begin to drain as a thin veil of black cloth formed around it. I quickly told the Lich to turn a dozen of the nearby corpses into ether carriers. I should''ve created those first damnit, but I thought the artifact had more than enough energy stored up to power a Lich for a little while. God damn these things cost way too much... But there''s no denying that he''s more than worth the hefty cost.

    One by one the nearby coffins rupture as the ether carriers massive bodies expand past the small confines they were currently inside. They slowly rolled to the side and fell to the ground.

    Hmm... I still feel a little drain even with twelve carriers. I''ll do thirty then and regular skeletons for the rest. They''re not going to survive for very long, since Viktor will be hunting them, but that will be after my skeletons are already draining the citizen''s souls for fuel. Even if he does want me to assault the city, he''ll still kill the carriers. He has no choice. If he doesn''t, I''m guaranteed to win. Hell, I''d have enough energy to fully armor and weaponize them. They could even start casting spells if I had unlimited access to ether with an army of carriers backing them. Obviously, he can''t allow that, as I''d decimate this place and even bring down that airship of his which I imagine is a priceless asset for his nation.

    <hr>

    Over the next thirty minutes I raised every corpse in the graveyard until there was nothing left to do except assault the city. I could have them slowly armor themselves, but if they don''t have a steady stream of mana it''s pointless. The armor is heavy, and I need them to be fast. Very fast. I''m not creating a powerful army here, I just need them to act like a fast-moving plague. One of the mistakes I made in Xelba was fitting them all in armor, which made the assault take way longer than it should have. I''m not going to make that mistake again.

    I scanned the city from the branch I sat upon. A normal person wouldn''t be able to tell, but I could see the signs that a defensive force was being built about a mile into the city, and they were all conveniently aiming this way. Not that I doubted it, but there''s the proof that the fucker is using me. He''s going to let me rip through this part of the city and then hope he has enough to stop me at the defensive point he''s setting up. He wasn''t around long enough to see what I did in Xelba though, so I get the distinct feeling he''s really underestimating me. All of his knowledge of my skeletons is from the few tests we ran when I had first come to Xelba.

    I looked up at the airship that was hovering above the same part of the city Viktor was fortifying.

    That''s my biggest worry... It''s possible he''s not underestimating me because that airship is going to rip me apart. I don''t have any spells that reach far enough to hit it. So there are no spells I can make my skeletons cast to bring it down from over here. Not unless they''re standing on a building underneath it, then maybe they could reach, but by then if the airship is going to be a problem, there won''t be anything I can do about it. So all I can do is push forward and pray it won''t completely devastate me.

    I fan the skeletons out, placing them in groups that each have their own orders to attack different buildings. Hmm, I doubt there''s anyone in that mall, but might as well hit that too. Can''t leave anything untouched. Civilians aside, there might be people from the military waiting to flank me. Or straight up attack me since Viktor knows how vulnerable I''m going to be with all these skeletons running about.

    The Lich began to cast his speed buff. It only took five seconds for him to complete the cast, but it might as well have been a minute for me as I stared at the city in front of me. The distant sounds of the city washed over me as I thought about just how monumental this moment was going to be in my life. Depending on who wins, it''s going to change a lot for me and the other denizens living in Mother''s little area of the universe.

    The Lich''s speed buff washed over the army. All but a few of the skeleton warriors sprinted toward the buildings in the distance. Shana''s clone is waiting at the chemical plant for the assault to begin, so it should be moving toward the prison soon. Or wherever the hell Viktor has everyone locked up. I assume it''s a prison of some sort? Unless there''s other buildings that would have cells like those...?

    The Lich lifted me up and floated forward. As I watched the army advance I told the warriors who remained behind to lay down and hide at specific points I marked with my mind. One by one they laid down at those spots and covered themselves with dirt. There''s no point in me going over there and giving them camouflaged mesh. They''re going to be found and killed either way. All this is doing is keeping my supply line to the carriers in the crypt connected a little bit longer when the enemy assaults this place, which I bet is going to happen in the next couple of minutes.

    The skeletons finally reached the city just as the Lich finished casting another spell. Even I didn''t know what he was casting, so it came as a huge surprise when the feather buff washed over half of the force. I watched as the units that were buffed with lightness jumped up onto their respective buildings, landing in different locations right before they punched the glass out and dove inside. I looked at the Lich, stunned. I didn''t tell him to do that... Even now these things are a complete mystery to me.

    Screams erupted from every nearby building. And soon after that a constant stream of souls filtered to me and the Lich through my summons. Suddenly I was reminded of Aresa and Alicia''s horrified responses after they heard about my past. They''re not wrong though, are they? This is definitely fucked up... I''ll never be able to deny that.

    Far off to my right I could hear the revving of engines. I looked over there and saw a dozen armored vehicles veer off the road. They began to drive over the grass, all heading for one specific place. The cemetery. Right on time. The Lich increased his speed, carrying me into the hotel through the demolished wall I fled through earlier today. Once inside, he carried me into the hallway and turned right. There were skeletal remains here and there, victims of rampaging skeletons who were now on the floor above us. As we passed by the remains, a blackness immediately spread throughout their skeletal frames. They all began to stand up just as the Lich carried me down a flight of stairs nearby. Another skeleton ran past us as we descended. Ahh, so that''s how he knew this was here...

    It led to a door that had already been destroyed by the skeleton we passed. The Lich ran through the door and kept going down a dark tunnel for almost half a mile until we reached a room that looked like a large R&R room designed for the richest people imaginable. It had several monitors on the wall showing only the important cameras and a few TV broadcasts. The cameras showed the entrance to the hotel, and both entrances to this room. The Lich drew my attention by pointing at the other door in the room.

    "I know. That''s the back way out, right? I can see it on the monitor, it''s the chemical plant Shana is hiding in, I recognize the room that camera is aimed at." I looked around the room one last time, "Truly, you brought me to a fantastic spot to oversee the assault from."

    The Lich sat me down on the couch and went back to close the door. I heard an automatic lock apply as the door closed. I don''t know why it was open, but that''s convenient for us. I can see a barrier over both of the doors, so there won''t be any surprise attacks.

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    I laid down on the couch and prepared to enter my soul realm. "See if you can exit that door without destroying it. But if necessary, destroy it and bring Shana down here."

    I entered my soul realm as the Lich floated over toward the back door. Once inside, I brought up the vision of skeletons in different groups and placed them in the world around me. Everything looks fine so far, but that''s what I expected since Viktor pulled back his forces. The really tough part is going to be what happens after I reach that defensive formation...

    Suddenly a large explosion occurred, one that rocked my real body and the vision of every skeleton I was seeing through. The ones who could see what happened all looked in that direction, and that''s when I saw both the mall and a few nearby apartments crumbling. It was clear that explosions had taken out the supports holding up all of the structures. I felt dozens of skeletons vanish as the buildings crumbled down on top of them.

    ... Terrorist. That name resounded in my head yet again. He blew up his own buildings so he could blame that on me too. But what''s the point? I''m already killing everyone anyway... Maybe some explosions add enough flair to move the hearts of his people?

    I could sense the Lich return with Shana, so I immediately commanded him to place her next to me. She must have realized why I did that as I could feel her soul connect to mine. I pulled her into my soul realm and pointed at the dust cloud a couple of my skeletons were looking at.

    "Viktor the cunt did that, it wasn''t me. This is why he was calling us terrorists."

    I could feel my soul rejecting something Shana was trying to do, so I prevented it from stopping her. Once that was done, two more sets of vision appeared next to the skeleton''s eyes I had been looking through.

    "Is this how you control your clones?"

    Shana shook her head, "No, I just close my eyes and I can see through both of their eyes at the same time. It sounds weird, but you get used to it." She then motioned toward the dust cloud, "Terrorists... He''s using us?"

    She picked up on that quick.

    "Sadly, but we had to do this. Any plans we came up with that were stealth-related were almost guaranteed to fail. He may not know about your clones, but one of them is already locked up, and he knows almost everything about my abilities."

    "Yeah... I know." Shana continued, "And speaking of Viktor, he left the cell area soon after you left for the cemetery. He never came back."

    So Viktor is MIA... But he knows I''m only doing this to get my friends back, so he''s probably waiting around that building to ambush me. There''s also a chance he''s personally looking for me. Nothing would be more devastating than him warping into this VIP area while the two of us are in my soul realm. I severely doubt that will happen but if it does, I hope the Lich is able to buy us a few seconds so we can wake up.

    "Where is your other clone right now? A warehouse?" I asked as I looked at the room her clone was in.

    "No, this is the storage area of the building Ishar and the others are in. It''s underground." Shana said.

    "You made it into the building already?! How''d you gain access?"

    Shana gave me a peace sign, "I''m good, aren''t I? And I got in through a ''Dropbox'' attached to the side of the building."

    Dropbox...? Is that a hole where they can just toss boxes in for deliveries? Never heard of that before, but it does sound convenient... Albeit risky, as Shana just proved.

    "Looks like you''re hiding behind some boxes. Are you waiting for me to reach that area before you ascend?"

    Shana nodded.

    Alright then. I should be reaching the defensive line in the next twenty minutes. So we''ll---

    An orange beam descended from the sky, piercing straight into the street a large group of my skeletons were running through. The beam was quickly replaced by a massive explosion that took out the street, some nearby buildings, and obviously all of my skeletons. So that''s the ''Railgun''...

    "My worst fears have come true. That fucking thing is going to be a much larger problem to deal with than I had hoped it would be."

    "What are you going to do...?" Shana asked.

    Good question... To take it out I would need to get some skeletons on a building below the airship, but won''t it just hit them with another railgun if I did that? And now the damned thing is firing large bullets at another group of skeletons. I say ''Large bullets'' because I don''t actually know what kind of massive gun would be required to fire rounds like those that are causing my skeletons to literally explode from the impact.

    "I was planning on having them pick up guns from anyone they killed after reaching the defensive line, but I don''t know if the bullets will reach the airship. I''m not that knowledgeable about guns. Each gun has its own range to them, but hell if I know what any of their ranges are."

    I guess I''ll just tell a few of them to take some potshots at the airship. If it works, it works. If not... I think I''ll just have to take the losses. I assume it won''t fire the railgun when I''m near the city center where everyone is gathered. That ''Evil terrorist'' scenario he''s using me for won''t hold much water if he''s obliterating his own people with the railgun.

    Wait... Lich, how high can the skeletons jump with your feather spell?

    Images appeared in my head of the skeletons jumping about one hundred and fifty feet. Yeah, that''s nowhere near enough...

    Sadly, the skeletons can''t be enhanced, or I''d just pump a few sacrificial lambs full of mana and have them leap up there. Just making sure, but that image you sent me of them jumping is also taking the speed boost into account.

    An affirmation was sent back to me.

    Alright, fuck it. We''re just going to plow ahead under the assumption they won''t blow up their own men with the airship. The problem is leaving this city after Ishar and the others are free. The airship becomes a much larger issue then, but we''ll deal with that when the time comes.

    How fast can you move?

    The Lich shows me an image of him moving around at the same speed I can run while fully enhanced.

    Our supplies are sky-high after the skeletons drained all the citizens around here. I lost my carriers a few minutes ago but that''s not a big deal at this point. Fortunately for me, they missed one of the skeletons hiding back there, so I can both see and hear the group back at the cemetery. No Viktor in sight. It''s just a bunch of grunts who are stupidly standing around talking outside of their vehicles. Thanks to that, I can hear all of the communications taking place over their radios.

    "What''s a ''Firebomb'' in this world? In Urza it''s a deadly alchemical bomb, but nothing we''d need to worry about." Shana asked as she also listened in on the radios.

    "I''m not sure, but I assume we''re about to find out."

    Get out there and raise as many soldiers as you can. When you''re ready, have them fan out and attack the defensive line. Once they''re in range, I''ll send the rest of the soldiers in.

    The Lich opened the door leading toward the hotel and closed it behind him. I placed his vision up in front of me so I could keep track of him.

    If I lose the Lich, this is going to become a damn near impossible battle. That''ll require me to raise another Lich or go out there and personally handle the summons. The first option isn''t even possible. I can''t handle all of the energy the skeletons took from those souls, but the Lich can, so that''s exactly what he''s doing. In other words, if I lose him, I also lose all of that stored energy. There''s no other choice though, he has to go out there. It''s even riskier if I go with how weak I am right now. My soul is split off in every which direction; I''m practically a regular civilian at this point.

    After the Lich reached the ground level I finally realized what was missing. There was an obelisk forming near the chemical plant but it disappeared, along with four other ones past the defensive line. I also haven''t seen a single Xerath or skeleton---No, I need a different name for the skeletons that Viktor''s Xerath create.

    "Shana, do you know any other names for skeletons? It''s confusing to call both theirs and mine the same name."

    Shana thought on it for a second and then smiled, "Draugr. I saw that word in a book Aresa owned. One she bought from your family."

    Draugr huh? I''ve never heard that term before, but it sounds like a good name for them.

    Suddenly I heard a sound coming from all of the skeletons and the Lich. It was like a low whistle that was growing in strength with each passing second.

    "What the hell is that noise...?"

    Shana didn''t answer as she worriedly watched the Lich''s vision with me. The sound not only got louder, but it seemed to increase in number almost a hundredfold. That''s when the Lich looked up and I saw where that noise was coming from. There was an untold number of cylinder-shaped metal objects falling from the sky. They were spread out over the entire area past the defensive line, and I didn''t need to wait for long to find out what kind of damage they were going to do.

    There were no loud explosions nor bright flashes of light. The metal cylinders merely broke apart moments before hitting the ground, revealing a shiny orange liquid encased in glass. Once the glass hit the ground, a deep orange fire spread out everywhere. Before I could even fully grasp what this meant for me going forward, the fire turned blue, and I could immediately hear the buildings in this region cracking. Plasma... I think that''s what Keith called it.

    For his part, the Lich had finished channeling the feather spell on himself just before the firebombs landed. He leaped over the fire and climbed into a nearby apartment. He was doing a good job of turning all of the bodies in the apartment into more soldiers, but the building''s foundations were crumbling. The chemical plant was already falling apart, as it was made of metal, but the hotel wasn''t affected at all. Sadly, the same couldn''t be said for over half of the buildings in the area. The fire had already turned back to orange and even began to disappear completely, but the damage was already done.

    Fortunately, they dropped the bombs after all of my remaining skeletons were already hidden on the upper floors of buildings that weren''t falling over. Excluding my Lich and newly formed summons of course. But they''re already leaping over to other buildings even now, so they''ll be fine. The problem is that there are now massive open areas between me and the defensive line. I can already see them unloading on the buildings where my skeletons are hiding, as there are no longer any buildings between the two forces.

    "Alright, I see no other options outside of either retreating and attacking from another area, or just making a mad dash for the defensive line while the Lich continues to raise more warriors through the buildings that didn''t fall over."

    "I say the latter," Shana replied.

    "Agreed... That''s really the only option after all. Retreating gives the airship another chance to railgun or firebomb us."

    I commanded the Lich to continue summoning more warriors, while I told the rest of the army to fan out and make a mad dash for the defensive line. All of the skeletons jumped out of their prospective buildings and began to run wildly for the city center. A hail of bullets ripped into them, but the amount of skeletons dying was rather minimal for the time being. The real issues began when the airship restarted its assault from earlier. The large bullets killed one skeleton after another, and there was nothing they could do about it. Despite the bullet''s trajectories being visible, only someone truly powerful would have the speed and foresight to be able to dodge them. My smart yet sometimes really dumb skeletons definitely didn''t have the reflexes required for the situation.

    I was about to tell the Lich to have all the new summons run far to the left in the hopes that the current assault would give us a chance to enter the city from another direction, when a barrage of bright purple arrows streaked through the sky and hit the airships barrier. Despite the barrier stopping them, the barrage didn''t stop. One magic arrow after another slammed into the barrier as I looked for the source through the Lich''s eyes, and that''s when I saw the Tengu standing near the western part of the city.

    I could see a bright orange glow emanating from the airship, which I immediately recognized as the railgun charging up, but it didn''t matter, as the airship''s barrier had given out before it was ready to fire. A final barrage of magic arrows tore through the airship, cutting it into several pieces that proceeded to fall onto the city below it.

    Both Shana and I cheered loudly as we watched the people at the defensive line run away from the falling debris. We continued watching as a few of the defenders were completely crushed, which made Shana laugh quite hard.

    I never in a million years expected him to come to our aid again. How he even knows what is happening here in the city is beyond me, but I''m so damned happy to see him here backing us up...

    I watched as the first wave of my skeletons approached the defensive line. There were still plenty of soldiers shooting at them, but the disarray from the falling debris was disrupting their forces more than enough for my summons to reach both the soldiers and the buildings full of civilians. Most of them attacked the soldiers, while a few leaped through nearby windows and began to kill one person after another. The Lich used this opportunity to cross the open field, and fortunately for me, nobody was paying attention to him. Mostly thanks to the skeletons now biting and tearing into the throats of the soldiers.

    Now then, Viktor... What is your next move going to be?

 Chapter 64 - The Siege Continues

    Lich, see that bird''s corpse? Raise it too, and any other birds you find.

    The Lich continued his sprint toward the city center without sending an affirmation back to me. There was no need after all, as I could already feel a tiny part of my soul enter the dead hawk. Unlike Human skeletons, the hawk''s core and new black muscles only took a few seconds to form. Immediately after its muscles were formed it took flight high into the air. I swapped the main vision in front of me(the Lichs'') for the Hawks.

    "That''s convenient... Did you do this in Xelba as well?" Shana asked as she looked at the aerial vision with me.

    "No, it never even occurred to me until a moment ago when I saw the dead hawk. This is something I should have always been doing, even when I''m not besieging anything. The bird takes barely any of my strength too. The only downside is that the mana drain is a tad high when it flies, but this is obviously more than worth it... Look at how much more information we have now. From here on out I''m going to try and always have a summoned bird following me."

    I watched as several things continued to unfold in the bird''s vision. The Tengu was taking heavy fire, so he was weaving back and forth between multiple buildings while destroying one vehicle after another, except it was clear that all the bullets hitting him were taking a toll on him. The one we fought in Kellog had a ridiculously powerful barrier, but I''ve never seen this one use a barrier. So I can only assume he''s designed for physical combat. Plus, I''ve only seen him cast that magic arrow spell... So he must be relying on enhancements, which means I have no way of knowing when he''ll hit his limit... I''ll need to send some reinforcements his way as soon as I can.

    Viktor''s soldiers were either falling back to the main city hub or wrapping around the Tengu. It''s about an eighty-twenty split. With the Tengu using large buildings as cover, the soldiers have no choice but to circle around him. And the soldiers in the city hub are creating massive fortifications at almost lightning speed. They''re placing buses and other vehicles in the way while evacuating everyone in the large(above ten floors) buildings to somewhere else.

    Suddenly I felt a massive drain on my mana supply, and that''s when I noticed the Lich had created another Lich. ... I was considering that, but I thought the drain might be too much. I''m not even going to give him any orders, I want to see if he is going to do the same thing I wanted to do.

    I brought up the other Lichs'' vision and placed it to the right of the Hawks while the first Lichs'' remained to the left. I then watched as the Lichs split up and went in different directions. One to the left, heading in the Tengu''s direction, with the other heading to the right side of the city. Yep, this is what I was considering doing, and the thing I was most worried about is also happening. The drain of having two Liches is massive, they''re going to need to move fast.

    Skeletons poured out of the first two apartment buildings I had assaulted a earlier near the defensive line.

    The others are doing exactly what I asked of them. I can feel a lot of dormant skeletons waiting on the bottom floors of those apartments. I''ll have them continue to spread out and create more buildings full of skeletons, and when we''re finally ready, I''ll have them all flood out and attack at the same time. I originally planned on having a steady stream of skeletons attacking the city, but with the Tengu here, I''m not all that worried about the new defensive position they''re creating. Of course, if something happens to him that would be devastating. So Lich, if you would please...

    The one moving to the left affirmed my request before it smashed through the front doors of another apartment building. By now the people living in the region realized that waiting in their homes for help wasn''t going to do them any good. The ones with windows aiming at the city center could tell that no one was coming to save them, so they were all flooding down the stairs in a desperate attempt to get away. Whether they were told by their neighbors as they fled, or they had merely been inspired by the sound of everyone fleeing, the residents on the other side of the building also began to flee down the stairs and into the streets.

    ... Should I have them gunned down? I don''t think they saw my skeletons collect all of their guns. The first barrier we crashed through is covered in blood, debris, and all sorts of other shit, so I feel like they wouldn''t have noticed my skeletons carrying all of the guns into the nearby apartments.

    "Shana, do you think they know that I took all of their guns?"

    "Into the apartments? Unlikely."

    Yeah... I''ll just let the citizens flee then. I''m still killing at least twenty percent of them too. My skeletons are running into the packs of fleeing people, killing as many as they can before they''re too close to the city center to keep chasing. And since there are civilians everywhere, the soldiers can''t fire on them.

    A loud explosion rang out, one that sounded like a cannon firing. Shana and I looked toward the Tengu at the same time, as whatever was just fired, had knocked him onto the ground. By the time we looked at him, he was already on one knee with an outstretched hand that just barely stopped his head from hitting the ground.

    "Rei, look here!" Shana said, pointing toward the corner of a large wall on the other side of town. I looked closer with the Hawk''s eyes and I could see four large cannons on top of the massive walls built on that side of the city. One of the cannons was smoking with a dozen or so people cleaning out the insides, while the other three were all being loaded up with an abnormally large cannonball.

    "Well, shit... That''s obviously not something we can ignore."

    That part of the city is built completely different from the rest. I didn''t see it until now, but there is a long wall going along that entire part of the city, blocking off the forest beyond it. They must have needed it to defend against something from the forest, and now those defenses are being used against us instead.

    Both Liches were reaching the opposite ends of the city at the same time. I watched as they both pivoted one street up before turning back the other way and running toward the city center. This is obviously the best course of action, I need them to run through every single building, so a sweeping movement like this is what we need to do, but damnit, we also don''t have time for this... Looks like my plan to build up and swarm isn''t going to work. We need to move now.

    "Get ready, Shana. I can''t put it off anymore. Try to see if anything changes inside that building after I begin the attack." Plus, the drain from the amount of skeletons I''ve amassed is past the limits of what I''d call extreme. Even if they''re dormant, I need to start using them now so I can either lose them or gain more souls.

    Shana nodded and turned around to look at her clone''s vision.

    Attack.

    With that simple command, skeletons began to swarm out of the buildings that they were hibernating inside. Soldiers saw that and immediately entered a firing position, but they quickly scattered when bullets began to rip through the defensive line. No one was dying, as they were not taking enough hits to get past their enhancements, but that only delayed some of the damage on our side. Hundreds of guns fired from the apartments ahead. I looked them over and could see soldiers in almost every single apartment aiming this way.

    I didn''t see them at all until now, so they must have been hiding inside the apartments... That''s fine though, losing some of my units while advancing can only help me. The mana drain is holding steady between the newly forming units and the ones being killed. And soon, we''ll have more souls again.

    As the skeletons neared the city center I could see almost a dozen twisters descending from the pitch-black sky above. And here it comes... I was wondering when he''d unleash the Xerath onto me. However, unlike in Kellog where the obelisks formed in the sky and then crashed onto the ground, these were forming directly on the ground. Come to think of it, the ones I saw earlier in town were also forming on the ground. I can only assume they''re dropped into hostile territory as a way of scaring the people they''re invading. And it definitely worked from what I remember of Kellog.

    "How come they''re not forming behind your skeletons too?" Shana said as she looked over her shoulder.

    "Hmm... We''ve never had an opportunity to try, but maybe they''re worried we''ll destroy them? For all we know, they might take an ungodly amount of mana to form, so any obelisks destroyed could be a massive blow to them. There is also the fact that anything inside of them could die too. Either way, once we breach the city I''ll have no choice but to try and destroy them. Otherwise, you''ll never be able to escape the city with the others. And speaking of which, has that sickly aura hit you yet? I''m worried they''ll ping your other clone."

    "It tried, but don''t worry, now that I know to prepare for it, I can avoid it. I''ll teach you the spell when this is all over." Shana replied.

    "Can you cast it on others? You know, to prevent the obelisks from tracking Ishar and Markus."

    Shana shook her head.

    Still amazing that she can do that, and having that spell handy will be very useful going forward, but not being able to protect those two is a massive problem. Not that I didn''t go into this battle expecting them to be tracked anyway. It''s just... I''m really not sure how we''re going to get them out of there unscathed without a full victory here, and I''ll be shocked if I''m able to kill everyone including Viktor. One of the biggest problems is the soldiers streaming out of that large building at the city center. I''m going to assume the portals are in there, and that means he''s called for reinforcements from god knows how many different places. The longer this draws out, the worse it becomes for all of us.

    "Hehe, they''re turning out to be very fine ninjas," Shana said from behind me.

    ?

    I looked through the different parts of town until I finally realized why she said that. The ninjas were killing all of the men manning the walls near the forest. And one by one they were dumping some type of finely granulated substance all over the cannons. I could see the cannons slowly falling apart as different parts of them broke off and fell to the ground below. After they were done, the ninjas began to run back towards the Tengu''s location but dozens of red lightning bolts shot out in their direction. As the ninjas engaged the Draugr I spotted three spider Xerath and one of the tall dark purple---. I''m going to need names for these things going forward...

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    "Shana,  please give me names for the spider, tall dark purple Xerath, and the one with three long claws."

    "Shoth, Ghorak, Geist...?"

    Even she didn''t seem sure of those names, but I did just put her on the spot.

    "Thank you beautiful, I''m not good at naming things and I really just needed something for them going forward." I continued, "There are three Shoths and one Ghorak running straight for the gate leading to the forest. They''re heading for the ninjas obviously."

    "I can''t look back, I''m doing something important right now. Can you tell me what else is happening?" Shana replied.

    "The obelisks stopped firing Draugr at the Tengu as they quickly realized just how pointless that was. They were literally all dying in less than a few seconds. But now in their place, there are a dozen Ghoraks and probably thirty of the Geists coming at the Tengu from three different directions. Also, that Xerath who was bombarding Viseux from the sky just made its first appearance. It hasn''t fired anything yet, but I can see it looking back and forth between my skeletons and the Tengu. Do you remember if there was a long delay between its attacks back then?"

    "Sorry, no... I was too focused on surviving until I reached the chateau."

    And there''s no time to reproduce that memory in my soul realm right now. Maybe if I could slow time down in here like Cera and Alicia said they could...

    The sound of gunfire and screaming erupted from a location I wasn''t expecting. I looked through the vision of the skeleton still hiding in the cemetery. The men who killed my ether carriers had finally re-entered their vehicles a while ago, but now they were suddenly running out of the vehicles and shooting at one another.

    "What the hell...?"

    It looked to be a three versus fifteen battle. A battle I expected to be over rather quickly, and while two of them did die quite fast, it was the last man standing that truly shocked me. He tossed his gun to the side and dashed from one soldier to the next, killing them one after the other. Whether it was a quick snap of the neck, or he simply crushed their skulls, he was finishing off all of the other soldiers in a fast and sickly efficient manner.

    It wasn''t long before he was the only soldier left back there. For a moment he just stood there, not moving an inch, when suddenly his head vanished in an erratic manner that made it look like it was warping. And even more strange was how it was quickly replaced by three grey heads. One was laughing, another was crying, and the last one looked enraged. It only stayed like that for a few seconds before reverting back to the soldier''s original head. He then turned around and ran over the hill behind the cemetery, disappearing from my skeleton''s view soon after that.

    ... The faces were different, but I recognized him immediately when his true face appeared. That''s the minor God of the Abyss that those two from earlier were talking about. I don''t know whether he was masquerading as a soldier or took the body of one, but he fled the city, so he''s someone else''s problem now.

    The Draugr engaging my skeletons aren''t a true threat, but they are racking up a few casualties while being an all-around nuisance. The real problem though is the four Shoths and two Ghoraks that are moments away from finally reaching one part of my swarm. They''re coming at the ones closest to my position, while the two Liches and any skeletons on both sides are only battling soldiers and Draugr. Draugr aside, all the soldiers pelting my forces from the city hub with sniper rifles is what''s really been killing them.

    It''s not a huge deal, since I''m creating far more than they are killing, but it could matter a lot more depending on how many I lose to the six Xerath approaching my two hundred and twelve units assaulting the city center...

    I ordered the skeletons firing at the soldiers to turn their fire onto the two Ghoraks. A hail of bullets began to smash into the Ghoraks and even the Shoths. The Shoths quickly ran behind the Ghoraks, using them as cover until they barreled through my forces. At which point the Shoths re-appeared and began to cut through one skeleton after another.

    "I''ve unlocked their cell, Rei. Now we just need the bring down the obelisks and I can sneak them out of there." Shana said.

    I looked back at her clone''s vision and was shocked to see Ishar sitting there. "I thought you were busy hiding your clone or something! I can''t believe you''re already done with your part..."

    Shana smiled and walked up next to me, peering at the battle taking place with the Xerath. "You''re getting crushed."

    "Yeah, but I''m using this to gather information. I''m losing a lot of units to friendly fire, but I need to see just how many bullets it takes to break through the natural enhancements on the big guys. Your ''Ghoraks''." I continued, "By the way, can you remember what Tyrell said? I think he said that his knights had to bleed out the spiders to kill them? Err, Shoths?"

    "That''s what he said. But that just means you need to damage them enough to kill them..."

    Can''t really argue with that... You''re aiming for the same end result either way.

    On the left side, my units had finally begun to reach the buildings near the Tengu. Half were running for the obelisk near that side of the city center, while the other half, much to my surprise, had found an armory. I didn''t use weapons in Xelba so maybe Viktor just wasn''t expecting it, or maybe the forces here failed to tell him. Either way, this is a huge boon for me.

    The building the armory was housed in was suddenly engulfed in a bright golden explosion. In its wake, a large golden wall of energy spread out, which split my forces in half. The half who were cut off pivoted toward the Tengu, choosing to assist him instead of waiting for the Lich who was attempting to cast the feather spell on them. Seeing this, he canceled his spell and fled to another building just before two golden spheres of energy landed nearby.

    As another golden wall appeared I saw the Tengu take a break from attacking the Xerath so he could fire off multiple purple magic arrows at the roof of the building he was near. Before the arrows ripped the roof to pieces I saw someone up there disappear. There has to be a reason he''s able to do that so freely damnit. I can''t kill him if I don''t figure it out...

    Viktor re-appeared on a building near the ninjas, but a few of them spotted him before he could even attack them. So his attack whiffed completely, but it forced the ninjas to drop down from the wall. They chose to drop outside instead of inside the city, so I completely lost sight of them as the four Xerath reached the forest gate. Red lightning bolts also continued to fire onto the wall; creating scores of more Draugr who all quickly jumped outside the city.

    I was more concerned with something else though. I enhanced the vision of the hawk to the max. It was zoomed in so close I could practically see the sweat glands on Viktor. A few seconds later he disappeared again and I immediately brought up that memory on a nearby display. I played it forward at ten percent of normal speed until Viktor''s body began to dissipate. I stopped it and zoomed in on something small I saw wafting off of him.

    ... Smoke?

    I looked at the Draugr engaging my skeletons. It was much larger, but there were big puffs of smoke left behind and at their re-entry points every time they warped.

    ... Okay, this would explain some things, but at the same time, it also doesn''t make any sense? He warped earlier when there weren''t any obelisks present, and he warped away from me during the Xelba assault. Although... It was the first time I had ever seen him do that. Was there an obelisk formed nearby and I just didn''t see it? Except the sky was normal back then, so... Shit. I need more information. The best way would be to kill someone close to him, like that guard in power armor, and steal their memories but there''s no time for that. For now I''ll continue with the plan to destroy the obelisks and pray it at least increases the delay between his warps. That''s a wish and a half though.

    A sound I had only heard once in my life echoed out. I looked up with the hawk and saw an unbelievably massive fireball descending toward the Tengu. He obviously saw it too but instead of fleeing he fired a round of magic arrows at it that promptly caused the fireball to explode. The area it exploded at was next to the roof Viktor was on earlier. Large chunks of the building shattered and flew toward the city center, outright killing large swaths of my units who were on the other side of Viktor''s first golden barrier. They were currently engaged with several Ghoraks and Geists near an obelisk.

    The Ghoraks were killed instantly, but the debris went straight through the Geists, leaving them unharmed. I need magic damage for them, but any spells I know are rudimentary in nature and most likely won''t work... Lich?

    The Lich on that side began to cast a spell I didn''t recognize. And strangely enough, the way it was performed reminded me of ancient magic. Something I had only seen Demons use. When the spell had finished forming, a bright blue aura sprang up around twenty of the skeleton''s arms and hands. Two things happened then. First, the mana drain from the spell hit me and it was half as bad as summoning a Lich. And the second thing was my surprise at how quickly the skeletons were dispatching the Geists.

    The Lich sent something to me but it was hard to understand. I got the vague impression that he was trying to tell me that the spell was ''Untrained''. Is that why it costs so much to cast? I wouldn''t even know how to train a Lich though...Plus, the drain from just having one alive is immense. The idea of keeping a single one alive enough to make it stronger is... Well, that''s a dream inside of another dream. Maybe one day I can do that, but that''s not possible right now.

    My two hundred and twelve units fighting the six Xerath had dwindled to thirty-something, but the Ghoraks were finally dying. Once the bullets were able to pierce them, they dropped dead almost instantly. And the Shoths had apparently died a while ago, so now this side only had the soldiers to contend with. ... This is new. The base of the obelisk those six came from is turning red.

    Despite all the ammo magazines I had retrieved from the vehicles, I had nearly depleted all of my reserves just fighting those six Xerath. I ordered the skeletons with guns to exit the buildings and regroup with the nearby force. The assault on the right side was finally ramping up to such a degree that most of the enemy''s forces had no choice but to address it, giving both of my forces over here a quick respite.

    The red lights near the base of the obelisk disappeared, and in its place the obelisk began to move backward toward the city''s center. It was moving at a slow pace, but the fact that it was moving period was creepy enough. Why don''t they pull it back into the sky like they did earlier?

    On the right side of the city I could see the skeletons quickly plowing through the barricades. One of the buses that was turned sideways completely tipped over as they began to scale it. Since most of the soldiers were focused on that side, a hail of bullets was ripping into them, but the amount of forces I had on that side was well past a thousand, so they were barely stemming the tide.

    It''s like a stampede over there. That''s what they get for completely ignoring that part of the city. That Lich had free reign to build a full force. They did summon two obelisks but it was too little too late. The Ghoraks may have killed a lot in return before dying, but again, it was a mere pittance compared to what had already been amassed over there.

    Another familiar and still frightening sound echoed out again. I looked up and saw a massive fireball descending on the area where a large portion of my right-side forces were blasting past the barricade and attacking the soldiers. The Tengu fired off another set of magic arrows at it in response, and while he did prevent it from hitting the ground again, the explosion was still too close to the ground. I felt over four hundred of my skeletons vanish as the sounds of fifty or so soldiers being burned to a crisp played out through the panels. The screams they made sounded closer to pigs squealing which managed to disturb even me.

    But my attention was quickly focused on something else. The Tengu fell to one knee behind the half-destroyed building he had been battling behind for most of the siege. I enhanced the Hawk''s vision and saw that he was heavily bleeding from his ankles and legs.

    Shit! The damage from those fucking Geists added up faster than I expected. Past the initial thirty who attacked him, there has been a steady stream of them pouring out of a building near the wall about four streets away from him. I don''t know where they''re coming from but I figured they had to stop coming out at some point. Except even now the fuckers are still exiting that building... Lich! With the forces we lost on the right side, we should have the leeway with our mana to kill them. So please, if you will.

    The Lich began to cast the ancient spell from earlier, but he had barely begun casting when something smashed into the Tengu from behind, propelling him straight into the half-destroyed building. As the building collapsed on top of him, I looked in the direction of the blast, but I already had an idea of what I was going to find.

    God damnit... Why did he have to appear now?! Did Viktor leave the portal unguarded...?

    The Hawk''s vision focused on a singular entity surrounded by a few dozen robed creatures I thought I wouldn''t have to deal with again so soon. They all fanned out, heading for different parts of the city as the God of Casters charged up another spell. This one, just like the last, was aimed directly at the Tengu.

 Chapter 65 - Get em for me next time...

    "Rei, look there," Shana said, pointing at a man standing on top of the largest building in the city.

    I zoomed the vision in until it fully reflected the man standing there. It was Viktor, yelling into his radio while looking out toward the left side of the city.

    He''s obviously telling his men about the God of Casters showing up. Although from Viktor''s point of view, he''s just an unknown entity. Or maybe Viktor is asking about the status of his men guarding the portal? If the Tengu abandoned it to help us, and then the Caster God came through it soon after, then... Actually, wouldn''t they still be able to handle him? They had a shitload of men with powerful guns and cannon turrets. I suppose it depends on whether the God is stronger than the last time I saw him. The fact that his minions survived the portal area is even more surprising though. So maybe Viktor really did leave the place unguarded...

    While I was ordering my skeletons on the left side to attack the Geists and God, I could see one of the casters float onto the building Viktor was on. Oh? Most of them are attacking my skeletons but this one must have been curious of the strange aura Viktor always gives off. Mine is already weird enough, but his is on another level.

    Much to my surprise, the Xerath in the sky launched his next attack, and this one was aimed at the God. The God canceled his attack but I didn''t see what he did next as the fireball had landed and engulfed the entire area.

    "Markus said that we should move now. Your right side is doing great but with that caster cunt showing up and that creature in the sky, he says we should take our chances and just flee right now." Shana said.

    "Hmm... I feel like I could kill the obelisks near the building they''re in, but I can''t deny that there are way too many unknown factors at play right now. And we don''t even know if the Caster God is the only one who is going to show up."

    Shana sighed, "Right... But okay, I''m leading Markus and Ishar to the storage area."

    Almost immediately I could see Viktor whip his head in the direction of ''City Hall''. A name I only learned a moment ago thanks to one of the soldiers yelling at his men to retreat to ''City Hall''. He said something into his radio before putting it away and turning his attention toward the caster who had just finished creating a javelin made of green fire. Wasn''t the place I had to rescue Godwin''s family and Markus from also called ''City Hall''? I don''t even know what the fuck a City Hall is, but apparently I''m destined to assault them.

    "Shana, Viktor already knows that you''re on the move. I had assumed it beforehand, but he''s definitely tuned into the obelisks, so he knows exactly where you are and where you''re going."

    I glanced back and saw her clone relaying what I just said to the others as they ran down a long flight of steps. The information was met with multiple curses and expletives from Markus.

    Looking back at Viktor, I saw the caster burning to death. He was engulfed in a green flame of course, and it wasn''t hard to guess how that happened. I could still see Viktor''s reflective ability, although it was fading now that it had served its purpose. Viktor yet again looked toward City Hall and began to yell into his radio. Not long after that I could see most of his men engaging my skeletons begin to backpedal. Alright, all or nothing time...

    Lich on the left, do everything you can to help the Tengu retreat. Lich on the right, full buffs and push as hard as you can. I know that''s unsustainable, but we need to kill as many of them as we can right now.

    Half of the skeletons on the left engaged the Geists while the other half engaged the casters who were preparing to attack the Tengu. For his part, the Tengu was finally dragging himself out from underneath the building, but it wasn''t looking good. His left arm had been completely crushed and was covered in blood. And thanks to the damage the Geists had done, his legs weren''t looking any better. Please don''t die here... The amount of help we''ve received from that Lord is immense. It would eat away at me for the rest of my life if we couldn''t return the favor.

    On the right side, my Lich had finished casting his speed buff that hit every single unit, which chunked our mana down by half. It was necessary though. The buff aside, they were already pushing past the defensive lines the enemy had carved out, and thanks to that, a lot of my skeletons were now armed. Between the speed buff and ranged firepower, the backpedaling of the soldiers came to a halt. They had no choice but to dig in and try to entrench themselves, but it wasn''t going all that well for them.

    After all, the Lich on the right is now using mana to enhance the skeletons in the front, which is honestly ridiculous. Let''s just say we were numerically at one thousand mana before the buff, which reduced us to five hundred. There are still skeletons killing people and taking their souls, but that''s only gaining us about one hundred a minute.

    Meanwhile, the damage from the bullets is draining more than triple that and it''s only protecting them from a few hits before the bullets begin to pierce them. Freshly summoned skeletons can only handle so much mana. However, even that little bit of defense is giving the horde much more room to advance. They''re running toward City Hall from three different streets behind it, and they''re only two blocks away at this point.

    You need to drop the enhancements if you can''t kill them in the next minute!

    Instead of affirming, the Lich sped past the group he was with and quickly grabbed two soldiers by the throat, lifting them high into the air as their flesh melted away. It only took a few moments for him to turn those live soldiers into skeletons, and once he was done, he threw them both at a soldier manning the gun on top of one of the armored vehicles. They immediately chomped down hard on the man''s throat until his enhancements gave out. Once he was dead they tossed his body outside and crawled into the vehicle. Men came running out of it while shooting into the vehicle but the Lich was on top of them instantly. Those two were also turned into skeletons that he quickly tossed at another group of soldiers.

    He was taking heavy fire and had already lost his left leg and arm, but that didn''t stop him. He floated over to the driver''s seat and sat down, closing the door behind him. One skeleton manned the gun up top while another fired out of the side door. The Lich turned the vehicle around and floored it, plowing through the barricade at the end of the street and running over dozens of soldiers in the process. At first I wondered where he was planning on going, but then he turned several times, coming ever closer to a specific building.

    "Oh shit, Shana! Where is that delivery window at? I have a Lich that''s coming to pick you up but I don''t know if it''s on the left or right side. Or maybe the back of the building?"

    "Left side! We just reached the storage area. There were a few groups of men we had to kill and Seifer was shot a few times, but at least it shut him up."

    For her to say that in this situation, he must have been saying some really odd shit.

    Out of the corner of my eye I saw something smash into Viktor, sending him and a large chunk of the building flying through the air. I could see a look of pure rage on Viktor''s face as he glared down at something. I lost sight of him soon after that thanks to him warping away, so I turned the Hawk''s vision toward his attacker. Which was, unsurprisingly, the Caster God. My skeletons on that end were keeping the casters at bay by shooting at them sparingly which was forcing them to keep their shields up, but ammo was rather limited on that side thanks to Viktor destroying that weapon cache I found.

    They can''t keep that up for much longer, and the Tengu can only move when his wings are filled with enough ether to fly for a little bit. He''s barely made it twenty blocks in my direction... I told the Lich to tell him where we were so he knew where to go, and since he''s coming this way I assume the Lich was able to transmit that to him. But this is nowhere near fast enough...

    The Lich on the left had just finished descending into the building that''s been pumping out Geists nonstop. The skeletons that were still buffed with that ancient spell from earlier were with him, and I could see that they were engaging even more Geists down below. The area was dark and filled with smoke but I could see orange lights brightening and dimming to the rhythm of a vaguely familiar pulsating sound. Wait, I remember these lights and that sound... This area is filled with objects that operate like those monuments in Viseux.

    My units down there were slowly dwindling even with the buffs thanks to how much damage the Geists can inflict, but once my units were close to the devices creating them, it was all over. Any Geist forming was killed before it could even move. What happened next though really surprised me. When the Lich and skeletons began to attack the mini-monuments(they were lying down sideways and much smaller than the ones in Viseux) they began to screech. It was so loud that I felt Shana jump in surprise behind me.

    "What is that?!" She yelled.

    "More objects like those obelisks, except these are spitting out endless amounts of Geists."

    No point in paying attention to that group. At this point they just need to finish the job and return to help the Tengu.

    The Lich, apparently having heard my inner thoughts, left the basement alone, leaving the cleanup to the skeletons. He floated back to the ground level and headed straight for the God. Along the way I heard one of the casters point and yell something at him. Whoa, I understood him that time? Is it because of the Lich? The caster said ''Destroy the spawn of darkness!''.

    The God merely glanced at him before returning to his current task, which was charging up another blast to hit the Tengu with. The Tengu was waiting for it with his staff in front of him, but only his right arm was working, so I knew it barely served as a stopgap.

    "Rei, we''re in!"

    I glanced back and saw the Lich in the driver''s seat gun it again. The front side of City Hall still had hundreds of soldiers and dozens of Xerath on standby there the last time I looked, but now they were all running down the street toward the vehicle.

    What the hell? Did they really not expect us to leave through the basement? There are no windows on the sides or back of the building, so apparently they thought we''d have to go through the front. I''d bet the building is magically fortified then... Because otherwise they''d have to be dumb as hell to believe we wouldn''t just blow open a hole in the wall, and Viktor is definitely not that dumb. I''ve only known a handful of buildings that were fortified in a way that made destroying it extremely difficult. Long ago I had asked Viktor how it was done but he never did answer me. That''s also how I knew those cells back in Veca couldn''t be destroyed. I had encountered them several other times in the past.

    Two golden lights flew down from the top of City Hall and hit the end of the street in front of the Lich''s vehicle before erupting into a massive golden wall of energy. Everyone filed out of the vehicle and ran into the building across the street from City Hall. The Lich and two skeletons stayed behind, however. The Lich parked near the energy field and grabbed two large pistols from the cache(He used his right foot to grab the other one). He and the two skeletons unloaded on the tidal wave of enemies approaching their destination. Most of them broke off to chase after Markus'' group, but two Ghoraks and six Shoths ran straight for the vehicle.

    The manned turret up top or maybe the oversized pistols packed a heavy punch, because surprisingly, they managed to bring down one of the Ghoraks and two Shoths before they reached the vehicle, but the battle was over pretty quickly after that. Before he died the Lich removed the enhancements from the remaining skeletons on that side and sent all of the mana he was storing to the other Lich.

    For the most part my skeletons on the right side had killed all of the soldiers and devoured their souls, but because the Lich had driven away and died, there was no one left to replenish their forces, so they were down to a few hundred now. I told them to chase after Markus as best they could.

    I couldn''t see it directly, but the Ghoraks were quite literally just plowing through buildings at their normal running speed. Thanks to this, they were gaining ground on the group while creating a path for those following behind them. And there are dozens of armored vehicles pulling around to different streets on this side in preparation to cut them off. This shit just keeps getting worse...

    The Xerath in the sky launched another fireball at my remaining skeletons on the right side, but they weren''t stuck in combat this time so they had plenty of time to run away. Except that did delay them from catching up to Markus damnit. Then, something I hadn''t seen in a while began to appear again. Red lightning bolts shot out all over the city. The Draugr were of course engaging my skeletons again, but they were also appearing near the casters and the God en masse. My skeletons on the left side had just run out of ammo so the Draugr appearing over there was almost a form of reinforcement. Even if they are attacking me too, they''re also forcing the casters to keep their barriers up.

    The skeletons that were killing the Geist monuments underground had finally finished and were coming back to help the Lich. For his part, the Lich had his bony fingers wrapped around the Caster God''s throat. He was using the ability that drains living things of all their biologicals that are then repurposed as sustenance to form a skeleton, and while it wasn''t killing the God, it was making it difficult for him to maintain his channel. Apparently the God thought he could ignore the Lich and focus on killing the Tengu, which led him to this miserable situation where he couldn''t do anything.

    Through the Lich I could feel the God trying to move his soul, but the Lich was locking him down. Ahh, the fucker is trying to warp away. A little too late for that asshole. You should''ve done that before the Lich grabbed you. The God turned his head one hundred and eighty degrees and stared at the Lich in the same way he had at me before. But if he was trying to mess with my soul fragment inside of the Lich, I didn''t sense anything. Instead, the God just stared at him as a strong surge of mana built up inside of him. Alright, what is he doing this time...?

    The amount of mana inside of the God kept rising and rising until an orange aura appeared around him. The Lich tried pulling his hands away, but his fingers were stuck to the God''s neck. It was almost as if they had been molded into his neck. The Lich ordered the nearby skeletons to break his arms off while he attempted to do the same thing with his feet, but the orange aura extended out and wrapped around his arms, apparently making them much more durable in the process.

    As the aura wrapped around the Lich''s entire frame, I could feel him quickly send my soul fragment back to me while sending most of the energy to all of the remaining skeletons. It was more than we could handle so I forced all of the skeletons to enhance themselves as much as they could before giving one last order to them.

    From there the orange aura flared up until a massive explosion erupted around the God, incinerating everything around it(including three casters) while blasting my units back the way they came. And that''s it for them... Continuing to feed the skeletons is only going to unnecessarily drain me. And most of the civilians who didn''t flee when the emergency broadcast went out are already dead. So there''s not much ''fuel'' left in the city for them now.

    After watching the blast to see how far out it extended, I took back the pieces of my soul embedded in all of my units and turned to look over Shana''s shoulder.

    "Shana! How''s your situation? I lost both of my Liches and took my soul fragments back from the remaining skeletons. They should obey my last orders which were for the group on the right to support you guys, and the ones on the left to try and help the Tengu escape. I don''t know what they can really do against that God though."

    "Not good... Let me focus."

    A few dozen skeletons were clinging onto the two Ghoraks. They were trying to bite through their defenses while the group made a last stand in a medium-sized dining hall. Markus was finally putting his shield to use as he parried one Ghorak punch after another, but the durability on his shield was dropping drastically with each hit, and it was clear that his mana was getting dangerously low too. Ishar had found a spear at some point and managed to kill one of the Ghoraks after the skeletons finally broke through its defense. He shouted at it and stabbed it in its chest a dozen times, which led to the creature falling over dead after the stun wore off.

    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    But that one was quickly replaced by the other Ghorak and now all of the other units who were chasing them were surrounding the party through other parts of the building and the outside. Seifer was dealing with the Shoths who were trying to enter through another hole in the wall they created. Despite his zombified state, he was taking care of them with ease. I forgot how good of a fighter he was. And what is with that scythe he uses? It''s cutting through the Shoths as if they were paper.

    It got worse than that though. Through their vision and the Hawks, I could see why they were unable to advance further. All of the armored vehicles and over a few hundred men were waiting for them to blast through the wall. Shana''s ''focus'' involved digging underground, which she was doing at a pretty fast rate with her two clones, but unless she found a tunnel or cavern to drop into, I didn''t have much faith that the party was going to survive.

    "Shana, I''m leaving the soul realm and coming to help. So be prepared."

    Shana nodded as I pulled both her and me out of my soul realm. She immediately swapped to controlling her units through her own mind. I opened the door leading to the hotel and closed it behind me just in case before running through the tunnel and up the stairs. Once on the ground level I jumped through a nearby window and began to run toward the right side of the city. I closed my right eye and tried to focus on the Hawk, but since I wasn''t used to doing that it kept popping out of focus.

    However, I did see Viktor unleashing a large volley of golden lights down onto the Caster God. Apparently he had left his men to deal with our group while he attempted to kill the God, who was still an unknown entity to him. And he has good reason to believe his men will succeed. Even I think that our situation looks dire.

    The Caster God had finally finished channeling his spell from earlier but instead of attacking the Tengu, he fired it at Viktor, who appeared to dodge it by warping to another rooftop, except the invisible blast smashed into him from the direction of the rooftop he had just warped from. Shit, is that spell of his homing? That would explain why he was able to hit the Tengu from so far away back in the Abyss...

    As much as I wanted to see who would win that showdown, I was closing in on the soldiers, so I purely focused my attention on them. I turned invisible and snuck up to the group furthest to the right. They had parked their vehicle next to a barricade and were aiming over it. Once I was directly behind them I removed my veil and activated the halo, charging it to the max. It took a few seconds so the soldiers had time to react, which led to a few of them screaming hysterically as their whole unit opened fire on me.

    I hit the deck on all fours and spun my whole body to the right while extending my left foot out, sweeping the four men''s feet out from underneath them. As they fell down I quickly stood up and punched each of them in the chest with all of my might. Despite their enhancements, I could feel their sternums rupture into pieces. Blood shot out of their mouths at the same time, probably because their hearts had all been eviscerated.

    The driver tried to pull away but by the time he switched gears I had already swung around the vehicle and crushed his throat. He gurgled while clutching his throat as I threw him out of the vehicle. I hopped into the driver''s seat and closed the door before flooring it. By now I was taking heavy fire, which was all centered on the glass, as the soldiers already knew that hitting the vehicle itself was pointless.

    The glass ruptured before I reached the building and I was also hit with a few bullets before I blasted past the soldiers and pulled alongside the building my friends were in. I honked the horn and barely two seconds later Ishar blasted through the wall. He fumbled around with the door before yelling behind him, "HOW THE FUCK DO YOU OPEN THIS THING?!"

    Shana''s clones came out next and opened both the passenger door and the side door. Ishar jumped in with the artifact as the clones ran back into the building. Seifer and Markus ran through the hole in the wall and jumped inside next. Markus sat in the passenger seat with Seifer sitting next to Ishar and the artifact. They closed the doors as I floored it. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Shana''s clones doing that weird pose I saw back during the Kellog Tengu battle. She was projecting a shockingly pretty barrier which was keeping the remaining Shoths and soldiers at bay.

    "Where are we heading?!" Markus yelled as I turned left.

    "Out of the city! Fuck if I know where we should be heading past that. Ideas?"

    "T-The border..." Seifer said, but I could barely hear him over the hail of bullets hitting the vehicle.

    Markus looked at him, "Where is that?! North?!"

    "OBVIOUSLY!" Seifer yelled.

    As we drove into the open area the airship had destroyed earlier, I could see the Tengu stumbling forward. Between that and his wings, he was still moving faster than us, and I could also see that all of the ninjas were clinging to him again. I''m glad to see that they survived... And they''re probably infusing him with whatever mana they have left. Which is something he desperately needs right now.

    "Fucking cunts, the whole damn horde is following us." Ishar paused then continued, "This isn''t going to work. That Viktor asshole is just going to blast us and then we''ll have to deal with him and all of the soldiers following us. I''m surprised he hasn''t already done that..."

    Markus looked back at him, "I''m worried about the same thing. Think we should try and kill them at those buildings up ahead?"

    "I do. Rei?" Ishar asked.

    "That''s the only option. And I''m assuming none of you know about his abilities yet since you were all trapped inside that cell during the battle."

    "Shana already told us," Markus said.

    Oh right, her clone was there too... That makes this easier then.

    I pulled up to the hole in the hotel wall and Shana ran out of it. Seifer pulled the door open for her but before she could jump inside, the vehicle began to violently shake. Shana jumped back and yelled for us to get out as the vehicle started to close in around us. It looked like we were in a can that was being crushed.

    We all jumped out of the vehicle mere seconds before it compacted into a cube.

    "Did you really think you were going to escape?" A guttural voice said.

    I looked up at the second floor of the hotel and saw a werewolf in power armor resting his arms against the windowsill. He was looking down at us with a completely passive face, as if none of this mattered to him. I''ve seen him before... He was inside the portal room behind Jericho yelling at those workers.

    "It''s you!" Ishar yelled as the armored vehicles fanned out behind us, with most of them taking up positions near the destroyed chemical plant.

    "Hmm?" The werewolf looked at Ishar. "You''re... Oh! Hahahaha I remember you now!! Thanks for the spear buddy!"

    The werewolf reached for something next to him and then held it outside the window. It was the artifact spear Ishar used to wield.

    An orange light appeared from my left that was so bright it blinded me, and I heard an explosion soon after that. When the light faded to the point I could see again, I saw the remains of the Tengu lying there. He and the ninjas on him had been completely eviscerated. I looked up and saw another airship, except this one was much larger than the ship from earlier.

    "Well I''ll be damned. I knew he was hurting, but I wasn''t sure if it''d actually kill him, ya know? All of those fucking birds should be eliminated... ''Righteous Tengu'' my ass." The werewolf said.

    "How do you like it, Rei?" Viktor said from behind me. I turned around and saw him dusting himself off. He was bleeding from his mouth and looked like he was missing a few fingers. The rage I felt for him in that moment far surmounted anything I had felt up until this point. "That''s my pride and joy right there. It has a railgun far more powerful and faster than the one you saw earlier. I was actually visiting the nearby city with it when I got the call that my daughter had been found. And as you can see, soon after our meeting I requested it to come here and reinforce Xethra."

    The werewolf looked at him agape, "Shit, you alright boss?! The hell happened to---"

    I activated my halo and leaped at Viktor before it had fully charged. His eyes widened in surprise as I grabbed his throat and pushed him to the ground. I was squeezing as hard as I could, but his enhancements were holding out well. I pulled my right hand back in preparation to smash it into his chest, just like I did to his men earlier, but my left arm from the elbow down was completely blown off, which allowed Viktor to slip out from underneath me. What the fuck?! My arm was enhanced! How did...

    I looked to my left and saw a familiar looking guard. The one in power armor inside the hotel. The last time I saw him he was stunned by Ishar and unable to move as we fled the hotel.

    "Ha! You seem surprised girl!" The werewolf slapped the windowsill while laughing. "Interesting ability he has, eh?"

    Viktor stood up while rubbing his throat. "God damn, Rei. That was close... I guess you haven''t just been sitting around relaxing these past fifty years. A halo doesn''t really fit you, but eh, you certainly scared the hell out of me thanks to it. You were so fast that I wasn''t able to warp away in time."

    Markus and Shana''s clones ran out from inside the hotel, heading straight for the man who cut my arm off.

    The werewolf howled with laughter again. "There we go, that''s the spirit! Let''s get this party started!!" He jumped out of the window and immediately Ishar hit him with a shout. The werewolf froze and landed face-first into the cubed vehicle. Apparently Ishar had caught him before he had time to enhance, as a lot of blood spurt out of the werewolf''s mouth the second he hit the cube. I saw several teeth fall out of his mouth as he rolled to the side.

    "FUCKING COCKSUCKERRRRR!!" The werewolf yelled as he glared at Ishar. For his part, Ishar had already reclaimed his spear and was jumping at him. In a panic, the werewolf rolled to the side and was struggling to get to his feet as Ishar''s attacks ramped up in speed.

    "Shit, shit, shit!!" The werewolf yelled as he dodged some blows while eating a few others. One of the attacks stuck right into the werewolf''s left pauldron, and Ishar somehow used that to rip all of the armor off of his left arm. "Wha?!"

    I bent down in preparation to dash at the werewolf, when Shana''s clones suddenly disappeared. I was still watching the battle over there out of the corner of my eye, so I knew it was nothing the guard had done, and just one look at his face was proof enough. He was looking around in confusion and worry, thinking maybe she was going to ambush him from the shadows. Markus was also confused but he used this moment to attack the guard again.

    While those two restarted their battle, I looked toward the hotel, and what I saw froze my already lifeless blood. Seifer was standing there mumbling something with a horrified look on his face. There was blood all over his scythe and I could see one of Shana''s arms laying on the floor, poking out from behind the broken wall. Blood was slowly pooling out around it. Did... He...?

    "What the hell...?" Viktor said from behind me. He sounded almost just as stunned as I was. "The fuck kind of company are you keeping, Rei? And why did you even rescue that freak? I saw his rap sheet while I was in City Hall. He was indiscriminately killing people in one of my towns for months. It wasn''t just adults either. He was killing plenty of kids as well..."

    I blitzed toward the hotel, knocking the werewolf out of the way as I went. Seifer saw me coming and leaped out of the hotel while swinging his scythe at me. I stopped and kicked backward a little to dodge the attack. A fury like no other lit up in Seifer''s eyes as he looked at me. "You... Right, it was you..."

    I didn''t hear a thing he was saying, I only cared about one thing, reaching Shana. I tried circling around him but he backed up to the hole in the wall and stared at me with his weapon at the ready.

    I moved toward the right, planning to blast the wall down and get to Shana that way, but I stopped halfway when I realized if she was still alive, then she wouldn''t be enhanced at all, so that option was out. If it was just drywall then it wouldn''t be an issue, but I remembered that there was a heavy suit of armor standing by that end of the room. If I knocked that onto her right now it could be deadly.

    I looked up at the second floor and prepared to jump up there, but when Seifer saw that he turned and prepared to attack Shana again. With the halo at max, I dashed straight for him. Seifer changed the directory of his attack toward me, which I was able to mostly dodge, but a large cut opened up from my jaw all the way to above my ear. Even with my super-diluted pain sensors, I still felt a tinge of pain, which meant that it was a much more dire wound than I had originally thought, but I had no time to worry about it.

    With my remaining arm I punched hard into Seifer''s exposed ribs, sending him flying through both the hallway wall and the wall into the adjacent room. Immediately I turned toward Shana, praying that she had only lost an arm, but...

    .........

    Just like back in Xelba when I lost my friends. I could feel my emotions freezing. The overwhelming sadness and disgust I was feeling at that moment were shut down and replaced with a feeling of pure emptiness.

    "... I''m beginning to think fate really does exist. For me to see that look on your face twice in my life..." Viktor said, but I wasn''t listening to anything he said.

    ... Ishar. He''s still alive.

    I glanced further into the hotel but couldn''t see Seifer. It appeared that he had fled out the back window. With him gone, I turned my attention toward the werewolf. Although to my surprise it wasn''t just him. Markus had died at some point during my scuffle with Seifer. He was cut in two, straight through his armor. Probably by the same ability that removed my left arm. And as a result, Ishar was fighting one versus two. He was doing quite well too. The werewolf had been half-stripped of his shoddy power armor and he was bleeding profusely, while the other guard was missing a hand. Although I wasn''t sure if that was Markus''s or Ishar''s doing.

    I charged toward the one-handed guard, but a large yellow light appeared on the guard''s torso, right where I was aiming. I knew better than to try and adjust the attack, so I stopped and pivoted toward the werewolf. I had barely moved a few feet when a large explosion occurred behind me, leaving a massive golden wall in its wake.

    "You didn''t think I was just going to watch, did you? And as fun as this reunion has been, I need to wrap it up. There is a lot of work I need to do after this. All thanks to you, of course." Viktor said.

    Now that his counter ability was on cooldown, I knew he''d be forced to warp away, but that would only give us a few minutes of reprieve. Even so, it was more than the zero we currently had, so I jumped over the werewolf and brought my heel down toward Viktor''s head.

    Despite already seeing my speed several times up until this point, his eyes still widened a little in surprise before he warped away. I immediately turned around with the intention of killing the two guards and dragging Ishar into one of the vehicles behind us. It wasn''t a very good plan, but at this point, there wasn''t much else I could do, outside of stealing one of those airships for myself. But they were far too high in the air for us to jump up to.

    "Heh, have fun you two!" The werewolf said before him and the other guard completely vanished. What...?

    Their actions were surprising until I heard something above us. I looked up and saw an orange glow below both of the airships. My first thought was to run to the underground VIP area, but I vividly remembered the railgun blowing up the underground earlier, and one of these airships had a much larger version of it. I turned and saw that the vehicles near the destroyed chemical plant had already driven far away into the distance.

    Ishar sighed, "Well... I think we''re fucked." He sat down and rested his spear over his shoulder. "God damnit all, I wanted to see my girl one last time... And I was going to introduce you and the ninja back there to her as well."

    He looked up at the airships, "Oh well... At least I got to fuck those two up before I died."

    I sat next to him and chuckled, "True... It looked like you were handling them alone with ease."

    "That''s because of my shout. I mean shit, normally it''s amazing, ya know? But remember when I hit that guy in the hotel and you pushed him out of the way so you could attack Viktor? He never got back up, did he?"

    "That''s right... But your shouts don''t last that long? And yet he just kept lying there with a weird look on his face."

    Ishar laughed, "That''s because my shout fucks up their suits. I learned that during our fight. I don''t know why, but thanks to that I was able to have one hell of a fun last batt---"

    An orange light engulfed us, and everything went white. It felt like ten minutes but it was probably only a few minutes later when everything settled. I was barely alive, and my core was severely damaged. I would need weeks to repair it. Weeks I didn''t have.

    "Well I''ll be... The fuckers are alive. God damn, color me impressed!" Said the werewolf.

    "The Crotian surprises me, but..." Viktor trailed off before looking down at me and sighing.

    "We killing them, sir?" The nameless guard asked.

    Viktor pointed two fingers at me, "We are."

    He held them there for a while as several different emotions fluttered over his face. He eventually just stared at me, his face filled with sadness. "God damnit, Rei..." He said that and put his fingers down before sitting next to me.

    The werewolf looked at the other guard and shrugged. I watched as the werewolf walked over and picked up Ishar''s artifact spear. Ishar for his part was more intact than I was, but he couldn''t move, as he was still a mortal at the end of the day.

    The werewolf lifted the spear in preparation to finish him. At that moment Ishar looked over at me and smiled, "Get ''em for me next time, yeah?"

    The werewolf dropped the spear, sticking it right into his heart. I could feel Ishar''s soul begin to decouple from here as his eyes glazed over.

    "What the fuck did that mean? Is he stupid? Does he think she still has a chance to survive this?" The werewolf said.

    Viktor looked at me, "It wouldn''t surprise me if she did. I dropped a whole city on her and she still managed to survive somehow..." He stared at me silently for a while as the two guards patiently waited nearby.

    "... I didn''t kill your friends back in Xelba, Rei. The nobles had the Eldritch Lords activate their curses, which severely weakened them. By the time I found out about it already half of your unit had been sacrificed. I... Admit, I may have frozen up the moment I arrived at the temple, unsure of what to do next. The answer is obvious to me now, I should have saved them and used that incident to crush the nobles and the Lords. But..."

    Viktor sighed, "I guess it doesn''t matter anymore. But over the years I''d sometimes remember a girl with white hair and red eyes who just wanted to escape to Gaia with my brother and her friends. I should''ve just let you all go. But I... I needed your help. Things were really dangerous back then thanks to the Demons and Lords watching my every move... And I was also..."

    He went silent again, watching his airship for a few dozen seconds before continuing, "I''m saying all of this for my own sake, obviously. I felt bad about what happened back then, but the second I saw you here with my daughter in the same room, I knew it was impossible to reconcile with you. After all, I had seen what you did to your enemies back in Xelba. And then you attacked the whole fucking capital with an army of skeletons just to get at me. You''re too dangerous to let live, Rei... So I''m sorry, but I need you to die for real this time."

    Viktor stood up and began to walk away. He only stopped once to say one thing over his shoulder, "... I know there isn''t an afterlife thanks to Meiza''thul, but if you do see my brother again. Tell him I''m sorry."

    Wasting no time, the werewolf walked over and stabbed my core. I was still alive which made him quirk and eyebrow and mumble something about me being a freak. He repeatedly stabbed me after that for what felt like several minutes. The next thing I knew I was inside of a deep hole in the ground.

    .........

    I stood up and crawled up the side of the dirt, ripping through the threads covering the hole as I reached the top. Above ground the world was dark, and fires were running rampant in all directions far off in the distance. The sounds of gunfire, explosions, and all sorts of other horrific shit could be heard from many miles away as well.

    My mind was filled with only two images. Shana''s corpse and Ishar''s smile as he said his last words. I walked over toward a nearby lake, crushing several Xerath-plants with my hands that had tried to attack me along the way.

    I found a duck covered in oil near the lake and picked him up, placing him in my lap as I sat down.

    "Hey there, little buddy... You''re all alone too, huh...?"

    The duck didn''t react, as it couldn''t even open its eyes. More gunfire, explosions, and yelling could be heard from far ahead of me.

    I pulled some mesh out and heated it up before wrapping it around the duck. I held it tight and closed my eyes as a few tears rolled down my cheeks. I stayed like that, unmoving, as the sound of battles continued to rage on in the distance.

 Chapter 66 - A World on Fire

    ... So annoying.

    I could sense three little souls behind me. They''ve been hiding for a while now, just watching me. I''ve been waiting for them to make a move so I could just kill them and be done with it, but they''re being cautious apparently. Smart, but annoying. I don''t want to deal with anyone else right now damnit...

    About five minutes later they finally began to approach me, but it was nowhere near the blitz attack I was waiting for. Instead, they lazily circled around me before stopping five feet in front of me.

    All three of the little people with wings pointed behind me.

    "This way!"

    "This way!"

    "This way!" They said in unison.

    "... I don''t know what game you''re playing, but fuck off. I don''t want any company right now." I looked at the duck, "Besides this little guy of course..."

    From what I can tell, the heated mesh is helping the duck, but it really needs first aid of some kind. The problem is that I don''t know how to heal others, especially animals. Normally you infuse your mana into someone else''s soul so they can heal themselves, but most animals don''t know how to do that...

    "Please?"

    "Please?"

    "Please?"

    ... I would''ve been so happy to meet these creatures when I was a little girl. My favorite character in a cartoon I used to watch was a fairy. They''re based in Termia, but the God was never shown on TV or in photos, so I don''t know what she looks like.

    I looked at the Fairies.

    Termia... So that means I''m near Aresa and the others. I really want to see her right now... And I need to ask Euphemia about her psychotic little freak of a steward. Did she know that there was a chance he could attack us? She sure as hell didn''t warn us about that when we were helping her in Kellog. And because of that, Shan---

    I was unable to even finish that thought as an overwhelming urge to cry hit me again. I wanted to close my eyes and let it all out, but I didn''t want to lose vision of the fairies. The fairies saw this and looked huddled together in a group. I stared at them and tried to remember everything I remembered of Termia.

    Termia was ''The life of Aetheria'', or so I saw it said on TV. My family traded with them a lot too. The nation covers a large area but their capital is a coastal city where a massive amount of the trade on Aetheria is facilitated. The Eldritch God of fairies, and... Another Eldritch? I don''t remember what it was, but those two look over Termia. The problem is that I haven''t heard about Termia since talking to Alicia, and the topic of fairies never even came up, so I don''t know if these creatures are still the guardians of this region. And even if they are, it''s pretty evident that they''re failing miserably at their job...

    I looked around at the landscape. The ground was fully corrupted in Xerathian filth. I could see multiple Xerathian creatures growing out of the earth spread out in all directions. A few of the nearby ones were staring at the fairies. Watching and waiting to strike at them in the event they were stupid enough to come close enough to be eaten.

    Muzzle flashes from guns are lighting up everywhere in the distance too. Between the Xerathian landscape, fires, explosions, and all this fucking oil, it''s not hard to guess what happened here.

    The fairies, who had been huddling together and whispering something back and forth, suddenly flew within one foot of the duck and pointed at it.

    "We help!" They said in unison.

    "............."

    I looked at the duck. Ishar and Shana flashed through my mind once again, causing me to wince. I shook my head back and forth before glaring at the fairies.

    "... Fine. Lead the way."

    They obviously want something from me, and this is a good opportunity for me as well. I need to know where the capital of Termia is. I don''t remember the name of the capital, but that shouldn''t matter.

    The three fairies began to shine brightly as they smiled at one another. They flew over my shoulder while motioning for me to follow them. I stood up and walked behind them while cradling the duck. On the way one of the fairies was almost devoured from a Xerathian plant as it snapped out from inside of a bush. The only thing that saved her was me. I smacked the stupid plant right into the ground before crushing it with my heel.

    "So strong!" She said as she landed on my shoulder.

    It''s just a plant... I thought fairies were supposed to be strong? I swear they had powerful spells at their disposal. Although this does tell me the level of Xerath around here. If they''re only at the small plant level, then either the God isn''t all that strong yet, or we''re near a new hive.

    <hr>

    We walked like that for about twenty minutes before reaching a massive mound made out of rock. The fairies didn''t stop though, they flew right through it as if the rock didn''t exist.

    "You too! I''m here, we can go together." The one on my shoulder said.

    So I couldn''t get in without her? But even if this place is reinforced, once the Xerath locates it, it won''t protect them forever. They will get in eventually.

    I walked through the wall of rock, finding myself in a rocky tunnel. Surprisingly, the walls were luminous. I could see everything perfectly as I made my way forward. It didn''t take long for us to reach our destination, which turned out to be a massive cavern full of different ponds. There were fairies everywhere, including a few human-sized ones. Those are the Lords... I don''t know anything about them. They weren''t in the cartoons.

    "A visitor...?"

    "New person!"

    "Too white!"

    The fairy on my shoulder pointed toward a small pond. "That one! Take duck there. We go tell Mother that we succeeded!" She flew off with the other two toward an area elevated in the distance.

    I carried the duck over to the other side of the pond and sat down in the water. Immediately I could feel something covering my veil. Normally this would make me flee, but my veil gave way on its own, allowing the foreign mana to invade my core. I could feel something warm infuse me as my own mana increased by a large amount, far surpassing my max, except it wasn''t disappearing like it normally would. Ahh, this place reinforces you and cleanses your soul. I didn''t know fairies had something like this, but it''s good to know it exists. A place like this will be a massive lifesaver if I have to survive in this hellish landscape.

    I lowered the duck into the pristine water. As I was cleaning it off, one of the Lords walked over to me and kneeled down. "Mother will be here shortly. Your arrival was quite the surprise for her! So she''s trying to wrap her current business up as fast as she can."

    "Do you know what she wants with me?"

    The girl''s smile widened, "You''ll find out shortly! Do not worry. She''s very happy to finally meet you."

    Finally meet you... Did Aresa or Euphemia tell her about me? I don''t even know how long I''ve been dead though. She might''ve heard about me ages ago, and who knows if the others are even...

    I shook my head again before forcibly emptying my mind. I focused on cleaning the duck, which was going about as well as I had expected, given the nature of this place. The duck had already opened its eyes and was looking around. I could feel it shaking, either from its body just coming back from its near-death state, or from fear. Either way, it was now dipping its mouth in the water and drinking, which put a smile on my face.

    "What do these things eat?"

    The Fairy Lord chuckled, "Wait a moment, please. I''ll go grab something."

    As she left, I looked down at the duck, suddenly feeling like I was going to cry again.

    ... At least I was able to save someone.

    <hr>

    I sat there for a few hours, watching the duck swap between playing in the water and eating. The fairies were watching me from the other ponds, discussing something I couldn''t hear, until finally someone walked over to me.

    "Sorry for the wait~."

    A completely nude woman sat to my left and smiled at me. Her beautiful form would have normally taken my full attention, but something else I sensed had left me completely stunned.

    The woman quirked an eyebrow and lifted up her breasts, "You like them that much? I thought about wearing something nice, but it looks like my spur-of-the-moment decision to come nude had paid off! After all, you decided to show up in the same amount of clothing."

    "... So you''re the fairies God. I''ve never seen a God this Human before. This is an illusion of some sort, right?"

    "Pfft..." The woman waved it off and leaned back, "Not entirely, but it''d be a pain to explain. Just know that I''m more like Shiva, Aresa''s Mother. We never met, but I''ve heard all about her, and she was very similar to how I function."

    "I only know what Aresa told me, which wasn''t much." I continued, "And speaking of Aresa..."

    "Yes, yes. I know her. She''s a little brat these days, but I can''t really blame her... And it''s cute, so she''s forgiven of course."

    So I''m finally here, but...

    I went silent while I stared at the duck.

    The Fairy God put her face next to mine and squinted at me, "Hmm... I don''t know what happened, Rei, but I may have just the solution."

    "And let me guess, I help myself by helping you? Also, what is your name?"

    She rubbed my hair and smiled widely, "So smart, just like Aresa said you were~! And call me Lunaria."

    "The Xerath, right?" And that''s fine. Mindlessly killing some Xerath is exactly what I need right now.

    "That''s one part of it... But uh, you see... We''re having trouble finding the God."

    "What...? How is that possible? Aresa told you about my past, yes? I''ve seen dozens of the damn things. They don''t hide. If anything, they love it when you come to them."

    Lunaria sighed, "But that''s what is happening! We''ve been dealing with this nightmare for years now, and it just keeps getting worse... Oh. And just so you know, it also isn''t forcing anyone to worship or follow it."

    "I''ve never heard of that happening before either. And does that mean they can evolve into a God without sustenance? This is all very strange..."

    There must be a reason it''s hiding itself... But there''s no way I''ll figure it out just sitting here. I''ll have to stealth around their main hive area and see what I can find.

    "So where is the hive at? The main one, none of those random ones they place around it."

    Lunaria looked away, "... We don''t know."

    I stared at her agape. She took one look at my face and threw her hands up in the air. "We really don''t know! We kill one hive and sometime after that another one pops up somewhere else!"

    What in the hell is happening here...?

    "Uh, Lunaria, I know Termia needs help and all, but what exactly are you expecting me to do here? With the God and apparently the main fucking hive itself hiding somewhere, all I can do is scout around and pray I find something, but I wouldn''t hold out much hope for that plan if I were you."

    The only thing that comes to mind right now is looking for Xerath growing out of the ground that are monstrous in size. That would mean a long-standing hive or the God itself is nearby. However, that''s an easy solution everyone would know, so there is no way they haven''t scoured the lands looking for such a place.

    "Several years back I heard my little darling Aresa mumble one time, ''If Reimia were here, she''d know what to do...''. And we both know she''s not a liar, right~?" Lunaria said as she smirked at me.

    "Bah, I''m not a miracle worker." The image of an orange-haired girl popped into my head. "Actually, hang on... Isn''t Alicia with you guys? Surely the Lizardmen have encountered such a situation before."

    Lunaria scoffed, "Right... Her. No, she left to assist your ''Lizardmen'' on Zhegu. More than half of that planet is overrun by Xerath and Demons, so they''ve been quite busy trying to exterminate them. The last time she visited us was... Maybe half a year ago? She said that it wasn''t going well. By the time they managed to kill two of the Gods, four more broodlings had evolved. And they haven''t even been able to attack any of the Demons strongholds yet."

    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    "For the love of... Okay, what can you tell me? For example, why is the area directly outside your little hidey hole here completely corrupted? Surely they aren''t overpowering your domain?"

    Lunaria laid down, resting her head under her arms. Her rather large chest was above the water, which normally would have made it awkward for me, but the current me was entirely focused on my soon-to-be mission.

    "I have to focus my domain on Termia''s capital and surrounding cities. If I don''t, the whole area will quickly turn into a Xerathian hellscape. So yes, they are overpowering me." Lunaria sighed, "The plan was for Belfos to spread his domain out here to counter the Xerath''s corruption, but we haven''t been able to do that since we can''t find their God or Main Hive."

    Belfos, so that''s the name of the other Eldritch God in Termia.

    "Keep going. What else do I need to know?"

    "The Xerath''s hives consist of a black goo that spreads out in all directions. The Xerath spawn out of it. So there is no safe approach when it comes to their hives. Every direction is the same. All you can do is go in guns blazing and burn the whole damned thing to the ground. Err, save your guns for the Xerath who form out of the goo. Then use your mana to cast elemental spells to destroy the goo. Any element works, but fire is best, as the goo burns for a little bit before going out, resulting in the hive losing a lot of mana. So burn baby burn!"

    I have a fire spell but it''s really basic, and it''s not very powerful... I''m much better off fighting the Gods, or even the Lords who watch over the extra hives.

    "Wait, are there no Lords who govern the extra hives?"

    "Nope~!" Lunaria smiled at me. "Aaaand there are some other problematic forces out there you''ll need to avoid. There is a legion of Crotia to the southeast who swore to raze Termia to the ground, but they''ve mostly just been attacking the Xerath. They''re going to come for Termia eventually though. They''ve just been waltzing through Aetheria for years now, burning one city after another to the ground."

    I went to say something in response but Lunaria cut me off, "Oh, that''s right! You''re also from Urza, so you''ll know who is leading them. The Nei''lah''s god."

    "The God who gave them and some of the Crotia those black wings? So is this the group that was exiled from Urza? They were kind of close to Xelba, but we rarely fought with them. We raided the Kitsune while they attacked Kellog. I always assumed Viktor had a treaty of some kind with them. ''Leave us alone, and we''ll leave you alone.'' Something like that."

    Lunaria shrugged, "That''s what Aresa and Cera said too. Just know that you need to avoid them. They mostly operate in highly powerful groups of six, and they have a fort about five miles east of here, so you will run into them at some point. Don''t expect any backup from Termia. All of our outposts in this region are dead and abandoned."

    Crotians with black wings... I really don''t want to see any of them right now.

    I cut a slit in my shoulder and spent the next hour creating another suit of mesh. Lunaria didn''t say anything, she just silently watched me work. After it was fully reinforced I stood up and walked toward the exit.

    "You''re leaving just like that...? Err, hang on! Take one of my daughters with you. She can guide and support you in combat."

    I stopped and looked back at Lunaria. She was already motioning for one of the fairies to come over to her. "Luna, come here."

    "... You named her after you? Is she special in some way? It''s going to be annoying with you two having the same name."

    "Hehe, trust me, she won''t disappoint you." Lunaria looked at the little fairy, who from all intents and purposes, looked scared out of her mind. "Now, now. There''s no need to be so frightened. This is the perfect chance for you to gain some experience outside. Up until now, you''ve only trained in our soul area, so you need this. Understand?"

    The little fairy known as ''Luna'' meekly nodded. Lunaria saw that and immediately threw her at me. I could hear her little screams as she did cartwheels in the air, all the way until I caught her.

    "You''re originally from Aetheria so you know what to do with her, yes?" Lunaria said.

    "I thought that was only in the cartoons... Is she really going to nest inside my soul? I don''t like the sound of that, and I doubt my soul will be a pleasant place for her to stay."

    "Just do it. You''ll be fine miss worrywart, jeez..."

    I looked down at the fairy in my hand. She had long white hair like mine, except it was done up in a high ponytail. I could feel her shaking in my palm as tears formed along the sides of her eyes.

    "Ugh, she''s about to piss herself out of fear. You''re making me feel like a villain here little fairy. Just get inside my soul and calm down already..."

    I activated the halo, as it was much easier to remove the veil that way. I heard Lunaria say "Oooh, pretty gothic halo!!" as the little fairy disappeared into my soul. Fortunately, it wasn''t as unpleasant as I had expected it to be. In fact, it felt exactly like it did when I pulled people into my soul realm. So that''s how this works... The fairies stay inside your soul realm and assist you from there. The cartoons made them out to be the number one supports of Aetheria, and if she does even half of what I saw in the cartoons, I''ll have a much easier time from here on out.

    I deactivated the halo, which led to Lunaria booing me as it dissipated back into my veil.

    "Alright, I''ll see you... Wait, one last question. How long have I been, uh, gone?"

    The smile on Lunaria''s face disappeared. "I was hoping you wouldn''t ask me that... It''s been twenty-seven years since your battle with the Xel''nethra."

    Coupled with my death on Urza, that''s thirty-three years...

    "And this Xel''nethra, I''m going to assume that''s the name of Viktor''s faction? All of you already know what happened in that one city? I think it was called Xethra."

    "Hard not to when he broadcasted parts of your siege to all of Aetheria while claiming that Termia sent you there to massacre his people. You see, thanks to Aresa''s group we knew all about this ''Viktor'' of yours way ahead of time. What he did to Urza was not going to be a one-time thing, so we were planning to attack him in full force to drive him off of Aetheria, but convincing our allies was much harder than it should have been. Alicia allowed them into her soul realm so they could see what happened to Urza, but they just kept making one weak excuse after another, and they all led to the same decision. ''Wait-and-see''. And now half of those nations are gone... They''ve long since been absorbed by Xel''nethra. I''m sorry to be the bearer of bad news again, but he owns the bottom twenty percent of Aetheria now."

    "That''s obviously bad news, but I''m not surprised in the least. If anything, I''m glad it''s only twenty percent. That means there is still a chance."

    Technically there will always be a chance. I just need to kill Viktor, and then all of the Xerath under his control should return to their base instincts, which will be catastrophic for his nation.

    I waved at Lunaria and walked into the tunnel behind me. Alright then, little ''Luna'', point me in the direction of the nearest hive. I felt one part of my soul tug toward the right while something else appeared in my vision. It was a little white dot far off in the distance that I could make disappear and reappear at will. Wow, you really are going to be useful to have around... I''m looking forward to working with you, little fairy.

    <hr>

    ~Three hours later~

    ~Velfor POV~

    Velfor pulled his greatsword out of the ground and wiped it off. Tsk, another fucking vegetable with teeth. I want to have a real battle damnit. I''m fed up with these simple-minded monsters...

    "IS THERE NO ONE WHO CAN CHALLENGE ME?! FUCK!!!"

    Velfor was one of five generals leading the Crotian''s crusade into the north. The other four were frankly tired of him. Every time he left for one of his ''Patrols'', the four of them prayed he would never return. They were working tirelessly to keep their position in these lands intact. Meanwhile, all Velfor did was wait around until it was time to do battle. Whether defending the outpost or assaulting a nearby horde of Xerath. But even that wasn''t enough to abate his need to fight. So he now spends most of his time patrolling around the wastes, killing anything and everything that enters his vision.

    Velfor picked up the Xerathian plant and chomped down on it.

    "Fucking annoying. I came to these lands to find someone worth fighting. Instead, I''m---"

    Something seemed to appear out of nowhere behind Velfor, and the only reason he knew was because of the feeling of sheer terror that accompanied it. He spun around and just barely deflected the attacker''s fist before leaping backward.

    "HA! NICE TRY, GIRL!"

    Despite his bravado, Velfor was greatly disturbed as he stared at the girl. No one had ever snuck up on him before, nor had he ever felt a wave of terror like that. Not from a Human anyway. No, wait... She''s an Elf? What is one of those pointy-eared freaks doing down here? And that''s not the only thing that''s off about her... Are Elves supposed have white hair and red eyes?

    Velfor entered a ready stance. "Surely you aren''t going to fight me with your fists?! If you''ve gone mad, it won''t save you girl. I''ll cut you down all the same."

    The girl didn''t respond. Instead, a black halo with a red outer rim appeared over her head. While he didn''t know what that ability was capable of yet, he did feel the enormous amount of mana radiating from it. A few moments later she dashed at Velfor, moving at speeds that far exceeded his expectations. But too bad for her, that''s still not enough to topple me.

    Velfor met the girl head-on with a wide horizontal swing from the right. For those skilled in combat they may have wondered why he opened with such a slow attack, but Velfor loved chopping people in half at their mid-section. So when he saw the opportunity and thought he could take it, that''s exactly what he did. However, right before the sword connected, the girl hopped into the air and slammed her feet down on top of the blade, driving it straight into the ground. The move had stunned Velfor for a split second, which was more than enough time for the girl to connect an enhanced fist right into his snout.

    Velfor was a Vanguard, so his barrier took most of the blow, but the impact still ruptured something inside of his nose, which turned his bemusement at the girl into pure rage. However, despite his newfound anger, he did not lose control of himself, as he could also feel another emotion welling up inside of him, one that could only be described as pure excitement at the prospect of finally having a real battle. A duel to the death.

    He looked back at the girl and smirked. She was preparing for another attack but stopped in her tracks when Velfor''s tail pointed at her. At first, nothing happened, but the look on her face a few moments later suggested she finally realized what was happening. She moved in for another attack, however, she was much slower this time, as the gravity ability he had channeled on her was heavily weighing her down.

    The end of Velfor''s greatsword was still on the ground. He swung it up toward her as he made another attempt to cut the girl in two, this time feeling much more confident in the attack. However, despite her handicap, she still managed to duck below the blade and parry it out of the way before attempting to kick Velfor''s shins out from underneath him. He lifted his leg and brought it down toward her foot, but yet again at the last second, she pulled her foot to the side and kicked his leg away.

    They stood within striking distance exchanging blows like that for what felt like ages. At first, Velfor felt an excitement like he never had before, but that excitement slowly turned into confusion. He had nailed the girl with several more gravity debuffs, but she continued to parry all of his attacks unabated. It wasn''t long before that confusion turned to anger, and eventually, it went full circle back to confusion. Except now, she had his full attention. This was no longer a game to him.

    He suddenly leaped back and made no further moves. He merely stared at the girl for twenty seconds before finally asking, "What are you?"

    He had fought all kinds of people and monsters over the years. There were even a few swordsmen that almost managed to beat him. Their skill was greater than his own, and he accepted that, for he knew he would never be the best in sword skill alone. But this girl, her moves were alien to him. And not only that, but the entire battle had taken place with her only using her fists and feet.

    An enhanced fist can be just as powerful as an enhanced sword, but only a fool would use a part of his body that could be lopped off. If your sword is broken, then so be it, just use another one. But your fist? You won''t have time to grow another in the middle of a battle, and that''s assuming your soul doesn''t fracture in some way from the trauma, leaving you with only one hand until the end of your days. And this isn''t just a random greatsword. It''s an artifact weapon. A high-level one at that, but she''s deflecting it as if it''s just a toy...

    Lastly, and most annoying of all, was that he could feel his gravity debuff on her waning over time. He had to keep reapplying it because she was somehow removing it while in battle. He had never fought anyone who was able to cleanse themselves in the middle of battle before.

    The girl suddenly disappeared.

    "What?!" Velfor yelled as he entered a ready stance. The girl had vanished in a way that didn''t look like any warp he had ever seen before. While he had never met anyone who could turn invisible, his instincts were screaming at him that she was still here, so he watched the ground for footsteps while listening for any little sound he could pick up.

    He waited and waited, until eventually, the girl reappeared on an elevated area in the distance. There were stone stairs that led toward an outpost they had destroyed months ago. The problem was the mounted gun she was now aiming at Velfor.

    "COWARD!!" Velfor yelled as he ran toward the left side of the outpost. Everything else was barren and open, there was no way to escape the hail of bullets that had begun to rip into his shield the moment he yelled at the girl.

    He tore around the corner of the outpost just as his barrier was nearing its breaking point. What he needed now more than anything, was time. He needed a place to hide and meditate so he could repair his barrier, so he ducked into a small cave under the outpost. The tunnel was barely big enough for him to walk through, and it was well hidden behind a veil of vegetation that grew over the entrance. The only reason he found it was because he accidentally stumbled into the entrance as he pushed himself up against the rocks below the outpost.

    There was a small room at the end of the cave full of supplies, a few bunks, and some radio equipment. This must have been a safehouse that Termia''s men weren''t able to make it to when we assaulted this place.

    He sat down at the tunnel entrance and began to repair his barrier, but Velfor wasn''t just sitting there. He was also slashing at the tunnel with his greatsword, checking to make sure nothing invisible was able to slip inside. About ten minutes later he had half-repaired his barrier when something flew toward him through the tunnel. He cut it down and his barrier was immediately covered in something black. Before he could even figure out what it was, he heard glass shattering at different points of the tunnel. Velfor didn''t need to wait long to find out what the girl had planned, as a large fire spread through the tunnel at an alarming rate. Oil?! We left crude oil in the outpost?!

    Velfor had two options.

    One; Wait out the fire and do his best to counter it with an ice spell, but it''s an element he is not very well versed in, and he doesn''t know how much oil the girl has at her disposal. In the worst-case scenario, he could tap out on mana fighting off the fires before she ran out of oil.

    Two; Charge out of the tunnel and attack the girl head-on. It wouldn''t leave him time to freeze the fire, but it would mean he could stop the fires at their source.

    He chose number two. Velfor blazed through the tunnel, listening to his recently repaired barrier crack all around him as the super-heated fire ripped through it.

    Velfor burst through the tunnel exit and looked all around for the girl, but she was nowhere in sight. He was about to scream in rage when a large boulder dropped down onto him from above. Velfor barely dodged out of the way as it landed outside of the tunnel, sealing it up completely.

    As he stood up a hail of bullets ripped into his barrier again. This time, they were of a much smaller caliber, but it was still doing enough damage to finish off his barrier. He needed to move and now. He ran toward the front of the outpost and up the stairs, stopping at the mounted gun the girl was using earlier.

    The last set of stairs leading up to the outpost were much smaller, but he still needed at least another five feet in height to see inside of it. However, it wasn''t necessary. He knew where the girl was anyway, as she began firing on him again from the top of a large stone monument shaped like a nude man inside the outpost. Velfor ran up the remaining steps and into the outpost, and what he saw in there enraged him even more. Supplies, ammo, and even a few guns were strewn throughout the outpost. His people had clearly scavenged the place, but they did a horrible job of it. Mother fuckers!! They had obviously just picked up whatever they could carry and then left the rest. Fucking bums, I''m going to have them all strung up and quartered when I get back!

    Velfor ran toward the monument, but he barely made it ten feet when he heard an ominous clicking noise under his right foot. Less than a second later an explosion launched him into the air, destroying the rest of his barrier and shattering his right foot. Before he had even reached the apex of his skyward ascent, the girl appeared above him with her right leg raised high into the air. She brought her heel down hard onto his stomach, launching him straight into the ground. He wasn''t sure of how many bones he had broken, but Velfor knew at that moment that he was done for. Fucking bums... Left active claymores behind... Bums... All of them...

    The girl stared down at Velfor, unmoving. A brief flash of sadness appeared on her face as she glanced at his wings sprawled out sideways.

    "You win... Girl... Well done..."

    The girl''s face returned to an emotionless state as she knelt next to Velfor with her right fist pulled back.

    "Well fought... Crotian."

    The girl brought her fist down, crushing Velfor''s sternum and heart in one last blow.

 Chapter 67 - The Hive

    I dropped the artifact sword in the pond next to Lunaria who was still resting inside it.

    "I didn''t expect to see you again for a while... I was surprised when I saw you heading back this way." Lunaria pointed at the sword, "You returned to give this to me...?"

    I shrugged, "It felt like a waste to leave it out there. Surely you know someone who can put this to use? I slightly messed up one of my parries and the damned thing chunked my mana down by a quarter. And all it did was hit the side of my hand."

    Plus, I really need to rest right now. I had the halo out for way too long during that battle. Merely walking back here was a struggle...

    I sat in the pool next to Lunaria as she inspected the greatsword. It wasn''t very aesthetically pleasing, but the little green lights going up and down the blade were a nice touch.

    As I watched Lunaria test the blade out, I saw the green lights flare up to triple their original luminosity. Lunaria''s eyes lit up when she saw that. "Ooh! The ether in the blade is exiting through those holes and wrapping around the blade. What a waste for this sword to have been held by a Vanguard... He couldn''t even utilize it properly."

    And yet, he still would have killed me with ease if one of his blows had hit me directly. Err, maybe not killed, but it would have been close.

    "So I can have this... Right?" Lunaria asked as she leaned up against me with a smirk.

    "That was the plan... Originally."

    Lunaria narrowed her eyes at me, "Originally? Please tell me you didn''t change your mind. I know someone who''d be a perfect fit for this sword."

    "Well let me tell you what I have in mind, and then you decide, okay?"

    "Fine... That''s fair."

    "I have that Crotian''s soul, so I was thinking we''d watch his memories together. You''d like to know what kind of information he has, yeah?"

    "Y-YES! Aresa told me about your---" Lunaria was about to excitedly hug me but she pulled back at the last second, "... What''s this have to do with the sword?"

    "Well..." I looked at the sword that was now resting inside the pond, "I think I want to try and resurrect that Crotian and have him use this sword."

    "Um... I''ve also heard about your ''Summons'', but doesn''t that make you personally weak? And why would a single skeleton matter?"

    "This one would be quite different from the skeletons Aresa saw. I''d use the Crotian''s soul as a base for the skeleton. I''ve only done it one other time, and my unit was attacked after that so I didn''t get to test it much, but I assume it''s only good with combatants. Because the guy I used it on was a regular bandit who was a little more skilled than the rest of his companions, and the skeleton performed almost exactly at the same level he did."

    I could see from her expression that Lunaria understood where I was going with this, but she took on a complicated expression in the end as she looked back at the sword.

    "I don''t know... I still feel it''d be best if one of my greatest warriors had this sword. We might even be able to kill the Nei''lah God with it." She went silent as she continued to stare at the sword for a while before finally looking at me and sighing, "In fact, I''m almost positive we could kill it if he was able to land a few... Dozen fully charged blows with this." I couldn''t help but laugh when Lunaria whispered the word ''Dozen''.

    "I know he''s your enemy, but aren''t the Crotians mostly killing the Xerath anyway? Can''t you deal with their God later?"

    "Oh the irony... Remind me, Rei. How''d your search for the Xerathian God or main hive go? You didn''t happen to attack a random Crotian instead, did you? Although I am happy that you acquired this artifact weapon."

    "... Fair point, but I saw the sword and the fact that he was alone, so I figured ''Why not?'' I had a feeling he''d be strong because he was all alone out there, but he was much more powerful than I had expected. All I could do was parry, there was no time for me to attack him past my initial blow to his snout. He pulled out all the stops after that."

    I thought back to the fight and chuckled sardonically, "When I turned invisible I was actually planning on fleeing, but then I saw that gun up the stairs behind me, and, well... You know the rest. You were watching through your fairy, right? The spy you sent with me."

    "Spy is a little harsh... Your past doesn''t bother me in the least, Rei. So please don''t misunderstand. Aresa may have been naive, but I trust her judgment. Plus, Cera of all people said that we could trust you. If you showed up in Termia I mean."

    Cera did??? I thought she hated my guts... Did something happen between us when we were in Aresa''s chateau before the invasion? I don''t remember anything like that though...

    "So..." Lunaria motioned toward the sword. "What are you going to do? I can understand why such a powerful Crotian may serve as an amazing servant for you, but can you even handle the mana drain? Aresa said she felt like she was dying when she helped you out in that Tengu battle. Although, you seemed to have no problems forming a massive army when you attacked Viktor. I think I know why you were able to pull that off though... His videos of your attack did focus on the part where your army was suspiciously invested in killing civilians above all else."

    "It does sound horrible when you lay it out like that, but I don''t care in the least. Especially after..." A certain red-haired kitsune flashed through my mind, "... Something happened that wasn''t directly Viktor''s fault, but he would have killed her in the end anyways."

    Lunaria quirked an eyebrow as I went silent. I sat there struggling to get the words out for god knows how long before I felt the little fairy in my soul casting something to calm me down. You''re good for that too huh...

    "I... I wasn''t going to ask you about this. Because frankly, I don''t want to think about it right now, but I feel like I shouldn''t put this off any longer... How much do you know about Seifer?"

    "Seifer?" Lunaria tilted her head and looked up as she ruminated over the name.

    "You don''t know who he is? He''s the steward for Euphemia. Tall blonde guy with glasses. Fuck, what is it with tall blonde men with glasses destroying the things that I love... I''ve never even seen anyone else wear glasses outside of those two!"

    "Whoa whoa, calm down sweetie! I remember who he is now that you told me more about him, but what could he have possibly done to hurt you? He was just a logistics officer or something, wasn''t he? ''Steward'' could mean anything."

    "So you don''t know anything about him... Shit. So I will have to ask Euphemia." I thought back to the scene in the hotel, "He killed Shana... And he was acting all weird before that too. Hell, he looked like a fucking zombie. Oh, hang on... I think Viktor said something about him too?"

    What was it? I was entirely focused on Shana''s arm and the blood pooling out from it, so I wasn''t really listening to him. Something about Seifer having a long rap sheet... I think?

    "Was Seifer a criminal?"

    Lunaria shrugged, "I don''t know? Euphemia is not the type to have criminals working that close with her though. So if he was one, then she was clueless about it."

    I''m getting nowhere with this, and the more I think about Seifer, the angrier I''m getting. That fucking piece of shit took Shana from me... I loved that girl. I really did...

    The reality that I''d never see her or Ishar again was finally sinking in, and I felt the same soul-crushing sadness that hit me when most of my friends in Xelba were sacrificed. I buried my face in my knees as Lunaria began to pat my back.

    "I... I need to kill him. I just need to kill him... Where is he? You must know, Lunaria. Please tell me you know..."

    "I don''t... I''m sorry sweetie. I''d help you if I could, but I didn''t remember his name at first because I hadn''t seen him nor heard his name in over twenty years. He went missing before your attack on Viktor was broadcast to all of Aetheria. I can tell Euphemia what happened to him now, but it sounds like you should be the one to tell her, and hopefully you''ll find some more answers that way..."

    <hr>

    I opened my eyes and found myself underwater. This is bringing back memories...

    I stayed like that for a few minutes, just letting the pond''s pristine waters wash over me. I had put myself to sleep after Lunaria told me she didn''t know where Seifer was. My mind and soul needed the respite, and this pond was the perfect place for it. I could tell that the resentment and sadness in my soul had been replaced with conviction. Both of them... I will kill both of them, and then I''ll figure out a way to join Shana and the others in the great beyond. If it''s inside of Meiza''thul then so be it.

    I lifted myself out of the water. As the water dripped off of me into the pond I saw Lunaria exit her soul realm and look right at me. "Feeling better?"

    "Yes. And I''ve decided to raise the Crotian. He''ll be useful with his gravity ability alone, but I''d still prefer he had the sword. I''m sorry Lunaria."

    "Heh, I already knew you''d say that so it''s fine. And if you can''t handle the mana load then I''ll get the sword anyways. Or when the skeleton dies? Assuming you don''t lose the sword... Please don''t lose the sword."

    I smiled at her and stood up with the sword in my right hand, "I''ll do my best." And with that I walked back into the tunnel, exiting the cavern soon after that, and headed straight for the Crotian''s corpse I left back in that outpost.

    <hr>

    I watched as his flesh melted away, slowly absorbed by the core for sustenance. Little by little the black tendons and muscles formed throughout his skeletal frame. After the core was mostly formed the skeleton awoke and began to climb to its feet, forcing me to command it to remain dormant. It fell to the ground and went silent as I slowed down the speed at which its armor was forming. Even while dormant it was draining way too much to create a full suit of armor.

    I had told it to create a full heavy armor set of blackened blood, which meant we needed somewhere to hide while it worked. We were currently inside the cavern that he was hiding in before. Everything inside had been burned to a crisp thanks to me, but I didn''t even know what was originally in here, so it was hard to care about what I may have destroyed. Aside from that melted radio, everything else is indiscernible.

    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    I dug into the Crotian''s pack to see what he had in it. After carrying his skeleton into this cave I grabbed his pack as well. The inside only had two things in it. A dozen or so grilled cheese sandwiches and one massive bottle of water. He must have really loved grilled cheese... I haven''t had one of these since Xelba.

    I chomped down on all of the grilled cheese while waiting for the skeleton''s armor to form. From the looks of things it was going to take about a day, so after I was done eating I entered my soul realm and did something I hadn''t done in ages. I watched TV. Mana regen skyrockets inside your soul realm, as it''s the same as meditation, so I decided to just relax while mindlessly watching the programs I remembered from my childhood.

    Out of curiosity, I put on the cartoons I used to watch that had fairies in them. Luna appeared on the couch next to me and watched them as well. She didn''t say anything, but she seemed to find the cartoon''s interpretations of her to be quite fascinating.

    <hr>

    "... Not bad. Not bad at all."

    The Crotian''s armor had finished about twelve hours ahead of time thanks to me being able to rest in my soul realm. He''s draining me quite a bit, so definitely no halo until I can collect enough souls to feed him for those moments when I''ll need the halo.

    I placed my hand on the Crotian''s chest. Okay, now for the real test... I focused on my veil and forced half of it over to his core. Once that was done I told him to turn invisible, and surprisingly, he did. I really didn''t think this would work... It feels like there is enough leeway for another skeleton too. Anything past two and there wouldn''t be enough veil to hide everyone. And the only thing I need to worry about is those moments when I''ll need to retrieve the veil in combat for my halo. Aside from that, my core is a little more susceptible now. But in the end, this should be more than worth those small negatives.

    I looked at the Crotian. "We need a name for you... How about Petey? I named one of the seagulls back in Xelba that." The Crotian just stood there lifelessly. "Yeah... You''re Petey from now on."

    With that done, I turned around and walked through the tunnel until I reached the boulder. I then shimmied alongside it until I was outside. As Petey did the same I looked up at the sky, finding a lot of dark gray clouds. Not too bright. Not too dark. This is the perfect chance to test it out.

    Once Petey was outside I turned us both invisible. The drain was almost three times the size I was used to, which is about what I had expected. He''s twice as big as me after all, so it all works out. I just need to be much more careful around light from here on out. Or...

    .......

    After thinking on it for a bit I removed Petey''s invisibility but left mine up. Luna, where''s the closest Crotian outpost? I need some souls before we approach one of the Xerath''s hives.

    A little white light appeared far off to the right. So the same direction as the hive you were directing me toward? I doubt they purposely built it next to a hive, so it must have sprung up without them realizing it. Some of them spread fast after all.

    Petey picked me up and ran toward the direction Luna was aiming us. The direct light was hitting his back so only the ambient lighting was damaging me. Oh yeah, this is much better.

    <hr>

    Petey and I were both invisible under a large tree giving us lots of shade. In the not-so-far distance, I watched as a large convoy of Crotians filled up one truck after another with boxes. It went on for so long that my initial suspicions regarding their activities had quickly turned into conviction. They''re abandoning this outpost... Is the nearby hive really that bad?

    We watched for another four hours as trucks came and left until there were only a few remaining. The last remaining soldiers had apparently drawn the short straw and were forced to check the entire outpost, making sure nothing was left behind.

    Petey and I snuck past the vehicles and into the long hallway that was fortunately filled with dull lighting. We went by several rooms until we found our first targets. Two Crotians were smoking from a giant pipe in an empty storage room while talking about a female they were both interested in.

    We sidled up behind them and immediately removed our veils. One of the Crotians turned around and stared at us agape with his eyes nearly bulging out of his head, while the other had leaped forward from his sitting position as he yelled for help. Holy shit! That was the fastest response I''ve ever seen from someone after I removed my veil.

    I sprinted for the Crotian that was running for the exit as I heard Petey eviscerate the other Crotian who was still completely frozen in fear. I reached the one fleeing just as he neared the door. I grabbed his right foot as it extended back and whipped him backward in Petey''s direction. The Crotian barely moved ten feet through the air before stomping his foot down hard and launching himself right into me, which made me fly backwards through the door. Overenhanced! Tch, the missing halo is already a problem.

    I jumped to my feet and leaped onto the Crotian as he entered the hallway. Between me biting onto his neck while continuously punching him in his side, he quickly realized he needed to get rid of me or his mana would run out long before he reached the outside. He stopped and slammed his back into the wall, crushing me and my mana as a result, but it gave Petey enough time to catch up. The Crotian turned to run again but both of his legs were lopped off before he exited Petey''s range. Right through his overenhanced legs... Even as a skeleton he''s doing an insane amount of damage.

    The Crotian tried to scream again but now that he was out of mana, I clamped down hard onto his snout before crushing his throat. Silencing him forever. At that moment, I felt the Crotian''s soul suck out of his body and fly straight into Petey''s core. Why the hell are my skeletons able to collect souls by merely being near anything that dies, while I have to draw them out by hand? That has to be an ability I can unlock... It''d save me a lot of time.

    "INTRUDERS! THERE ARE TWO OF THEM---"

    I looked back the way we came and saw a Crotian yelling into his radio. As I was turning my head, Petey had already thrown his sword in that direction. It went through the Crotian''s chest and pinned him to the wall. He clutched at his chest as blood began to pour out of his mouth. Upon reaching him, Petey grabbed the Crotian''s head with his right hand and pulled the sword out with his left. I saw the Crotian''s head explode as I ran past him. Petey, let''s go. It''s time to bail. Three should be enough for now.

    We both turned invisible and ran out of the outpost just before all of the Crotians who were relaxing outside ran into the same hallway we had just exited.

    I watched and waited just to make sure, but sadly several trucks full of Crotians who were armed with much bigger guns and armor showed up about ten minutes later.

    Yeah, this place is a wash... Oh well, it''s not a huge deal. Souls of all kinds serve as much better fuel for the skeletons than they do me. So those three should give him plenty of autonomous time, which in turn will allow me to use my halo.

    Luna, the hive please. And why aren''t you supporting me in combat? You could have been a big help when that Crotian barreled me over.

    A small white light appeared off in the distance, but in response to my question I only felt fear emanate from the fairy.

    ... I don''t mind, but I think your, uh, mother? She isn''t going to be very happy when she finds out that you''re too scared to help me in battle.

    {Already... Yelling...} The fairy meekly said.

    Ahh, right. She''s watching through the fairy''s eyes. I''ll let Lunaria kick her into shape then.

    <hr>

    I still hate the Demons the most, but there is just something so vile about the Xerath. It''s kind of annoying how at home I feel in their corrupted lands, but I''m relieved to see that I''m still creeped out by looking at their hives.

    The hive is a writhing light purple mess of flesh covering the ruins of a city. The hive has turned the city into a cavern of sorts, and the ground itself is pitch black. It''s not taking on the light purple hue the rest of the hive is covered in.

    Petey, go throw a rock onto that pitch-black ooze.

    Petey walked forward until he found a sizable rock. He then tossed it forward, landing it perfectly near the edge of the goo. Perfect. I made the order vague to see if he''d throw it far into the hive, making the whole thing pointless. A regular skeleton would do that, but not a unique one huh...

    The ooze suddenly sprang to life. First, a hand formed out of it and reached toward the sky before slamming down onto the ooze. Then another hand, and a head, until a fully formed Xerath stood tall on top of the ooze. It looked down at the rock, tiling its head back and forth as if studying it. It looks human in design... I haven''t seen too many who were like this.

    The Xerath eventually stopped looking at the rock and walked out of the hive. It then flipped over a few large rocks nearby and looked underneath them.

    I watched the Xerath for a little while as its body slowly went from pure black to taking on randomly colored hues before settling on light purple. But I didn''t get to see its new colors for long, as it eventually gave up and slowly melted back into goo, re-adding its own mass into the hive.

    Hmm... Walking over that ooze is a death sentence, even for me. I''m very light, but they''re still going to feel my weight press down onto the ooze. That just leaves the walls, but even that looks dangerous... I still need to try though.

    Wait here Petey.

    I ran up to the edge of the ooze and jumped onto the walls. I thought they''d be fleshy like the outside, but the inside was covered in a hard secretion of some sort. It reminds me of the room with that Ghorak and poisonous flower I had to go through to reach Jericho. It had the same type of hard substance covering the walls. I''ve been inside a few Xerath hives before in their realm, but they never looked like this.

    I clung to the wall, watching the ooze for any sort of movement. Nothing, huh? Good, that means they can''t feel this. I crawled along the wall until I reached the first part of the city. It was a large thoroughfare with a bunch of abandoned cars that were now covered in god-knows-what. The whole area was lit up in the same light-purple hue, but it wasn''t hurting me at all. Possibly because of how dim it was or something to do with its nature.

    Upon reaching the thoroughfare, the walls opened up and went super high above the tallest buildings inside the city. I climbed up them until I was high enough that I was certain I could make the jump to the nearby building. I leaped off the wall and rolled once I hit the roof of the building to break my fall. Almost immediately I could hear several Xerath howl from below me as the building began to rumble. I jumped onto the ledge and watched the door leading to the roof. It didn''t take long for two Xerath to come running through it. A human-shaped one and another with six arms that it was using to crawl around.

    They scoured the roof for a bit before returning to wherever the hell they were before. With them gone, I turned around and scanned what I could see of the city. For the most part there was nothing to see. Just a bunch of buildings partly covered in purple flesh while the ground was completely engulfed in the black ooze. There were a few Xerath I could see but they were clearly dormant.

    Damnit, I need a bird. We couldn''t find any on the way here though, which is why I''m scouting this out personally, but this is going to take forever. And I don''t even know what the fuck I''m looking for. Lunaria said there weren''t any Lords guarding these hives, so... Wait.

    Luna, what is creating these hives? Normally it''s the Lords who leave the main nest and go to create their own, all so they can continue to spread their corruption far and wide.

    {Nobody knows. They say just burn it all. Hive go away.}

    Great, thanks...

    I scoured the hive for another half a day before I said fuck it and began to make my way back toward Petey. I was about a third of the way there when suddenly hundreds, maybe even thousands of Xerath began to spawn out of the ooze. I saw even higher numbers of them run out of the buildings, all heading in the opposite direction I was moving. They''re either attacking their next target, or they''re defending against something...

    I waited on the wall, listening as best I could to see if the sounds of combat would start up, and not long after that I heard a wide array of explosions and other sounds echo out from the direction the Xerath were all running toward.

    Luna, can you sense far enough out to know what is attacking this place?

    {Eldritch souls.}

    Eldritch? Does your mother know which ones?

    {Don''t know, lost connection. Hive interfering.}

    Was worried about that. I lost my connection to Petey a while ago as well. He''ll be fine since he knows to go dormant when our connection is cut, but I''d still prefer to not leave him out there unattended.

    As the battle in the distance raged on, I began to notice that the ooze was thinning out. Which made sense when I considered that the Xerath were spawning out of it. Except there was a problem. The ooze was growing back to its initial depth between the waves of Xerath it was spawning.

    Lunaria has the right idea, just burn it all to death. Still though, it would be nice to know what is creating this ooze... It''s obviously the core of these hives, but the only idea I have for locating it is tp scout the center of the city.

    However, that is not an option. The buildings start to change the closer you get to the city''s center, which obviously makes it more suspicious, but there''s still no way to get there by myself. The buildings have far more of the fleshy purple mass covering them near the center, and the furthest buildings I can see look like they have a bunch of that ooze covering them as well. There''s also the fact that I can see a few large purple mounds that look like they''re pulsing. And that''s just what I can see. Who the hell knows what else is in that direction.

    A massive part of the hive''s walls exploded inwards, letting a bunch of sunlight into the city. Soon after that a ten-story tall carapaced insectoid crawled into the city. It was moving on eight feet and almost everything I saw was armored. That is, until it sat down and opened up its ''wings''. Bipedal mantis-like creatures flooded out of it and began to attack the encroaching Xerath.

    Alright, it''s time to leave. That thing busted through the wall only a hundred yards from me. If another one of them busts through the wall next to me that would be disastrous. I could use this as an opportunity to see what happens in the city center if these insect-like Eldritch are able to breach that far, but it''s far too much of a gamble. I''m finally in Termia, I''d really prefer to not die in a highly risky situation like this when there are a multitude of other ways to scout out the center of a different hive.

    I turned around and jumped from one roof to another, making my way toward the area where I entered the hive.

    I think it''s about time I went to see Aresa and the others... Lunaria''s mission will have to wait a little while. They''ve been at war with these things for years. I''m sure another couple of weeks won''t be a big deal.

 Chapter 68 - The First Revenge

    ~Somewhere in Termia''s capital, Telebron~

    ~Hyun''s POV~

    The door burst open, revealing a panicked butler and a woman who was about to explode from sheer excitement.

    "Hyun! Did you hear?! The winged bitch is finally gone, so now is the time! Let''s go! Go, go, go!!"

    God damnit... Sometimes I wish she''d be found dead in a gutter somewhere so I wouldn''t have to deal with this anymore.

    "Calm down, Victoria. There''s no telling just how long Lunaria will be gone, and even if she is gone, so what? I''m sure she has other means of monitoring the situation back here. Where are you even getting this idea that we can successfully capture Aresa if Lunaria isn''t in town? Did you forget that Belfos is still here?"

    Victoria dropped onto the seat in front of my desk and kicked her feet up on top of it. "Who cares about him? I''m starting to wonder if he even exists! I''ve never met anyone who has seen the oh-so-scary ''Belfos''. Fairy tales... From fairies! Heh, hehehe..."

    "......"

    ... If this worthless rag didn''t have such an amazing ability I would have disabled her and sold her to one of our clients ages ago. There''s been plenty of offers for her after all. And high ones at that. Apparently, psychos like her are of great interest to certain people. Hell if I know why that is. If she stripped down and begged me to sleep with her right here on this table, I''d only use it as justification to throw her ass out of my home.

    Victoria was a small woman, coming in at barely four foot ten. She had long black hair and blue eyes. And she was wearing a long gothic dress. I''ll never understand why her eyes shine like that. It has to be related to mana in some way, but how?

    "Well? Are we going to rescue my little Aresa now? I have so many plans for her..." Victoria asked.

    "Shut up, fool. Just how many times do I have to tell you that you won''t be laying a single hand on her? Master has instructed us to capture her and then bring her to him. That''s it. If you want to violate her you''ll have to ask our Master, but I wouldn''t hold my breath on that one if I were you."

    Victoria kicked the table hard, knocking my pictures and pen holder down. "DO NOT CALL IT ''VIOLATING''!! I-I just... I mean, she''s..."

    I sighed and looked over at the man in the corner. A tall man in a dark cloak with a black mask covering his entire face. He has no weapon on him, but I have seen him summon a scythe from seemingly nowhere in the past.

    "What about you, Niro? Do you think Master will let our highly emotional colleague here play with Aresa before we hand her over?"

    "... No."

    Oh? I didn''t expect him to actually respond... He''s been hanging around us for almost ten years now, and this is maybe the fifth time I''ve heard him talk.

    Victoria shrugged, "Who cares about his opinion? Freak just sits in a corner or walks around killing civilians. I don''t understand why Master values him so highly. He doesn''t do anything!"

    ... For once she speaks the truth. I know why he''s with us, but I still don''t fully understand it. The man said he was ''Waiting for a certain someone to show up.'' If Master didn''t guarantee us that this was true, and that he had his permission, then I would have just assumed he was delusional or had gone mad at some point. After all, he''s been waiting here for ten---No, almost twenty years?

    He was apparently here for ten years before he was sent to guard us. Master figured since he''s here and our goals are kind of aligned, he might as well keep us alive in the meantime. Not that I need the help, but this idiot in front of me clearly needs it. Even now after she put her legs on the table, she didn''t attempt to stop her dress from rolling up. She''s just letting her thighs and panties be visible to the world. The moron has no sense of self, nor does she understand the danger she puts herself in in any situation.

    {Victoria. Send Niro to me. Now.}

    "Eh?!" Victoria jumped out of her seat. "T-To you Master? Of course! Just give me a few moments."

    {Niro. Your long wait is over... They''re here. I have eyes on them right now. My artillery attack missed, so get ready. Go and take care of her once and for all. She cannot interfere. We have enough problems as it is.}

    At that, Niro practically jumped off the wall. While I couldn''t see his face thanks to his mask, I could tell that he was having trouble believing what he was hearing.

    "All set!!" Victoria yelled from the hallway about a minute later.

    Niro literally ran out of the room, and soon after that I heard Victoria say ''Calm down asshole. It''s not going anywhere...''

    So the person he''s waiting for is really here...? I have a feeling that this is a sign that it''s finally time for Termia to advance to the next stage. Telebron has been on a hair trigger for years now; all it needs is the fuse. It seems rather stupid that I would attribute some unknown person as that ''hair trigger'', but... Yeah, it is pretty damned stupid actually. I don''t know why I''m even entertaining this idea.

    A familiar zapping sound echoed out from the hallway, and Victoria walked back into my study soon after that. "It''s done. So what should---Ooh, wait! Isn''t this an even better opportunity to capture Aresa?!"

    "Why in the hell would Niro battling some unknown entity far outside of Telebron lead to a better opportunity for us to kidnap Termia''s Goddess?"

    "B-But... Come on, Hyun! I''m so tired of waiting... I saw her in the parade last week and I... Ughhh..."

    I don''t even like the idea of kidnapping the poor girl, especially since I''m doubtful of Master''s claims that he only wants to use her to tap into the wellspring. He says he won''t harm her, but again, it''s really hard to believe that. So I''m sure as hell not about to let this creep molest her on top of everything else. It would be nice if Aresa understood the stakes and joined forces with our Master instead of being so clearly opposed to him, but I''m not delusional. I know that will never happen, so she leaves us no other choice.

    <hr>

    ~Reimia''s POV~

    It was the fairies watching me the first time, and now it''s whatever the fuck this is.

    I glanced up at the sky, internally cursing whoever was tracking me.

    I''ve felt this gaze before, but I can''t for the life of me remember who or where it was. It''s not Eremnon, he wouldn''t be this subtle about it. Plus, I''d of known long ago if Demons had corrupted the land enough to control it. This is obviously the Xerath''s land, so that''s just one more reason I know it''s not Eremnon. But who else could watch me from the sky?

    Arkaios? I only felt his gaze when I was inside his realm or one of his temples. I didn''t even feel it when I was carrying around his artifact, so no, it can''t be him... God damnit, this is really frustrating. I''m invisible and the fucker is still tracking me!

    At that moment a vague memory popped into my mind. One that had little consequence on my life up until now, but it was accompanied by the very same gaze I was feeling now.

    ... Rai''ga? Lunaria didn''t say anything about that creepy God being here though. And yet, this does feel like that one time my unit tried to invade his lands. He knew exactly where we were at all times, including me. Back then his spawn attacked me even while I was invisible, so they must have shared his vision or maybe he marked me? I don''t fucking know. All I know is that we never went back and that most units from Xelba who attempted to invade his lands never made it home.

    All of a sudden the entire area around me began to light up. It was a large ring around me, circling at least three hundred yards in each direction. The luminosity started at a barely imperceptible level, but thanks to my veil being up I still felt it. And after that, it slowly ramped up to the point where both Petey and I had to remove our veils, because it was hurting us far too much. In response to this, Petey pointed up at the sky.

    Yeah, I know it''s coming from the sky!

    If it is Rai''ga, what the hell is doing? Obviously light hurts me, and I''m not surprised he knows that, but there''s nobody around that I can see. So he''s just forcing me to stay visible? I suppose if this light follows me it could prove problematic over time...

    But contrary to my initial thoughts, the light itself didn''t move. It instead kept ramping up to the point where it began to blind me. As soon as I noticed that the light wasn''t tracking me, Petey and I began to run at full speed to escape the hellish light. We barely made it ten feet out of the circumference when the whole world turned white. At first, it was just really bright, but then we were both blasted forward as a loud explosion destroyed my eardrums. We both rolled along the ground for a bit before smashing our fists into the earth to stop ourselves from moving any further.

    About a minute later the light finally dropped to a level where I could see again. And what I saw, was a giant circular hole in the area we were standing in only a few moments before. He attacked us from the sky...? If it is Rai''ga, and I''m almost certain it is, since when did he have such a powerful aerial barrage ability?! Wouldn''t he be unstoppable with this? We need to get out of here Petey, and now!

    I got off the ground and ran full speed ahead. Luna, where is Termia?! Err, no, where is the capital?

    As usual, a light appeared in the distance. Petey and I turned toward it while becoming invisible. Assuming it''s him, even if Rai''ga can see us, that doesn''t mean we should run around with our veils down. We''ve already seen a Crotian patrol and a large legion of Xerath on our run back to Lunaria''s hovel.

    <hr>

    {U-Um...}

    Yeah? What''s wrong little fairy?

    We''ve been running for well over an hour but that vision is still on us. I had hoped that getting closer to Termia''s capital would make it lose vision of us, but sadly, that had yet to occur.

    {Someone is chasing us... They''re very fast.}

    I looked behind me but I couldn''t see anyone.

    How far away? And are they going to reach us before we reach Termia''s capital? And what''s the name of the damned place.

    {Telebron. They will reach us in about twenty minutes. Very scary aura...}

    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    ... And how long until we reach this ''Telebron''?

    {Four days.}

    Well, that''s that then. We''ll have to take care of whatever this is first. I really just want to relax in town and see Aresa, but I suppose this was bound to happen after his aerial attack missed us. And thanks to this, I''m even more convinced it''s Rai''ga. He''s the only one who has ever made it so his followers could find me like this. Other Eldritch or Demons could, but only when I''m close to them. Meanwhile, Rai''ga is probably fifty miles away right now.

    Fifteen minutes later I could finally see our pursuer. He appeared far into the horizon, and he was quickly gaining ground on us.

    We could floor it and probably keep pace with him, but if he''s running this fast for that long, then there''s a good chance we''ll be the ones losing that gamble. He either has high mana regen, an ability that is helping him sprint that fast for long durations, or maybe Rai''ga himself has buffed him in some way. Regardless, fighting is our only option. This is so annoying... But hopefully he has some abilities I can steal. Petey, don''t absorb his soul. I need this one.

    Petey and I slowed to a stop before turning around. We stood there, silently waiting for our pursuer to arrive as I retrieved my veil from Petey. It didn''t take long for the pursuer to come to a halt about thirty feet from us. He(or she) was tall and entirely covered in a dark robe. The opening of his hood which should show his face, was instead covered by something black.

    "Hello, asshole. Mind telling Rai''ga to piss off? I''d vastly prefer to grab a pizza and watch some TV instead of having to deal with you fuckers."

    The man didn''t flinch. He silently stared at me for a while before finally responding. "... He says that cannot be allowed. Although, he is impressed that you already identified him as the one tracking you."

    "I have never met another God who could track me like this. Even so, it remained a suspicion until you started running straight for us. That''s when it turned into conviction."

    Instead of replying, the man summoned a large scythe into his hands. Upon seeing this, my lackadaisical feelings toward this whole situation did a completely one-eighty.

    "... Well now, that changes things. Seifer and Rai''ga, huh? I''m curious as to how you ended up working for him... I could look through your memories, but I think I''ll just torture you instead."

    I didn''t expect to run into him again so soon... I suppose I have Rai''ga to thank for this.

    {R-Reimia... Mother says you should run.}

    Nah I''m good. I think I''ll stay right here. Also, run to where? The fucker can sprint at extreme speeds endlessly apparently and he has Rai''ga pinpointing my location at all times.

    {Where you were before, the cave, it''s close! No one will be able to track you once you''re close to one of our homes!}

    Petey, circle him. I ignored the fairy and focused on the coming battle.

    {U-uuuu...}

    Petey began walking at an angle around Seifer while holding his greatsword at the ready. For his part, Seifer seemed far more concerned with Petey than he did me. I could see him staring at the sword even now. Alright, we should last for a few minutes. Thank god the Fairy Cave is nearby, because the backlash from this halo is going to be immense...

    I activated my halo and began charging it. Seifer briefly glanced at me before leaping at Petey. I dashed toward him and he immediately swung his scythe in my direction. I leaned back under it while grabbing his wrist and kicking at his left ankle. He lifted his foot to the left, evading the attack as he pointed at Petey with his left hand.

    Petey was revving up to attack him, but once he saw that he dodged to the right, and it was just in time too. A small spear of ice shot out of Seifer''s fingers that shattered upon contacting Petey''s pauldrons, but apparently that was all it needed, as the ice spread far and wide, locking down his entire shoulder and elbow.

    Even if the soul he was based on didn''t know how to remove the ice, I knew basic fire and heating spells, so it wasn''t a killing blow by any means. Petey could still wield the greatsword with one hand while he heated his shoulder, but future ice spells were still something we needed to be wary of.

    My fingers that were locked onto his wrist suddenly started to freeze. I pulled back and broke the ice encasing them as freezing cold air began to billow out from Seifer. Petey and I leaped back just in time to avoid some type of flash freeze spell that blasted outwards from him. The ground close to him was completely frozen over as a result.

    I kicked off and circled around Seifer, or I attempted to, but Seifer began running back as well. He paced himself so he was at a good distance from us as he fired one icicle spear after another in our direction. However, this game didn''t last long. He appeared to be losing speed with each passing second, and eventually it had reached a point where we were faster than him. Seifer was obviously confused by what was happening, but at the last second he noticed Petey''s tail pointing at him as a light purple aura appeared around its tip.

    Once I was finally behind Seifer we both leaped at him, but we were forced to back off again as another frost flash exploded around him, except this time we immediately restarted our attack. Seifer swung his scythe in an arc big enough to hit both of us which did force Petey to leap backward, but yet again, that kind of attack was not going to hit me. I leaned under the scythe and punched right into his liver. His enhancements took the blow, but the impact sent him flying toward Petey who was already swinging down toward Seifer.

    Seifer just barely parried the blow, but he didn''t retreat fast enough for what came next. Either that or he hadn''t expect such an attack. With his sword parried, Petey''s head was rather close to Seifer''s, so he decided to just bite down on his head and upper torso. Seifer began shaking violently in an attempt to free himself as he took a swing at Petey, but I was already on top of him. I grabbed his wrists and began kneeing him in his back over and over again.

    It was hard for him this close-up and being unable to move, but Petey managed to bring his sword back a little and jam it into Seifer''s gut. His enhancements held strong, but he was clearly panicking. I felt another ice wave coming so I backed up while Petey held onto him. As a result, Petey and the sword were almost completely frozen, and yet, Seifer still couldn''t escape Petey''s jaw. However, his arms were free so he tried to attack Petey again with the scythe, but yet again, I caught his wrists just before the attack landed.

    "FUCK OFF ALREADY YOU DEAD CUNT!! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT TO BEGIN WITH!!"

    I ignored him and restarted my attack on his back. One of the blows didn''t feel like I was hitting a steel wall, which told me he was hitting his limits, or that he was faking me out. But his reaction to part of my knee being driven into his spine was not one of glee, he instead dropped his scythe and attempted to use it telepathically to end Petey. I could see a bright blue aura wrapped around it as it spun through the air toward Petey.

    I let go of Seifer and dove for the scythe, grabbing it out of the air as it cut deep into Petey''s torso. We were still connected so I could tell it had somewhat pierced his core, but he was still alive for now.

    Clearly at the end of his rope, Seifer began channeling a large ice spell. I could tell he completely tapped himself because some of Petey''s teeth were piercing his skin now. Blood dripped out of the dark robe as a dozen icicles formed above Seifer. As soon as they were formed they shot toward me, which I had easily dodged long before they hit me, but I knew this was going to be a much bigger pain to deal with once I saw them turn around in the air and come back my way.

    I wasn''t used to the unusual scythe weapon, so all of my attacks were complete whiffs, but I eventually began to cut the icicles down. The problem was that Seifer was meditating and Petey couldn''t stop him. I could feel a massive swell of energy ramping up behind me, but there was nothing I could do. These icicles were twice the size of the one that hit Petey, and when I took into account just how much it froze of his body, it meant that one of these would freeze half of my body. So getting hit with one of these icicles would be a guaranteed bad end for both of us.

    Holy shit, just how much mana does he regain when he meditates?! It has to be an ability or something Rai''ga did to him... The aura coming off of him is way too powerful for someone who was at death''s door a second ago.

    The ice around Petey began to crack as his heating spell finally started melting it. Seifer saw this and cut his meditation short before willing a green short-sword into his right hand. I cut the last icicle down and charged at him just as he cut off Petey''s lower jaw. Now that he was free he threw the sword at me, forcing me to dodge to the left. While I was in the air he bent down to pick up Petey''s sword that had fallen to the ground. However, no matter how hard he tried to pick it up, he couldn''t get it off the ground. What the? It''s not that heavy. Did Petey do something to it?

    I hit the ground and dashed toward him. He leaped back, or tried to, but Petey''s right hand broke free from the ice and grabbed him mid-air. Seifer cursed loudly as he summoned two green short-swords into his hands. He tried to swing down toward Petey''s arm but Petey immediately threw him into the ground. The impact must have hurt him more than I had expected, because I saw some blood sputter out of his mask the second he hit the ground.

    Seifer rolled over and jumped away from Petey as he completely broke out of the ice. I ran past Petey while he picked up his sword. Seifer''s swords turned blue as he whipped them in an arc toward us. The ground underneath our feet turned to ice almost instantly in a straight line from his position. It took me by surprise sadly, so I stumbled onto the ground, but Petey just smashed his feet hard into the ice as he ran after Seifer.

    At this point, Seifer was doing something I had only seen a few other times. He was somehow meditating while casting his homing icicle spell. Risky, as no matter how good you are at swapping stances, it still takes a moment to exit meditation. However, it doesn''t mean anything if we can''t get close to him. Even if I was slightly better with the scythe now, I was still forced to solely focus on dodging and attacking the icicles.

    Petey however, was cutting them down one by one as he approached Seifer. His greatsword was completely frozen over but he was making sure the end of his sword was the part hitting the icicles. They were freezing the entire sword all the way down to nearly his elbows, but since he could still use his elbows, he was able to keep pushing forward.

    Seifer was making sure that at least ten icicles were on me at all times, but the number dropped drastically as he attempted to stop Petey from advancing. Thanks to this, I was able to slowly move closer to him as well, and I could even see Petey''s tail pointing at Seifer again, slowing him down so we''d be ready to cut him down the moment we were in range. Shit, I''m reaching my limit and I can tell Petey is too.

    Not liking the way things were heading, Seifer ramped up the amount of icicles he was creating. Considering he could''ve done that anytime he wanted, this told us that he was burning through way more mana than he was producing as a last-ditch effort to kill us. To my surprise, and apparently Seifers as well, Petey charged forward, closing the remaining gap between the two of them, letting all of the icicles smash into him as he went. But before they could freeze him, he swung one last time at Seifer.

    Seifer responded as fast as he could, but it just wasn''t enough. Petey''s erratic behavior had ruined him. He came out of his meditation and jumped diagonally backward to avoid Petey''s attack, but the tip of the greatsword smashed into his shoulder, sending him straight into the ground. All of the icicles chasing me stopped moving for a moment, picking up where they left off soon after that, but it was all the time I needed to close the remaining distance between us.

    Seifer rolled to the left and leaped away from me. He had done it quite fast too considering the situation, but I still opened up a large gash in his back. The scythe ripped through his back, leaving a massive open wound and tearing straight through his spine. I moved forward to finish him as a large ray of light came down from the sky, hitting Seifer directly. I could see his spine fixing itself almost instantly, but it didn''t matter. Rai''ga''s last attempt to assist the man was futile. As his spine recovered, I immediately cut Seifer''s arms and legs off.

    Seifer screamed in pain while I flipped the scythe around in my hands. "Quite the weapon this is... I don''t know how to use this weird-as-hell slashing weapon, but I think it''s growing on me."

    I kicked Seifer''s torso over just as I felt the vision from the sky disappear. Looks like he gave up on him. I guess this really is it. Unfortunately, I don''t have time to torture him, my mana is at its limits, and when I release this halo... I really hope that Fairy Cave is as close as Luna says it is.

    I cut the hood and mask off of Seifer''s face, revealing the first Human I''ve ever seen who looked even more pale than I was. He didn''t look as enraged as I had expected. If anything, he looked sad.

    He looked up at me as his eyes glazed over. "If only you... Didn''t exist..." He mumbled.

    "... You said something like that back when you killed Shana. Weren''t you screaming about how it was my fault?"

    Seifer looked away from me, choosing to stare up into the sky instead of answering me. "Finish me... Monster."

    "Monster...? I''M the monster?! You mother fucking..." I was about to explode on him but I felt my halo begin to fade as Petey''s core also began to dim. We''re out of time...

    I stared at the man, knowing full well that he''d bleed out soon at this rate, but there was no time to watch him slowly die. Nor did I want to risk Rai''ga coming back and giving him enough strength to heal himself. The scythe however, was not an option. It had felt odd when I hit the icicles with it, as if it was absorbing their mana. So instead of risking it eating his soul, as some artifacts were known to do, I dropped down next to Seifer and pulled my right fist back.

    "Goodbye asshole. I wanted to hear from your own mouth why you turned on us, but it looks like I''ll have to settle for digging through your memories."

    And just like I did to the Crotian who Petey was created from, I brought my fist down and destroyed Seifer''s heart. He exhaled his last breath as I ripped his soul out and threw it into my mouth. The melancholy hit me hard as I stood there in silence for a few moments, watching the corpse of the man. I didn''t want to leave, but I knew we had no time for this.

    ... Now then, little fairy who yet again wouldn''t help me in combat. Point me toward the cave. I''m about to crash, so we need to move fast.

    I could feel Luna tremble as another light appeared in my vision. The halo dissipated and I hit the ground almost instantly. Shit... I think I need help, Petey.

    Petey walked up to me and slung me over his shoulder. He stumbled toward the cave as I watched Seifer''s body get smaller and smaller. It happened much faster than I expected, but I killed him, Shana... Now I only need to kill one more, and then it''ll finally be time to rest for good.

 Chapter 69 - To Telebron

    I opened my eyes but made no move to sit up. The water inside the pool was so clear that I could see Lunaria looking down at me. I ignored her and stayed where I was for a bit longer.

    {Are you okay...?}

    ... I know I''m mostly healed now, little fairy. I just want to relax in silence for a bit. I need it after what we just saw.

    {I-I see... I''m sorry, I know I''m stupid...}

    Ahh, there it is. Not just scared of combat, but you think low of yourself as well. We''ll work on that another time. For now, leave me alone.

    Luna shut up after that, allowing me the much-needed downtime I needed to meditate and relax.

    <hr>

    As I lifted my torso out of the water I could feel Lunaria immediately begin to rub my back.

    "Feeling better?" She asked.

    "Not entirely, but I''ve accepted it." I looked over at the other ponds and watched the fairies playing with one another as the Lords channeled onto a strange-looking colorful rock. "I assume you were watching his memories as well? Through Luna, I mean."

    "I was, and it showed me one very important note of information. I really need to apologize to Aresa. She''s going to be insufferable after this, but there''s no denying that I was in the wrong for doubting her, so I''ll accept the consequences."

    I looked back at Lunaria, "Wrong about what?"

    "She''s been telling us for months now that Rai''ga was here. There were no sightings of a three-headed Eldritch God, nor were there any signs of something that powerful lurking anywhere in our nation. And we already have a thousand other problems in Termia, so everyone including me told her that she was imagining things." Lunaria sighed, "She is going to be so annoying after I apologize to her..."

    "I don''t remember her being annoying at all? Naive sure, but that just made her all the more cute."

    Lunaria began laughing while slapping my back. Once she was done she just shook her head at me. "Oh boy, are you in for a surprise. I won''t ruin it for you though. Just head on to Telebron and see her for yourself. She doesn''t know you''re here yet, but I''ll tell her when I warp back after you leave. But before you go, is there anything you want to talk about? Some of the things Rai''ga showed Seifer were, well... I hate to say it, but I can see why he wanted to kill you."

    Seifer''s memories cleared up any confusion related to his decline and actions. It went in a direction I hadn''t quite expected... One part of my history I''ve tried to forget about, while also drudging up the name of a God that has played little role in my life while also being an ever-present threat in the background.

    It went like this. While we were staying in Viseux after our return from Kellog, Rai''ga had reached out to Euphemia in an attempt to win her over. It failed, but he knew it would. Not that it was clear from Seifer''s memories, but I could tell right away that Rai''ga had only done it to lure Seifer there. Aresa had no influence outside of her controlled regions, so she couldn''t stop Rai''ga from speaking to him directly. Which also meant that nobody had any idea that it had happened at all.

    Seifer had initially denied the telepathic link that would allow them to talk, but Rai''ga dropped a couple of names in his conversation with Euphemia which immediately made Seifer change his mind. The names of his late Father, Mother, and Brothers. Sadly for him, that''s the exact moment his fate was sealed. And it was all thanks to me...

    Seifer went into Rai''ga''s soul realm, where time was almost immovable, so he had all the time in the world to corrupt him. Not literally corrupt as in his soul, but his mind. He showed him the exact moment his family was captured by a unit from Xelba. A unit that had a girl with white hair and red eyes in it. Apparently Rai''ga''s ability to see far into the distance was much more powerful than I had imagined. I only vaguely remembered this exact instance of a carriage we had attacked, but I did recognize the area around the road itself. It was really fucking far from his domain. Over several hundred miles away easily.

    It wasn''t much of a surprise what happened next. Seifer was devastated seeing what had happened to his family. However, his next reaction truly was shocking. He declined Rai''ga. The God had offered to help him attain his revenge against me, but Seifer saw that his place now was by Euphemia''s side, and turning me into an enemy would have created a whole shit storm of problems for everyone there. We were already struggling to overcome Rai''ga''s grip on Viseux, so something like this would have guaranteed our loss.

    He saw the past as the past, and nothing more. He thanked Rai''ga for showing him and asked to leave his soul realm. Surprisingly, Rai''ga agreed and let him out right away. No time had passed in the real world, so he waited for Euphemia''s conversation with the God to finish before they headed back to the chateau. All that really happened after that was a few moments of intense disgust and anger he felt towards me when he saw me, but it would quickly dissipate. And when I had ''died'', he was overjoyed but kept it to himself. So for him, that chapter of his life had closed with my death. In other words, everything was fine for him from there on out. That is, until a few years had passed after they arrived in Telebron.

    Two things had happened in that time. One, the scythe''s corruption was finally taking hold of him. You see, it''s a cursed weapon. It slowly erodes the soul of its user, turning them into a puppet for the scythe, but it also taught him all of his fighting skills and the materialize ability as well. So it wasn''t one-sided.

    The problem is that his soul was starting to destabilize when he overheard Aresa, Alicia, and Tyra talking about me. Aresa was adamant that Alicia had to keep returning to the chateau to check for me, which he found really strange, so he stopped in his tracks and continued to listen in, which led to him learning about my ability to return to life. And that is the moment when his final defenses against the scythe had fully cracked. The Eldritch soul in the weapon had seen the prime chance it was just given, and obviously it didn''t hesitate to act upon it.

    He was willing to let the past die with my death, and he probably would have ignored it anyway had I never died in the first place. But when he thought I was gone and he was able to put it all behind him, that''s exactly what he did. Unfortunately for him, as he had just learned, I wasn''t going to stay dead. So between that and his corrupted soul, he practically changed overnight.

    Normally he could ignore the scythe''s craving for more souls, but those days were over, so he needed a new hunting ground. Telebron for whatever reason was deemed unsafe for him. He wasn''t specific in his thought process, but he was positive he''d be caught there stealing souls, so he spent the next month convincing Euphemia that he wanted to be sent out as a spy. They had needed people to watch Viktor''s activity after he had begun to expand into Aetheria, so she eventually caved and allowed him to go.

    From there I didn''t see much of a value. He actually did do his job, and even sent back some interesting reports about Viktor''s nation, but in the meantime he was killing people all over the place. Feeding souls to his scythe had become his real mission.

    I looked over at the scythe as it rested inside the pool of water. Lunaria followed my vision and chuckled, "He''s quite angry you know? My waters are like poison for him, and he also hates you with a passion. Not only did you take his pawn from him, but he can''t corrupt you. So for now, he''s literally just a weapon with no agency."

    "Do artifact weapons and armor normally have wills like this? I thought they lost those in the refining process. That''s what I was told in Xelba anyway. In fact, it was Viktor who told me that."

    Lunaria shook her head, "Not always. Most of the time, yes. But every now and then the will of the Eldritch is too powerful and it survives the process. You shouldn''t blame the creators though. I have it on good authority that they don''t actually know if the Eldritch''s wills survive or not. For any Eldritch that powerful, it''s immediately going to act as if it doesn''t have one. None of them are stupid enough to give away the game, which would result in them being dismantled and absorbed."

    I motioned toward the scythe, "It was a weapon his Father had in their storage. There were three artifact weapons they were planning to sell, and he did sell two of them after he took over his Father''s business. But this one, he kept this one, and even accepted its deal to teach him how to fight while also giving him the ability to send items into his soul realm. However, the items in question needed to have a strong link to him, so he couldn''t just do it with anything."

    Honestly, Seifer wasn''t anyone I was really concerned with. He was just some nice guy from Kellog who had assisted us quite well while we were there. And he was also competent as Euphemia''s aid. Past that, I didn''t know shit about the guy, nor did I even want to know anything about him. Was that a mistake...? Now that I think back on it, I never make any attempts to understand people I meet.

    The only reason I know about Lindon''s past is because he told me directly. I suppose I... I don''t know. I feel like I should try and talk to people more. Especially when I think about the fact that I didn''t know much of anything about Shana''s past either... It kills me that all I can do is ask Aresa about her now, and even she will only have limited information.

    But at the same time, it''s not like we''ve had plenty of time to relax and talk about our pasts. The only time would''ve been in Aresa''s chateau. Except, even then, we were constantly trying to figure out how to expand Aresa''s control of Viseux. It was all in vain and looked quite hopeless from the start, but I didn''t want to let Aresa down like that. Although, I do know that I could''ve tried to talk her into leaving, and now I''m really regretting that I didn''t.

    "So what are you going to do about Rai''ga?"

    Lunaria sighed, "I don''t know. I really don''t know... We''re stretched too thin as it is, and I can''t ask Belfos to look into it. He almost never listens to me. He just wanders around doing his own thing, but I can''t complain too much since all of his actions are done to protect Termia. Oh, speaking of which, the ''Insectoids'' you saw attacking that Xerathian Hive, was his forces. That was one of his Lords that came crashing through the wall. And before you ask; no, I did not know he was going to be there. Keeping tabs on him is difficult these days."

    So he just patrols around all of Termia wiping out enemy bases? He reminds me of a certain righteous Tengu.

    "Well, let''s dive deeper into Seifer''s memories before I leave. We''ll see what he''s been up to here, and maybe he''ll know where Rai''ga''s base of operations is."

    "Are you sure, Rei? I don''t know anything about how your soul works, but it''s feeling strange right now. While you were watching his memories in your soul realm, I could feel my cleansing pools being repelled by something inside of you. I thought it was the scythe taking hold of your soul at first, but that can''t be it. I think it''s Seifer''s soul. You should get rid of it while you can."

    "It''s that bad? I could feel something creeping around inside of me, but I didn''t think it was something that serious. The problem is that I''ve already absorbed it, so there''s nothing I can do at this point. It''s like that time I absorbed a man''s soul that had been corrupted by the Tengu, which led to him..."

    Oh shit, what if it''s exactly like that?

    "Lunaria, I''m going to try and reach out to the Tengu God. I need to ask him something. Do you know of him?"

    Lunaria shrugged, "Only through word of mouth. He''s a boogeyman for distant worlds, but he hasn''t bothered us at all. If anything, he''s mostly a thorn in the Xel''nethra''s side. I''ve heard many reports of massive crow-like Eldritch attacking cities belonging to Viktor. I''d offer to support him if my little Aresa wasn''t so adamant that the Tengu wants to capture her too."

    Capture... That''s right. He does want to capture her, doesn''t he? And at the time I didn''t really connect the dots, but what if Rai''ga wasn''t interested in Viseux itself? It could have been nothing more than a means to an end. With that end being Aresa. The fact that he''s here near Termia where Aresa now lives makes it all the more suspicious. There are a hundred different moons and several planets he could have relocated to. But instead he''s here?

    "It''s really bizarre that several Eldritch Gods are trying to capture her. Do you know the reason why?"

    It was only for a moment, but the emotions disappeared on her face as she looked at me. But her smile returned in no time as she replied with "You''ll have to ask her."

    Well that wasn''t suspicious at all... The hell is going on with---You know what, whether she answers me or not, it doesn''t matter. I''ll ask the Tengu, and if I still get no answer, I''m sure Aresa will tell me. Although I feel like I asked her before and she said that she didn''t know...? I swear I asked her, but I can''t remember when it was.

    I laid down in the water again, letting it wash over me as I entered my soul realm. And just like that time on Veca, I prodded the connection to the Tengu. Within moments he appeared before me as he dug his claws into the ground. There was however, one little difference. One I wouldn''t have picked up on without Markus pointing it out to us the last time I saw the Tengu. Most of his legs were gone before, but now they''re stumped at around his knees. Is he slowly regrowing them? His soul must be severely damaged for him to be needing this much time to heal himself.

    {BACK AGAIN... NIGH MADNESS...}

    "Yeah---"

    My response was cut off as the Tengu suddenly started to whip his head around in different directions.

    {YOUR AGE EVER INCREASES... BUT YOUR BRAIN DOES NOT...}

    Now that was harsh... I needed Seifer''s memories though. It was a risk I had to take.

    "So it''s true, my soul is being corrupted by something right now, isn''t it?"

    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    {CORRUPTED... YOU? IMPOSSIBLE... THERE IS A NEW CONNECTION FORMING... CAN FEEL HIS EYES... YOU MUST STOP IT NOW BEFORE IT IS COMPLETE.}

    "How? I know it''s there but I don''t know the first thing about soul magic. All my skills in this realm are related to viewing memories."

    {THE SAME CONCEPT... FOCUS ON THE ENTITY LIKE A MEMORY... MAKE YOUR SOUL AWARE OF IT... RIGHT NOW IT IS DISCREET... INVISIBLE... SEA OF TREES...}

    Oh, so it''s masked itself in a way that makes my soul think it''s made of the same matter as it? I can still sense it, but it is extremely vague. So it''s not clear enough for the soul to recognize it as a threat huh?

    I sat down and emptied my mind, the same as I always do for meditating. Over the next thirty minutes a long game of cat and mouse played out as I attempted to focus on the foreign invader, but it slipped away time and again. However, whatever I was doing was still working apparently, because suddenly all at once the entity vanished. And in that final moment I could see Rai''ga staring back at me.

    {WELL DONE...}

    I stood up and walked over to the couch, laying down on it as I looked up at the Tengu. I''m mentally exhausted after that... It was kind of fun in a way, but by the end I was beyond fed up with it.

    "How much do you know of Rai''ga? That was him, by the way."

    {I KNOW... ONE OF MOTHER''S PROUDEST... ALL HE DOES... HE DOES FOR HER...}

    An image popped into my head. One of a Tengu Lord''s remains after he was blasted by the railgun. I replicated the memory in my soul realm, showing it to the Tengu.

    "How is he doing?"

    {STILL IN CREATION... ANOTHER TEN YEARS MINIMUM...}

    So he''s still being reborn... I wanted to apologize to him, but looks like that''s on hold for now.

    "One last question. Why are you trying to capture Aresa?"

    {SHIVA''S DAUGHTER...? LONG SINCE ABANDONED... NOT WORTH THE EFFORT...}

    "Glad to hear it, but why? Rai''ga is still after her apparently. I can''t think of another reason he''d be here."

    {SHIVA WAS A CONDUIT FOR THE CORE... SHE RULED VISEUX... SURELY YOU UNDERSTAND THIS? YOUR ''VIKTOR'' KNEW THIS...}

    "No, I don''t know what that means at all. The core is referencing the core of the planet, right? So Shiva---"

    All of a sudden the Tengu vanished. I looked around in confusion, and even prodded his connection again, but it was dead silent. The only clue I had worried me greatly. Right before he disappeared, I felt the subtle aura of ether creep its way into my soul realm. The very same signature of the pond my body was resting in. Did that cunt cut the connection and block it...?

    Suddenly I felt much more vulnerable and exposed inside the Fairies Domain than I did outside with the Xerath and Crotians. However, I knew I couldn''t let her know that, so I exited my soul realm and sighed as I looked at her.

    "Something went wrong, I lost the connection. I''ll just have to talk to Aresa about it... I need to see her anyway. It''s been way too long."

    Lunaria smiled, "Are you ready to leave then? I have no more desire to be here if you''re taking a break from looking for the main hive, and I really should be heading back anyway. There''s a multitude of other problems I need to deal with."

    "How long will it take me and Petey to run there again? Luna said about four days, I think?"

    "She was correct, but that''s only if you''re running to the capital. There are outposts and even cities along the way you know? I can have someone pick you up in the closest city. It should only take you a day to get there. You revived at a pretty good location. I''m very curious as to how it works... Aren''t you interested to know why you just so happened to revive so close to us?"

    I stood up and looked over at Petey as I picked the scythe up. He had just finished repairing himself and was walking toward the exit. "Of course I''m ''Interested''. So far all I know is the vague shit I saw down in the Abyss Realm." Wait... The Abyss Realm! "Oh shit, that''s right! I forgot to ask about that place. Have there been uh, well fuck, there''s like thirty different questions I have related to it."

    Lunaria chuckled as she exited the pond, "Yes there have been problems related to those disgusting creatures. A few of their Gods have popped up here and there, and we''ve even had one of them harassing us for years. But we''ve talked enough for now. Go on to Telebron, I''m sure Aresa will be more than happy to tell you all about it."

    And with that said, she walked toward the second level of the cave and disappeared behind a curtain made out of some kind of transparent material.

    Alright then, that''s our cue, Petey. But uh...

    I focused inward on the little fairy who was still inside my soul for some reason.

    Aren''t you going to rejoin your companions here, Luna?

    {But Mother told me to go with you? Remember?}

    So it wasn''t temporary as I scouted the local region? Hmm... My first thought is that I want her gone. I don''t want a spy for Lunaria following me around everywhere. But for now, I''m going to leave her be. As it is she should be under the assumption that I didn''t realize it was her that had cut off the Tengu and blocked him. I''ll leave the Fairy for now until I can talk to Aresa. If she cut off the Tengu but plans on letting me see Aresa, then I have a feeling that she won''t know the answer either. Which will be disappointing, but I''m sure there are other ways to find the answer. Plus, there''s a chance Cera or Euphemia might know too.

    <hr>

    This is...

    I searched and searched, but no matter how much I scoured the Xerath''s bodies, there were no souls inside any of them.

    What the fuck is this? I''ve never met a Xerath that didn''t have a soul before.

    Luna, are all of the Xerath attacking your region soulless?

    {No... Only the ones born from the ooze.}

    So then that means the one over there should have one.

    About ten minutes ago we ran into a large group of Xerath running across the plains. They were almost entirely of the same type, the ones that I saw back in the hive being created through the ooze. However, there is a larger, much more powerful-looking one staring us down right now. It was off to the side eating a dead animal as we ambushed the group. Petey and I made quick work of the ten grunts, which left only the unique one to deal with. It''s about ten feet tall with Human-like appendages. And weirdly enough, the only way I can describe its body is ''Ripped''. The damned thing looks like it''s been lifting weights every day for ten years.

    The Xerath began to circle around us as it continued to stare at me. Every time its foot hit the ground I could feel the weight of the creature reverberate under my own feet. I activated the Halo and circled to the right as Petey held fast with his greatsword at the ready. He was waiting for the creature to attack me so he could hit it from behind. Assuming it''s stupid enough to leave its back exposed.

    The claws on the end of its toes dug into the ground in preparation. And as it charged at me the ground itself practically exploded behind it. It was fast, but only a little faster than I had expected it to be. Which still made the creature really damned powerful, but within reason given my current strength. Fighting two or more of these would be out of the question though.

    I ducked under its initial attack, a quick snap of its right fist at my face. I had barely evaded its first attack when it raised its right foot toward my exposed torso. I leaped back at an angle while swatting away his leg. The strength with which he kicked had sent tremors through my arm as I hit his leg. He didn''t follow up after that though, as he was too busy evading to his left. Petey''s angled vertical slash had missed, but he immediately pivoted for more follow-up attacks as I dashed to the other side of the creature.

    The Xerath, clearly aware of what we were doing, attempted to kick away from both of us in another direction, but an ethereal fist shot out of my chest and grabbed him, locking him down in place. The spell wasn''t strong enough to hold him for long, but it didn''t matter. That split second was enough for Petey to cut the creature in two from the head down. The two halves of it both fell to the left and right as blueish blood sprayed everywhere. It reminds me of Aresa''s blood, strangely enough.

    I walked over and pulled the soul out of both halves of its body. Good work little fairy, that was some great support. I said to Luna as I gulped down the soul. I could feel Luna radiating brightly from the compliment.

    Whoa, this one alone was about twenty percent the strength of the Chimera. Which may seem small, but that monster was an outlier. This is actually huge... When I get the chance I''m going to prowl around the countryside and look for more of these Xerath. Luna, if this one wasn''t born from ooze, where was it born?

    {Weird sacks. Some others are born from those big purple fleshy things you saw too. It''s all so gross...}

    Sacks... So probably eggs? I''ve seen Xerath born from those, so that part is more inline with what I''m used to.

    <hr>

    So this is the city closest to all of this madness... Okay Luna. Show me where the vehicle is.

    {Wait at that street right there. Mother is sending them to pick you up. They look weird. You''ll know it''s them.}

    I have pure white hair, red eyes, a black full-body suit made out of blood, and I''m currently covered in dried blue Xerathian blood. I''m pretty sure I''ll be the weird one in their eyes. Whoever they are.

    {Hehe, true!}

    Petey and I removed our invisibility as I sat down on a nearby bench. The street we were on had a few people here and there, but only one of them saw me and a massive armored skeletal Crotian appear out of nowhere. He freaked out and ran off down the street while yelling for help.

    Is that going to be a problem?

    {No. Mother told the Mayor you were coming. He should have put out a general warning over the speakers, but not everyone listens to them...}

    She''s becoming more talkative during this last stretch of our journey. I think that little bit of combat she experienced is exactly what she needed to break out of her shell.

    A large armored vehicle pulled around the corner and stopped right in front of us. It looks like Viktor''s vehicles. I suppose there''s no point in changing what already works. The man in the gunner''s seat spun around so the gun and shield weren''t in the way. "Are you Miss Reimia?"

    "Yes! Are you who I''m waiting for? I was told they''d be weird looking, but you just look like a regular soldier."

    "Hah! I''ll take that as a compliment. Whoever told you they were weird looking wasn''t wrong, you''ll see soon enough. We''re just here to make sure nothing goes wrong while they pick you up."

    To calm the citizens basically. I should''ve met the people picking me up in secret, but I suppose the citizens in this region should get used to me. Especially if I end up using this city as a base of operations.

    Five minutes later an abnormally long vehicle pulled up behind the armored vehicle and stopped. It was pure black, and even the windows looked black. This is new... I can''t see inside the windows at all. And why is it so long??

    The doors in the back both opened up as two people stepped out of the vehicle. Immediately, I knew what Luna and the soldier meant by weird.

    The duo approached me, a lady and a man wearing the strangest clothing I had ever seen up until this point.

    "Hello, Miss Necromancer~." The lady said with a warm smile.

    "Necrowhat? I''ve never heard that word before. And what are those outfits?! I don''t even know how to describe them in my own head."

    The man laughed and looked at the lady, "Looks like I win." In response the lady sighed as she handed over some coins to the man.

    So they bet on whether that''d be my first question? The odds seem high in his favor. Who the hell wouldn''t ask that?

    Once she was done paying her colleague, she looked back at me. "This is a dress where I come from. It''s a continent on the west side of Zhegu." She then pointed to some type of threads hanging off her waist. "You see these? They''re called ''Tassels''. And these?" She pointed toward the metal sticks holding her elaborate pink ponytails up. "They''re known as ''Ji hairpins''. But it would be best if I explained all of this on the ride home, yes?"

    "Yeah, that''s fine. The sooner I''m in Telebron the better too. But why was a couple of people from another planet sent to pick me up?"

    The man had short black hair and was wearing a greenish-black outfit that matched the unknown style of the woman. He turned around and opened the back door before motioning for me to enter. "Because we volunteered. We''ve been stuck in this lovely place for a few years now. Lady Aresa is one of the few people worth speaking to here, and she''s spoken of you multiple times, saying that we''d meet you one day.." He said as I walked toward the vehicle and entered it. I sat down in the back and placed the scythe on the table in front of me.

    The inside is nice... Maybe even something people would consider luxurious. But it''s so nice that it''s weirding me out. It even has a fucking mini-bar and TV inside of it. Plus I can''t see the driver! Why is there a black window in the way?!

    "Hey, you. Pretty lady. Why can''t I see the driver? This vehicle is suspicious as all hell." I asked the lady as she sat down in the seat across from the TV.

    She put her hand up to her mouth as she giggled. "This is called a ''Limozine''. It''s one of Aresa''s personal vehicles. She let us use it to pick you up. Unfortunately, she isn''t allowed to leave the capital, and she''s quite busy today, so she wasn''t able to come with us. You should have seen how upset she was. It was so cute~!"

    Limozine... I know that word. I think I even told Aresa about them in the past. But I only knew that they were ''Very long vehicles.'' It just didn''t click with me after seeing it in person.

    Petey unfortunately couldn''t fit through the doors, so they had to open the windows on top of the vehicle(it was called a ''Sunroof'' the lady said) and let him in through there. He lowered himself inside and laid down on the opposite side of me in an extremely awkward-looking position. Good thing he''s a skeleton, that would be so fucking uncomfortable for a living being.

    The man sat down in the back with me, but he stayed on the other side next to the other door. He then pushed a button on the side of the door which led to the vehicle moving. Did that button alert the driver that we''re ready? Such a strange system.

    "What are your names?"

    The lady motioned toward herself and then the man. "Xi Liao, and Kai Han."

    "... Very unique names to fit your pretty but weird attire."

    Xi giggled again while pointing at my armor, "So true~. If only I could find a pure black one-piece covered in blue blood. Ahh, such a dreamy aesthetic~."

    "Hey now, this armor is pretty strong for how flexible it is. Petey''s is way stronger, but much too heavy for my liking. Even if enhancing yourself takes care of the weight issue, you''re still increasing the load on yourself by quite a bit."

    "Petey...?" They both said as they looked at the skeleton. Petey, from his awkward position, lifted his left hand up and waved to the two of them. The woman broke into laughter while wheezing about how stupid his name was. The man however, was staring at him emotionlessly.

    "I want to duel this creature when we arrive at our destination." Kai eventually said.

    "Ugh, here he goes again..." Xi said as she turned the TV on.

    "Can I decline? If he cuts you in two then I don''t even want to know what kind of fallout that will lead to. I''m already going to have enough on my plate when I arrive at our destination."

    "Hahahaha she said it''s going to cut you two! Oh Rei, if only he stayed that way..."

    Kai looked at me, "Fear not, lovely Necromancer. I cannot die."

    "......."

    He doesn''t appear to be joking. So is he like me then?

    "You''ve confused the poor girl, explain your ability idiot. Don''t just sit there stone-faced." Xi said before she threw a piece of chocolate in her mouth.

    "Ah, apologies. Explanations would indeed be appropriate here." Kai nodded, "My ability allows me to set an immovable shade of myself nearby, and if I were to die within a certain radius of it, I would be sent back through time to shade, returning to my current state at the time of the shade''s creation. However, my shade can be destroyed. So it is important that I hide it in a safe location."

    "That is one hell of an ability to have. But uh, should you really be telling me about this?"

    Kai nodded again, "It is not a problem. Lady Aresa is the reason the two of us are still alive and living a good life. We may not care for this nation, but we''ve chosen to live out our lives in her service all the same. So if she says you are trustworthy, then we will also trust you."

    Whoa, I didn''t expect them to be that important to Aresa.

    "I''d love to hear about how you two came to be in her service, but first things first. What is a ''Necromancer''?"

    The two of them shared a confused look before Xi looked at me, "Um, Aresa called you that term. She said that it was written in a book she read---Oh! She read it here in Termia. So it would have been after your, uh..."

    Ahh, so that''s why they''re calling me this term I had never heard of before. It''s Aresa''s little bookworm habits that led to this. I''m fine with it though, it''s a pretty interesting title. ''Necromancer'' huh?

    "And you trailed off at a pretty important part. Can you elaborate? I want to know how much she''s told you."

    Xi''s eyes lit up with a fervor I hadn''t seen yet, "You die, and then you''re reborn somewhere else! A fantastical ability that makes Kai''s look weak in comparison. Yours is guaranteed, which is, dare I say, marvelous. I thought Aresa was delusional when she first told us, but Cera and Euphemia said that she was telling the truth, which even then it was still hard to believe. But here you are, alive, after your death by the Xel''nethra!"

    "Xi Liao," Kai said sternly, making Xi shake.

    "Ah... I''m sorry, Rei. I got carried away." Xi said, looking down.

    "What? Why did you yell at her and why is she sad?"

    Kai looked at me with a pained face, "Was I mistaken? Then allow me to be the one to apologize instead. I thought her fervor related to the reason your comrades have perished, was uncalled for."

    "Oh... Well, she didn''t mean it like that, so it''s fine. If anything, I find her excitement over someone else''s abilities to be really interesting. Normally these kinds of discussions are bland or done in haste for an upcoming threat. To just sit in a nice vehicle like this and discuss abilities happily is very new for me... I''d bet anything that Shana and Ishar would have loved this as well."

    The two of them went silent after that. The other questions I had for them left my mind as I sat back in my seat and just stared at the TV in silence. The news was covering a mass influx of drugs in Termia that the ''Phoenix Initiative'' was struggling to contain. I mindlessly watched the program for the next few hours as my two new companions discussed the drug epidemic.

 Chapter 70 - The City of Dreams

    Xi put the phone down and sighed, "The driver says we need to stop for a little while. There is something wrong with the tires, and we''re almost out of gas anyways so we''re going to stop at the gas station a few miles ahead of us."

    "This whole situation is bizarre. You wouldn''t need a phone if you didn''t have that stupid window blocking him from seeing us and vice versa."

    Kai put the scythe back onto the table and looked over at me. He''s been conversing with the Eldritch inside of it, or trying to at least. In response, the Eldritch has been attempting to corrupt him, but it was ''futile'' according to Xi.

    "In a perfect world, I would agree with you. But you never know who is compromised. It''s not that I don''t want to trust the driver, especially since he''s driven for Lady Aresa for almost ten years now, it''s that I can''t. He has his own life and his own family. What happens if Hyun or the Supreme Leader threatens him in a way that leaves him with no choice but to spy on us?"

    "I don''t know who this Hyun is, but the title ''Supreme Leader'' gives off an ominous vibe. Is that another name for ''King''?"

    Kai nodded, "In a sense. The difference is negligible and vast at the same time. It will take you quite a while to understand what I mean by this. I could explain it in detail, but I''ll leave you with this for now and allow you to figure the rest out through your own experiences going forward. A King is usually chosen through succession, and it''s almost always within his own bloodline. Our..." Kai sighed while rubbing his temple, "Supreme Leader was chosen through voting. The people voted, and unfortunately he was chosen. He won with twenty-seven percent of the votes. Which is higher than it sounds. The next person in line was at nine percent."

    Voting? The people? Now that''s a new one for me...

    "And Hyun?"

    Xi and Kai looked at each other awkwardly for a moment before Kai turned his gaze toward the window. Xi realized he was passing the baton to her and she flopped backward into the seat. Her head was on top of the seat, so she was staring at the sunroof as she clicked her tongue.

    "Ugh, why would you leave it to me? I don''t want to talk about those freaks. And it''s not like we even understand their motives anyways..."

    "Quit your whining and speak to her, sister."

    Oh, they''re siblings. They do kind of look alike, but I wasn''t positive. Especially since they have different last names.

    "Fiiiine..." Xi turned her head to the right so she could see me. "So uh, he''s the leader of the nobles, but they''re not called nobles anymore? No one uses that term anymore, and they haven''t for a really long time, but I''m still going to call them that. I mean, that''s exactly what they are! They can change their titles all they want, it''s not like anything of substance has actually changed past that..."

    "Sister..."

    "Okay already! I''m getting to it." The limo slowed down and pulled into a gas station with nothing else around it aside from a few mobile homes with vehicles in front of them. "The nobles call themselves ''The Phoenix Initiative''. They''re now an institution that focuses on many different objectives. Spreading knowledge through their school system while assisting any alumni who come to them with business ventures they deem a potential success. They also assist the police in any way they can like how they''re helping with our current crime epidemic. Honestly, the amount of crap they have their fingers dipped into is endless."

    "Let it be said that on paper they actually do quite a bit of good for the nation," Kai said.

    "On paper, huh?"

    Kai and I watched the driver walk up to the maintenance garage next to the gas station. "Yes. In practice they produce a lot of good results which leads to them appearing much more virtuous than they actually are." Kai continued as the limo driver discussed something with a mechanic inside the garage. "You''ll understand when you spend some time in Telebron, Rei. If you want to help Lady Aresa, and I assume you do, you''ll need to learn all of the local politics as well."

    "I''d rather stick to scouting the lands in search of the Xerath''s main hive, but it''s not like I have any leads to go off of... Truly, I hate politics. I vastly prefer it when I have a simpleminded monster that I can focus on."

    The driver returned and restarted the engine before pulling up to the garage. There was a vehicle inside of it already so he had no choice but to park outside of it. We need more than just gas apparently. What did she say again? Something about tires.

    Kai opened his door and exited the vehicle. I could hear him discussing something with the mechanic as Xi sat in the seat her brother was in a moment ago. "Is that what you were doing for Lunaria? She said you had been here for about a week, but she didn''t tell us anything past the fact that you were heading to Telebron to meet up with Aresa."

    "That''s what she wants me to do. I''m considered an expert when it comes to the Xerath thanks to Aresa."

    Xi giggled while rolling down the window, "Well, she does put you on a pedestal! I admit, I''m very interested to see what you can do. Plus, having someone who can turn invisible is going to be... Err, I''ll let our little Aresa tell you about that part. We need help, desperately. So having someone like you who can get information for us right now is a godsend."

    Xi poked her head out of the car window, "Did we hit a spike or something?"

    "No. Two of the tires were deflating because we''re overweight apparently. But don''t worry, the mechanic says we just need to leave it with him for an hour and then we''ll be fine. You hear that, Rei? Please have Petey exit the vehicle."

    I heard the driver open the main door and soon after that the sunroof opened up again. Ahh shit, so that''s what he meant by overweight. Petey does weigh a ridiculous amount, but I didn''t think it''d be that much of an issue.

    Petey crawled out of the sunroof as I exited the side doors with Xi.

    "How much, good sir?" Kai asked the mechanic.

    "I''ll know when it''s finished, but it won''t cost all that much. About a hundred oughta cover it."

    Kai nodded and looked at Petey. "Rei, may I?"

    "Go ahead. I''m starving though, so someone buy me some food."

    The mechanic pointed at the gas station, "That couples as a restaurant. I''m biased as all hell since I own the place, but I''d say the food is pretty damned good. And it''s all I fucking eat, so it better be good!"

    "I''m hungry too~! What do you two want? I''ll get our orders set for us while you fight Rei''s pet." Xi asked.

    Xi ran off into the store after Kai and I told her the same thing. Burger, fries, and soda(although he asked for water). I grabbed Petey''s sword out of the vehicle and handed it to him before he walked off into the grass.

    The environment here in these lands is so strange and beautiful... I''ve never seen such big plains like these before. And it''s obviously much better here since there isn''t a bunch of Xerath popping out of the ground trying to eat everything. I haven''t seen any since around two or three miles out from that first city I entered, so that must be the extent of Lunaria''s domain.

    Kai entered the vehicle for a moment before popping back out with a spear in his hands. I could also feel a slight pulse of aura emanate from him while he was inside of the vehicle. So that''s what it feels like when he creates a shade. I need to remember this feeling, it could be important later.

    Kai stopped next to me while flipping the spear around in his hands, "Just to make sure. That sword doesn''t absorb souls, right? I haven''t tested whether my ability still works if I am killed with such a weapon, and if I have a choice in the matter, I''d prefer to never test it."

    "It doesn''t. He killed a few Crotians and a powerful Xerath with it, but their souls were still there. The scythe does though, as I told you earlier."

    Kai thanked me and immediately enhanced himself. Petey was a few hundred yards away at this point waiting for Kai to approach him. It only took a few seconds for Kai to close the gap. When he was within striking distance, Petey wasted no time and attacked him with the same swing that cut the Xerath in two earlier.

    Surprisingly, Kai didn''t move or even attempt to parry. He just lifted his spear up sideways and attempted to block it. The sword connected and smashed Kai into the ground. Despite his enhanced state, it must have damaged him quite heavily, because he vanished and reappeared behind me as he climbed out of the vehicle. I could hear Xi laughing hysterically from inside the gas station.

    "Hmm, I wanted to test the strength of your pet and I must say, I''m very impressed right now. I wasn''t entirely sure of what to expect out of a summon using an artifact weapon, but that was far outside my expectations." Kai said before climbing back into the vehicle. I watched him as he lifted the long perpendicular seats up before grabbing another spear from underneath them. He then created another shade before exiting the vehicle again.

    The mechanic had just finished placing the jack under the vehicle and was moving it up now as his partner began to remove one of the tires. I thought they just needed to be inflated? Well whatever, it''s not my money.

    "Alright, I need to eat. You two have fun."

    "I''ll be right behind you. I just want to test myself against your pet here a few more times." Kai said before enhancing himself again.

    On my way to the gas station I could see Xi waving at me through the windows. The area near the windows were lined with booths and she was sitting in the middle one. I entered the gas station and the old lady behind the counter called out to me right away.

    "The hell created you, girl? Ain''t never seen a hybrid like you around these parts."

    "Heh, I only recently found out what had corrupted me, and it''s in a place I cannot go."

    "Another dimension?" The old lady asked as she wiped the counter down.

    "Yes..."

    The old lady turned around and went back to cooking. It was clear she didn''t plan on saying anything again so I walked up to Xi''s booth and sat down across from her. "Aresa said that you didn''t know where you were from. When did you find out?" She asked.

    "Back when... Wait. This whole time I''ve been under the assumption that Markus and the others had been revived ages ago, and surely they would have told you what happened, but if you''re asking me that..."

    "Markus? Markus..." Xi looked thoughtful for a moment before her eyes opened wide, "Ooh you mean that old Templar guy! We never met him, but Aresa has talked about him before. I would love to meet him some time... I have a thing for men in white armor.~"

    Never met...

    My head was spinning at the implications. I placed my face into my hands as my mind came to one painful conclusion; Viktor didn''t hold up his promise to send the artifact to one of Arkaios'' temples.

    {R-Rei, calm down, it''s okay!}

    It''s not okay, Luna. But thank you for attempting to console me anyway...

    I need to speak to Arkaios. That''s the only option here. It''s impossible to find the artifact without him. Viktor thinks I''m dead, so he won''t be worried about me sneaking around one of his towns or wherever the hell he''s keeping the artifact.

    "Xi, where is Arkaios temple in Telebron?"

    "There isn''t one." She idly replied as she watched the old lady cook.

    "What? He places them wherever he''s allowed---"

    Oh. That means the winged cunt didn''t allow him to place a temple here. Technically it makes sense that you''d want to keep out any outside influences from your nation, especially against an unknown god(assuming he even was unknown to her). But considering the fact that I was already suspicious of her, all this does is make me even more wary of the Fairies.

    "Is that a problem? Did you need to visit one of his temples?" Xi asked.

    "Yes. Do you know where the nearest one is?"

    "Uhhh... You should ask Kai. I''ve only heard that God''s name in passing. And almost every single time it was during one of Aresa''s stories. The other time was from... The Phoenix Initiative? I feel like they said his name once. I can''t remember why though."

    After that we sat there in silence for about ten minutes before four plates were plopped down in front of us. Two burger and fry sets, one with a large steak on it, and the last one had a big piece of pie on it. It was yellow with a big layer of cream on top of it.

    "That''s for you dear." The old lady said before leaving to the back of the store.

    She gave this to me for free? Was it because of my story? That''s awfully kind of her...

    "Lucky you! I wanted to get us dessert but we''re trying to cut down on our expenses." Xi said as she stared at the pie.

    Kai walked up to the booth and sat down next to his sister, "More like you''re putting on weight so you''re forcing everyone else to avoid sweets as well."

    "Shut up liar! And I''m not gaining weight, right Rei?!" Xi stood up while putting her hands on her hips. Her dress had open areas around her legs, waist, and stomach, so I could clearly see the areas that would be affected by fat first.

    "Hmm, your waist has some fat on it but it doesn''t look bad at all. If anything, isn''t that exactly where you want there to be fat? I thought that''s what women aimed for. Your waist, thighs, and ass, right?"

    "See! And she even said it looks good. So the weight I''ve put on has only made me look better. That''s right, it''s definitely helped me..."

    Oh, so that fat she put on was unintentional huh? It does look good to me, but maybe her culture sees beauty differently.

    "Sit down and eat behemoth. The mechanic said he''s mostly done, so we need to leave soon." Kai said as he picked up his burger.

    "Y-You... I will remember this." His sister replied before she sat back down.

    I practically inhaled my burger and fries before drinking the entire black soda in one go.

    Kai put his burger down and raised an eyebrow at me, "By soon I didn''t mean in the next ten seconds..."

    When I reached over for the pie I noticed Xi was staring daggers into it. Seeing this, I decided to slowly eat it. She noticed me looking at her as I scooped up a little piece of pie, which made her narrow her eyes at me as I put it into my mouth. Is this lime? Never thought I''d taste it in a sweet, but it''s actually pretty good.

    "Damn, it''s a shame you''re on a diet Xi. This is delicious!"

    "So you''re going to bully me too... Aresa is my only ally in this."

    "Anything else you need to know?" Kai asked me as we continued to eat.

    "Your sister said you might know where the nearest Temple of Arkaios is. It''s important that I find and enter one."

    Yet again, Kai raised an eyebrow at me, "Strange request... Or maybe not? I know about the Templars back on Urza, but is there a specific reason you need to speak to their God? Aresa said he vouched for you when you initially appeared, but past that your connection to him was unknown."

    "So you don''t know why either? I figured as much after what your sister said earlier, but you have no idea of how disheartening it is to hear this..."

    "?"

    "Markus, Keith, Nisha, Albel, and Lindon. These are the names of Arkaios'' branded warriors who died during the assault on Xethra. Or more like they had all died when Viktor attacked us. With the exclusion of Markus who died around the same time Shana and Ishar had. I thought you guys knew about this since you talked about my dead comrades, but I guess they weren''t shown in any of the footage Viktor released?"

    "So she really is dead... Aresa was completely heartbroken when she saw her in the footage." Xi said, looking forlorn before she stood up and walked to somewhere behind me.

    "What my sister means to say, is that Lady Shana could be seen a few times during your siege. And since you lost the battle, coupled with the fact that she never showed up in Termia, Aresa had to assume she was dead. In concern to you she knew you''d be back one day. Lady Shana however... I didn''t know her personally, but I''ve heard nothing except good things about her." Kai continued, "Although, your ally Ishar was also not shown in the footage. That is the Crotia who Alicia served under, yes? She''s mentioned him a few times. She and Aresa thought he died during the Xerath assault on Viseux."

    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "So only I, Shana and the skeletons were witnessed in the released footage?"

    Kai nodded before shoving multiple fries into his mouth.

    Well that''s just fucking great. It could just be by chance that he cut them out, but what if it was on purpose? Why would he do that though... Arkaios doesn''t need a TV to know what happened to his warriors. None of this makes sense, so I''m just going to focus on finding a temple and asking him directly.

    "You never answered me. Do you know where the nearest temple is?"

    "I must apologize again, as I do not. I''m nearly one hundred percent positive that there is no Temple of Arkaios in Termia, but it''d be best if you asked Lady Aresa. She would be better informed on this topic than I or my sister would."

    I heard a bunch of electronic noises behind me. Turning around I saw Xi playing a game of some sort.

    "Don''t mind her. When she''s sad she needs some time alone to empty her mind while indulging in her hobbies. It may seem odd that she''s grieving over someone she''s never met before, but I''d say she''s mostly empathizing with Lady Aresa."

    "What game is that? It''s really loud."

    "Pinball. An addictive game that I do my best to avoid. Even the sound is making me..." Kai slapped his cheeks and shook his head before looking at me again, "... You can go watch her if you want, but try not to talk to her."

    I''m interested in it but I''ll leave her be for now.

    I stood up and looked around for the old lady. She was still in the back so I headed for the exit instead. I wanted to thank her, but there''s nothing I can do if she''s not here. Once I was outside, I walked over to Petey who was sitting near the edge of the parking lot. He was completely still as the mechanic and his employee talked about him.

    "Why the heavy armor when he''s all bones anyways?"

    "To protect the bones, idiot. What kind of stupid ass question is that?" The mechanic jumped when I walked up next to him, "Whoa?! What the fu... Ehm, sorry lady, you just scared the living shit out of me. I didn''t hear you at all."

    I laughed while picking up Petey''s greatsword, "It''s fine! Most people don''t hear me coming. So you guys are interested in my summon?"

    "Never seen anything like him before. And it''s even weirder that he''s the owner of an artifact weapon! Normally the summoner hogs any artifacts that they own, so that if their pet dies, they won''t lose half of their net worth in a single instant." The mechanic said.

    "Trust me, I understand what you''re saying. He''s perfect with this sword but I''d be lying if I didn''t fear him losing it. It''s for the best though, so I''ve decided to keep it in his hands." I jutted my chin out toward the limo. "That ready to go?"

    "Yes ma''am. One of the tires was leaking so we had to replace it, but I''m keeping the price the same since you all ate at my restaurant and filled your gas up here."

    Now that''s an interesting business practice. I don''t even own a vehicle and this little interaction makes me want to exclusively shop here. A shame he''s so far away from Telebron.

    The driver came out of the limo and the three of them asked me questions about Petey for a while until we eventually heard a familiar ringing sound which told us that the station''s front door had been opened. I looked over and saw the two siblings heading this way. Looks like it''s time to go.

    "Alright, back to work for us. Thanks for talking to us lady, I learned a lot of interesting shit." The mechanic said before walking toward Kai.

    "No problem! Goodbye, you two."

    The limo driver opened the door for me, allowing me to slide inside. I sat in the same left-side seat as last time and waited for our journey to continue. I could vaguely hear Kai talking to the mechanic as Petey crawled inside through the open sunroof. Once he was settled, Xi hopped in through the sunroof next.

    "Ahh that was fun! You ever played a game like that before?" Xi asked me.

    "''Pinball?'' No. My sister had video games in her room, but I never played them."

    "You had a---Oh, right... Sorry."

    Aresa told them about that too it seems. Not that it''s surprising. Hard to recount my history without mentioning the part where I lost my family too.

    A vague memory popped into my head. One where my sister was combing my hair while arguing with my mother. She had just found out that my sister was training to be a mech pilot, and she was very unhappy with her because of that.

    It''s so weird thinking about my family... I lost them when I was a child, but so much of it stuck with me. But I''m sure that''s mostly because I used to watch memories of them all the time while I was in Xelba. After my master taught me how to view past memories, I used to spend most of my downtime with the pigeons or watching my old memories. For some reason, the fact that I lost my family is bothering me much more now than it did back in Xelba. It''s like---Wait... I didn''t lose all of them!

    "Xi, do you have a way of searching for people? What kind of information network does Aresa have at her disposal?"

    "Um, that''s hard to answer and it depends on who you''re looking for?"

    "My uncle."

    "Your uncle...? Oh! Aresa did say he was an author, but I guess I just assumed he was dead too? If you''re asking this though, then that means he''s still alive?"

    "I don''t know. He wasn''t with us when we were sacrificed, so I actually have no idea of what happened to him after that. Did he take ownership of our family home and business? Or was he killed so one of the local clans could consolidate our business into another business they managed? I would love to know the answers to all of this if it''s possible."

    Kai sat down and closed the door behind him. "Answers to what?"

    Xi told him what I had just said, but the look on his face told me everything I needed to know. "It''s not that I don''t want to help you, Rei, but it''s truly an impossible task. Asking us to get information out of Arcadis is practically the same as asking us to get information out of the Demon realm."

    "Oh come on, it can''t be that bad."

    "He''s telling the truth." Xi said.

    The limousine engine roared to life before the driver pulled back onto the road.

    "Hmm, you were a child when you were there last, yes? So this may be one of the things you did not learn or overhear back then, but the Elves clamp down hard on information. Obviously people are allowed to come and go, but you better have a damned good reason if you''re going to show up and demand information on one of their citizens."

    Kai continued, "None of us could do that, even through bribes. No one would risk prison time or exile to help you for money unless it was a ridiculous amount. So if you don''t plan on selling that sword Petey is using, then you''ll need to go there in person and prove who you are. If they are certain you''re the same little girl who left all those years ago, then and only then could get the answers you seek."

    "But we can search for information regarding her uncle outside of Arcadis. You never know, maybe he traveled after the rest of his family was, uh..." Xi trailed off again.

    Kai nodded and smiled at his sister, "That is true, and a rare good point made by my beloved sister. If he visited Termia or any of the local regions I''m sure we''ll find some information on him."

    "That''s assuming he did travel... Oh well if not. I plan on going home at some point so if he never left the Elven city then I''ll just have to wait until I''m back there. Hopefully Aresa likes it there as well."

    "What?" The two siblings said at the same time.

    "? Is that such a strange thing to say?"

    They looked at each other awkwardly in the same manner they had earlier in the day. But this time, Kai was the one designated to reply to me. "... Is that what you plan on doing while in Telebron? Bringing Aresa to Arcadis?"

    "She was really interested in going there the last time I was with her. Surely she''s spent enough time in Termia by now? Or is she planning on staying here forever? She must have really grown to love this place then. But that''s just going to lead to the same conclusion as before..."

    "What do you mean?" Xi asked.

    "... I don''t want to ruin whatever magical plans you guys have for the future, but I don''t need to know your ''politics'' to know that this place is on a timer. Let''s say I find the main hive and we even kill the Xerath''s God. Then what? You still have the Nei''lah''s God and Crotian army to deal with, not to mention Rai''ga and whatever the fuck he brought with him. And most importantly of all, you''re going to lose to Viktor if you don''t find a way to kill him."

    "You''re a real downer huh? ... Not that I fully disagree with you, but you really should wait until you have all of the facts before giving up like that," Xi said.

    "It may seem premature to you, but I''m just stating how this is going to end. In fact, I''ll go as far as to say that I foresaw this outcome the very second Lunaria told me about all of Termia''s neighbors coming up with excuses to not attack Viktor. Maybe one or two was being indecisive and weak, but I''ve been with Viktor, I know exactly why so many of them were pretending that attacking him would be a premature action. And then they all conveniently ended up being absorbed by Viktor''s nation. I''m sure it was all completely by chance. Yes, just by chance... Also, which one is it?"

    "Now what are you asking us?" Xi sighed. She had been getting angrier and angrier as I spoke, so she took a moment to clear her head before continuing, "''Which one'' what?"

    "Which one is obviously Pro-Viktor? Hyun or the Supreme Leader? I''m sure one of them is either openly calling for an alliance, a peace treaty, or maybe even becoming a vassal state. If it''s not open, then regardless of their words, I''m sure their actions are all pointing in that direction."

    Xi winced and looked at her brother who was calmly listening with his eyes closed and arms crossed in front of him. A few moments later he opened his eyes and looked at me. "You are indeed quite informed when it comes to Viktor. Without even seeing the state of our affairs, you nailed one part of it already." Kai rubbed his temples and looked out the window, "... It''s the Supreme Leader. He''s somewhat open about it, but in an annoyingly crafty way. If anyone calls him on it he always has a way of talking past his opponent. And anyone who disagrees with him is what he calls a ''Death cultist''."

    "Death cultist...? What the hell?"

    Xi kicked the table and growled. She ignored her brother''s glare as she turned the TV on. "I''m pissed off because you''re saying the same things the Supreme Leader does. He''s trying to steer the whole nation toward joining arms with Xel''nethra. But he won''t just fucking say it! And anyone who speaks ill of the Xel''nethra is considered someone who is too obsessed with their own national pride. He says ''They all want to die in vain to protect their own selfish interests instead of seeing the big picture. They''re trying to get their whole family killed for something as stupid as a flag...'' These are the things he says over and over and it pisses me off so much! This isn''t even my country and it makes me mad!"

    Xi flipped through the channels and landed on one showing a handsome man in a white suit with short blonde hair. He was sitting in a really nice office giving an interview. "Oh look, there''s the piece of shit right now."

    "And you believe the Xerath currently plaguing our area are related to the Yulia Alliance?" The interviewer asked.

    "Sadly, I do believe this to be the case. We''ve had a large influx of refugees from Yulia for multiple years now. At first, they said it was the Demons and Xerath who forced them out of their lands, but recently it''s come to my attention that they weren''t being entirely truthful. While they were telling the truth to a certain degree, they left out some very crucial information. Like for instance, the fact that the Xerath were brought to Zhegu ages ago through the black market."

    "You mean to say that the Xerath were bought like a commodity? Why would they do such a thing? Did they not understand just how dangerous that was?" The interviewer replied.

    "Perhaps they did. Perhaps they didn''t. It matters not in the end. For we have already learned through Lunaria that the Xerath are the leading contributors to your planet''s level of total corruption. Once you hit a certain point, the Demons, Eldritch, and even more Xerath begin to pop up everywhere."

    The Supreme Leader continued, "The people of Zhegu may not have wanted to be part of whatever sick research was going on behind the scenes, but what''s done is done. Keep in mind, I said ''May not''. There''s also no way of proving just how many companies, organizations, and people were behind this effort. And now we are the ones being punished for it. We''re far past the amount of refugees that we can handle, and more of them keep flooding in every single day day. Tell me, do you think it''s a coincidence that we were besieged by Xerath the very same moment we began to be swamped with refugees from the Yulia Alliance?"

    "It''s been a hot debate among reporters that almost all of the refugees have been from the Yulia Alliance... It''s hard to deny just how suspicious that is. Why not other nations? Other continents?" The reporter replied.

    "It is as you say, but I do not want the citizens to be unnecessarily wary around our guests. For now, we only have our conjecture. There is no proof of any wrongdoings on their part. So please do not be too suspicious of your new neighbors. There''s a good chance that they are merely people who were victims of their own nation''s poor choices or foreign governments---"

    Xi turned the TV off and buried her face into the seat cushions. It sounded like she was crying, but I chose to ignore it even if it became obvious as she began to speak. "I hate him. I hate him so fucking much... Did you hear the way he worded that? ''Do not be too suspicious''. ''There''s a good chance''..."

    I looked to my right and saw that even Kai looked like he wanted to kill someone. "I make an effort to control my emotions at all times, but that man infuriates me beyond measure."

    Kai looked at me and continued, "In case you were wondering. Yes, we are from the ''Yulia Alliance''. It was a medium-sized continent of seven allied nations sharing almost the same culture and values. Our land was beautiful and relatively peaceful until the Demons and Xerath began to overtake everything... We held them off for a long time, but all of a sudden one day their appearances and attacks ramped up severely. Eventually, we had no choice but to flee. I don''t know how there are still refugees appearing, as everyone remaining in our lands should have been killed by now, but somehow there are survivors finding their way here through the portal that''s west of Telebron."

    "Were the Xerath like the ones here? Hives full of ooze and no God or Lords in sight?"

    Kai shook his head, "No. If there was such a Xerath, I would have heard of it. I was quite high up in the chain of command for the largest nation in the Alliance. There''s a chance they appeared after we left to seek help in Termia, but I really doubt that..."

    "I do too, which leads me to my initial impression after Lunaria broke down the issues Termia is facing. I believe the Xerath are related to Viktor in some way."

    "What? But how?" Xi lifted herself off of the seat and looked at me. Her eyes were still wet and a little red.

    "I don''t know. These ones are obviously operating like Xerath that are not under his control, and yet... It''s just a hunch, but like everything else, it''s awfully convenient that they are attacking only you."

    "Sadly, Rei, that is not true." I looked at Kai before he continued, "They are also attacking Viktor. If anything, they''re hitting him much harder. His lands are infested with these hives. He''s been forced to deal with them for over five years now, which seemed like a huge boon for us at first, but then the Supreme Leader was elected, and... You know the rest."

    For real...? I was so positive of that hunch too. And even now I''m still having a hard time believing that they are unrelated to him. Am I in denial? Or...

    Our talk concluded after that, giving me a much-needed reprieve to digest all of the information I had been given over the past couple of hours.

    <hr>

    "I think I see why Alicia said she loved this city."

    We had just entered Telebron a few minutes ago. The city had the same theme as Viseux but something about it was just so much more beautiful. Everything was pristine, there were waterways everywhere with a surprising amount of people fishing from them, and the citizens themselves just looked lively in general. A massive difference from Viseux where everyone looked like they were sneering or plotting against one another even in broad daylight.

    "Alicia grew up in a different city. Her hometown is further to the east." Kai said.

    ... I''ll just pretend she was talking about Telebron.

    At one of the stoplights the phone began blinking and Xi picked it up. After a brief conversation, Xi put the phone down and said to me, "Looks like you''ll be able to meet Aresa tomorrow around noon. What do you want to do before then?"

    "Where am I staying? Instead of a hotel I think I want my own place this time, but I don''t have any money, so dig into those pockets you two."

    "... At least you''re honest about your greed. What kind of home are you looking for?" Xi asked.

    "Nothing big. What district does Aresa live in? Let''s look around there."

    Kai laughed and shook his head, "Not happening. All of those homes are taken and even if we could buy one, not even Lady Aresa would be able to requisition enough money for it. You must understand. Our Lady is considered ''The Goddess of Termia''. There are many reasons for it, but I''ll let the Lady herself tell you all about it. However, regardless of the reason, the fact remains that those who worship her want to be as close to her as they possibly can be, which means that the homes in her district are outrageous in price."

    God damnit...

    "Aresa wanted you to stay with her in the chapel but there are a lot of issues to overcome first before that can happen," Xi said.

    "Okay, then how about the next district over? Can we walk around and look at places there?"

    Xi shrugged, "Worth a shot but that''s still very close to her." She then picked up the phone and told the driver to drop us off in the Huron district.

    About twenty minutes later the limo parked on the side of the road in a seemingly random place. When all four of us exited the vehicle my impression didn''t change at all. It really did seem random.

    "Is there a home buyers association near here or something?"

    Xi waved to the limo as it pulled away. "No no, this is in the middle of the district near our ''Goddesses'' place of residence. Hehe, you''re sooo going to be surprised when you see her."

    Kai tapped my arm. I turned and saw him pointing off into the distance. "That''s where she stays."

    Looking in the direction he pointed, I saw that the next area over was on a slope that ended in a plateau where a massive white chapel was located. All of the homes across the river were incredibly beautiful and pure white just like the museum was in the Abyss realm.

    "So that''s her district?"

    Kai merely nodded in response.

    "Then that''s where we''re going," I said before walking in the direction of the chapel.

    Xi ran up beside me and poked my shoulder, "Uh, Rei? Did you not hear what we said earlier?"

    "I did. Let me be specific. We''re going to search for homes starting from this part of the district that''s closest to hers."

    "Ooh okay! That makes much more sense."

    "But how do we know what is for sale?"

    Kai chuckled as he walked along my right side, "There will be a large sign posted on the door. It''s impossible to miss them."

    As we walked down the street I couldn''t help but marvel at just how clean everything was. The whole city reminded me of Aresa''s chateau.

    "Ugh..." Xi said, causing me to look in the direction she was. There was a sign on a door with a number far higher than the limo repair from earlier.

    "So, just wondering here, but how much is eight hundred and fifty thousand in the currency here? Can the average layman afford it?"

    Kai shook his head, "Definitely not. The homes across the river in Aresa''s district start at around two million, so while this is better, it''s still far outside of our price range. Unless you plan on doing something that will net you a ridiculous amount of money. And speaking of which, please try to keep your stealing to a minimum. If your ability is ever discovered, then anything you stole of substantial value is going to come back to bite you, and by consequence you''ll be hurting Lady Aresa''s reputation as well."

    "They would need proof, would they not?"

    "For financial compensation or to jail you, yes. For political means of attacking you and Lady Aresa? Definitely not." Kai replied.

    Well shit. I still plan on stealing but I guess I''ll keep it to things that won''t raise too many alarms.

    I continued walking toward the river, which caused Xi to ask again why I was still heading in this direction, but the reason was made clear soon enough. I wanted to see the river I''d be crossing every time I needed to visit Aresa.

    We arrived in no time and quickly crossed over the bridge. On both sides of the bridge there were stairs leading down toward a pretty big walkway full of people fishing. Most of them were just relaxing while waiting for a nibble, but there was also a good amount of people casually engaged in conversation.

    "Why are there so many people fishing? There are people down on that walkway fishing in both direction for as far as I can see. Surely there isn''t enough fish for all of them in this river? It''s barely fifty yards wide."

    "There is. I could go into extreme detail if you wanted, but the short version of it is that this river leads to the ocean, and there are multiple schools of fish that exit the ocean from a river to the west of here who then feed and breed at a large lake a couple hundred miles south of Telebron. Then all of the newborns take this river north to re-enter the sea. No matter how many people fish, there has never been a shortage. I really hope you like to eat fish, Rei. Because they''re the main delicacy here in the capital."

    I ate them a lot back in Xelba but not a single time since then.

    I walked down the stairs and entered the walkway. The fishermen checked us out and began to discuss something amongst themselves while pointing at Petey. For my part I was focused on another group of men occupying the walkway.

    "Is there warehouses down here as well? There''s boxes everywhere and men are moving them from one part of the walkway to another."

    A man to my right laughed as he put a slip on a stack of crates. "That''s right missy! We call this the waterway and every single one of them is filled with multiple storages that are used to house most of the food in Telebron. There are reasons for that, but I''m sure you don''t want to hear all of that technical nonsense."

    I pointed at a door behind him, "Uh, are they supposed to look like they''re about to fall off their hinges?"

    The man looked at the door and sighed, "Nah, this one''s derelict. Damned fools won''t use it anymore after a murder took place in that storage. They claim it''s haunted and now the higher-ups won''t give me the go-ahead to use it again. It''s been empty for nearly four years now. Such a waste damnit!"

    ... Hmm.

    I walked up to the door and opened it. After a loud squeaking noise I got a good look at the room. It was rather small and filled with dust. Not the kind of a place a normal person would want to live, that''s for sure. Good thing I''m not a normal person.

    I looked back at the man, "Any chance I can buy this place or at least rent it? I''d like to live here while I''m in Telebron."

    "You want to live there? You sure about that? And the city owns it, you''d have to ask them." The man replied.

    "Kai?"

    Kai was rubbing his chin while looking at my new potential hovel. "It''s honestly not a bad idea... This place is easily accessible for us and there will be people fishing outside of your door twenty-four-seven. They would naturally serve as lookouts for you whether you wanted them to or not. It''s also very close to where we are currently staying. Not to mention just how pleased Lady Aresa will be when she hears that you are living so close to her very own docile."

    "Mind if I use this?" Xi asked the man as she pointed at a phone attached to the wall.

    "Go right ahead, but it only connects to places inside of Telebron."

    "That''s all I need it for. I''m going to inquire about the storage here." She said before picking up the phone and spinning the dial multiple times.

    Looks like this is where I''ll be staying from here on out. It''s honestly exciting... I haven''t had my own place since I was a child in the Xerath''s domain. Assuming I can even call that cave ''My place''.

 Chapter 71.1 - Aresa

    "Ooh!" Kai exclaimed as he felt a tug on his fishing pole. However, after he reeled it in he groaned after seeing why there was so little resistance during the reel.

    "Three times in a row? You have shit luck Wushu." The old man sitting next to Kai said.

    Kai pulled the little minnow off the hook and threw it back into the water before reaching for more bait.

    "Why does he keep calling you ''Wushu''? Is that your nickname?"

    "No." Kai flicked his pole forward, releasing his line back into the river. "It''s what the citizens here call the refugees from Yulia. It''s seen as racist by some, but my sister and I have never felt any ill will aimed at us when we are called that term. There are many problems between our refugees and the people here, but this is not one of them. It''s a made-up issue that takes away from the myriad of other topics we should be discussing."

    I heard something shatter behind me. Kai and I looked back to see a man apologizing to an angry-looking Xi.

    "There goes your new vase," Kai said.

    "A real shame indeed. Now I won''t have anything to hold the whole zero flowers I planned on buying."

    "It would hold something eventually. Otherwise, Lady Aresa would not have put it on the list of objects to be sent to your new home."

    "Wait, everything being shuffled into my home back there is because of Aresa? I thought you two were responsible for this... Isn''t she busy today?"

    Kai nodded, "Yes, but that''s unrelated to this. Once she discovered you were alive and heading this way, she immediately made a list of items that she''d be buying for you, regardless of where you ended up staying. That''s what she told us when we were given our new orders to pick you up."

    He continued, "Originally we were sent to Fairview, the city we picked you up in, because we had plans to stay there for a few weeks as we helped thin out the roaming Xerath. It needs to be done every so often as the Xerath will continuously expand the area they run through looking for living beings to consume. We used to cleanse the area East of Telebron, but someone made it so our jurisdiction was changed to the area surrounding Fairview. Basically, we were delegated to the southern part of Termia. A place that takes over a day of driving to reach."

    "The Supreme Leader?"

    "Possibly. All I remember is Aresa apologizing as she told us the location of our new duties. She didn''t tell us why it was changed, but it''s not hard to guess. It''s either the Supreme Leader or The Phoenix Initiative that''s been working hard to reduce the amount of people around her. It was only a suspicion at first, but over time the number of guards, maids, bishops, etc. had all slowly diminished to a fraction of what their original number was. We''ve tried talking to her about it, but she just tells us to be patient. She says she has a plan, and she''ll tell us about it when the time comes."

    "How much political power does she hold? I thought she''d have more as the ''Goddess'' of this city, but if other people can decide for her where her support is going to go and how many guards she''s allowed to have, then it''s sounding like this whole situation is just as bad as Viseux was."

    "According to her, it''s nowhere near as bad as Viseux, and I believe her. She explained the situation in great detail about her ordeals on Urza, and from my point of view, I''d say her control here is much more stable. From what we were told, I feel like there was nothing she could do to overcome Rai''ga. And speaking of that abomination, I was greatly disturbed when you told us that he truly is here, and even attacked you multiple times. Although, just like I said at the time, I truly do not know this ''Seifer''. Hopefully Lady Aresa will have more information for you. But..."

    Kai went silent. He was clearly hesitant and unsure about whether he wanted to finish that sentence.

    "Weird part of the story for you to suddenly clam up..."

    "... You''ll hear about it eventually anyway, and seeing as how I didn''t know the woman all that much beforehand, it might still be a little shocking for you personally." Kai sighed, "Lady Euphemia is engaged to the Supreme Leader. So if this ''Seifer'' was working with Rai''ga when he''s been officially MIA after working as a spy for Termia in Viktor''s lands, then I''m honestly not sure how to interpret this revelation. It could go in twenty different directions."

    It''s a little surprising hearing about who Euphie is engaged to, but it doesn''t bother me all that much. I still don''t know anything about the Supreme Leader outside of what these two have told me, so it''s hard to make a judgment call at this point. Obviously it is possible that he really is a piece of shit that''s completely in league with Viktor, which would mean Euphie has changed quite a bit since I last saw her, but there''s no point in worrying about such a grim possibility when that''s all it is at this point. A possibility.

    For the next hour I continued to watch Kai fail miserably at fishing as the men around us caught one fish after another. I wasn''t just sitting there idly though. Most of the men and women around me were constantly chatting about different topics. A good eighty percent of it was useless filler, while the other twenty percent told me quite a bit about how the citizens on this side of the city felt about the current state of Termia.

    All in all, things weren''t looking good. They''re agitated, scared, annoyed, and praying things will settle down at some point. They just want things to go back to normal. Which is a pipe dream. You''ll need to either kill Viktor or join him, those are the only options. And that''s not even addressing the myriad of other issues that this place is dealing with.

    And speaking of those other issues, the refugee discussion between Kai and the others was a strange one. I could tell that the people here were understanding of their plight and wanted to help at first, but at this point they''re really hoping the refugees will go somewhere else.

    Surprisingly, Kai didn''t really disagree with them. And when he saw the look on my face he told me that he''d take me to see the western side of the city tomorrow. He said that it''s impossible to deny just how bad things have gotten and that he''s been formulating a plan with the other Yulia leaders and Aresa to fix the situation, but there is a whole load of problems that need to be fixed first. He obviously couldn''t talk about the details out here in public, so he swore he''d tell me in my home before we left tomorrow.

    "Rei, they''re done," Xi said from behind me.

    I looked back and saw the men climbing the steps that led back to the bridge.

    "How''s it looking?"

    Xi smiled and motioned for me to follow her, "See for yourself! It took forever to clean it up and get rid of those old boxes, but it''s looking great now. All thanks to me of course.~"

    I stood up and followed her to the entrance of my new abode. When she opened the door I immediately realized that it wasn''t creaking, which made me notice that a brand new door had been put on. A super thick one that I''d expect to see in a prison.

    "Wow, you added a new door too? And it''s a really nice one!"

    "Of course we did. We couldn''t leave that old one on here, and this one is reinforced, so if someone tries breaking in it''ll be really difficult for them. Also, we needed to make a bigger entrance for your pet there. A normal Crotia would have fit inside beforehand, but yours is... Wait, why is yours so damned big?!"

    ... Okay, this door situation is surprising me far more than the news about Euphie did. Reinforced buildings like that city hall in Xethra are super rare, so for me to have a door like this for my abandoned ex-storage home that''s situated next to a waterway is really bizarre. But I''m sure as hell not about to complain. Being old friends with the Goddess of this place can lead to some amazing benefits it seems. I was planning on sealing up the door with my mesh, but there''s no need for that now.

    I looked around the room and was impressed by what I saw. The dilapidated storage from before had completely vanished. Now there was a clean room with brand new white carpeting, a single-sized bed in the back-left corner, a medium-sized crystal light on the ceiling, and lastly, a desk and mirror pushed up against the right wall.

    "Well? Do you like it? I wanted to place more in here, but Kai said I should allow you to fill out the rest on your own, and for once, he was right." Xi''s eyes opened wide as she remembered something, "Oh, uh... You really don''t need to use the bathroom? It''s in Aresa''s notes that you don''t need one, but how is that possible? Don''t all things need to, um..."

    I shrugged, "Hell if I know why. I just know that things go into me, and then they never come back out." Souls included. "And I do like this! Thanks a lot, Xi, and thank Aresa for me as well. I can only think of a few things I''d like to get after this, but don''t worry, they should be pretty cheap."

    "And what is that?"

    "A recliner of some sort, and a washtub."

    "The first one is fine, but there''s no need for the second one. I was going to lead you to the bathhouse after this so you''d know the way. There are two of them though. One on the Market''s side, and another on the Chapel''s side. Which one do you want to go to? Personally, I can''t tell a difference between them aside from how much further away the Chapel one is from your home." Xi said.

    Kai poked his head over my shoulder and looked around the room before nodding in approval. "You should also know that the ''Market side'' my sister refers to, is the Huron district. Despite being the marketplace meant for Telebron''s citizens, it''s still named after the largest type of fish in the rivers, since this is where most of the citizens fish from."

    "Why''d you word it like that? ''Telebron''s citizens''? It just seemed like an odd way to put it. Is there another marketplace?"

    "Heh, I''m impressed that you picked up on that minor detail. And yes, there''s a main marketplace in the district north of here. Cross the bridge and you''ll reach the biggest district in Telebron. It''s partly residential as well, with all of the homes being on the southern side, while the rest is entirely an open market until you reach the docks. However, I''d still suggest you shop on this side. The quality of the goods is basically the same and they''re much cheaper. The only time I''d head north is if you''re looking for something that you can''t find on this side."

    Xi clapped her hands, "Okay! She''s learned enough for today. Let''s go take some baths! We obviously need one, and Rei uh, is that going to come out?" Xi pointed toward the dried blue blood on my outfit.

    "Yeah it''ll come out. I''ve removed Xerath blood from my armor before." Although it wasn''t blue back then. It''s normally green or dark purple. Maybe it can be any color? Every Xerath and Eldritch is different after all. Even Aresa''s blood is blue, so it''s not like it''s a huge surprise at this point that I''ve run into a new color of blood for the Xerath.

    Xi closed the door and then looked at me, "Do you know what to do?"

    "Huh? With what?"

    "The door, silly! It''s unclaimed as it is. You need to put your hand or finger over this jewel here where the knob is supposed to be and pour your mana into it."

    Heeding her advice, I reached out for the dark green jewel and poured my mana into it. Something about this feels so familiar... It''s making me think of Kellog for some reason? I heard the jewel make a slight clicking noise as it began to reject my mana.

    "That''s it! Now all you need to do is touch it and tell it to open whenever you want to enter or leave your home. It''s not impossible to break this door, but you''ll have plenty of time to prepare if someone is stupid enough to attack you." Xi said.

    "Or they could just blow up the street above me? That''d be an easier way to ambush me. Actually, can''t they just destroy the wall next to the door? As much as I appreciate it, I''m starting to wonder what the point of this door is."

    Kai nodded while Xi exaggeratedly sighed at me, "If they want to kill you that badly, then yeah, there isn''t much we can do about it... But it still won''t be easy to destroy. Remember, we''re on the chapel side. It''s not exactly reinforced, but you can''t just punch your way through these walls in one go!"

    "Partly true. It will be less difficult than breaching the door, however---"

    Xi slapped her brother''s back, cutting off his sentence. "Enough of this! Come on, let''s just go take a bath and relax for now. I don''t know how you two still have the energy to discuss this crap. We''ve done nothing but talk about serious topics like this for several days. I''m so damned tired and hungry right now..."

    "Okay, okay. You''re right, Xi. We''ll drop it for now. I''m pretty exhausted at this point as well." Mentally anyway. Only a few things can ruin me physically at this point, like overusing my halo.

    "Of course you''re hungry..." Kai mumbled as his sister ran up the steps.

    Petey, wait outside next to the door. I''ll be back in an hour or two. Don''t do anything aggressive toward the people here. Just sit there in a dormant state while listening to everything the people here say. You might pick up something useful.

    Petey walked over and sat by the wall. He then placed the sword on his lap and immediately stopped moving. I could feel the amount of mana he was draining from me severely plummet.

    "Ready?" Kai said as he looked back at me. He was watching Petey as well with a thoughtful look on his face.

    "Yep. Not that I''d have time for anything more than this anyway. I can already see your sister huffing and puffing from on top of the bridge."

    "Eh, you''ll get used to it. She''s just impatient when she''s hungry."

    Kai and I ran up the stairs and onto the bridge where Xi was waiting. Once we were behind her again she began to jog at a fast pace back the way we had come earlier. We jogged like that weaving through multiple streets as Mother began to dim.

    Looks like it''s nighttime already. I''m still not used to the day and night cycles here on this side of Mother. The sun is only up for half the amount it was on Urza, so Mother lights up for the remaining half, but it felt like the amount of time she stayed lit was random, so I asked the siblings about it and it turns out I was right. Sometimes she stays lit for an extra hour, and sometimes she begins to dim an hour early. There''s apparently no rhyme or reason to it. At least none that the people on Aetheria could discern.

    On the bright side, the light she emits doesn''t hurt me at all. The sun was already kind of weak compared to the pain I feel when I''m close to other types of light, like torches or light spells. But her light somehow does nothing to me. Which really helped when Petey and I were running through the Xerath-controlled plains surrounding Termia.

    "There it is! I''ll catch up with you two later!" Xi said as she ran toward a food stall in the distance. Crystal torches on the food carts and all around the rest of the city began to light up, countering the darkness that Mother had left us in.

    "Have you been in one of these before?" Kai asked me as we walked toward a rather large building in front of us.

    "No, but it can''t be all that complicated. It''s literally called a ''Bath House'', so that''s all it is, right?"

    "That''s somewhat correct... But you''re right, it shouldn''t prove difficult to figure out. Just remove your clothing or whatever that is you''re wearing in the area before the bath and then go into the bath area naked or covered in a towel. You can put your clothing in the washing machine in the changing room before you head in. It should be done by the time you''ve finished cleaning yourself."

    As expected, it was mostly self-explanatory, except I am glad he told me about the washing machine. I only vaguely remember them from when I was a kid, but I should be able to figure out how to use it.

    <hr>

    "You''re already done?!" Xi said to me as I exited the bath. She was in the process of undressing, which was taking her a while thanks to how elaborate her dress was.

    "Xi, just how long do you think it''s been since we split up? It was easily forty-five minutes ago. Aside from the five minutes it took me to get that stupid machine to work, I''ve been in the bath the whole time."

    "Oh? It didn''t feel like it took me that long to eat though..."

    Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    I walked over to the washing machine and pulled my armor out. According to one of the girls I talked to in here, you used to need a second machine to dry your clothes, but this one dries your clothes within minutes after the wash is done.

    I pulled the suit over my body and shrunk it down to fit my body again.

    "Um, Rei... You do realize that outfit makes it kind of hard to look at you, right?"

    "What? It can''t look that bad! I think black looks great on me..."

    "No no, it''s more about the fact that it''s skin tight. You have a nice body, but it''s still really weird to look at, especially from behind... You should get some clothes to wear over that. Want me to pick some out for you? I''ve gotten pretty good at understanding the fashion of this world, so you can count on me!"

    "Then please do, and thank you, Xi... You two have been really kind to me so far. Yet again I owe Aresa for easing me into a new city while smoothing out relations for me."

    It wouldn''t be an issue if I still had my artifact armor. Viktor probably gave it to Vi, or maybe that werewolf kept it for himself? If he does have it, maybe I''ll turn it into a necklace again so I can choke him to death with it... But only if he doesn''t have Ishar''s spear with him. If possible, I would prefer to stab him to death with Ishar''s spear. That would hold much more weight for me and be a very fitting end for that worthless fucker. I''ll settle for strangling him with the artifact if he doesn''t have it though.

    The now naked Xi bent down and picked up her towel before looking at me, "Ooh that''s right. She helped you on Urza as well, didn''t she? Isn''t she just so sweet, albeit a little mean sometimes... Err, you''ll see what I mean. Anyway, I''m sure you remember the way back to your place, so I''ll see you tomorrow then!"

    Xi ran past me into the bath. I could hear a few people calling out to her soon after that. She does seem like a friendly girl, so it''s not all that surprising that she has friends and acquaintances throughout the city.

    I left the locker area and walked out of the Bath House. After I was outside I considered waiting for Kai to come out so I could get some money for the food stands, but I decided to just call it a night.

    Instead of going through the back streets that we took to get here, I walked toward the main road and tried to find my way to the bridge. It was surprisingly easy to find the right direction, as I could see the chapel in the distance, but I quickly understood why Xi had taken us there through the rather desolate back streets. There were people everywhere. It wasn''t a huge issue since I was walking, but it would''ve been a pain to maneuver through everyone at the brisk pace we were running earlier.

    A short blonde-haired man paused in front of me, forcing me to stop in my tracks. "Greetings Miss! Mind if I ask you a few questions?

    I circled around him and continued on my way.

    He quickly walked up to my side and kept pace with me. "So cold~! I just want to ask you a few questions at the behest of my employer. You see, he''s very intrigued by you and has been awaiting your arrival."

    I quickly scanned everything around me. The man, the people around us, the buildings, etc.

    Two couples in that alley, one is a plant.

    The man on that bench is pretending to read a newspaper while keeping an eye on me.

    There is also someone watching me from the top of a nearby building.

    {R-Rei, what are you planning? Your aura is scary...}

    We''re being tracked. Shouldn''t you have realized that before me, Mrs. Support?

    {I know about that, but you can''t just kill them for following you, right?}

    I ignored Luna and the man who was still blithering on about his employer and how important it is that I answer a few questions for him. I kept walking until I found a side street that was empty, or at least it was empty until I began to walk down it. That was when the fake couple from before appeared at the other end while continuing to play their ruse of ''lovers just looking for an empty alley to make out in''.

    It''ll be too risky to go after the one on the roof. I''ll leave him be so he can report back to his master.

    {Mother says ''Don''t worry about leaving evidence''. Uuu... I don''t like this...}

    Almost there... Five seconds, Luna. Get ready.

    I continued walking down the alley. My footsteps were silent, allowing me to hear the two sets of dress shoes clacking behind me, telling me that the fake newspaper reader was also there.

    I came upon the ''couple'' and moved to the right so I could walk past them. But as soon as I was behind the man''s back I activated the halo and charged it. They were fast to react, but not fast enough. The man turned around while trying to enhance himself, but he must''ve screwed up in his panic, as my fist went right through his stomach and smashed into the woman. She didn''t mess up her enhancements, so instead of punching through her, I smashed her straight into the wall. The impact either knocked her out or killed her, because she slid to the ground, leaving a large trail of blood on the wall.

    I could feel the men to my left doing two different things with their mana. The blonde man who had been talking to me was purely enhancing himself and a small dagger with an extremely enraged look on his face, while the portly man behind him was charging up a lightning spell. I obviously didn''t know which one, but I couldn''t help but chuckle at how unfortunate it was for him that his main element was electricity. He saw me laughing and the panic on his face increased ten-fold. It was apparently not the response he was used to seeing when his enemy saw the little bolts emitting from his palm. Normally I''d bet it''s really scary for his opponents when they see that lightning display, but sadly for him, that''s the worst element to be attacking me with.

    Blondie finished his enhancements and charged at me. My arm was still inside of the fake lover, and for the time being he was still alive. He attempted to scream as I threw him at blondie, but he ended up just gurgling as blood began to spew out of his mouth.

    Blondie was apparently not a team player. He deflected his ally as if he were nothing more than a projectile, knocking the poor man straight into the wall. That hit turned out to be the final straw for him. The man slid down the wall leaving a trail of blood much in the same way his fake lover had done earlier.

    With nothing more between the two of us, he stabbed the dagger at my face. A very straightforward attack that I could dodge in my sleep, and yet, despite the fact that the dagger had clearly missed me, I still felt a large gash open up on my cheek. What the hell? Not only did he miss, but I''m overenhanced thanks to my Halo. There''s no way he should have been able to pierce my skin right now. Does he have an ability similar to that one fucker who cut my arms off as I was strangling Viktor?

    The man smirked as he stabbed at me again and again. I deflected or dodged one attack after another, but each attack resulted in part of my armor ripping a little or another cut opening up on my face somewhere. Tsk, I don''t know how he''s doing this, so staying on the defensive is clearly not the play here.

    I kicked at his shin but some innate part in the back of my head was warning me not to do it, and I realized why after my kick landed. There were blades all along his legs underneath his pants that were already enhanced which resulted in the armor on my foot being cut up as my mana dropped down by at least twenty percent thanks to how hard I had just kicked them. He made no attempt to dodge or deflect that attack, so my instincts were screaming at me to abort, but the allure of a free hit had pulled me in.

    "Rodger, move!" The portly man yelled.

    "Not happening! Don''t worry, I''ve got this!" Rodger the blonde dagger user yelled back.

    Thanks to the perceived upper hand he had, he continued his assault, ramping up in speed and power as he went. It was clear at this point that he was overenhancing himself. "What''s the matter bitch?! Is this all you''ve got?! Makes me wonder why he was so worried about you!"

    I ignored him and continued to parry and dodge his attacks. My outfit was becoming more and more cut up, along with my face, but I made no effort to change my tactics. I just kept doing the same thing over and over, allowing the man to attack me unabated.

    "Rodger, something is wrong! She''s just sitting there taking your hits!"

    Oh? So the rotund man in the back has some sense in his head.

    "Obviously! The bitch can''t keep up with me, so just leave this to me!"

    It seems ''Rodger'' doesn''t though. I guess I can''t blame him. He doesn''t understand what is happening right now. Just like my kick earlier, he sees the current flow as his victory, so he can''t see the real ending that''s waiting for him.

    He kept attacking me for another thirty seconds before he suddenly slowed down massively, and before he could react to the fallout of his overenhanced state backfiring, I planted a fist right into his chest. He had blades hidden there too, but they were barely enhanced at this point, so both they and his heart were destroyed as my fist connected. A look of pure confusion appeared on his face as he died, leading to one of the funniest-looking death faces I had ever seen.

    Lack of information and over-confidance did him in. He didn''t know that large gashes like that on my body don''t mean all that much to me. Open wounds on me close up fast, and while the creation of more blood drains my mana, it is nowhere near enough to down me. Technically it was a gamble, as he could have had more mana than me, but I doubted that was possible after I had so easily dispatched two of his allies.

    "S-Shit! I knew it, damned fool!" The portly man yelled as he pointed his finger at me and released the blast he had been charging up. It wasn''t a lightning bolt like I had expected, but instead a sphere made of electricity that was slowly moving toward me as multiple streaks of lightning ran along the walls and floor.

    He had apparently put all of his mana into the spell, as he immediately dropped to one knee after the sphere appeared in front of him. Between the perpetually confused look on Rodger''s face and the rotund man who had spent all of his mana on a spell that was doomed for failure against me, I couldn''t help but burst out laughing.

    The man, still on one knee, looked up at me horrified. As he stared at me I put my arms out to the side and slowly walked forward. A few seconds later the sphere of lighting passed through me. The damage wasn''t negligible, as I''m not immune to lightning, merely strong against it, but it was still nowhere near enough to bring me down.

    Seeing this, the emotions on the man''s face morphed into one of resignation. He knew he was dead, and he was ready for it, but before I could approach him, a sword pierced him from above. It went straight through the top of his skull before exiting his lower jaw as it smashed his head into the pavement.

    I stopped in my tracks and readied myself as the person who had been watching me from the roof dropped down next to the man. He pulled his sword out of the man''s skull and scoffed as he cleaned the blade with a handkerchief.

    "Mother said to keep an eye on you, but I didn''t expect you to enter a battle to the death the very same day you arrived. You could have just walked home you know? Why''d you pivot into an alley so you could kill them?" The man said.

    He was young, barely in his twenties with short black hair and wearing a very refined outfit. Most notable of all however, was the black wings sticking out of his back. Between his familiar appearance and the quality of his clothes, a single person entered my mind.

    "Is your mother Cera?"

    "Do we look that alike...? I thought I''d have to explain who I was."

    "Well, I''d prefer you still did that. I know your mother, not you."

    The man smiled and bowed, "Artorus, Miss Reimia. My mother has told me about her origins and the history of Urza more times than I''d like to remember. And you were an integral part of her life, for better or worse. I''m going to assume it''s mostly for the better, as from what I''ve seen she appears to harbor no ill will toward you. At least not in the way Lady Aresa has described her past actions regarding you." Artorus motioned toward the dead man next to him, "Now do you mind explaining this? But on the way to your home please. We should leave this area quickly. The guards are letting people through the streets again."

    {He means that Mother had the road blocked off so nobody would see what was happening in this alley. A-And Mother is the one who told me not to help you! It''s not because I was scared like before...}

    So basically, she wanted to see how I handled a fight against people without help.

    Artorus jumped onto a nearby wall before kicking off toward the building behind him. He did that until he reached one of the roofs. I planned on following him of course, but first I needed to do something. I ran through the alley eating all of the souls from the four dead people while giving them a quick pat down for anything else they may hold. All I found was a wad of bills in one of the couple''s pockets, which was good enough for me. With that done, I jumped up to the roof Artorus was looking down at me from. Not through wall hopping though. I made it in one go and pulled myself onto it by grabbing the ledge when I was in range.

    "... Miss Reimia, there''s no need to overexert yourself like that. We need to hurry but a delay of a couple of seconds would not have made much of a difference."

    I pointed at my halo "No time to explain, but this is the cause. I''m in an overenhanced state right now and I can''t drop it until I''m back at my home. So let''s go."

    Artorus understood that time was precious to me, so he didn''t even nod in response. He began jumping from one roof to another toward the chapel area(whose district name I still didn''t know). It didn''t take long for us to reach the last roof. Artorus jumped down below with the intention of walking over the bridge, but that was a waste of time for me, and I couldn''t see anyone on the bridge or near it on the chapel side, so I backed up a little and got a running start before jumping toward the bridge. I overshot it by a little bit, but as soon as I landed I ran toward the stairs. Upon descending them I found a scene I didn''t expect to see. Petey was fishing with the men in the waterway.

    I was still covered in blood though and didn''t want the men here to see me so I removed the halo. The backlash wasn''t as extreme as what hit me after my fight with Seifer, but it was enough to make me hate the idea of walking even one more inch. Even so, I turned invisible before anyone saw me and walked up to my door. It soundlessly opened up after I told the jewel to allow me entry. Looking back I saw Artorus waving in my direction from the other side of the bridge before turning around and walking away. Looks like he only planned to guide me home and then return to his own domicile.

    You can stay there, Petey. And once you''re done fishing you can keep watch outside of the door.

    I entered my new home for the first time and closed the door behind me. I used my left hand since the palm didn''t have blood on it to look through the drawers of my dresser. Most of them were empty, but I did find a stack of towels in the large drawer on the bottom-left side. After cleaning myself the best I could, I laid down on the bed and immediately shut myself off. My soul was aching and as a consequence so was my body, so the sooner I could rest, the better.

    <hr>

    A warning from Petey woke me up. Someone was approaching. He was still fishing but his eyes were following a group of people fully robed in brown cloaks. However, he did catch a glimpse inside the hood of the smallest member there. He saw blue hair and horns with gold streaks. She''s still as impatient as ever. I had a feeling she''d be showing up here tonight despite the fact that we were supposed to meet tomorrow.

    "Ooh!" Aresa said as she noticed Petey. The robed soldiers reprimanded her while preventing her from approaching him. A few of the soldiers even had their palms on the pommel of their swords as they glared at Petey. They obviously saw him as a potential threat. In response, Petey just looked away and went back to fishing, which seemed to greatly annoy them. So she can talk now huh? I''ll have to ask her about that.

    Loud knocking sounded out from my door soon after that. I rolled out of bed, still feeling the after-effects of the halo. How long was I out? My soul is feeling better but it''s still nowhere near stable. Ugh, just moving around hurts right now.

    I walked to the door and pulled it open, revealing a tall Asian man who had to bend down to look through the door frame. He went to say something but someone pushed past his legs and dove into my chest. The Asian man sighed as the girl wrapped her arms around me. I looked down but all I could see was the top of her brown hood.

    "... You''re late." She said.

    "I know, I know. But hey, at least it wasn''t forty-two years?"

    Aresa chuckled and pulled her head back. She looked up and pulled the hood off, revealing a face I recognized but kind of didn''t at the same time. She''s grown up a little... In human years it feels like she went from twelve years old to sixteen.

    She wiped a tear away before looking back at the Asian man. "Close the door, and don''t you dare attack that skeleton. Just leave it be, you hear me?!"

    "Yeah, yeah. I understand, my goddess." The man sighed yet again before closing the door.

    "Grr, he''s so annoying..." Aresa pulled away from me and threw off her brown robe before jumping onto the bed. She then looked at me and patted the bed. "Come, come!"

    "... Hmm. You seem a little different from what I remember."

    "Hey now, I''m still the same. Cera and Euphie tell me that all the time. I''m just fed up with my ''Knights''. And it''s hard to call them that when most of them are just watch dogs masquerading as protectors..."

    I walked over to the bed and sat down on it. I brought my legs onto the bed and turned in her direction so I was sitting cross-legged looking right at her. She did the same thing before showing me the biggest smile ever. "I can''t believe you''re actually here... I still watch memories from my time on Urza, so I remember everything about you, but it''s just so weird to see you in person again."

    "And you look like you''ve aged quite a bit. But nowhere near as much as you should have in... Thirty years?"

    "Almost Thirty-three years. I told you, you''re slow. Too slow! Life has been good here but it''s been getting increasingly worse and unstable as the years progress. I really could have used you like, fifteen years ago. But I''m glad you''re here now... There''s so much I need to tell you. And so much I need your help with... But will you help me? I took you for granted on Urza, so I''d like to ask for your help this time." Aresa said, looking up at me with pursed lips.

    "Of course stupid. Why else would I be here? Although my original idea of helping you was to take you away from this place. But from what Lunaria and the Yulia siblings said, I get the feeling that you don''t want to leave Termia."

    Aresa shook her head, "Sorry Rei, I love this place way too much now. And... And I just can''t watch it happen again. I already lost one home. The very idea of abandoning another would kill me... Plus, shouldn''t we be making a stand here anyway? Don''t you want to stop Viktor? He used to be just some guy from the past that you would talk about. History lessons I found interesting. Your past was sad and I felt bad for you, but that''s what it was, the past. That''s not the case anymore though. I''ve had to learn quite a bit about that asshole, and even met him in person once."

    "Wait... You met Viktor? When? Why?"

    "Hehe, I knew that''d interest you. He came to the Aetheria summit that''s held in Telebron once every ten years. The last one was the first time he attended it, and it was when most of the southern nations declared that they were willingly being absorbed into his nation. Ever since that day, things have spiraled more and more out of control... Oh! I really really really wanted to ask you this since nobody else would know him this deeply, but why are the goo Xerath attacking him too? Can''t he just control them and turn them into allies?"

    "''Goo Xerath'', huh? That''s what you call them? I''ve been calling them the ''Ooze Xerath'', which isn''t much better. Anyway, he has a limit to the amount of Xerathian Gods he can control. According to him, it''s two. Now bear in mind, this isn''t even something he told me directly. I just overheard him talking to his brother about it back when I was a child. It was when my master, his brother, was creating plans with Viktor on how they were going to use me. They knew about my invisibility and wanted to use me to kill the leaders of the nobles who were using the curse-bearing Eldritch Lords to control them, but for reasons that aren''t worth explaining, that plan never really worked out. Old history aside, it all depends on whether you believe he was telling his brother the truth."

    Aresa put her elbows on her thighs so she could rest her chin on her palms. "Hmmmmm... I mean, in context it sounds believable? And it is a fact that he''s currently being attacked by those Xerath from all corners of his nation. And, pfft, you know who is exploiting these assaults the most? The Tengu! It always makes me laugh when I read reports that say an ''uncoordinated but double assault'' took place on one of Viktor''s cities. I''d like to know why the Tengu is attacking Viktor, but I think it''s for the best that I don''t poke the beehive. Just letting my enemies kill each other seems like a better course of action, yeah?"

    I couldn''t help but grimace from the way she was talking. There was nothing wrong with it, but it just didn''t sound like the girl I had last seen in Viseux.

    "Definitely not something the Aresa I knew would say. Looks like some of your naivety has vanished... It''s honestly making me sad. I hate how I didn''t get to see you grow up in person."

    "S-Stop it, don''t act like you''re a parent who just found their long-lost daughter... I''m still the same girl, I promise! Just a little, you know, grown up. You''ll get used to it."

    "I wonder what Shana would say if she saw you now..."

    At that, Aresa''s lips puckered a little. "So she really is...?"

    "Yes. I''m sorry, Aresa... I would love to blame Seifer, but Viktor would have killed her anyway. If anything, it''s my fault for even being there. Viktor would have rewarded Markus''s group handsomely for saving his daughter and that would have been the end of it. But he saw me, and then he decided to kill two birds with one stone. He''s a conniving cunt like that. Once he realized that his daughter''s saviors could be used as a springboard to expand his nation, there was no longer any chance for us to talk our way out of it. That''s just how he is."

    "H-Hang on, why did you mention Seifer there? Didn''t he go missing like, twenty years ago? Maybe even thirty..."

    Oh right, Lunaria told me that I should be the one to explain this to her. And she''s right, I really should be the one to tell her about everything that happened up until now.

    I laid down on the bed and patted the area next to me like she had done earlier.

    "It''s probably for the best that I just show you what happened. Starting from when I woke up on Urza."

 Chapter 71.2 - Aresa

    Aresa laid down next to me and poked the dried blood on my armor, "Explain this first."

    "Oh, right... I was attacked on the way back from the bathhouse. And god damnit I just cleaned my armor too... I removed the Xerath''s blood only to have it replaced with Human blood ten minutes later."

    "Show me that memory first," Aresa replied as she closed her eyes.

    I reached over and grabbed her hand before closing my eyes as well. A few moments later we were inside my soul realm, and much to my surprise, it had taken on the appearance of Terra''ka''s planet.

    "Niiice!! I''ve been trying for so many years to get this to be my default environment. I tried one last time on the limo ride over here, but I never actually expected it to work. It''s about damn time though, that''s for sure."

    "Where is this...?" Aresa asked while she marveled at the scenery.

    The world was just as I remembered it. Blue mushrooms of all sizes filled my vision, while random crops of land littered the swampy landscape. And some of those spots of land had strangely designed tables and chairs set up on them(the tables I saw the Lizardmen gambling at). There were also other pieces of land that had bushes with glowing orange lights at their centers that strangely looked like they were on fire. And most beautiful of all, was the sky that appeared as if it lacked an atmosphere. Thanks to that, it resulted in the prettiest sky ever, and it was also the reason I wanted my soul realm to reflect this world.

    "This is your first time seeing this world, huh? I forgot that you were stuck with the templars during the Lizardmen''s initial invasion into Urza."

    "Ooh, so this is Terra''ka''s world?! Alicia had described it to me before, but uh, this isn''t quite how I had imagined it. Maybe she''s bad at describing places? Or I misheard her."

    I changed the environment a little so that one of the patches of land above the water was much larger, allowing me to place all of my furniture and the TV on top of it.

    "And is that the temple you rescued Godwin''s family from?" Aresa asked. I turned and saw her pointing at the temple that had apparently been made into a staple of my soul realm.

    "Yep, that''s the place. They were in cages in there along with some other races, including Elves." Hearing Godwin''s name made me wonder how his family was doing, "Have you heard from Godwin at all?"

    "No, but if you''re asking me that, then that means you saved him before Viseux was invaded?"

    "Jeez, you don''t even know that... I''m not blaming you, it''s just that this is completely different from what I had expected to happen. I thought Markus or someone from Arkaios'' faction would have been here to tell you what happened to us. But thanks to Kai, I know Markus couldn''t have been the one to tell you. He told me earlier that his group never showed up here, which means that Viktor must have kept the artifact."

    Aresa rubbed her temples and sighed before sitting down on a couch from her chateau that I had recreated for her. "Okay, you''re right. You better start from the beginning. I missed out on a lot apparently..."

    I sat down in my usual recliner and kicked it back before recreating the scene in the alley near the bathhouse.

    "But you want to see this first, right?"

    Aresa nodded, so I played the memory starting from when Rodger approached me. And all the way through it the emotions on Aresa''s face didn''t change once.

    After the scene had reached the part where I passed out in my bed, she turned to look at me and said, "I recognize the blonde man who attacked you and the woman you punched into the wall. The man is Rodger and the woman is Kelly. They both work for the Phoenix Initiative. Not on the books of course, and if the police try and trace their origins they''ll be blocked by the Initiative."

    "Why are they after me? Did you, Cera, or Euphemia talk about me openly? Seifer found out about my reincarnation because he overheard you---Oh. Maybe he was the leak...? If so, I need to find out just how much he told them about me."

    "Again you bring up Seifer... I want to ask more about him, but let''s go back to when I last saw you outside of the City Hall."

    I brought up the memory she was referring to and we watched as Shana and I mocked Ishar for wanting to return to the Lizardmen''s portal alone. She was watching along silently again until it reached the part where I entered the building. After that, she stood up and walked over my the recliner. She then pushed me to the side so there was enough room for her to sit next to me, which took me by surprise at first, but then I realized why she had wanted to sit so close to me. We had just played the moment where I had disappeared from her sight for thirty-four years. Aww, and here I''ve been moping about how ''mature'' she is now. But this was very reminiscent of the Aresa I know.

    Aresa pointed at the guy Godwin had been strangling to shut him up. "What happened to that guy?"

    "Uhh, I''m not sure? Is this merely curiosity on your part? I don''t remember seeing him after we left the cell area so he must have stayed behind."

    "Mostly, but also because I knew him. You met him before too. He was one of the priests who served under Devon. Remember that guy?"

    "Of course. I forget people and their names from time to time, but I wouldn''t forget him, since he was supposed to be a part of my family. I tried to reach out to him when we returned from Kellog but none of the priests or priestesses would tell me where he was. I remember becoming more and more suspicious over time, but then Viktor invaded Viseux and because of that I completely forgot about him up until now."

    I changed the memory to the time I had originally met Devon in the tent, or I tried to, but I accidentally changed it to when I had first entered the tent. It showed me crouching behind Aresa''s chair as she looked back at my invisible form.

    "Wrong scene, but this was a creepy moment for me by the way. The fact that you were looking at me really weirded me out."

    Aresa chuckled, "I think I told you before, but I only vaguely sensed something directly behind me." Aresa smacked my leg, "Oh wait! There''s something else I want to see! I know we keep getting derailed, but I want to see the beginning of your memory here."

    "You mean when I woke up in that jail cell?"

    "Yes! I wanted to ask you this back then, but I was too scared to. After all, I don''t know if there is an etiquette for this kind of stuff. You''re the only one I know who can replay memories like this so casually... Outside of me of course. But that''s different because of what I am."

    I would''ve happily shown her if she asked me back in Viseux, but I can''t blame her for being hesitant. It is kind of a weird question to ask. ''Can I view your past memories?''.

    I rewound the memory to the very beginning; the moment I woke up in the cell next to Gaz and Peter. After I snapped Gaz''s neck Aresa responded in a way I hadn''t quite expected. She began to laugh.

    "S-Sorry! It''s just so funny the way he was talking all psychotically about cutting up your ''corpse'' and then you just... Pfft!"

    She was still laughing when we got to the part where I lit Peter on fire, at which point she was laughing so hard she doubled over.

    "I thought you said that you didn''t change! The little girl from that tent would not have laughed so hard at this." I said in between chuckling. Her laughter was infectious, even I was starting to view the whole scene as comical.

    "Blah! I can''t help but be a little more cynical after dealing with so many corrupt adults for years on end. And don''t even get me started on..."

    While she didn''t finish her sentence, I did see her quickly glance at my chest. Ahh, she''s referencing Lunaria indirectly. She knows she can''t talk about her since I have one of her fairies with me.

    "Ah... Skip this part, please." She said as I snuck up behind Jason.

    I paused the memory, "I heard he was a good kid. Did you know him personally?"

    Aresa nodded and brought her knees up to her chest, "I know why you killed him and Brian, and those two assholes from before of course. They did deserve it, but Brian and especially Jason weren''t the monsters this whole situation made them out to be. Brian had spent his whole life saving people, and Jason trained day in and out all to fulfill his dream of serving alongside Keith. He wanted to spend his life helping the people of Urza. But I get it, okay? You don''t have to remind me of what they did. That''s why their deaths are so freaking conflicting for me."

    I skipped the memory ahead until it showed me in the coliseum. I was huddled in a corner creating a thin layer of armor to protect myself. Looking back on it, that armor was next to useless. It was barely better than a robe.

    "Okay good. It was starting to get awkward for me." Aresa said.

    "Why is that?"

    "You''ve been naked the whole time, stupid!"

    "Oh... Well then I''m sorry to say, but things are about to get much weirder for you. I was naked most of the time back then. All the way up until the Templars showed up."

    "W-Why...? I know you can create your own clothes, and I just watched you do it right there!"

    "Because that armor right there is fucking useless. I might have kept creating it if Brian and Albel hadn''t nearly killed me. But they showed me early on just how powerful my enemies were, so remaking that armor which is practically on the same level as paper mache was a complete waste of time."

    I sped the memory up to reach the trap scene faster, but still at a speed where she could see how I stealthed through the abandoned Kitsune village.

    "And here it is, my first big fuck up. I was better off just using one of the human souls so I could jump over the damned wall, but somewhere in the back of my mind I was thinking ''What are the odds this area really is trapped?''. Pretty fucking high apparently."

    Reimia the fool reached the crate that had the trap placed on it, and the next thing we saw was me getting impaled into a tree and burned to a crisp.

    Aresa''s eyes went wide upon seeing what had happened to me, "Whoa... You told me about this before, but I didn''t think it was this bad. I can''t believe you survived this!"

    "I barely did, especially since I forced myself to not use any mana defensively after that wood pierced me. A much younger and inexperienced me would have pointlessly used up those souls to defend against Albel''s flame attack. But then I''d of been completely screwed. I would have had no mana left to do anything, including that."

    Inside the memory I had just grabbed Brian''s throat. Seeing it from the outside it was kind of funny the way I was waving him back and forth to protect myself from Albel. I could feel Aresa jump a little when a crack sounded out from the memory as Brian went limp. And not long after that Albel turned into a blue sphere and disappeared.

    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    Aresa sighed as the Reimia from the memory randomly reappeared inside a hole in the ground. "So that''s what happened to you back then... Did you come to the tent after this?"

    "No, I went after Nisha first, and almost managed to kill her too."

    "What?! I don''t remember hearing about that part! How close were you?"

    I skipped ahead again to the part where I was tracking the mana lines. At some point they went underground so I had to guess where she was based on the direction of the lines and distance from her allies, but eventually I located a disturbed part of the dirt, which is how I knew I had finally found her. After the scene played out and I was back underground, Aresa turned and looked at me with narrowed eyes.

    "... You commented on her breasts the first time you met her? Under those circumstances?!"

    "All I wanted to do was kill her and be on my way, but when I pulled her out of the ground her shirt was all cut up, and it was really hard not to notice. Even under normal circumstances, they''re uh..."

    Aresa rolled her eyes, "Okay pervert. But you didn''t attack her again after this, right? There''s no way Keith would have left her unprotected after that."

    The scene skipped ahead to where I had returned to Nisha''s location.

    "See him there? It''s Albel, but I wasn''t sure if there were more people hiding in the trees. Also, in hindsight, I''m really glad I didn''t risk it. Even if I did manage to kill Albel, Nisha had her connections up the entire time, so she could have brought the others to her side, at which point Keith would have made quick work of me. I didn''t know it back then, but the only reason that didn''t happen the first time was because she had cut the connections before I had pulled her out of the ground. I could have still fled before the blue spheres reached me, but if Albel had survived it would''ve made turning invisible and fleeing infinitely more difficult."

    "He''s the only one who was happy to be branded. Did you know that?" Aresa said.

    "What? Albel? I don''t know much about him, he''s very quiet and keeps to himself."

    "Yeah I thought the same thing, so I talked to him one time in the chateau while you guys were doing something in town. It turns out he was in love with Keith''s sister, Rachel. I don''t know if you remember anything about her, but she was eaten by that grinning Demon, and so when you guys saved all of those souls, they were taken to Arkaios temple. Arkaios can''t send souls to the afterlife, so he told us to find a way to bring them back to the goblins, which was uh, not really an option anymore after Viktor put those obelisks everywhere."

    She continued, "So Arkaios decided to keep the souls and give them the same fate that all the branded receive at the end of their service. They live out the rest of eternity in his realm as souls. Albel was very happy that Rachel was saved, and so was Keith for that matter. That''s why they both serve him willingly now instead of purely through duty."

    "I didn''t know any of that... Most of my time with Markus''s group was spent trying to survive. We had a little downtime here and there, but nowhere near enough. And Albel kept to himself almost the entire time. I don''t think I talked to him even once."

    I looked at the memory which was at the part where the spiders were dragging back bodies to the hive. "I never did find out where those sacrifices came from. That village you guys were in was completely secured if you exclude the massive hole in the backside, but the spiders weren''t attacking you there. So where the hell did the people in these sacks come from?"

    "You really didn''t know? It was the same place Markus and the Templars came from. There was one more village to the north that was inside the forest. It had a mine underneath it that the Kitsune wanted to revitalize, so the Templars and a group of Guardians stayed there with them while they attempted to fix the place up the best they could. But from what I heard, the village had no walls. It was very small and mostly just treated like an outpost. I don''t blame Markus or the Guardians for failing to protect everyone who was there."

    Damn, so Markus had also fought the spiders? She''s right, I didn''t know that, but it does make sense in hindsight. Because when I first saw the Templars, they were approaching from the same direction the spiders were bringing back sacrifices from.

    "This is actually kind of fun revisiting past events, but we should probably skip ahead to when I died in Viseux. You don''t have much time, right?"

    "Urgh, I don''t... As much as I love it here in Termia, I miss having free time. I haven''t been able to sit down and read a book in ages. I MISS MY BOOKS!!"

    I went back to the scene where I split up from Godwin''s family and Markus. "Have you really not heard from Godwin, Jasper, or Hera?"

    Aresa shook her head. "Nothing. And it''ll be a miracle if we do see them again. If they really did reach the northern portal, then that means they were moving away from Aetheria."

    The Reimia from my memories was running up a building when something smashed into her right side, sending her flying through multiple buildings. I rewound it and looked in the direction I was hit from, but whatever it was must have been far outside the range of my vision, because I couldn''t see who was responsible for sending me through all of those buildings.

    "What hit you?? I don''t see anything..." Aresa said.

    ... Good question. And whatever it was never made an appearance during the assault on Xethra.

    We continued watching in silence for a while, all the way up to the point where I reached the chateau. At that point I could see Aresa hurriedly wiping away tears.

    "You miss it that much?"

    "I wish with all my heart I could bring it here, but I know that''s impossible... I''m slowly turning the chapel here into my own domain but I don''t have Mother''s strength. It''s going to take me another fifty years at the rate I''m going." She continued, "But that''s not entirely the reason I was crying... Just seeing it here like this and the state of Viseux, on top of you being alone there. It''s all so..."

    Definitely not the Viseux she remembers, that''s for sure.

    "Ooh! So that''s how you found out Ishar survived." Aresa said after she saw me activating the Chimera''s soul-tracking ability.

    After the meeting with Arkaios, I sped through the memory until I reached Jericho. Aresa couldn''t withhold her excitement at the part where I had to leap past all of those Draugr and deal with the entrance chamber that the Ghorak was guarding. In fact, she found the whole excursion through the city fascinating. Not the city itself. That she wants to destroy one day. But she loved watching me infiltrate and stealth from the entrance of the city to the portal room. At which point I paused it and zoomed in on the werewolf in power armor. The anger I felt welling up as I looked at the fucker was difficult to contain, and Aresa picked up on it right away.

    "Did something happen with that werewolf?"

    "... You''ll see later on."

    From there we watched as I jumped through the portal, hid as the Lion and Minotaur dueled, and only stopped to talk when I met Shana. "Aww! She''s so dirty and even looks a little frail..."

    "Nisha and her had been stuck here for a long time. They were trying to rescue Ishar, who was currently in a cage surrounded by Demons. Err, well, not really ''Demons'' anymore, but still in a cage and unable to escape."

    "Not Demons? More of that Lion-thing from earlier?"

    "Yeah... It''s hard to explain, you''ll just have to see for yourself. There''s a lot of very strange things that are going to happen from here on out."

    Someone began to knock on the door to my home, interrupting the memory.

    "You expecting someone?" I asked Aresa.

    "Yes! I asked Lunaria to have Kai and Xi be sent over here. I wanted to spend some alone time with you, and I did love this, but the more I watched your memories, the more I felt those two should also see what happened. Is that okay? I kind of forgot to ask you what your thoughts are on the two siblings. For the record, I adore them both and trust them wholeheartedly!"

    "I have no issues with them so far and have rather enjoyed their company. So I''m not opposed to them joining in."

    I exited my soul realm and opened the door. Kai had the same neutral expression he usually wore, but Xi looked like she wanted to pass out.

    "Your sister okay?"

    "Nope." Kai merely responded before dragging her inside.

    "Aresaaa~, I''m so tired... Can''t we do this tomorrow?"

    Aresa lightly kicked Xi''s thigh, "No! It has to be today, silly girl. You know how busy we''re going to be from here on out thanks to the summit coming up."

    "The summit...? That''s not the same summit you were talking about earlier, is it?"

    Aresa smirked, "Yep, it is. Which means your favorite person in the world is going to be in Termia in a couple of weeks. You showed up just in time!"

    ..........

    Kai dragged his sister to the bed and laid her down where our feet would be. Once she was in place, he laid down beside her and grabbed her hand as Xi grabbed onto Aresa''s ankle.

    "Do you even know how much some people would pay to touch the goddesses feet?" Aresa said, now turning her smirk onto Xi.

    "It''s so creepy when you call yourself a goddess! Please stop doing that..." Xi said.

    "I''m merely speaking the truth. An Eldritch Lord inside of a Human body who willingly tied herself to the wellspring, radiating energy everywhere she goes. Protecting our great nation with her righteously beautiful aura. So pure! So magnanimous!!"

    "Ughhh..." Xi groaned as she looked at me, "Was she always like this?"

    "Definitely not. She was just a sheltered naive little girl the last time I saw her. Although this new version is slowly growing on me."

    I crawled back into bed and held Aresa''s hand again before re-entering my soul realm. This time Xi and Kai joined us, and they were both impressed as they should be by the world around us. But as much as I wanted to enjoy Terra''ka''s realm with them, I sat down on my recliner again next to Aresa and replayed the previous memory.

    "And what is happening currently? All I see is fog everywhere and this lady who I assume is Miss Shana." Kai said.

    "To briefly catch you up; After I revived on Urza I followed the past visages of Ishar''s soul to another moon, and in doing so I found Shana."

    The scene where we revived Markus made Kai jump out of his seat. "I-I had heard of this ritual from Lady Aresa, but it was so far-fetched that I didn''t put much credence into it. I felt she must have misunderstood or misheard something, as I''d never heard of an Old God named Arkaios before she spoke of him. ''He must be an abnormally powerful Eldritch, so his follower''s fanaticism is what is causing fake information such as this to spread.'' This is what I was thinking at the time. But now that I''ve seen it firsthand... To see him truly recover one of his follower''s souls and revive them..."

    Kai turned toward me, "I must meet this Old God. After we tour the Western district tomorrow, I will do whatever it takes to find the nearest temple. All of our Gods are dead. It will mean the world to us if I can get my people to follow this Old God of yours."

    Aresa stomped her feet on the recliner, "Kai! You thought I was misled?! I wasn''t that naive."

    "Ehm, apologies Lady Aresa. But Lady Euphemia and Cera have never once mentioned this Old God. So I figured..." Kai scratched the back of his head and sat back down, clearly hoping Aresa would drop the matter, and she did.

    "I don''t think you''re going to find the answers you''re hoping for, Kai. From what I''ve seen, the Templars don''t just swear fealty to Arkaios and then they''re rewarded with pseudo-immortality. They all serve him. Do you understand? You can''t just gain his favor and then go back to whatever the hell your life was before. At least that''s what it looked like to me. Arkaios seems more than happy to protect the average day citizen with his warriors, but that''s where the favors end. Which is honestly amazing all by itself."

    Kai leaned back into the couch, "... You are most likely correct. But I must see and speak to him myself to know for certain. It''s far too important for my people."

    <hr>

    "What is that?!" Aresa asked as she elbowed me.

    We had just watched the scene where I first met Ishar and Greyson. She was pointing at the ethereal spider after it grabbed me.

    Xi was the next one to point at something. She was pointing at a guard who was watching me get absorbed by the spider, "Those guards are really strange looking too. It''s almost like they''re about to explode from having too many muscles. Can you see that big vein popping out his head?"

    "Eww... Everything here is so gross! What is wrong with these people, Rei?" Aresa asked.

    "I think the mystery is really adding to this. I wasn''t sure if you guys would know what was happening here, since Lunaria told me to ask you about---Actually, never mind. I want to see if you can figure out where we are on your own."

    Everyone groaned when the giant cat, armored monster, and minotaur killed us. And what happened next really took Aresa by surprise.

    "You wanted to ask the Tengu for help...? There''s no way it actually helped you, right?"

    And with that said, she was left slack-jawed as she watched the next events unfold. From the Tengu agreeing to relay our message to one of his Lords, and to when that Lord actually showed up at the temple.

    "No freaking way... And he really does look righteous! He looks nothing like the five Lords I''ve seen in the past."

    The three of them watched in amazement as we saved Ishar and set off toward the dig site. And when the group was halfway down the tunnel, Kai finally spoke up.

    "Wait... I think I know what you were referring to earlier. The aesthetics of the creatures you''ve fought up until now were vile in a way I wasn''t quite used to, and that''s coming from someone who has taken part in battles killing dozens of different Eldritch Gods. But it just now hit me that these creatures are very similar to the ones I''ve seen in videos attacking Viktor''s settlements---"

    "These are creatures of the Abyss, aren''t they?" Xi said, cutting her brother off.

    "Well done you two. I thought you wouldn''t figure it out until we reached the God of the Abyss."

    "The God of... No, never mind. I''ll wait until I see it before I start asking questions." Kai said.

    The door to the underground city appeared in the memory, causing Aresa to tense up and look at me. "I don''t understand... The first sightings of the Abyssal creatures should''ve been long after this memory took place. I''d need to look through my archives to be certain, but I feel like I''m right on this." Aresa looked back at the door, "So does that mean you met them before everyone else?"

    "Yes---" Just then, a random memory popped into my head. "Hang on, we skipped past a lot of the chatter in the temple, I want to go back and look at something real quick. I want to make sure I''m not remembering it wrong..."

    Back in the temple, we watched as I talked with Ishar and Greyson about the armor I had made for them and about how Greyson was captured. Soon after that Shana showed up, and we talked about Aresa a little, which I could see was making her tear up again. However, the part I had remembered transpired before us, which left me and everyone else here baffled. At the time I had asked Arkaios if he told the Lizardmen about everything that was happening on Veca, and his reply was ''I have sent an agent to tell them about what is happening here. Do not worry. They will tell this ''Alicia'' girl about everything that has transpired.''

    Aresa looked at me again, "Alicia never once told me about any of this."

    I had this strange uneasy feeling assaulting me whenever I thought about the fact that Aresa didn''t seem to know anything about what had happened to us on Veca. Even if Markus''s group was still dead, there should have been something else happening that ensured Aresa would be informed of our location and happenings. And yet, that clearly didn''t happen...

    "Then that leads me to my next question. Do you know when Alicia is coming back to Telebron?"

 Chapter 71.3 - Aresa

    "Alicia will also be at the Summit. Or so she said the last time she was here about six months ago." Aresa replied.

    "I doubt she purposely withheld that information from you, so something else must have happened. But even with that said, it''s still for the best that I ask her directly so I can see how she replies. In fact, make sure she doesn''t even know I''m here until I see her in person. I want the first thing I ask her during her initial surprise to be about the agent Arkaios had sent to the Lizardmen so everyone would know what was happening to us on Veca."

    Xi clapped her hands, "Okay, okay, we understand. Now keep going! I want to see what''s down under that dig site."

    I brought the memory back to when we first walked through the gates of the underground city.

    "A city...?" Kai said.

    Xi stood up and looked around the city, "And it''s massive! I can''t even see the walls on either side. Err, that might be because of all the fog though?"

    "The fog is annoying. Rei, is it always going to be like this?" Aresa asked.

    "If you hate this just wait until we enter the Abyssal realm... Although I suppose from a memory perspective it won''t be as bad for you guys. You''re lucky you weren''t there in person. On some level, I actually really liked the place, but the atmosphere was so oppressive that even I was beginning to struggle after spending a day down there. Without Nisha, the others never would have made it."

    Xi and Kai were excitedly discussing everything around them while watching our groups attempts to infiltrate the city. It was kind of funny seeing Kai just as excited as Xi was, which is the complete opposite of his usual stoic expression. Aresa however, watched it all in silence. It wasn''t until I exited that long tunnel down into the God of the Abyss''s area that she finally reacted. Kai and Xi were dumbstruck, but Aresa quickly dropped a theory that I found rather fascinating.

    "Those fingers... I wonder if they represent every race in the universe? Or maybe only this galaxy?" She said.

    "But then what would that make him? An amalgamation of the universe itself? What if it''s the other way around, and he is the reason we all exist?"

    Now that really caught the sibling''s attention. We spent the next half hour zooming in on each of the hands and trying to see how many types of fingers we could match to a specific race, but to our surprise, we could only account for twenty percent of them.

    Aresa hummed while tapping her chin, "It must be the universe then... Assuming my theory is even right! Because there''s no way the Eldritch would allow so many other races to exist in the same galaxy as them without being on one of their worlds. Surely Mother would find a way to drag them all here to add more fodder for the machine."

    "The ''machine'' being the system they have here? Where they foster the growth of humanoid creatures so Meiza''thul can keep collecting souls?"

    Aresa nodded, "Yes... Most people haven''t figured that out yet, sadly. I thought about spreading everything I knew about it in Viseux, but I didn''t know what kind of response it would bring. I already had enough people wanting me dead there. And I was scared of Rai''ga, so..."

    "About that, Lady Aresa. Do we need to be near Mother for her to collect our souls?" Kai asked.

    "Yes to that as well, and that''s why they would never allow people or aliens of any kind to just live on another planet peacefully in this galaxy. It wouldn''t be long before a portal opened up on their world and the super powerful Eldritch who live on Mother would appear through it. They''d probably consume a large amount of the inhabitants and bring the rest back to breed. My Mother, Shiva, had lots of notes for me on the manner and told me they had done that once before in the past. I don''t know if it was a portal, but they did bring a race from a nearby planet here long long ago. The Dragonkin. I''ve only seen a few though, so I don''t know what moon or planet they usually dwell on."

    "I''ve met a whole three in my life. Two in Xelba, and that one I freed from Terra''ka''s cages. I talked to him a little but I can''t remember what the conversation was about." I could bring that memory up while we''re in my soul realm, but I don''t see the point. I doubt he said anything that matters to us at the moment.

    Xi pointed at the ''Museum'' on the platform in the memory. "That! I want to know what is inside of that. What kind of building could be in a place like this? I bet it''s pure nightmare fuel... Please tell me you went inside it, Rei."

    "I did, and that was definitely the most interesting part of this entire... Whatever this was. Hang on, I''ll fast forward to that part too, but only after I show you one other thing real quick."

    The siblings, still as excited as ever, slunk back onto the couch, waiting for me to move on to the next memory.

    I fast-forwarded the memory, showing the me of old following in the tracks of that ethereal spider as it climbed the other marble building. Once we were back in the city, all three of them went from wearing confused to worried expressions as they realized what had happened while I was down near the God of the Abyss.

    "It was reset, but you were left behind? Is that what happened?" Xi asked.

    "Yes. Arkaios told me later that he had lost his connection to me at some point, which we concluded was the result of me coming within a certain distance of the Abyssal God. And once that happened he paid closer attention to the other group''s connections to him, making sure the same thing wasn''t happening to them, which is exactly what happened. They descended the stairs toward the Abyssal God and Arkaios had to quickly activate the reset to make sure he didn''t lose them as well."

    Aresa elbowed me again, "He made the right choice. I would''ve done the same thing. You will most likely be fine alone, wherever you are. But it was too risky to leave the others to their own devices."

    "Oh yeah, I''m definitely not holding it against him. I''m glad he brought them back and reset the underground city to its original state. As it was, those trees would''ve eventually given up and allowed the plagued Crotia and casters into the building. At which point we would''ve been forced to fight our way upstairs until Arkaios could connect to all of us again, or we would''ve been left with no choice but to flee to the Abyssal Realm, which is over there." I zoomed in on one of the other cavern exits.

    There''s a very good chance that the others would not have survived during the time it would have taken me to find the stairs leading back into the city.

    I skipped ahead to the moment I tried to open the Museum doors. When that girl suddenly appeared, Aresa and the two siblings all jumped.

    "Hahahaha I knew that would scare at least one of you, but not all three!"

    After the monster girl led me inside Xi finally said, "What is that? And I couldn''t make out a single word she uttered."

    "Why would you follow her into the building?! I would have run away the second she appeared." Aresa said.

    "It''s hard to explain. She might have cast something on me without my knowledge, as I don''t know if any of my own kind can pierce my veil like that. But regardless of whether she did something to me or it was purely my own instincts at work, I was certain that this girl wouldn''t try to harm me so long as I didn''t do anything ridiculous. Like breaking things inside of the building."

    "She''s beautiful... In a haunting kind of way." Kai said.

    "As in you find her aesthetically pleasing as a whole, or a ''I wish I could have sex with her'' kind of beauty?"

    "The latter..." Kai said.

    I paused the memory as all three of us looked at Kai, which made him quickly come out of whatever daze he was in. "... Sorry, I meant the former. Please accept my apologies, ladies. It''s been a long day."

    "... Right. Well, I''m sure she''s single, since she''s alone in this Museum. I''ll be sure to put a good word in for you the next time I''m there."

    I meant that as a dumb joke. I didn''t think he''d actually respond like that.

    "Wait! What about those drawings I found in your room back when we lived with our parents? You know, the ones with the monster girls doing things to each other? You said those were pieces of art you confiscated from a thief, and I believed you at the time. But now that I''ve seen this..." Xi narrowed her eyes at Kai.

    "Enough about that, you obviously misunderstood me." Kai pointed at one of the murals on the wall, "I want to know what all of this is. Although I think I already know since Rei had just called this place a ''Museum''."

    Aresa''s eyes practically sparkled when she heard that. "Oooh!! So this place should be a treasure trove of information!"

    We spent about an hour discussing the Crotia, Aliens, and the main Gods. And when it got to the minor Gods is when things became even more interesting. We were currently at the part of the memory where the monster girl was in my soul realm, assisting me in acquiring my halo.

    "I can''t believe I was right..." Aresa trailed off.

    "About what?"

    "We''ve had problems with a few Abyss creatures in Termia, and so I had to spend some time learning as much as I could about them about half a year ago. It''s surprisingly difficult to get information on them by the way, because most of the attacks take place inside Viktor''s borders. And he does an annoyingly good job of preventing information from leaking out of his nation. It happens sometimes, but not all that often."

    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    Aresa continued, "And what I was alluding to, is uh, while I was pouring over the information related to the Abyss, I began to wonder if your change was somehow related to them. There wasn''t anything concrete to my thoughts. It''s more like I just had a feeling?"

    "The Lady raises a good point. I didn''t notice it at first, but what you are is more aligned with these Abyssal Gods and not what is coming out of the other three realms. And it was always strange that your change took place in the Xerath''s realm of all places. If your change had to come from one of the three-dimensional beasts assaulting our realm, then hands down I would''ve thought the Eldritch were responsible. Maybe the Demons. But definitely not the Xerath." Kai said, and his sister agreed with him.

    "Strangely enough, I always thought the Demons were responsible. You see them all the time in the Xerath''s realm. But let''s put this aside for now, I want to get to the part where I flip through the rest of the Minor Gods in the books. If you''re having trouble with the Abyss, then maybe something in there will look similar to whatever is attacking you."

    Page after page Rei flipped through, but there were only a few times the group had asked me to pause so they could discuss something. But it was never anything of significant importance. They had merely noticed that a few of the Gods looked similar to Abyssal creatures they had seen in leaked images coming out of Xel''nethra.

    "Wait, that one!" Xi yelled, pointing at a familiar-looking Minor God.

    "He''s the one bothering you? That can''t be a small issue for you guys then. Because I saw what he was capable of during the assault on Xethra."

    The God Xi had pointed to was the multi-faced God who had taken control of several people inside of Xethra before forcing them to kill their own comrades. And if I remember correctly, didn''t one of the people there say that it had even taken control of the guy controlling the railgun operator on the airship? I swear they said that a lot of people died because of that.

    Aresa rubbed her eyes and sighed, "That''s one of them... So you''ve also dealt with him before?"

    "Not directly. He had killed a lot of soldiers before we showed up in Xethra, and then during the skeletal assault I watched him kill a platoon in a cemetery before running away from the city. How long has he been a problem here?"

    "Off and on for almost nine months now." Kai said before continuing, "With the last sighting being three or four months ago. I''d like to believe he''s left for greener pastures, but that''s most likely just wishful thinking on my part."

    I continued the memory, "Tell me when you see the other one."

    After only two pages were flipped over, all three of them told me to stop.

    "This one...? I don''t even know what I''m looking at."

    "Neither do we, but it''s a new threat that popped up recently. The illustration of that previous God wasn''t entirely close to the reports we''ve received, but this one is almost an exact replica." Kai said.

    The creature was similar to the girl in the Museum, in that she was human from below her head. She was also wearing a gothic dress, with this one being more noble in design. And her head was bizarre to say the least, even in comparison to the other monster girl. Her ''Face'' almost looked wooden. It was circular with half of it white and the other half black, while her eyes were spaced far apart from one another. Her pupils were black with white irises, with the rest of her eyes and head looking aesthetically similar to the Museum girl. They were intricately designed in the same white ivory.

    "And that right there was the problem," Aresa said, pointing at the half-black half-white wooden face of the creature. "The survivors said that the longer the fight went on, the more her face turned white, and once her face was completely white, the room was suddenly blasted with a light powerful enough to reduce our men to ashes. The only reason we had two survivors is because they were Vanguards who had just arrived at the scene. According to them, their shields had almost broken from that attack alone, and the only reason they got away was because the monster fell to her knees after the attack had finished. They said it looked like she was winded and needed a moment to compose herself."

    "How recent was this attack?"

    "Six days ago," Kai replied.

    Shit, that was very recent. And that''s one God I really don''t want to do battle with. A light powerful enough to reduce soldiers to ash and nearly break the shields of seasoned Vanguards? There''s no way in hell I''d survive that, even with my halo.

    We kept going until the scene where the sack in the middle of the room opened up, revealing a giant eyeball. Xi was completely disgusted to say the least. And from a memory perspective, it looked like nothing had happened, so everyone was confused as they watched me idly wave goodbye to the monster girl and leave the Museum.

    "What the hell was that?! Why did you not react to what had just happened?" Xi asked.

    "Ahh, I guess it would look a little odd from the outside without context. That was the God of the Abyss I think. He had just filled my soul up. And strangely enough, I haven''t needed to eat since then, even after reviving. Souls, I mean. I still need actual food."

    The three of them weren''t sure what to make of that, and since the conversation was going nowhere I skipped ahead to several different points. I showed them the Collector, the black multi-eyed creature in the lake, the amphitheater full of Crotians and Aliens kneeling in prayer, and the stairs leading back to the underground city.

    "And that''s the way back to the city. We come back down here again, but for now, what did you guys think of the Abyss? I think this is barely scratching the surface. Who the hell knows just how expansive this realm is. I''d like to find out one day, but it''d be really difficult to go back there, and I''d need more than mere curiosity as a reason to go back at this point."

    "I really don''t know what to think of it. It''s extremely bizarre at a minimum." Kai said, and the two girls agreed.

    "I see... Well, there''s one last place to check out before we go back to the temple. This is the most important part of this entire journey down here."

    I took the memory to the temple, but I began to speed up a little more, as I could see Xi was finally starting to pass out, and Aresa had whispered to me that she needed to leave soon. So I quickly showed them the minor God''s resurrection(?) and the portal room that was being maintained by the zombified Demon General.

    "So basically, you want me to speed up, allowing you to record everything to your own soul realms?"

    "Please do... I''m sorry, Rei~." Xi said with her eyes half closed. Aresa chuckled when she saw that. "This has been really fun, but yeah, we should call it a night in the next thirty minutes. We can always discuss this later after we''re given time to pour over it ourselves."

    Despite her drowsed state, Xi cheered quite ecstatically when I shot the God of Change with the plasma gun. "That God creeps me out the most! It''s a shame you weren''t able to kill him here and now. I hate knowing that this thing is out there somewhere, doing who the hell knows what."

    We sped through my return to the temple, the time I relaxed before our escape, and even the escape itself. Commentary still took place, but by the time we discussed something it was already onto the next scene. One part they found amazing was the fact that I was able to save Vi, which was something I was horribly conflicted about. Aresa picked up on that and said we''d discuss it later, but I knew she''d understand why after the Xethra siege anyway.

    The charge through the underground city. Down the stairs. Fighting the God of Casters and the multi-eyed creature from the lake, and then finally leaving through the portal to Xethra passed by us. The three of them were talking during it, but I could feel a sense of dread and sadness welling up as I watched the memories playing out before me.

    On some level, I was actually having fun back then. Escaping a moon wrapped in madness with my friends, a group of trainee ninjas, and a Tengu was hilarious in hindsight. And it was honestly kind of magical, in a weird way... But knowing what came next, really ruined the memory for me. Yet again, that mother fucker took something away from me. I''m not even allowed to have good memories anymore. I still can''t look at the memories I shared with my friends on Urza thanks to him...

    It wasn''t long after we arrived in Xethra that the three of them knew exactly where we were. Long before any of us in the memory did, but that''s because they had seen the footage of what happened here already. What they didn''t know until now though, was the existence of this portal to the Abyss on the outskirts of the city, and that our group had come through it.

    "So that''s how you ended up in Xethra? What a wild ride." Xi said.

    Aresa chuckled despite the grim look on her face, "I had wondered how they arrived in one of Viktor''s cities for so many years. And not once had I even come close to guessing what actually happened back then."

    Next, we were guided to the hotel, and then we ate breakfast before the two ambassadors showed up to look through our memories of the Abyss. It was only when Viktor showed up that I had to finally pause the memory. Even Xi, whose eyes were half closed moments before, looked on in shock and horror when she saw who Vi''s Father was.

    I could hear Aresa grinding her teeth next to me. "I know what''s going to happen next, and I really don''t want to see it... But I know I need to."

    ''... All the more reason that I cannot allow her to go through something like that again.'' Viktor said in the memory(I was now playing it at normal speed), causing Xi to stand up and flick him off with both middle fingers. "OH FUCK OFF!! OOH THIS IS SO ANNOYING!"

    Kai shook his head and leaned back into the couch, "Wow... You all truly did just want to leave too. So he''s the one who forced this confrontation. While I didn''t believe the story Viktor had put out into the world, especially not when Lady Aresa spoke so highly of you, I was however not entirely certain if you were the reason this battle had started. After all, she did say that you wanted to kill this man."

    "I don''t blame you for wondering that. Even in that moment I wanted to kill him, but even so, I put the lives of the group ahead of that desire and really was just going to leave with them. But as you can see, the fucker didn''t let us go. He instead decided to use us for his own purposes. And I only made it worse by attacking the town... I had to save Markus and Ishar though. And the artifact was with them too."

    For the most part we skipped through the rest at a high speed, while only playing the scenes that really mattered at normal speed. Like when Nisha died, Greyson left, and when I met up with Shana.

    The chatter between the three was surprisingly technical. And it was a little surprising at first until I realized why Aresa was doing it. Obviously they were gleaning everything they could from the memory related to Viktor''s abilities and the fighting force at his command, even if it was thirty years ago this was still useful to them, and the Xerath would not have changed all that much. But there was another reason she was doing it. She wanted to distract herself from what she knew was about to happen. Especially since I could feel her shiver when she saw Seifer in the jail cell with the others.

    Xi began to laugh hysterically when I had removed my invisibility behind a group of soldiers. Some of them began to scream in terror as I charged up my halo, and apparently she thought that was the funniest thing in the world.

    Ahh shit, it''s coming up soon...

    Everyone filed into the truck before I sped away. I drove toward the hotel where Shana was waiting for us, and just like I had remembered, the truck was completely crushed. However, even through the memory, I wasn''t able to figure out how it happened. Kai theorized it was something the airship was doing, and not an ability from the werewolf.

    When the railgun killed the Tengu and wiped out the ninjas, Xi began yelling obscenities again, and her brother joined in as well after my arm was cut off. Aresa remained silent until the moment Shana''s clone disappeared. She knew from that alone what that meant. So before I even saw her body, Aresa was already crying with her knees pressed up against her face. The scene kept playing out as the two siblings continued to yell at the memory(mostly Xi though).

    Seifer''s retreat. Markus''s death, and the moment Viktor''s group warped away. I hadn''t noticed it back then, but this one was a little unique. I saw a purple shimmer when it happened.

    "He did that through his airship, in case you were wondering. Viktor came and left from the last summit using the same spell. One of the men bragged that it was a pristine crystal he imbued it with and charged through the ship. Or so I was told. I wasn''t actually on Aetheria yet at the last summit." Kai said.

    Aresa lifted her head a little to watch my last conversation with Ishar before the railgun hit us. Ishar was a vanguard, so it wasn''t a huge surprise that he managed to survive, but I was a complete mess. I knew it was bad at the time but to see my mostly destroyed body from the outside was pretty shocking. At this point, everyone was silent as they watched the werewolf kill Ishar and me before I climbed out of the hole in Termia.

    "And now you know most of what happened. And from here there''s only one more thing to show you, and then you can finally get some rest."

    "What moment is that?" Kai asked.

    "The moment I killed Seifer."

 Chapter 72 - Xelba, Shana, and Gaia

    Perhaps it was information overload, or the fact that everyone was exhausted, but nobody said anything until Petey dropped me in one of the pools inside Lunaria''s cavern after the battle was over.

    "So this ''Seifer'' was Niro all along," Kai was the first to speak.

    "Niro?"

    Aresa, who had finally stopped crying, lifted her head from her knees and looked at me, "An assassin who works for the Phoenix Initiative. I always forget he existed because he would disappear for five or more years at a time before popping back up again to kill someone."

    "And then he''d disappear again, right?" Xi followed up, causing Aresa to nod at her.

    "Do you think Euphemia knew he was here the whole time?"

    The two siblings looked at Aresa. She looked like she was about to instinctively refute it, but then she put her face back into her knees and went silent. I waited for a while but she apparently didn''t plan on answering me. Oh well, it''s not a big deal. I already planned on meeting Euphie at some point so I could ask her why she''s engaged to---Ah. I''ll try asking her about that instead.

    "I heard she''s also engaged to the Supreme Leader. Is there a reason for that?"

    "... Maybe. It''s hard to tell with her." She replied. Kai went to say something but then Aresa lifted her head up quickly and looked at me as if she just realized something. "That scythe! You left it in my vehicle. The driver wasn''t sure what to do with it. Is that a gift for me or something? I don''t want the stupid thing! Especially not after seeing it kill Shana..."

    "That was the plan originally, but I was thinking it over while inside the bathhouse, and I think I''d like to use it instead. For two reasons specifically. One; I had given it to you to sell because it seemed pointless in my hands. The damned thing absorbs souls, so if I use it, I''d never get stronger, but while I was in the pool I thought back to how good it was at destroying magic attacks."

    "So it wasn''t your own strength that was deflecting all of his icicles?" Kai said.

    "My strength played no role in it whatsoever. Not only was I not enhancing the scythe, but it''s completely impossible to enhance it. I tried, and all it did was greedily absorb my mana."

    I continued, "Anyway, the first reason I decided to keep it, is that right there. Plus, I can still remove their limbs or wound people with it. I just need to make sure I don''t kill them. Judging from the fact that it absorbs mana from spells on contact, I assume it also tears into people''s souls as it slices through them, so I''ll only need to avoid hurting people with the scythe if I plan on looking at their memories. That''s the only time I need their souls fully intact or it just comes out as a garbled mess."

    I could technically still get their memories after slicing them up with the scythe, but I''d need to wait until their souls repaired themselves, which would require me to keep them as a prisoner or something. That''s a lot of extra work just so I can fight someone with the scythe instead of having Petey cut them in two or crush them with my fists like I usually do.

    "And the other?" Xi asked.

    "It''ll be invaluable in the Elven lands."

    "What?" Kai asked while the other two looked at me dumbfounded for a moment.

    "Is it really that much of a surprise?"

    "Huh? Oh, no, it''s just..." Aresa trailed off before rubbing her eyes, "I, I didn''t know you were still planning on going there. When are you, um..."

    "Leaving? Not until everything here is taken care of. I''ve already said way too much to the siblings here on my thoughts given your situation, so for now I''ll just let it all play out and help you the best I can, like I did in Viseux. But once that''s done, I''ll head to Arcadis and try to build a rapport there. I hate dealing with politics and rankings, but I really have no choice except to try and rise up the ranks inside one of the clans until I have enough sway to get them to seriously consider Viktor a threat. Because even without asking you, I already know what their replies have been if you requested assistance from them."

    "You really think you can do that...?" Aresa laughed, "Come on, Rei. The last time you were there you were a kid. I''ve had more dealings with the Elves than you have at this point, and I know those assholes will never care about what is happening outside of their own continent. They think they''re untouchable after all. So who cares if a single person owns all of Aetheria outside of their lands?"

    Kai interjected, "Are they wrong though? About whether they''re untouchable or not. I''ve seen some of their mechs in videos, and I was honestly in awe... I''d give anything to own one of those spider-mechs. If we had a dozen of those in our lands, we might have been able to protect our homes instead of being forced to abandon them..."

    "I think those are rare. The spider ones, and any other high-tech mechs they own. Most of their power armor and mechs are second-hand crap they make themselves by attempting to reverse engineer the high-quality human electronics they find in the ruins and underground. All of the power armor you''ve seen out here is also second-rate garbage. If you want to see real power armor, you''d need to visit Arcadia in person."

    I continued, "Also, they didn''t build those spider mechs. Those were found abandoned, and most of the ones they find are inoperable, because they don''t know how to repair them. So when one of those mechs stops moving, there''s a good chance that they won''t be able to get it moving again. And it''s even worse for the ''alien'' machines. I have family on my Mother''s side that are part of a crew who were tasked to figure out how they operate; how to control them, and find out if it''s possible to build one of them, but I think their research went literally nowhere? I swear that''s what my mom said, but I''d need to pour through my memories to know for certain. Admittedly though, that was a long time ago. So even if she did say that, it''s super outdated information at this point."

    "... But the point remains. You wouldn''t be planning to seek out their aid if you thought we stood a chance against Viktor without them." Aresa said.

    "I''m just planning ahead. And I know it was premature of me to tell these two that I don''t see much hope here for Termia."

    I went silent for a minute. I knew that the three of them needed to leave, but her question had hit me harder than I thought. I realized that the reason I had told the siblings that the situation here was hopeless, was because I was becoming used to losing to Viktor.

    I reversed the memory to the point where Ishar was stabbed. I left it there for a few seconds before rewinding to when Shana and Markus died. Then the Tengu and all the ninjas. Nisha, then Keith, then---

    "Rei...?" Aresa said with a little tremble in her voice, but I didn''t respond to her.

    Albel and Lindon appeared next, dead in the hotel. I then rewound it to the underground city. Albel and Lindon died again as the casters blew them up. I rewound it some more to the point where the armored monster killed those two, yet again. I continued to rewind, stopping on random death scenes. Anywhere from my own, to Brian''s, and even Janet''s.

    And then, I did something I hadn''t done a single time since I revived on Urza the first time. I brought up memories from Xelba. The three of them watched the memories wide-eyed as I chased Viktor through the city. The sounds of battle from outside the city and the screams from the citizens as my skeletons chased them down meshed together to form a scene that would be impossible to forget.

    The fully armored Reimia in the memory leaped through the air, slashing at Viktor as he warped from one rooftop to the next. While I watched the memory, I immediately realized something was off. I was chasing him at the time and clearly wasn''t paying attention as well as I should have. Rage was the only thing pushing me forward at the time. And after the battle I also had no time to think about what went wrong, since I had died and was saddled with a whole slew of new problems to deal with. But Viktor''s actions in the memory were strange. Instead of just warping far away in a single jump, he was warping to a nearby roof with what looked like a panicked expression on his face.

    It felt like hours back when I was trying to kill him, but in reality, the time I had chased him was maybe a minute at most. Viktor finally ended the cat and mouse game when he disappeared near the temple, but I knew where he really was. I ran through the corridors until I came upon his office, and sure enough, the hidden passage he thought only he and Ash knew about was open. But even if it wasn''t, I had watched him open and close it from nearby when I was a child.

    His brother, my master, knew I was spying on Viktor from the shadows, but he made no attempt to stop me. Eventually, Viktor realized I was a real security threat and engraved a bunch of Dwarven runes while also installing crystal lights that shone on every corner of his office. But it was too late. I already knew of his secret passage. I knew how to open it, and where it led.

    And because of this, the look of shock on Viktor''s face when he saw me barreling through the underground caverns toward him was something I had never forgotten. However, it was all for nothing. We reached the main cavern where the underground portal to Aetheria was, and I was unable to stop him from running through it. There were powerful Eldritch Gods down there, and one of them had his Lords cut me off on the bridge that lead to the portal to the portal. I was forced to watch them all flee through the portal as the entire city collapsed onto both me and the portal.

    Before the others could say anything I rewound it again, this time stopping on the scene where I had first met my unit. Everyone there, including me, ranged from ten to twelve years old.

    A girl with a long red ponytail walked up to Rei and pointed at her face, "You''re weird. Why do you look like this?"

    "Because I do, stupid girl."

    The girl''s face turned bright red as she pointed at Rei again, "Stupid?! Y-You''re the stupid one!"

    Rei looked at their master, "Master, can''t I train alone? These kids are dumb. They''re uh, um, what was it... Oh! ''Not on my level!''"

    Master sighed, "You''re a kid too you know? You even look younger than they do! And where did you learn a phrase like that...?"

    "That boy said it. The one who has the same hair color as this girl with the dumb-looking face."

    Master lightly smacked Rei on the head, "Stop harassing your new teammates, and don''t copy anything Ash says. That''s the only other red-headed boy I know of that you could have copied, and he''s also the last person you should be looking up to."

    All of the new unit''s parents were watching us from nearby since this was the day of our union. But a few of them were clearly unhappy with my presence.

    "Bear---Sorry, I mean ''Master''." One of the male parents said after approaching him. "I know that Lord Viktor personally vouched for her, and while I know that means we can expect great things from her, I''m just wondering if she really has to be in this unit? What I mean is, can''t she go somewhere else? Surely there is a unit that would be a better fit for her?"

    Rei kicked a pebble at the man, "Shut up fatty. Go rub that oil off your face, it''s gross."

    Master smacked Rei in the head again, but this time with much more force. "I''m sorry about that, Jay. She''s a little rough around the edges right now, but after a few months of training I''m sure we''ll knock that mean streak out of her."

    I could hear Aresa laughing from my right, "You were a little brat!"

    "Aww, I think she''s cute!" Xi said, making her brother shake his head as he retorted, "You''re only saying that because you were the same way."

    More of the parents came forth and began laying on complaints about the last-minute addition to the unit. As this was going on, one of the boys from the group approached Rei. The red-headed girl was revving up to yell at Rei again, but she stopped when she saw the blonde-haired boy walk up to Rei.

    "I''m Simon, the leader of this unit."

    Rei scoffed, "Did your mommy cut your hair? It looks bad. And why are you the leader?! We just got here!"

    "That''s right, my mom did cut my hair and I''m grateful that she did." The boy responded with a smile before continuing, "And I love her very much."

    His straightforwardness gave Rei pause. She looked down at the ground, frustrated, until the boy spoke again.

    "I hear you spend most of your time near the drainage pipes, playing with the birds. I love birds as well! We keep a few as pets in our home. You should come over and see them sometime."

    "Y-Yeah, maybe... I do love birds..."

    Seeing the deflated Rei, a Kitsune girl with purple hair began to giggle.

    Aresa poked my arm, "Rei, I''m really really really loving the opportunity to see your past, but it''s almost morning. Can we do this another time? I wish I could stay now, but..."

    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    I skipped the memory ahead to the part where my friends were being thrown into the chasm beneath the temple. I heard Aresa say ''Ah...'' as Vi, the red-headed ponytail girl from earlier who was now an adult, had been thrown into the chasm. The Xerathian broodling chomped down on her, turning her into mush at no time at all.

    "It''s not that I don''t have faith in you, Aresa," I said while watching the men from Xelba throw in another one of my friends. In the background; I, Simon, and Nera were all locked in battle with Ash and a Satyr. "I think some part of me is just... Tired. There were times on the trip here with the siblings that I found exciting. And even acquiring my own home here really did make me happy."

    I continued, "But at the same time, there''s a part of me that is completely exhausted and fed up. It''s going to be a very difficult struggle to beat Viktor here, and I can''t help but think about how much easier it''d be if the Elves deemed him a threat. And there''s also another part that makes me think they''d be the best choice to bring him down. Viktor hates his own kind, so there has to be some bad blood there. I''m sure someone in Arcadia remembers him, and hopefully wants him dead, just as Viktor wants them dead."

    "I... I understand, Rei. Ehm, not entirely since I haven''t gone through what you have. But looking at your memories here, I do see where you''re coming from..."

    I smiled and went to eject them out of my soul realm but stopped at the last second, as I remembered one very important question I had been wanting to ask her. "One last question. What is the ''wellspring'' that you mentioned earlier? Is that the reason the Tengu, Rai''ga, and others are trying to capture you?"

    Aresa smiled, "Clever! You figured that out just from hearing me say its name? But yeah, I learned of it after I came to Telebron. Lunaria sensed me right away and reached out to me. She explained it in great detail, and I even found some ancient books that filled in some extra bits of info as well."

    She continued, "Every moon or planet on Mother has a location known as the ''wellspring''. I''m still not entirely certain of why, but every heavenly body around Mother gathers up ether and expels it through a large chasm that goes all the way down to the planet''s or moon''s core. This ether is special though, as it''s tied directly to the core, which means as soon as I connect to the ether, I also connect to the core... Understand?"

    "Yeah, but it doesn''t sound all that different from what Arkaios does?"

    "Bah, don''t compare me to an Old God! And it is completely different. You said he siphons from the core. That''s not what my mom did, or what I can do. Although, I do it at a much weaker rate than she can."

    Her smile went even wider, "We can expand our domain indefinitely from the wellspring! And eventually, we can control the entire planet. Mother was apparently very close to completing that on Urza, but then she was killed, so... And I didn''t know about any of that, nor were there any books on the matter that could have informed me. Rai''ga could have told me, but he obviously didn''t want me to pick up from where my mom left off, because I would''ve made life very difficult for him in Viseux, and eventually Urza itself would have turned against him if I had wished for it."

    "Can Viktor make use of it? The Tengu said that he knew about Shiva''s ability."

    Aresa shrugged, "First I''m hearing of this, but it''s not a huge surprise. Wasn''t the Tengu working with him back then? He''s probably the one who told Viktor. And if not, it won''t matter." Aresa glared at my chest, "I''ll never be a slave that controls the wellspring for someone or something else."

    Ahh, now it all makes sense... Lunaria plans on using her to control all of Aetheria. I''d love to ask Aresa about how she plans on doing that, but I''ll need to wait until there aren''t any fairies around. It does make me wonder if there''s more to it though. Surely Lunaria knew I would just ask Aresa directly? It''s odd that she went to the trouble of blocking my connection to the Tengu over a question that Aresa could easily answer.

    Aresa leaned over and hugged me, "Okay, we really need to leave now, but I''m so happy you''re finally back, Rei..."

    I hugged her back and began to rub her head just like I had all those years ago. This made her pull back and frown at me, "I''m not a kid anymore... Actually, wait! I wasn''t a kid back then either!"

    I continued rubbing her hair while smiling gently at her, "You''ll always be a kid to me, princess."

    Aresa puffed her cheeks out but it only lasted a second, as she must have realized how childish it looked. The siblings saw that and laughed at her for a bit before we all said our goodbyes. Aresa and Xi left my soul realm, but Kai stayed and looked over at me, "What are you going to do now? Go back to sleep?"

    "No. I''m going to comb through Rodger''s memories, and then..." I stopped and looked at Kai, wondering if I should say the rest, but no matter how I looked at it, it seemed foolish to not see what his thoughts were on my future plans. "... I''m probably going to visit this ''Hyun'' that you mentioned before."

    Kai''s face scrunched up, but before he could respond I continued speaking, "What do you think about this idea? And don''t hold back. I know the ''correct'' course of action would be to slowly get a feel for the city so I can fully understand the players here and how to move forward, but I don''t think we have time for that. Whatever this ''Phoenix Initiative'' is, I need to get as many answers as I can out of them as soon as possible. Right now I should be out there looking for the main Xerath hive or Rai''ga''s location, not dealing with fucking politics or getting attacked in alleyways. Although I was obviously the one who started that fight..."

    Kai sat down and closed his eyes. While he thought on it I fully absorbed Rodger''s soul and brought up his memories. I rewound a bit looking for the moment they were given orders to track me down, and it was surprisingly easy to find. Rodger and the middle-aged portly man were sitting in a park playing a board game when the nearby payphone began to ring. The portly man got up and answered it. I raised the volume as much as I could but I still couldn''t hear the conversation from Rodger''s point of view. The booth itself must have been soundproof.

    After about a minute the man put the phone down and came back to the table, sitting in his chair opposite of Rodger. "New job. A girl with long white hair and red eyes. Bringing her in peacefully to speak to the boss is the preferable option, but if it turns physical, we are allowed to incapacitate her." The man continued, "Also, the boss says that we don''t need to hold back. She''ll survive most injuries according to him. So you already know what ability I''m going to use."

    Rodger whistled, "Scary shit right there~! I sure as hell wouldn''t want that thing chasing me."

    Chasing? That slow-as-hell lightning ball was supposed to chase me? An insect could have outrun that!

    I marked this place in the memory to come back to it later before telling the soul to rewind to the most recent high-stress situation. It did, but it wasn''t quite the scene I was hoping for.

    Kai''s eyes shot open the second he heard what was happening in the memory. He took one look at it and laughed before glancing over at me, "Rodger was known as quite the womanizer. So you''re probably going to be seeing this a lot."

    It''s not the first time I''ve come upon a scene like this in a person''s memories, so it wasn''t all that shocking to see. If anything, the normal people of the world are apparently always having sex. Sometimes I wonder if that''s the only reason they get up in the morning.

    I rewound to another high-stress scene, and this time it was a battle to the death, but the portly man wasn''t there, so I kept rewinding.

    "You two siblings have lovers? I''m not sure about you, but Xi seems like the kind of person who would definitely have one."

    Kai shook his head, "We both used to be engaged. Political marriages, except we were both happy with our partners. But then..."

    Kai went silent. I was curious of where he was going with that, but I didn''t press him on the issue. Instead, I kept rewinding until I found what I was looking for. The portly man had fired that ball of lightning ability at someone during a battle in a warehouse. And just like Rodger had alluded to, once the target of the ability turned around and ran, the lightning ball sped up and continued increasing in speed until it hit the man. After that, it dissipated into nothing just like it had after it hit me.

    "Lady Aresa said you were strong against lightning attacks, but I''m still surprised to hear that you were unscathed after being hit by that."

    "It was different for me. Did you see how much the ball had changed while it was moving toward its target? There were far more bolts shooting out of it and they were far stronger than the ones that ripped through me. I mean shit, look at that guy! It literally fried him."

    More than satisfied with the display, I absorbed the portly man''s soul for his abilities. Soon after that I could feel two new abilities appear inside of me.

    "Kai, how fast are you?"

    "... Can''t you use a dummy or something? You''re clearly well versed in using your soul realm."

    "But isn''t it more fun this way?"

    "Fun for you or me?"

    Kai sighed and walked over to another landmass. When he was in position I began to charge the ball of lightning ability. Immediately, I could feel it requesting a target. And of course, I targeted Kai instead of some boring soul realm illusion.

    The results were amazing. It didn''t matter how fast Kai went, the ball continued to speed up until it hit him, and because it took almost triple the time it had to catch Kai compared to the man in the memory, the damage inflicted by the ball was ridiculous. Since we were in my soul realm I made sure he didn''t feel any actual pain, but what was supposed to happen to him was clearly shown on Kai''s body before I reversed him to his original condition.

    Despite his earlier complaints, Kai walked over to me with a big smile on his face, "Consider me jealous! Your ability to steal other people''s abilities and use them temporarily sounded amazing on paper, but actually experiencing it is something else entirely. That is an extremely dangerous ability if the person it''s targeting chooses to flee."

    Yeah, that''s the crux of the issue, isn''t it? I need them to flee to make use of it. The look of despair on the portly man''s face when he saw me walk through it makes much more sense now. I had completely by chance done the one thing necessary to counter his ability. Even I would have taken a large amount of damage from the attack that just hit Kai.

    "Rei." Kai said with a serious expression, "Be careful in the Northern District. Hyun''s ''home'' is literally the head office of the Phoenix Initiative. He almost never leaves, and it''s packed full of Dwarven runes and other security measures. Try not to die or get caught, okay? You''ve only just returned to Lady Aresa''s side."

    "That''s the plan."

    "... One last question. Are you going there to kill him?"

    "What? Oh, I didn''t say why I was going there yet, have I? For starters, I''m going to try and get as much information as I can out of him. Whether he speaks to me willingly, or I torture him, the option is his. I could just look through his memories but I''m kind of hesitant to do that after what had happened with Seifer... I know how to remove any connections that may spring up from eating a worshiper of Rai''ga''s now, but what if there are ramifications for devouring multiple worshipers? If it becomes impossible for me to block a connection from Rai''ga, that would be devastating. I can''t risk that, so I''ll most likely need to torture him."

    Absorbing him would still be an option if I could contact the Tengu, but a certain someone made sure I''m not allowed to do that.

    "I see... Well, tell us tomorrow what you find then. I still need to show you the West side so I''ll be here to pick you up after I rest for a little while."

    Petey sent a warning to me. Apparently, Aresa was returning to my home and she had the scythe with her. She could have returned that to me later, but I suppose now is as good of a time as any to take it back.

    I exited my soul realm and jumped off the bed before opening the door just as Aresa was about to knock on it. I expected her to just hand off the scythe and leave, but instead she entered the room again and slammed the door behind her. After that she turned to look at me, and I could see a weird look of fervor on her face.

    "What''s wrong?! Why the hell do you look so excited right now?"

    Aresa threw the scythe on the bed and began laughing. Except, it wasn''t your average laughter. She was clearly very happy about something, and Kai picked up on it as well.

    "Lady Aresa, why do you look so jubilant all of a sudden?"

    "R-Rei! You''re so stupid!!"

    "You came back to tell me that?"

    Aresa giggled again while pointing at the scythe, "It holds the souls. Like the Grinning Demon. Get it? Come on, stupid! You should have noticed that right away after holding the scythe!"

    Holding the souls... If I remember right, the Grinning Demon did that so it had a constant source of energy, just like how Mother and Meiza''thul keep all of the souls they take, keeping them alive indefinitely instead of absorbing them like I do. It''s obviously a better way of using souls, but I don''t even have that option so... Ah!

    Just then, I realized why she was so happy.

    Aresa smacked the scythe and giggled some more, "The Eldritch in here is very unhappy, hehe. He knows exactly what I have planned."

    "... You plan to save Shana? Using that chant the Goblins taught you?"

    "Brrrr wrong! Well, half wrong." Aresa responded. But after seeing the look of confusion on my face she continued with a sigh, "Come on, aren''t you the one who was originally going to flee Urza for Gaia? You should know more about that place than I do."

    I sat down on the bed and put my head into my hands, "Those are all childish fantasies, Aresa. I''ve heard of people keeping their loved one''s souls with soul magic and trying to take them to Gaia so they could revive them with the crystals there. But that''s just..." I thought back to my friends on Urza, "... All fantasies. It can''t work. There''s no way Gaia is as wonderful as everyone says it is. No one ever comes back from the fucking place, so how do we even have all this information on it to begin with?!"

    Aresa walked up to me and bent over, placing her face right in front of mine, "Rei, what am I?"

    "An Eldritch Lord. And? Are all Eldritch scholars on Gaia or something?"

    "Yes, actually."

    "What...?"

    I stared at Aresa dumbfounded.

    Aresa sat next to me and placed the scythe over her lap before patting it with a grin on her face. "We have two directives that are drilled into us. One; propagate anything with a soul on the worlds surrounding Mother. Two; Any worlds fully dominated by a single Eldritch, as in they won the war for that world, must then journey through Mother to reach Gaia. That is our main objective. To conquer Gaia. And I''m pretty sure it''s the Demon''s main objective as well."

    Aresa smiled at me and continued, "Everything you heard, is true. Immortality is normal in Gaia. The only way to truly kill someone is to absorb them, or conquer the domain housing the crystal their soul is tied to. Because those crystals revive anyone who dies in their domain. Over, and over, and over."

    I know about that. I heard it a million times from my friends and I forced myself to believe that ridiculous fairy tale because I wanted to live in such a beautiful place with them, indefinitely. But if Aresa is saying this, then it''s probably true. Which would also mean that Shana could be...

    With a beautifully content smile still on her face, Aresa held the scythe up. "So we just need to bring this scythe to Gaia, and we''ll be able to resurrect Shana. I know we can''t do it right now, and while you might be able to do it alone, it''d still take you at least half a year to go there and come back. So for now, it''s more about the possibility. Just knowing we can do it, you know? I was certain she was gone too. But so long as we keep this scythe safe, we can always bring her back. And, as a plan B, we can always have Kai here take it with him."

    While I was becoming more and more ecstatic over the idea that we could actually revive Shana, that last part she said had taken me by surprise because of how odd it was. "What? Why Kai?"

    Kai stood up and walked to the front of Aresa, looking at the scythe. "I do not mind Lady Aresa. But you know there''s a chance we won''t make it, right? I feel Rei should hold onto it just in case."

    Kai then looked at me, "I was going to tell you tomorrow after showing you how bad the West district is. But my plan is to round up as many of the refugees as I can and leave for Gaia. Only after the summit and Rai''ga is dealt with of course. But it shouldn''t... No, it can''t be delayed any more than that. It''s obvious that the Supreme Leader plans on using my people as a pretext to hand over the nation to Viktor. But if we''re gone, he can no longer use us, can he? And that''s not even mentioning the other hundred reasons we should leave this city and try our luck in Gaia."

    "I..." I looked at the scythe, "... I think I''ll keep it. The road to Gaia is a nightmare. I''m not saying I doubt you or your skill, Kai. It''s just that you''re going to have tens of thousands of people with you as you travel for thousands of miles over Mother. And from what I''ve heard, the strongest Eldritch in our galaxy are all residing on her. So the journey is going to be extremely difficult. If not impossible..."

    Kai laughed and rubbed the back of his head. At first, I thought he was being shy, which was a weird response to what I had just said, but then I realized that merely being reminded of what was awaiting him on Mother was making him nervous.

    "It''s not me I''m worried about. You know of my ability, I''ll probably survive whatever hits me along the way. But my people... Most of our fighters died on Yulia. So what''s left of my nation is almost entirely ordinary citizens. Fortunately, Lady Lunaria is planning to send large batches of fairies with us for assistance, and she said Belfos is going to help as well, which I''m eternally grateful for. But even then, I know you''re right, Rei. I have a strong feeling that our journey to Gaia is going to be nightmarish on a scale I can''t even imagine."

 Chapter 73 - Hyun

    I turned down an alley, expecting the pursuers to stupidly follow me again. But as I waited, nobody walked past or into the alley. They were clearly onto me, so I turned invisible and put my back against the wall.

    Fairy, is your mother available? I need to ask her something.

    {''What is it?'' She said.}

    While watching those memories I noticed something really bizarre, but I didn''t pick up on it at the time because of everything that was going on. I continued, Viktor''s men never used any abilities or magic. Why is that? They were literally just regular soldiers who only knew how to enhance themselves. And they were pretty bad at that as well.

    I watched the alley and rooftops while waiting for Lunaria''s reply.

    {She said she found that odd too. Maybe Viktor doesn''t allow the men in his army to use their soul realms?}

    But that''s...

    {''A complete waste, right? He might not trust the Humans working under him. He has Xerath he can depend on now after all.''}

    .......

    Thinking back on it; if I, Simon, and Nera were able to overcome Ash and that Satyr, then Viktor would have had a real problem on his hands. And then there''s the fact that I had destroyed nearly all of Xelba while almost killing him as well. When you put that together with his ability to completely control the actions of his Xerath, I can see why he''d put most of his faith into them while hamstringing his Humanoid followers. I think it''s a horrible idea, but at least I understand why he''s doing it.

    {''That werewolf and the two men in power armor had abilities though. So he trusts some people!''}

    True. There must be a certain point where a person advances high enough that Viktor will allow them to learn abilities and spells.

    "Okay, okay, we give up Miss Reimia. You''re down there somewhere, right?"

    I looked up and saw Artorus peering down from a nearby building. Now that I knew it was an ally, I removed my veil and wall-jumped between the buildings until I reached the roof. Up above, it wasn''t just Artorus waiting for me though. There was another familiar face as well.

    "Hello, Cera. You look completely different, I almost didn''t recognize you."

    Cera smiled, but not your usual kind of smile, it was one filled with what looked like motherly affection, "Welcome back, Rei." She then walked over and hugged me, making the reunion doubly weird.

    "... Cera, from what I remember, I swear you hated me? I was surprised when you sent your son to defend me."

    Cera pulled back and looked at me with a sad expression, "Not anymore, dear. That changed over ten years ago. I um, I didn''t think about you for many years, until one day I was at one of Artorus''s birthday parties, and for some reason, I was thinking of you at that moment."

    I quirked an eyebrow at that and Cera giggled in response before continuing, "That night, I went into my soul realm and re-watched everything my mother had told me while also watching all of my past interactions with you. I felt horrible afterward... Aresa had told me about how you grew up, and now that I was a mother it was hitting me differently from when I was that proud idiot back in Viseux."

    As a mother? I''m not a mom so I don''t really get it... Maybe because I was alone as a kid for so long? I''d ask her but I don''t want to drag this conversation out right now.

    "Well, I''m glad you see me in a different light now, even if it is kind of confusing still. But I need you two to stop following me for now. I''m glad you''re trying to protect me, and even willing to put your own son at risk, but I have somewhere I need to go. If you two followed me, it''d be, um..."

    "The Phoenix Initiative, right?" Artorus asked.

    "Did Kai tell you?"

    "Nope. Lady Aresa did."

    "What...? Did she somehow anticipate what I was going to do after she left?"

    Cera giggled again, "You''re not as spontaneous as you think you are, Rei. Kellog aside, your impatience and willingness to put yourself in a bad situation was made clear to us while we were in Viseux. Even if I could turn invisible, I wouldn''t be anywhere near reckless enough to try and sneak into Rai''ga''s temple."

    Ahh, in hindsight that was a really bad idea. I''m lucky he spoke to me before I had even entered the temple.

    "Miss Reimia." I looked at Artorus before he continued, "We weren''t planning on following you over the bridge leading to the northern district. However, you should know that this is a really bad idea. Mother believes it''d be better if you allowed us to get you an audience with Hyun or one of the other Initiative''s leaders."

    "An audience? That''s no good. Your mother just called me impatient, but I''d say I''m very patient if the situation allows me to be. However, the Initiative''s people have already attacked me, and from what I hear, they''re the reason Aresa is no longer surrounded by nearly as many people as she should be. I want to leave and either find the main Xerath hive, or absorb as many powerful Xerath as I can before we find Rai''ga or have to deal with Viktor. This ''summit'' sounds like it''s meant to be a non-violent affair, but..."

    Yeah, there''s no way I''m going to let Viktor leave here peacefully. I''m sure Aresa and the others have their own plans, and I''d love to hear them when we have more time, but no matter what they are, I''m not letting Viktor leave here without trying to kill him yet again.

    "I know what you''re thinking, Rei. When we have more time we''ll discuss the summit, but for now, take this. It''s clear you''re not going to let us help you, which is also something Aresa had foresaw, so at least follow the instructions on this, please?" Cera said, handing me a folded-up piece of paper.

    I unfolded it and smiled when I saw what was drawn on the paper. It''s nice having allies like this...

    The paper had elaborate drawings on it that showed me how to enter the Initiative''s headquarters, and how to advance from there to Hyun''s office. Although, there were a lot of red question marks that were basically saying they weren''t sure how I was going to get past those parts of the building.

    "Kai wasn''t kidding. There are a lot of Dwarven runes in there..."

    Artorus nodded, "Like I said. This is a really bad idea."

    I stared at the paper, thinking about all the different ways I could try and get past the dozen or so choke points I''d have to sneak through, and while it was possible to overcome them, it was highly unlikely I''d make it to Hyun''s office undetected. And there was no point in doing this if I couldn''t take the man unaware. I needed time alone with him to interrogate him after all.

    "... What kind of audience are we talking about here? And do you know this ''Hyun''? Even if they did change their titles, he''s basically still a noble, and an influential one at that. I''m already assuming he''ll dodge any question I throw at him, so what''s the point?"

    "I don''t know what he''ll say, Rei. I''ve had to deal with the man many times. And in my experience, he''s been mostly straight forward." Cera said.

    "And this is a detailed sketch on how to get in from the basement while advancing up toward the top floor. Is there no way to just enter the building from a higher floor?"

    "No. The top half of the building is reinforced and even if you could get in through one of the windows, that''s where the strongest soul detection runes are." Artorus replied.

    I sighed and folded the paper back up before handing it back to Cera.

    "Let''s try the audience first. If it doesn''t work, I''ll come up with another plan."

    Both Cera and her son smiled brightly upon hearing that before jumping down into the alleyway below. I jumped down next and followed behind them as they led me toward the northern district.

    <hr>

    "And just how long are we expected to wait here?"

    "... Miss Reimia, it''s been ten minutes."

    "I know that! I''m not that impatient. I was only curious about how long it usually takes for you guys to get an audience. An hour? Three hours?"

    Cera looked up from the magazine she was reading, "With any of the other higher-ups, probably five hours. But with it being Hyun and the fact that he clearly wants to talk to you, I''d say an hour tops."

    That''s not so bad then.

    I looked around the waiting room, causing two of the staff to quickly look away from me. The room itself was annoyingly beautiful, but not in the way I would have found appealing. Crystal chandeliers, fabulous rugs, and art pieces. The whole room was dazzling. And the staff were wearing matching outfits. Both sexes were wearing red and black checked vests, with the only difference being what they had on below. Pants for the men, and puffy skirts for the women.

    One of the female staff kept looking over at me, and I stared right back at her. Cera noticed this and smirked at me, "She your type?"

    "She is, but it''s more about the fact that I recognize her... Oh! Now I remember where I saw her from. It took me a bit because she was naked in Rodger''s memories."

    Artorus''s face scrunched up, "Is that one of the men you killed in the alleyway? I heard about your ability to view the memories of others, and while it is amazing, it''s also rather creepy. I''m sorry to say that so bluntly, but my Father raised me to be honest."

    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    "Right? My friends back in Xelba said the same thing."

    Artorus was taken aback by my nonchalant response, but his surprise quickly turned into a smile as he realized I wasn''t offended in the least.

    "I''d love to see that memory..." Cera mumbled as she looked over at the woman with a weird look on her face.

    "Mother, please..." Artorus sighed and looked over at me, "She spends most of her days reading spicy love novels. Father has no problem with it and even finds it amusing, but this right here only bolsters the idea that she needs to find a new hobby. She should not be this interested in seeing the sexual encounters of others."

    Before Cera could respond the phone on the desk in the middle of the room rang. The man sitting at the desk picked it up and said something into it as he looked at us. Looks like it''s time. That really was fast.

    Not too long after that he put the phone down and walked over to us, "Apologies for the wait, Lady Cera. Lord Hyun will see you now." See? He still goes by ''Lord''. Just like all of these ''ex-nobles'' do I bet.

    The three of us stood up and followed the man past a set of large double doors and up yet another flight of stairs before finally stopping in front of a door with one guard in front of it. The guard scanned our group impassively, but when his eyes reached me he disgustedly looked me up and down. Xi was right, I probably should be wearing something over this. But soon I''ll have enough strength to comfortably battle in heavy armor, so I might as well just wait.

    After he was done scanning us, the guard opened the door and returned to his post. The man who led us here also motioned for us to enter before going back downstairs.

    Cera walked forward first, with Artorus and I following behind her. Hyun was standing up at his desk watching us enter with a smile on his face that looked surprisingly genuine, not that I was going to put much faith into that appraisal. He was a noble after all.

    Once we got close to the desk Hyun raised his arms out to his side and said, "Now this is a wonderful surprise... Master was certain that the girl would try and sneak into here and torture me for information. But instead, look at what happened! She entered peacefully and even allowed me to see one of my old friends again."

    He motioned for us to sit down in the chairs surrounding his desk. We obliged, but my eyes were going every which way, looking for some kind of threat. The man, Hyun, had so easily admitted he had a ''master'', and the master was obviously Rai''ga. So the idea that he allowed us in here just to chat wasn''t an idea I was willing to entertain.

    Hyun looked at me and chuckled, "Looking a bit too perturbed there, ''Reimia.'' But it''s understandable. To you, this is unknown enemy territory. I''m sure it''ll fall on deaf ears at this point, but allow me to try and dissuade you of your fears. I did have some very dangerous plans for you if you came in here ninja style, but if you''re going to come here peacefully to chat, should I not do the same?"

    "Rei." Cera said, causing me to look over at her, "Hyun is one of the people who made our integration into Telebron much safer. We had nothing except Alicia''s parents to assist us when we arrived here, and to put it bluntly, they were broke back then. But fortunately for us, Hyun gave us a home and jobs before Lunaria found Aresa and turned her into a saint."

    "You couldn''t have told me this before we met him?"

    "I thought you already knew..." Artorus said before looking at his mother.

    Cera saw that and shrugged, "You know now. What''s the difference?"

    ... Okay, fine.

    "Hyun, I''ll just ask it straight out. Is your master Rai''ga?"

    Hyun nodded, "He is, and he''s greatly amused right now, to say the least."

    Cera narrowed her eyes, "Hyun, you..."

    "Come on now, Cera. Lunaria''s ''plan'' was getting us nowhere. Look at the damned map! We lost how many provinces to Viktor now?"

    "And your new plan is to rely on Rai''ga instead?" I looked over at Cera, "You would know more about him than I do. Be honest, Cera. How much did you trust Rai''ga back in Viseux?"

    "I think my feelings toward Rai''ga should have been pretty obvious when I helped all of you try to overthrow him after we came back from Kellog. But if I must spell it out, I never trusted that monster. Over half of his followers didn''t trust him either. I ran in those circles. Even the most influential families in Viseux were suspicious of him, but they couldn''t bring themselves to support Aresa when all they saw was a naive Eldritch Lord who had lost her creator."

    Hyun smiled and nodded, "Indeed. He''s very suspicious, isn''t he?"

    "......"

    The three of us stared at him. A few seconds later Hyun laughed and leaned back into his chair. But once he was done laughing, instead of talking, he was fiddling with his fingers while looking at a photo on his desk. At my angle I could barely see it. It was Hyun, a woman, and two children. None of us spoke up. We sat there in silence, waiting for him to continue, and eventually he did just that.

    "... This can''t go on, Cera. I understand that Lady Aresa is your friend, and even I find the girl to be quite fascinating. Under normal circumstances, I could see myself following her on her journey to becoming the one true owner of Termia, and eventually Aetheria itself. She''s not someone I would hurt if I had a choice in the matter. But she put her faith in that worthless Fairy, and look at where it''s got us? I already know what is going to happen at the summit. The attitudes of the remaining provinces around us couldn''t possibly be more obvious."

    "And with that said, I''ll ask again. You''ve decided to put your faith in Rai''ga instead?"

    "Begrudgingly, I have. Once he has control of the wellspring he''ll have more than enough power to obliterate that Elven freak."

    Cera sighed, "Hyun, you know that''s not a connection Rai''ga can make overnight. Aresa is the type of Eldritch that was, as far as she''s concerned, created solely to control the wellspring, and it''s taking her years upon years to expand her control of Termia. Even Shiva would need a few years to catch up to what Aresa has accomplished so far."

    "Yeah... Yeah, I know." Hyun said, looking over at the photograph again, "That''s why he needs Aresa."

    "What?" Artorus and I said.

    "He''s not going to change what she''s currently doing. Instead, he''s going to take control of her, and filter the wellspring connection through her into him."

    "In other words; She''ll do all of the work, and he''ll reap the benefits. Is this what he had planned in Viseux as well?"

    Hyun went silent, but his expression was changing a little here and there, suggesting that Rai''ga was talking to him.

    He eventually said, "Apparently that was his plan. But Shiva''s control over her chateau was extremely powerful while also being directly on top of the wellspring, so the only thing he could do was persuade Aresa to willingly enter the pact. But as you all know, she was not interested in helping him or handing Viseux over to him. Master thought he had plenty of time to win her over, but again, as you all know, Viktor made sure that never happened. So master was left with no choice but to give up. After the broodling was taken care of, he absorbed as much as he could, and fled to another moon."

    "Another moon? He didn''t come here to Aetheria?" Cera asked.

    Another twenty-second pause ensued before Hyun responded, "No. He was building a society somewhere else with the intention of taking that moon''s wellspring from its current occupants, but a band of travelers from Termia appeared and that''s when he heard about a small girl with blue and gold horns being praised as a Goddess in the biggest city on Aetheria. That''s when he remembered what his spies had told him back in Viseux about one of Lady Aresa''s new companions. About how she was from a place called ''Termia''. And, well... Here we are."

    "So he abandoned that moon and decided to try and make use of Aresa again? All so he could speed up his connection to the wellspring?"

    "No." Hyun shook his head, "That was only part of it, but it also played a large role in solidifying his decision to come here. What he was most interested in, was ending the Xel''nethra. He wanted to get revenge on those ''worthless cultists'' who had ruined his plans while corrupting his moon. I may find him wholly suspicious, but I do believe him when he says he loved Urza."

    Artorus leaned his head down, rubbing his temple with his fingers, "But even if I believed his assertions that he wants to destroy Viktor''s nation. At the end of the day, controlling the wellspring is only an advantage. A very powerful advantage, but nothing that would guarantee his victory."

    "Wait..." I thought back to that ray of light from the sky that almost obliterated me. "What was that attack he used against me? The one from the sky?"

    Hyun laughed and smacked the desk, "Well look at you! You already figured out how he plans on ending that vile nation."

    "What??" Cera looked back and forth between me and Hyun, "Can someone please explain? I don''t remember Rai''ga having any attacks that came down from the sky."

    Hyun put his palm up, telling Cera to wait for a moment before he responded to her, "Master said that he had created the spell after absorbing the templars back in Viseux. Their energy had sparked something inside of him which allowed him to create a powerful light-based spell that he can fire from very far away."

    After he finished speaking I had bolted out of my chair, but fortunately, I stopped myself just before I jumped over the table. Hyun looked at me wide-eyed as I returned to my chair.

    "Thank you... For restraining yourself..." Hyun said before openly exhaling in relief. But I wasn''t buying it, because I saw what lit up just before I reached his desk. Runes on both sides of the walls that Viktor had etched into his office and home for emergencies.

    {R-Rei, be careful! Mother says you were almost trapped!}

    I know... I''ve seen those runes before, and was even trapped in them once long ago. I was used as a test to see how well the runes worked.

    Even I would have struggled to break out of the prison those runes created. I don''t know what element is transcribed into those runes, but regardless of which one Hyun used, I would have been trapped in a magical sphere for god knows how long.

    "May I ask which part had outraged you to that degree?" Hyun asked.

    "... The templars. Markus said he knew Rai''ga was responsible, and while it made sense, I held off judgment until I knew for certain. But to actually hear that Rai''ga had so casually absorbed Arkaios'' men and turned their souls into a new spell has only reinforced my opinion that he is not to be trusted."

    Those men purposely branded themselves, giving up their lives to diligently serve their Lord for the purposes of rooting out evil and corruption anywhere Arkaios was willing to send them. To hear that those men, who were far better and more righteous than most humans could ever hope to be, were so casually eaten, was beyond infuriating to hear. I... I already wanted to kill Rai''ga, and yet he just keeps giving me reason after reason to---Oh, that''s right. The fucker still hasn''t told me about Seifer.

    "And to add to that. Tell me about Niro. The man I knew as ''Seifer''."

    Hyun raised an eyebrow at that, "So that was his real name? I don''t know what your past was with him, but for us, he was just some psychopath that Rai''ga sent to guard me and some of the other executives here at the Initiative. Although his existence did add to the list of reasons I was wary of Master." Hyun continued a moment later, "And Master says he was impressed that you were able to kill him. He thought he had a good gauge of your strength and was certain that Niro could beat you with ease. And admittedly, I was also very surprised that you were victorious in your battle against him."

    His abilities were amazing, no doubt about that. He must have been training in his soul realm the whole time he was here waiting for me. He had no ice abilities or spells back in Kellog after all, nor did I see any in Xethra. So those were all abilities he acquired during his time here in Termia.

    I saw the weird look on Cera''s face and said to her, "Ask Aresa about it later. This isn''t the time or place for me to rehash everything that fucker did."

    "... I''d like to confirm something, to make sure I''m understanding this," Artorus said. Hyun motioned for him to continue, "Rai''ga is planning on using Aresa and her current control of the wellspring to increase his strength enough to bombard Viktor''s cities from the sky? Is this correct?"

    Hyun smiled and nodded, "That''s the plan. And while I''ve said it a dozen times, I do find some parts of him suspicious, but I also do believe him when he says he wants to destroy the Xel''nethra. And I''ve seen his bombardment spell, so I know he has the power to do it. Unlike a certain Fairy who is currently in a political struggle with an ass who calls himself the ''Supreme Leader''. What a fucking waste of space those two are. Lord Belfos is the only other being here that I''d follow, but he might as well be a machine from the Elven lands. All he does is mindlessly hunt any enemies who enter Termia''s borders. But that in itself, is why so many people love him, including me."

    "Wait, hang on," I said, making Hyun look at me. "You knew I was strong enough to kill Seifer, and yet you still sent those thugs after me? They had some good abilities, but the chances of them beating me were next to zero."

    "They were supposed to tell you who I was and that I was a follower of Rai''ga. I thought that''d be enough to pique your interest so you''d actually meet with me. I only told them to use George''s ability if you fled. According to Master, you would have survived it."

    "Was George the portly middle-aged guy?"

    Hyun sighed, "Yes... And while I could care less about Rodger, I really wish you hadn''t killed George or the two Favri''s, but what''s done is done."

    Rodger said none of the things he just said, and while I still wouldn''t have met with Hyun without consulting the others, it might have stopped me from killing them. At the time they were purely unknowns tracking me, which made them all the more dangerous in my eyes. Not that I''m dissatisfied with the results. I got a few good abilities from George and the couple, plus Rodger''s memories.

    "Well?" Hyun said before continuing, "What are you planning on doing now that you know this? Master is nearly certain you''ll still oppose him, as you don''t trust him to treat Lady Aresa well."

    "And he''s completely correct in his assessment. At this point, I only have one last thing to ask you, Hyun." I stood up and looked down at him, "Where is Rai''ga right now?"

 Chapter 74 - Unnerving Encounter

    ~Hyun''s POV~

    I tapped my finger against the desk repeatedly. Everything had been going smoothly until a few weeks ago, but ever since then problems have continued to pile up. And it all stemmed from a single massive issue that I currently had no means of fixing.

    A few moments later Rai''ga''s connection closed, informing me that he had returned to his slumber.

    I reached out and touched my family photo, pouring a little mana into it when my finger connected. However, no matter how much I waited, he didn''t respond to me.

    Normally I''d begin to wonder if they were purposely ignoring me, but I know that isn''t the case here. The Crotians may be warmongers, but they don''t go back on their word, nor do they shun their allies. So something must have happened underground... But what? There''s nothing down there in the hidden subset I showed them and the Nei''lah God is with them, so what possible reason could they have for not contacting me? It''s difficult to penetrate the underground with mana or ether, so with them being underground and Master being extremely far away from Telebron, he''s unable to keep his connection to the Nei''lah God active. It''s my job to keep tabs on the Crotians to make sure they''re ready, but I can''t fucking do that if they don''t respond to me.

    I sighed and pushed the receptionist''s button on my office phone. Barely two seconds passed before she answered me.

    "Sir?" The receptionist said.

    "Who gave Squad Seven their last orders?"

    After a brief delay the receptionist said, "That would be you, sir. Thirty-two days ago you had them search dock seven''s warehouse b-three for olera."

    I slammed my fist down on the table, "Squad seven is the team that was just annihilated you fool! There is eye testimony that they were together before they were killed by that white haired freak. You''re telling me they decided ALL ON THEIR OWN to drag her back to the Initiative?"

    "O-One moment please!"

    As outraged as I was, I could feel a sickness creeping up my spine. I can already tell that she''s not going to find anything. Which means someone gave that order and then wiped the records. But the records are designed in a way that tampering with them is next to impossible...

    A minute later the receptionist told me exactly what I had feared. There were no records pertaining to orders for squad seven; Rodger''s squad. Wait... The phone. They would have received their orders the same way they always do.

    "I''m going out for a bit. Have an escort ready for me downstairs."

    "Yes sir!" The receptionist said before I hung up.

    All I can do is pray that they weren''t smart enough to wipe the phone records too. Normally I''d ignore something like this or have one of my confidants look into it, but the timing on this is bothering me. It''s possible that Master had one of the others do this without informing me, but what would the point of that be? It''s a ludicrous thought with no merit, so it can''t be that. Which means it''s something else that is somehow even more illogical than anything I can come up with. I can''t for the life of me understand why someone would send a squad to forcibly drag that girl here, where I would have been waiting with a perplexed look on my face as they brought that white haired girl into my office.

    ... Unless.

    I stopped as I reached the door to my office.

    What if their was no order? It''s possible they were planning on bringing her somewhere else... The squads have been quite loyal up to this point, but at the end of the day everyone has a price.

    I shook my head and sighed again before opening the door.

    Even if that ends up being true, I still need to check the records. That way I''ll know whether someone contacted them through our usual means.

    <hr>

    "Now do you see? There''s far too many of us here." Kai said.

    "I see way more than just your people. What the hell is this? Why is the western district so massive? It''s at least four times bigger than the other three districts combined."

    Kai and I were standing on top of a wall that loomed high above the western district. The north, east, and south were all on the same level, but the western district was over three hundred yards below them. From where I was standing, I could see a single steep incline on the left and right side that went down into the western district from the north and south. The south side incline had vehicles driving through it but I could only see foot traffic going back and forth on the northern side.

    "Now that I think about it. I''ve never seen any vehicles heading north or east, and their ''roads'' are much smaller than the ones we walked on to get here. Can you only get to the other districts by foot?"

    Kai nodded, "Yes. Everyone who stays in Telebron needs to park their vehicles inside those three multi-level buildings right there." Kai pointed at three large buildings near the road. "From there, you''ll need to travel by foot. And to your first point, the western district is the main residential area. They''ve continued to build upon it even when they didn''t need the extra homes. Over seventy percent of the homes were empty and waiting for occupants, but as you can now see, they''re almost entirely occupied now."

    "Kai, just how bad was your Xerath problem? I don''t mean to be harsh here, but old people and children aside, why didn''t you train these people to fight instead of running away?"

    "We tried that! There was just no time damnit... We went from holding them off while slowly expanding our area of control to being overrun at a speed that was impossible to deal with. They must have been holding their forces back until they were ready to swarm us. And as you can see, it obviously worked..."

    "Did you not know that would happen? Not all Xerathian Gods are intelligent like that, but some definitely are. I even knew one who never invaded or battled any other God until the very end. He''d focus entirely on destroying any food production his enemies had while also cutting off any extra supplies from reaching them. Pure guerrilla warfare until the city or nation was too weak to fight back. And I unfortunately saw first hand what happened to the places that were unable to fight back."

    I continued, "I was invisible on the wall in the town square, watching the God''s spawn and his followers carry him on a seat made of that sinew they create to the center of the square. After they set him down, his people rounded up citizens who were hiding in their homes and drag them back to the square, where they''d be fed to the God, one by one. Crunching, slurping, and screams... That''s all I could hear for hours before I finally couldn''t take it anymore and left."

    "A horrifying story... But sadly, not a story that was too far off from the fate most of my kin had to endure." Kai returned his gaze to the western district, "And we knew it was a possibility. The Lizardmen had warned us. But even if we knew, there just wasn''t a way to prepare for it. If the Demons weren''t constantly raiding us, then maybe, but what-ifs don''t matter at this point. There''s only one thing that matters now. I need to get these people to leave for Gaia in the next couple of months."

    "How exactly are you going to convince them to leave the safety of a city such as this one? And not just for any ordinary destination. You want them to traverse over Mother. There''s a reason nobody ever takes the portals that lead to her."

    "I honestly don''t know... The only thing I do know, is that we can''t stay here on Aetheria. There would be no point to leaving Termia and trying to rebuild on Aetheria when the Xel''nethra are still out there."

    Even if it is in desperation, I do understand why he''s planning on going through with his plans. But weren''t they talking about repaying Aresa for all of her help in the limo?

    "There''s one thing sticking out to me though. I get trying to save your people, but you''ll be leaving Aresa when Viktor is still out there. Can''t someone else lead your people?"

    Kai looked at me with confusion for a moment, but then his eyes widened a little as he realized something, "I forgot that Aresa hasn''t told you yet. Well, she hasn''t told us siblings yet either, but she will be in a few days here. She''s been formulating a plan with Lady Cera and Lady Euphemia. Yes, that woman who is engaged to the Supreme Leader. As you know, we do not like that man, so Xi and I are also extremely wary of Lady Euphemia as a result. But with that said, we do have faith in this nation''s ''Goddess'', so I''m making an effort to keep an open mind until I hear their plan."

    "You think their plan is something you can assist with before leaving? Assuming you can even convince your people to leave."

    "It must be. Otherwise, Lady Aresa would have said something by now." Kai said.

    "Then it''s pretty obvious what their plan is."

    "... You think so too? It can only be one thing if their plan is supposed to be put into action in the next month."

    "No need to go into the details yet, but just as a rough estimate, what are the odds they''ll succeed in killing Viktor while he''s here for the summit?"

    Kai chuckled, "As expected, we were both thinking the same thing. And my estimate isn''t good. It''s not like Viktor shows up here all alone and stupidly eats from public vendors that we could easily poison. He brings several airships that stay high in the air the entire time he''s here, including his flagship. And then there are all of his guards."

    Kai continued, "Worst of all however, is that he also remains inside his airship all throughout the summit. So the only chance to attack him would need to be during the summit meeting, or the few minutes it takes him to walk to the meeting from wherever he warps down to. Although, there is one last option. We could blow up his airship while he''s on it but Lady Aresa said he was bragging about how he massively upgraded the defenses on his flagship after seeing how easily one of his airships was destroyed in the past. And after watching your memories, I now know he was referring to the Tengu blasting it out of the sky."

    "Aresa and the others must have some way of preventing him from warping then. Otherwise, any plan they come up with is going to require them to kill him before he can defend himself. Which is damn near impossible."

    I turned around as a pair of footsteps approached the two of us. It was Artorus and his mother. When we met up with Kai earlier they said they had to make a call real quick and quickly headed toward the nearest phone booth.

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    "Who''d you call? Aresa?"

    Cera smiled, "Euphie. We told her about your plans to leave today until the summit is upon us, because only she and Aresa would know whether to ask for your help now, or wait until you come back."

    "Kai should know about it too, yes?" Artorus said as he glanced at Kai.

    "I believe I know what you''re referring to, and we''ve already mentioned it in passing to Rei on the drive to Telebron."

    "In the limo, right? Xi said something about needing my help since I can turn invisible."

    Artorus nodded, "That is correct! You see, there''s a specific person in the Initiative we''d like you to look into. It''s a lady by the name of ''Victoria''."

    "And what did she do that would require me to look into her?"

    "We just..." Cera trailed off, pinching the brim of her nose and sighing. A few moments later she continued, "We really just need you to find out what''s wrong with her, and to see if she has anything planned that we should be worried about."

    "... Can you be a little more specific? This is the kind of request I''d get in Xelba that would take anywhere from a few days to several weeks to investigate. I''m leaving today, so whatever it is she said or did that has you spooked, lay it all out for me."

    Artorus scratched his head and looked at Cera. She was looking right back at him with a perplexed look on her face. Seeing that neither were of them were sure of how to answer me, Kai spoke up in their place.

    "Forgive them, Rei. As it is now we only have unsubstantiated claims and weird reports regarding the girl. Also, while we were watching your memories of Seifer, it reminded me of something I had read in one of the dozens of reports we receive every day. One of Aresa''s men said that Victoria was seen with Niro a few years back. I had completely forgotten about it until I saw that memory of yours."

    "It''s not just that." We all looked at Cera, "Aresa has come into contact with her many times over the years, and according to Aresa, Victoria changed at some point, but nobody else seems to have noticed. She''s always been weird after all, so if she does or says anything that would normally be seen as bizarre, everyone just shakes their head and forgets about it two seconds later."

    "This is great and all, but I''m going to ask one last time, what''s the substantial part of her behavior that is worrying you so much?"

    "That''s the thing, Miss Reimia. It''s something that only Lady Aresa can feel from Victoria. She says when Victoria changed, she also began to feel something else from her. It''s still her soul but it''s corrupted and has an aura about it that she doesn''t recognize."

    "Rai''ga corruption probably. If she''s hanging around Seifer and is in the Initiative, then it''s nearly guaranteed she''s a follower of his."

    Kai shook his head, "No, it''s not Rai''ga. And do you truly believe that Aresa wouldn''t recognize Rai''ga''s ether?"

    "I do. I''ve only seen it a few times, but a couple of the Eldritch I met in the past were able to alter their ether signature. I was tracking one for weeks but no matter what I did I couldn''t find its home, until I finally realized that the lava hound''s lair I had been ignoring, was in fact not a lava hound lair."

    "We can be fooled, no doubt about that. But Aresa is not like us. Her level of perception is far stronger than any Lord I''ve ever met. She even told us one time that she could sense you through your invisibility." Kai said.

    ... True. Seeing through my veil is no easy feat, so she should be able to tell whether Rai''ga is altering his ether.

    "You''ve still not explained much of anything, like why nobody else can do this or why the fairies can''t just slip in through a crack somewhere. But I do have faith in Aresa, so at the very least it couldn''t hurt to poke around Victoria''s home before I leave. I''ll just have Aresa personally answer those questions when I meet up with her afterward."

    A little breaking and entering won''t delay me much. I''ve done that more than anything else in my life after all.

    {We can''t enter most of the homes in Termia without accompanying someone else like this. They have wards built in to prevent us from spying on them. People love mother in Termia now, but things were different when they thought we were in their homes watching them.}

    "That''s for the best. We don''t fully understand it either, but Aresa is adamant that she wants you to look into the girl, and one other issue but that can wait until you come back. You want to head to Victoria''s home now?" Artorus asked.

    "The sooner the better. Also, are the Xerath a problem west or southwest of here as well? I''d rather stay away from the east side since Rai''ga might try to blast me from the sky again or send more people after me."

    "There are plenty of Xerath on that side as well, but nowhere near as much as the southeastern side. Our border''s end about fifty miles to the west, and the hives over there have been attacking them instead of us, so you''d be doing them a favor." Artorus replied.

    Kai and I stepped down from the walls to follow Cera and Artorus as they began to walk toward the east.

    By the way. Did you notice anything strange during the meeting with Hyun? Anything at all. Doesn''t matter how small it may seem, just say it.

    {Umm...}

    As Luna pondered the question, we advanced toward the eastern district.

    "She lives near Aresa?"

    "Fortunately. It''s allowed us to keep tabs on her, but past that there''s not much else we can do." Kai replied.

    {The mirror...}

    What? A mirror?

    {In the hallway. Outside his office there was a mirror that had a lot of mana residue on it. Like someone uses it for spells or something...}

    "Does Hyun use spells or abilities that require mirrors?"

    Kai quirked an eyebrow, "What made you ask that out of the blue?"

    "The fairy?" Cera continued after I nodded, "No, Hyun doesn''t. But I''ve heard that Victoria does."

    "Do you know what she does with them? Luna, the fairy, says that the mirror outside of Hyun''s office is covered in mana residue as if it''s been used over and over."

    "I''m sorry, Rei. We don''t." Cera said.

    From there we continued walking in silence until we reached my home.

    "Your summon is fishing...?" Kai said as we walked over the bridge.

    "It surprised me at first too, but he''s giving everything he catches to the locals. They were scared of him at first apparently, but now they''ve warmed up to him. Although I assume they''re still wary of the skeletal Crotian with red eyes and heavy black armor, as anyone should be."

    As we entered the eastern district a white aura appeared over one of the homes in the distance.

    {It''s there.}

    "This is close enough you three. The fairy just pointed Victoria''s home out to me."

    Everyone stopped and looked at me.

    "I''ll have the limo ready to go for when you''re finished. Lady Aresa is still using it and I assume it''ll take you a while, so I''ll have it parked near the bridge in two to three hours, okay?" Kai said.

    "On the ball as usual. And are you still planning on looking for Arkaios'' temples today? I''d also like you to look for my uncle and two other people while you''re at it."

    "You mentioned your uncle before, but not anyone else. Although, after watching your memories, I already know who you''re referring to. It''s just, well... There isn''t a whole lot to go on when it comes to Simon and Nera, your friends from Xelba. If they registered here under those exact names then we''ll find them. But otherwise..."

    "I know it''s a long shot, and if Simon didn''t pledge himself to an Eldritch then he''s probably already died of old age, or he''ll be really close to it at this point. But even with that said, please try anyway. I really would love to see them again."

    Kai smiled, "Don''t worry, Rei. If they were here, or are still here, I''ll find them."

    Odds are they left for Gaia though. That was always our plan, and when I never showed up on Aetheria, they would have assumed I died and made their way to Gaia. Which means the chances of me finding them is close to zero percent. But even so, despite all the horrible shit I''ve been through, I still want to hold out hope that they are in Gaia right now. Living out the dream we had always hoped for.

    I said my goodbyes to the others and began advancing toward Victoria''s home. It was one of many identical-looking mansions lined up on either side of the street. It had a large fence around it just like the others, which is more for the aesthetics than it is for actual defense against robbers or murderers. Unless there are runes engraved onto them, which there very well might be, but if there is, then so be it. I just need to make sure I don''t get trapped or disabled in some way.

    I slowed down as I came within two hundred feet of the home. There were people out and about but it wasn''t busy by any means, which meant I just needed to coast along until nobody was looking in my direction.

    As I neared the home the last person who had eyes on me passed by me on the other side of the street. I immediately turned invisible and jumped over the fence. No runes, good start. But the door and windows are the real test...

    I ran up to the home and jumped up to the third floor, grabbing onto the ledge outside of a window. I then opened the window and pulled myself inside, rolling onto the carpet as I landed, waiting for the inevitable alarm or some other form of defense to sprout up, but as the seconds passed by, nothing happened.

    Turning around, I was beyond confused as I saw that there were in fact multiple Dwarven runes carved into the window frame, but shockingly, they were completely devoid of mana. The hell? She doesn''t maintain her runes...? Is she truly not worried about anyone breaking into her home?

    Looking around the room, I found that I was in a bedroom, and most likely the master bedroom. There was a huge bed on the left side with drapes covering it and all sorts of other aesthetics that I had only seen in noble homes up to this point. And there was also a large mirror in the room on the right side next to a desk.

    Luna, how about that mirror?

    {It''s worse. Far worse. The residue on that mirror is so strong it''s grossing me out... It feels weird. Is this what Aresa meant by ''strange aura''?}

    I don''t know. I can''t feel anything from it.

    I went to riffle through her desk drawers and stopped short when I noticed that it was covered in dust. Apparently she doesn''t use this desk, but I still need to check it.

    And as expected, everything inside the desk was three or more years old. I looked under the bed next, but everything down there was covered in dust as well. Up to this point I still wasn''t all that bothered by the state of the room, but as I moved around the mansion, looking through all of the rooms one by one in the hopes of finding something that would give weight to the worry my friends expressed toward the lady living here, I became more and more perplexed.

    Luna, is your mother watching this?

    {Yes.}

    Then I need to ask her. Does Victoria really live here?

    {She says ''She does. We have witnessed her return to this home every day for many years now. Which is why I''m also confused by the state of the home itself. And where are all of her servants?''}

    That part surprised me as well. There aren''t any servants, and the whole place is covered in dust as if nobody has been here in ages. Everything else aside, how is the bathroom, kitchen, and bed covered in dust? At the very least she''d need the kitchen to survive. The only place where the dust is disturbed is the front door and the path leading toward the main bedroom.

    I doubled back, looking through all of the rooms one by one, hoping to find something that I might have missed. I was looking through the bathroom again when I heard something downstairs. I quickly exited the bathroom and closed the door before heading for the main hall. Once I arrived, I saw a relatively small girl climbing the steps. Knowing where she was heading, I turned around and returned the main bedroom, closing the door behind me just as she entered the hallway.

    There was a small gap between a large dresser and the wall on the right side(with the drawer and mirror from earlier being right next to it on the same side). I crouched low in the small gap and waited for her to enter the room. Not long after that, she opened the door and immediately walked up to the mirror. I lurched forward a little so I could see her past the dresser, and just as I looked at her she walked through the mirror and disappeared.

    ... Well, that explains why this place is covered in dust. She doesn''t actually live here.

    Ten seconds later Luna said, {Mother says you can leave now. There''s obviously no point in staying here or looking for evidence. And don''t touch that mirror.}

    I know. If she''s using it as a portal then odds are she''d notice any outside mana interacting with one of her gateways. Even so, I''m going to wait here for a few hours and see if she comes back out.

    {Why?}

    I just need some peace and quiet to prepare myself for the battles to come. I was going to do it in the limo, but since I won''t be meeting Kai for a few hours anyway, I might as well do it here. It''s really quiet in this abandoned home after all. And there''s still a slight chance she might return.

    Instead of crouching, I sat down in the corner this time and cleared my mind. I meditated like that for over an hour when suddenly I heard someone walking through the room. Opening my eyes I saw Victoria again, which despite what I had said to Luna, it wasn''t something I had expected to happen. She walked straight up to the chair in the middle of the room and sat down.

    I watched her, waiting to see what she was going to do, but no matter how much time passed, she literally did nothing. She just sat there, and over time I realized she wasn''t even blinking. She stared forward, unblinking, unmoving, for minutes upon minutes. I was becoming more and more weirded out as the minutes dragged on, and it reached a breaking point when I saw a fly crawl over her left eye. Her response? Nothing. She remained still, not blinking or budging even a little.

    What is going on...? How could she not react to that?!

    {R-Rei, there''s something weird about her...}

    No shit genius.

    {No! I mean her aura! I can feel something dark emerging. Mother says you should leave right now.}

    I can''t sense anything like that, but I don''t doubt that she''s telling the truth. But how do I get out of here? The door is soundless, which would make it the obvious choice if she wasn''t staring right at the damned thing. And the window made a loud creaking sound when I opened it earlier, so... Ahh fuck it, I''ll just open it real quick and flee. It''s not like she can see me---

    Just then, someone else walked into the room through the mirror. And as if it wasn''t weird enough up to this point, Victoria''s head turned around one hundred and eighty degrees to look at the new arrival. At no point did I hear a snap as her head completely turned around.

    ... Okay. Now that I would love for someone to explain to me.

 Chapter 75 - Victoria

    "?? ??r???w? w???a???y? o??? ??a???t???n???." The newcomer said.

    I could feel something gnawing at my head as he spoke, and surprisingly, I actually understood what was being said this time. An Abyssal creature in human form...? Then that means Victoria is one too.

    Feeling like I learned more than enough, I headed for the window as Victoria responded to the newcomer. Unfortunately, I couldn''t understand a word she was saying.

    I was reaching for the window when something called out to me. A longing I couldn''t shake off. I could feel that the place I truly belonged was through that mirror. At first I thought it was just the Abyssal part of me connecting with the realm beyond the mirror, but no, it was much deeper than that. The very foundation of my core was resonating with the higher being it served under.

    Whether it was a good idea or a bad idea didn''t even enter my conscious. I stood up and walked through the mirror without a single ounce of hesitation. Immediately I found myself in an area that was almost blindingly yellow. Looking around, I could see why. There were fires burning everywhere in the ruined city around me. But despite the fact that I had only given them a cursory glance, I could tell that these fires weren''t actually burning anything. The city had long since been destroyed, and yet the fires continued.

    About a half mile away from where I was there were six monstrosities slumbering. While they normally would have caught my interest and been highly scrutinized by me, I was more focused on the pull I was feeling from another mirror. As a result, I only glanced at them long enough to notice just how unbelievably large they were. If they stood up, even their toes would be elevated above the top of my head.

    Victoria, or whatever the hell she was, had setup dozens of mirrors in this burning hell. Unlike the one in her room, these ones I could see the scenery beyond them so I knew what I was jumping into. But regardless of whether the scenery looked inviting or not, I walked right into the one calling out to me and found myself on a moon completely devoid of an atmosphere. All I could see was a rocky environment and another moon shining in the distance that was brightening up the world around me. Not by much, but more than enough to see everything around me.

    Even without it calling out to me, I would have known where I was supposed to be going. There was a tall black tower in the valley in front of me. It clearly stood out inside this lifeless world.

    I began to run toward the tower and found myself almost stumbling onto the ground. Never thought I''d be in a low gravity environment before... This is wild.

    I was tempted to just jump into the valley, but I wasn''t quite sure how gravity worked in environments like these. Would I float helplessly into space if I jumped too high? I didn''t want to find out. If I ended up stuck in space my core would force me into hibernation, which means I''d be trapped in my soul realm for god knows how many centuries until I landed on a planet or burned up in a sun.

    Instead of running, I kicked myself forward over and over, as if I was skipping toward the tower. I was honestly shocked at how much fun it was. And since it was so entertaining, the time it took for me to reach the tower passed in the blink of an eye. The front gates were closed, but the second I approached them I felt my something ping my core, and soon after that the gates opened up, allowing me entry.

    Again, not a single ounce of hesitation rested inside my soul as I walked into the citadel. The reason it felt like ''home'' for me was twofold it seems. Whatever was waiting for me at the top was reason number one. And the second reason was what the citadel was made of. It was the same hardened substance that Petey was currently wearing, except this was on a level that I wasn''t sure I could reproduce at this point. Making heavy armor out of my blood is one thing, but an entire structure...

    As I walked up the large winding staircase I felt a burning desire in my core to build a structure just like this one. I ran my hands alone the walls as I walked, scrutinizing every single detail, pouring my mana into the structure and feeling it respond in kind, giving me an idea of just how much skill would be required to build this citadel myself.

    I don''t know how long it took, but eventually I reached the top floor, and it was quite different from all of the rooms I had passed by. The other rooms ranged from normal looking rooms that humans would live or relax in which was extremely odd to me considering where we were, and other rooms that were hard to discern at a mere glance. The top room however, was really basic in design, and yet I loved it. It was shaped like a long rectangle, with one part of the wall being completely absent. It almost looked like a room designed for ships to land in.

    In the back of the room was a tall creature draped in black, resting on top of a seat made from its own blood. I slowly walked up to it, allowing myself to take in everything around me. Despite the beauty of this scene, of finally finding her, there was a dread creeping up inside of me, because I already knew what I was going to find thanks to my core connecting to the creature.

    I finally reached the robed abomination. Without pause, I placed my hand upon its calf, and immediately I knew I was right. The monster that had created me was dead, and had been dead for a very long time. The reason all of the Abyssal creatures were so surprised to see ''darkness'' was made evident to me in this moment. It''s because I shouldn''t exist. The monster itself had disappeared from history ages ago, which meant two things. Any questions related to me would need to be answered by other Abyssal creatures. And the second part, while it wasn''t all that surprising given what I was, it was still making me feel a sadness that I couldn''t fully comprehend. It was the simple yet sad fact that I was the last of my kind.

    <hr>

    I rested with my back against my ''Mother''s'' legs for a while, probing her and the building underneath me with my core. Even if she had died ages ago, I could still glean bits of information from her remnants. It was only small pieces of memories and concepts that I had to piece together myself, which meant most of what I got from her was without context and useless, but I was able to understand how she created such a beautiful structure from our blood. Unfortunately, I wasn''t able to figure out why she was on this lifeless moon or why she built her own tomb here.

    From my point of view I loved this place and would happily make this my home world as well, but that''s me. Why she did it will most likely always remain a mystery.

    And one other thing I picked up from her memories was... Odd. Several people had told me up to this point that the black and red halo didn''t mesh well with my overall theme, and on some level I agreed with them. But I found something in her memories that, well... Far from adding context, it only added more questions. There was a ten foot tall Lord from another God there. It closely resembled a black Human, and what really stood out about him was the black halo with a red rim above his head, and a set of wings behind him that had the same color scheme as the halo.

    None of the other Lords or skeletons in that memory, or any of her memories I was able to siphon from her, had wings or a halo. And I don''t remember any illustrations of wings in that museum book. But it''s not like I could read any of the text, so there could have been something written down related to the wings and I would''ve had no way of knowing. Viktor might know something by now. He''s been dealing with the Abyss for more than thirty years, so surely he''s invaded their realm by now. Not that I could ask him about it, nor would he answer me anyway.

    I stood up and walked to the exposed side of the room. Looking out over the expanse I was in awe. I really do love this place... It''s a shame I don''t know how to create portals. I could live here if I did, but since I don''t, this is going to be goodbye for me.

    I looked at the dead God one last time and bowed. Feeling a weird kind of melancholy, I began my descent down the citadel. It wasn''t long before I reached the base of the citadel. As I walked through the gates I realized something else. None of the memories my creator had of her summons had red eyes. But that Lord with the wings and halo, he had red eyes. I must be a mix of two different Abyss Gods. I didn''t see anything in the museum books about a God with halos and wings, but again, not everything had illustrations. In fact a large portion of the end of the book was nothing but text.

    I found the mirror and walked through it, finding myself in the yellow pit of fire from before. I was then walking toward the mirror leading to Victoria''s home when the landscape through another mirror caught my eye. It was reminiscent of where I was a moment ago, but this one looked vaguely familiar. As if I had seen it somewhere before. It would only take a moment and the feeling that I knew the landscape in the mirror bothered me, so I walked through it and found myself in yet another world without an atmosphere, or so I thought.

    I could feel my lungs fill up again, albeit at a much slower rate than they normally would. Back when I exited to my creator''s moon they had deflated and been crushed. It didn''t take long for my body to repair them after I re-entered that strange yellow fire realm, so they were ready for use by the time I stepped through the mirror behind me.

    The world looked barren just like the last one, except this one was filled with snow, and there was a large circular building below me and three towers next to it. They had some lights on inside of them, suggesting some level of technology. And that''s when it hit me, why all of this looked so familiar.

    The Elves and other delvers have never been able to make it west past a certain point on the Elven continent of Caedrus. You eventually reach a point where you begin to run into different types of machines. Far more powerful ones than the ones the Elves are used to dealing with. There is only one way to go that far west, and anyone can do it. You board the train that circles around the entire continent, and you never leave it. Or at the very least you need to stay very close to the train when it stops at random intervals. Wandering away from it is the same as allowing the machines to kill you.

    The train is named ''Leviathan'' because of how enormous it is, but nobody knows who built it. It''s been there on Caedrus and running loops around it as far back as anyone can remember. Nothing seems to damage it, and if it does need repairs, then something else must be repairing it, because it''s certainly not the Elves or machines repairing it.

    Anyway, the point is, that the machines don''t attack the train, because they know it''s pointless. But they also aren''t able to board it because the second they come within one hundred yards of the Leviathan it blasts them with weapons powerful enough to melt them down to nothing in less than a few seconds.

    That is the only way to reach the western side of Caedrus. But it takes two months for it to make a full lap around Caedrus, so nearly everyone uses it just to disembark at one of the outposts delvers stay in near the capital. However, one man had supposedly disembarked the train and made it back alive with photographs of what he found on the far western side of Caedrus; an area no man has ever been known to tread.

    The western side of Caedrus is part of the darklands, so logically it should be dark, but in Aetheria''s case that just means Mother and the Sun don''t reach those lands. And weirdly enough, the atmosphere is very thin there, but that''s all things anyone can figure out by analyzing the area around any abandoned stations that the train stops at on the western side of Caedrus.

    But the man''s photographs were from an area much further west than that, so the sky itself was pretty much non-existent. All you could see was another planet in the distance and several moons above you. And one other thing of course, the strange technological buildings that were in the man''s photographs.

    The area is charged with something that makes it hard to communicate with electronics, and it''s literally impossible for anything or anyone to fly past the middle of Caedrus because of all the anti-air weapons the machines possess, so even if someone wanted to do a suicide mission to the west and collect information for the Elves, there was just no way to make it happen. But somehow the man was able to send the photos he had taken far west of the Leviathan''s last disembark point. Nothing else was ever heard from him, but everyone knew what had happened since his last photo showed a machine running through the snow toward him. It was over a mile away at minimum, but he was done for no matter how you looked at it.

    Looking around, I noticed a slight shimmer surrounding me and the mirror. When I tried reaching my hand out I could feel it go through something translucent. This is the type of invisibility field I''ve seen monsters use in the past. So does this mean that the Abyss is keeping tabs on the machines...?

    I was dying to go down into the buildings below and see what was inside of them, but I managed to keep myself in check. Who better than me could unearth the secrets of the western side of Caedrus? Alas, that''s a journey I plan to take and earn the trust of the clans after I''m done with Telebron. Unless we really do kill Viktor during the summit, then I''m actually not sure of what I''ll do afterward. I really did mean it when I said I''d join Shana and Ishar in the afterlife, but now that Shana can be brought back, I guess I''d leave for Gaia with Kai''s people? If possible I''d love to visit Ishar''s family beforehand but I''ll need Alicia''s help with that.

    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    As painful as it was, I turned around and walked through the mirror. Back inside the superheated hellhole, I entered the mirror to my left that led to Victoria''s room. Once inside, I saw something quite disturbing. Victoria was on her knees crying as a blackened mass full of golden eyes sneered at her. It was coming out of her ears and hanging down in front of her face. The ''man'' I thought had entered earlier was audibly laughing, but his face was shaped like that of a harlequin mask.

    ...............

    I removed my aura and walked up to the harlequin. The blackened mass turned to look at me at the same time the ''man'' did. His head changed from a laughing harlequin to a new mask entirely, a man with thick lips and brows quirked in clear confusion.

    "??a???k???e???s??"

    I brought up my halo which made the man''s face turn into one of surprise moments before I punched him in his teeth, sending him through the bedroom wall. Victoria screamed as the blackened mass retreated into her skull. I grabbed onto her and jumped through the window, landing in the streets below.

    There were a few people nearby who ran away screaming as I landed, but I ignored them and ran as fast as I could toward the temple. The black mass had taken control of Victoria again and was attempting to remove itself from my grip, but it seems Victoria wasn''t much of a combatant, because the strength of its attacks were like mosquito bites against my enhancements.

    When we reached the temple there were already ten knights lined up waiting for me. Whether they were plants by the Initiative or not, I was impressed by how fast they had prepared to meet what they believed to be an incoming threat.

    "WAIT!!!" Xi yelled as she ran up to the men from behind. Behind her I could see Kai running out of the temple as well, "Rei! What is going on here?!"

    I lifted Victoria up. She was acting like a wild animal at this point, scratching and clawing at me, doing everything she could to get out of my grip.

    "I brought Victoria. She''s possessed by a creature from the Abyss that''s using her ability to create warp points for other Abyssal creature''s. I figured you''d want to deal with her now before this gets out of hand."

    The knights had erected a barrier around the entrance, so I would need to break it to get inside if they didn''t let me through, which I was more than prepared to do if they became a problem. Xi and Kai were talking to their captain as I saw the tall Asian knight from before step out of the temple. He walked up to Kai and had a quick discussion with him that I couldn''t hear over the knights yelling at me. Once we was done talking to Kai he slapped the captain on the shoulder and told him something, which resulted in the captain putting his head down and shaking it before telling his men to release the barrier.

    Once the barrier was gone, Xi walked over to me and cupped her hands in front of her while closing her eyes. I could feel mana building up inside of her as Victoria attempted to attack her instead, but that proved pointless as well.

    About a minute later Xi opened her eyes and pressed her right pointer finger against Victoria''s chest. "Rei, let go. Don''t worry, it''ll be fine."

    Even if something did go wrong I knew I could stop her from fleeing, so I let go of her and immediately Victoria was encased in a thick layer of crystal. A large clinking sound emitted as it hit the ground, but it didn''t chip even a little.

    Kai walked over and lifted up the crystallized crystal before looking at me, "Follow us. Aresa just returned and she''ll want to be a part of this."

    "So that''s what your ability is, Xi? A stasis of some sort?" I asked her as we followed behind her brother.

    "It is. Normally the channel time required to crystallize someone is much higher than that and I''d usually need them to be knocked out, but her soul is a complete mess right now. It''s destabilized and was easy to lock down."

    We walked through a large set of double doors that reminded me of the gates leading into Veca''s underground city. After that, Kai and the tall Asian knight led us through the massive entrance hall into a hallway on the left side that was wide enough to fit six heavily armored men side by side. There were tapestries, rugs, chandeliers, and all other manner of expensive looking items everywhere I looked as we walked.

    After passing through several more hallways the knight opened a lone door nesting in a much smaller hallway that wasn''t furnished at all. He ushered the rest of us inside before closing and locking the door behind us.

    The room itself was circular, made entirely of stone, and kind of on the small side. The expensive decorations from before were nowhere to be seen. Instead all I could see were weird symbols drawn all over the walls and the only form of lighting were basic torches. Not even magical or crystal ones.

    It was also windowless, which was putting me on edge even if I was positive the people here didn''t intend to harm me. Having only one way in or out of a room always made me feel sick. I was tempted to punch the wall to see if it would crumble. Knowing that the building wasn''t enhanced definitely would''ve made me feel better, but then I noticed Aresa was already in the room. She''s still small enough that she was hidden behind the knight until he moved.

    "Aresa, can these walls be destroyed?"

    "Not as easily as most stone walls, but you don''t need to worry about those knights breaking into here. They may be here to keep tabs on me, but they still do their job. Just like this lazy guy here." Aresa said as she pointed at the tall Asian knight.

    For his part, the knight was placing pieces of paper or something akin to it in a circle around the crystallized Victoria that Kai had dropped in the middle of the room.

    "And what are those paper things? Is that his ability?"

    Xi chuckled, "Talismans! They''re from my culture, and necessary for the next part of my ability. Benny here is just used to placing them for me."

    Aresa walked over to me and sighed, "Okay, the fairy inside of you is still telling Lunaria what happened to you inside the mirror, but I''d rather hear it straight from you anyway."

    "Sure, but after you tell me why it was important that you had me sneak around in that girl''s home when you could''ve easily had your knights here kick the door in and investigate her yourself. And don''t tell me you were worried about political repercussions or something of that sort."

    "I..." Aresa looked over at Victoria. Xi was sitting down in front of her now while placing her palms on top of the crystal. Soon after that I could see the ''talismans'' begin to light up.

    "Victoria, she was my best friend when I first came here to Telebron. She had inherited her families fortune after they had died. With no friends or family around her, she ended up coming to church a lot, and I was there because Lunaria wanted me to be seen as much as possible back then. One thing led to another, and we quickly became friends. But about three years ago she suddenly changed almost overnight. There was obviously something wrong, but even after we searched her house or followed her for weeks, we ended up finding nothing that could explain why she had changed so suddenly."

    "And that''s when you noticed her soul was corrupted in some way?"

    "That only happened one time, and it was barely perceptible. I even began to wonder if I had imagined it... But regardless, I still told people about it and acted like I always felt something dark inside her soul, because I wanted to figure out what was wrong with her damnit! And everyone had lost interest soon after she changed. They just shrugged it off, even Lunaria. After the first week had gone by, I was the only one who still cared that she had changed like that. Lunaria only cares about whether I''m channeling onto the wellspring or not, and I couldn''t stop doing it just to spite her because my level of synchronization to the wellspring would drop by a massive amount if I suddenly cut myself off from it."

    "You could''ve asked me for help when we were looking at my memories. Why didn''t you?"

    "Because I planned on asking you after you came back from your Xerath soul-feasting journey you''re about to go on. Kai or someone else must''ve decided all on their own to ask you before you left." Aresa said.

    ''Benny'' the knight walked over to us, "I''m going to keep an eye on the men and make sure they don''t do anything stupid. There is going to be people asking why it looked like someone had attacked the chapel just now, so it''s best that that I personally handle it instead of leaving it to those tools."

    "Please do." Aresa replied without looking at him.

    After Benny left the room and locked it from the other side I looked at Aresa and said, "Is he trustworthy?"

    "Ben? Definitely. He''s just annoyingly lazy and complains all the time. Only at serious times like these does he actually do his job without whining. But that''s a major reason I appreciate having him around..."

    Aresa continued, "This is going to take a long time by the way. So you might as well have Kai drive you to wherever you want to be. But only after you tell me what happened! I''ve answered your questions, so come on now."

    "One last question."

    "Ugh! You''re just playing with me now, I remember how you are!"

    "No, it''s a serious one that I forgot to ask you before. I''d like to know why you''re suddenly able to talk."

    "... Oh."

    Aresa''s eyes went distant as if she was remembering memories from ages ago.

    "I um, I can''t remember if I told you why I refused to heal my throat back on Urza."

    "You did. You said it''s because you felt bad for taking that girl''s body. Your mother Shiva had offered to heal the girl''s throat but she refused, and then she ended up giving her body to you, so out of respect you left her throat as is, right?"

    "Hehe, yes, that''s correct. It makes me happy knowing you remembered something like that from so long ago... Oh, it probably wasn''t all that long ago for you, was it?"

    "It was uh, maybe six months ago for me? I''d have to really think about it to figure out how long it''s actually been. But it''s somewhere around there I bet."

    "Only six months... Unbelievable. It was a lifetime ago for me. There was even a time that I---" Aresa cut herself off and looked at me with a sad expression. But I had an inkling of what she was going to say.

    "You forgot about me, didn''t you?"

    "... I did. I''m sorry, Rei. I don''t know how long it was, but after Victoria changed I remember thinking ''Only Rei or Shana would believe me and help me figure out what''s wrong with her...'', and that''s when I realized I hadn''t thought of either of you in years. You''ve been gone for so long Rei... It felt so weird seeing you again when you finally showed up. It felt like I was looking at a stranger and someone I dearly missed at the same time."

    "It''s fine, and I really mean that. Honestly, the amount of time we''ve been apart is higher than my actual age. And without my soul realm, I''d have long forgotten most of what happened to me when I was a kid in the Xerath''s realm. So I don''t blame you in the least for forgetting me for a little while. Plus, it sounds like it happened well over thirty years after you had last seen me."

    Aresa looked down at the ground awkwardly and said nothing. She stayed like that for a while until I began to pat her hair.

    "Even this, feels so nostalgic..." She said.

    "Seriously, don''t feel bad about---Oh, not to derail this again, but we should talk about Hyun real quick before I leave. Or has Cera already told you about the meeting?"

    "Lunaria did! The gall of that three-headed asshole to tell you he''d reveal his location after Viktor''s visit. And then he had Hyun throw you out of his office! While I''m positive that Rai''ga and Viktor would never work together, I''m sure there''s another reason he''s holding off until after the summit. Maybe he''s the reason the Nei''lah''s God is underneath Telebron right now?"

    "Wait, what? Their God is down there? Are the Crotia down there as well?"

    Kai who had been listening in from where he was sitting(next to his sister) began to laugh as he said, "And they''re all trapped too. I don''t know how they found those old caverns, but it was very stupid of them to assume they weren''t being monitored. Although it is true that they weren''t actually being monitored before the Yulia refugees arrived here..."

    "And they''re being monitored now because of the refugees? I don''t see the correlation."

    Kai shrugged, "The underground is massive. I hear you have some experience down there, so you should know that most cities hate having to deal with it. It costs a large amount of money and mana to make sure the area beneath your city is entirely safe, and most cities almost never face any sort of threats from the underground, so they usually just pretend to patrol the underground so the citizens will feel safe and then they get to keep the funds for themselves. It usually devolves from there into the city leaders relying on a small subset of Dwarven runes to protect the city. And even then, they don''t always charge them. I''ve seen this problem crop up in my own lands many times, so I''m sure it''s a problem here too."

    Kai continued, "Except this time they had no choice but to monitor as much of the underground as they could. For starters, refugees from my land were going down there and harvesting crystals for themselves, which annoyed the officials. They immediately demanded to know where the mine was at that they had found, which led to the caverns where the Crotians are now trapped. A cavern that just so happens to have access to the wellspring."

    Aresa giggled, "So stupid~. They really thought the Nei''lah God could tap into the wellspring and overpower a lowly abandoned Lord like me. Looks like the jokes on them! The Nei''lah God is trapped next to the wellspring, he''s unable to detach himself from it thanks to me. The Initiative will hear about it today, but there are major plans being laid to go down there and kill all of the Crotians and their stupid God after the Summit. For now we have all of exits guarded and monitored, with multiple layers of Dwarven runes charged along the paths, so there''s no way they can possibly disrupt the Summit. All they can do is wait for us to go down there and finish them off."

    "Either that or they can leave their God to die alone. The path they came in through is the only one not monitored. Lunaria did that on purpose of course." Kai added.

    Aresa slapped my shoulder, "Enough delaying! Tell me what happened inside her mirrors. So far Lunaria has only told me about the black mass inside Victoria''s head and what you found in her home."

    "Well, the mirror in her home exited to a realm of eternal fire. It was blindingly yellow everywhere as the fires raged on, and there were multiple massive Gods slumbering off in the distance. At least I think they were in the distance. Even with my eyes it was hard to tell considering how smoky it was and how large they were."

    {Normal Humans won''t survive in there. It''s too hot for them, so only people who can protect themselves against extreme heat.}

    "And Luna says it''s too hot inside there for normal humans, so don''t send anyone in through the mirror who can''t protect themselves against extreme heat."

    "It was that hot? We need to check that realm out though, there''s no way around it. I need to know what was monitoring us. We can''t just smash the mirror and pray they never come back. And I refuse to let them get away with hijacking my friend''s body! Can you believe she was telling people that she was going to violate me? Wouldn''t the smart option be to pretend everything is fine while using her ability to create gateways for them? Why make her out to be crazy like that?!"

    "Well, about that... I think it was another way of tormenting her. You''re not going to like this, but I think she was conscious the whole time. When I came back through the mirror she was crying as the black mass and the other Abyss creature were mocking her."

    Aresa paled and looked like she wanted to cry as she glanced over at her crystallized friend. I waited a bit before continuing my tale of what I found through the mirror, but Aresa was looking more and more distraught as time went on. Seeing that she was in no condition to continue the conversation, I put my hand on her shoulder and guided her over to Xi and Victoria before looking at Kai and motioning toward the door.

    He got the hint and unlocked the door, allowing both of us to exit the weird ritual room. Once we were back in the hallway he locked the door behind us and began to backtrack toward the entrance.

    "Is that limo ready to go?"

    "So long as Lady Aresa isn''t using it, it''s always ready to go. And it''s been waiting for you at the pickup spot for a while now anyway. You really don''t know how long you''ve been gone, do you?"

    "I don''t, but the way you''re wording that has me worried. Was it longer than a day?"

    Kai chuckled, "Not that long. It was around six hours. So during the trip I''d love to hear about what else you found after walking through her gateways."

 Chapter 76 - Strengthening

    "But how are you certain she''s gone forever? Those Abyssal Gods you showed us were revived, weren''t they?" Kai said.

    "I just know. While there weren''t any specific memories related to her passing, I could feel it through the remnants of her core that she''s nothing more than a relic from the past now. I need someone to translate those books damnit. And that''s exactly what I''m going to do in Arcadia. They had to translate all of the ancient languages in the systems of that city, so the Elves are the perfect choice when it comes to looking for translators."

    {Rei. Mom wanted you to know that the mirror is gone. They kicked the doors in soon after you left her home, and both the harlequin monster and the mirror had disappeared.}

    "More good news from the fairy... The mirror in Victoria''s home vanished. Along with that Abyssal Minor God I ran into. He''s the same one I saw in Xethra by the way."

    Kai rubbed his chin, "There are fairies monitoring the entire city from the sky. So if he didn''t run away through the city, there''s only one place he could have gone. But how did he access the underground from Victoria''s home...?"

    {Mom is wondering the same thing. She''s tearing up the floorboards and everything in the cellar. She hasn''t found anything yet though.}

    "Lunaria''s looking for an entrance, but has come up empty so far."

    "Hmm..." Kai trailed off, lost in thought.

    "Need to interrupt whatever thoughts are going on inside your head, I''m curious about one other thing. Is it possible that Rai''ga is working with the Abyss? This is a question for Lunaria too."

    "Only Rai''ga would know the answer to that since the other option requires my sister forcing that black mass to talk, and from what I''ve seen of those Abyss creatures, I wouldn''t count on that."

    {Aresa is listening in and said no. Everything he does, he does for Meiza''thul. He would never betray the Eldritch as a whole.}

    The Tengu said something along those lines as well.

    "Oh!" Kai said as he looked at me, "I have good news and bad news. Although the bad is exactly what I expected."

    "Go on?"

    "The good news; your friends Simon and Nera did actually live here for a little while. They were only here for a few years before leaving through the portal to Mother west of Telebron. So, it''s as you suspected, they left for Gaia."

    Yeah... I figured that''s what happened, and it''s great to hear that they ended up pursuing our dream even if I hadn''t showed up. It''d be extremely difficult to find them in Gaia, so I''ll just assume they safely made it across Mother. It''s for the best that way.

    "And the bad is about my Uncle I assume?"

    "Indeed. He was never in Telebron. And when I requested information about him from Arcadia the lady responded with ''We can''t divulge information related to citizens or guests'' etc. etc."

    Oh well. I''ll just have to personally look for him while I''m in Arcadia. And I really hope he had made sure my families home remained as a part of our clan. That way they wouldn''t be able to pilfer it or move someone else in for many years. And it''s not like Arcadia is hurting for space... The city is filled with empty sections that nobody uses.

    {Rei, Aresa apologizes for not answering you before. She asked if you remember that she used to write on her board, but decided to magically insert words on the board after meeting you?}

    I do. That was on the wagon ride to Thule. And she already explained back on Urza why she changed. Was it the same reason here?

    {Yes. It wasn''t easy for her to alter the girl''s body. In fact, it took her months to psyche herself up enough to do it. Also, Victoria and my mom were there for her and gave her the final push she needed. And in general she was tired of holding everyone back for something so small and personal to her only. The girl who gave her body up to her would have had no issues with Aresa healing her throat if it''s what she desired. So in the end, it was just Aresa being stubborn... Is what she said.}

    So she''s been talking for years now huh? Looks I''m the only one who would have been surprised to see that at this point. Well, and Markus'' group... Oh, that''s right.

    "Kai, what about Arkaios'' temples?"

    Kai shook his head, "I need more time. You''ve only been here for one or two days. Checking the resident backlogs for your friends and family was easy, but anyone I''ve asked about Arkaios has either never heard of him, or has met his branded warriors before and nothing more. I have yet to find anyone who knows anything about his temples. Lady Aresa adored the templars, but she figured if they ever needed help they''d come to her. She thought they were more widespread than they actually are."

    "I swear Arkaios said he had temples everywhere though... But then again, he did seem intent on leaving for Gaia. That''s what Keith said before Viseux was invaded. So maybe while I was dead Arkaios had entirely given up on our universe? Even so, whether they''re abandoned or not, there has to be temples on this damned planet somewhere that''ll allow me to talk to him. Otherwise I''ll never know where Viktor put the artifact."

    "Are you certain that he didn''t have his men take the artifact to Gaia? You seem adamant that your friends would''ve sought out Aresa, but from what I''ve learned of them, aren''t branded supposed to be loyal soldiers of Arkaios who would follow his orders whether they wanted to or not? If Arkaios wants to focus on Gaia, then would he really allow them to stay here?" Kai asked.

    "I... I''m actually not sure? That''s a good question, but one that still requires me to visit a temple to find out. The only other option is asking Viktor during the summit but I wouldn''t believe whatever answer he gave me anyway."

    A blue light lit up next to the phone. Kai picked it up and after a brief delay he said ''Okay, pull over near that sign'' before setting it back down.

    "We''re almost there." Kai pointed at the scythe, "You really going to use that?"

    "It''ll make killing the fodder much easier. I won''t use it against the ones with souls. I''ll have Petey cut them down like he did last time."

    Kai sighed, "Must be nice, being able to power up in that way. I''ve spent years upon years training in my soul realm, and it''s still nowhere near enough. It''ll never be enough."

    A few minutes later the limo pulled to a stop. Kai and I exited a side door while Petey crawled out through the sunroof as usual.

    "In the middle of nowhere huh? Is there a hive near here?"

    "Not near, but according to Lunaria there''s one about thirty miles southwest of here. There''s no point in driving on this road going south when you could just start running from here."

    Luna?

    A white light appeared far off in the distance. Perfect, thank you.

    "Alright then, thanks for taking me out here, Kai. I''ll see you back here in ten days at the exact same time. Luna should be able to mark this location and tell me when it''s time to return, right?"

    {Yes, I''ll take care of it!}

    "She said yes."

    "I was going to have you meet us in the town we drove through earlier, but that works as well." Kai stuck his hand out, "See you again in ten days."

    I grabbed his hand and shook it. Once that was done I stuck the scythe onto the back of my armor and began to run toward the white dot in the distance with Petey trailing close behind me.

    <hr>

    Well now, this was unexpected...

    Petey and I are invisible watching a patrol of Xerath devour an apple tree, root and all. The problem is that there''s two of the powerful Xerath''s I fought and absorbed before going to Telebron.

    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    And judging by the amount of grunts there are, I''d say this is two patrols moving together. Or... Hang on, they might not actually be ''patrols''. I see a long line of barren ground past this point. I''ve seen some Xerath lands that were completely barren like this, but I figured it was some type of corruption related to the God in the region, but now that I can see these Xerath literally eating a tree...

    Are they consuming the entire ecosystem around the hive? But the areas to the east weren''t like this... Could it be that each of these smaller hives is different from one another? Now that is something I''ve never seen before. These Xerath were already unique enough as is, but if that also happens to be true, then I''m honestly not sure of what to expect out of them next. There''s too many unknowns surrounding them, and now we have the Abyss to worry about as well.

    {R-Rei, I''m ready this time. I swear I''ll back you up. So uh, how about we go for one of the leaders first? I can''t channel my mana until you drop your veil, and I''ll need at least ten seconds. Is that too long?}

    Oh? Suggesting battle plans already? It makes me happy seeing you force yourself to be proactive like this! And I was planning on doing that anyway, so yeah, I''m obviously not going to decline your idea. Although, ten seconds could be too long if the other one joins the battle immediately. If he does, we might have to flee and try again. We''ll see how it goes and then decide from there.

    The tree itself had been ripped out of the ground and toppled over. One of the leaders and most of the grunts were eating it from top, while another leader and a couple of grunts were chewing on its trunk. Petey snuck up to one side of the group eating at the trunk, while I waited with the scythe in my hands on the other side of them, which is where the grunts were. Once Petey was in position we both removed our veils and leapt into action.

    The leader ducked below Petey''s horizontal slash before barreling right into him, causing Petey to buckle to the ground. The leader immediately jumped on top of him and tried to crush Petey''s skull with his hands, but for the moment Petey was holding him off after grabbing onto his wrists.

    While that had transpired I was cutting down the grunts with the scythe. There were only six of them and the scythe made quick work of the group. I had finished them off in a couple of seconds, which was all the time it took for the leader to get on top of Petey.

    On the other side of the tree I could see the other leader walking toward us as it loudly chewed through a mouthful of apples. The grunts weren''t walking though, they were running straight for Petey to assist the Xerath leader on top of him. At this point my halo was fully charged so I dashed in front of the two struggling on the ground and kicked the leader''s right arm at the joint before turning around and cutting four grunts in half. Behind me I could hear Petey throw the leader off of him.

    That was when I noticed something that I hadn''t seen with the last patrol. The two groups of grunts I had cut in two, weren''t dead. Their bottom halves stopped moving, but they were now pulling their top halves along the ground with their hands at an alarming speed.

    Once the first group was within striking distance I cut their heads or bodies in two pieces again, and this time, they went silent. This is when the second leader changed his approach from a walking speed to a sprinting speed. Glancing behind me I could see Petey''s sword attacks being deflected one after another as the Xerath attempted to counter with each attack it deflected, but so far he was failing to connect a blow just like Petey was.

    That was when I saw an ethereal hand shoot out of my body and grab the Xerath battling Petey just before he deflected another attack. It froze him in place long enough for Petey to cut him in two, just like it did in the past.

    At this point I had already put the scythe away and was sidestepping to the left side of Petey. The charging Xerath slowed down a little as he neared us, as he quickly realized what I was doing. I moved forward a little, attempting to get behind him, and he retreated in kind.

    I''m fine with this now that I know you''re helping Luna. If he stalls that only makes things easier for us. The cartoons were right, Fairies truly are amazing supports.

    I could feel the jubilation emanating from Luna as Petey and I continued to try and surround the Xerath. It reached a point where it was finally fed up with what we were doing and tried to charge Petey, but another ethereal hand locked him in place just as he reached Petey. And yet again, Petey cut this one in two from the head down.

    I walked over to both of the leaders and tossed their souls down my throat before removing the halo and sitting down near the tree. I then turned invisible and began meditating, trying to ease the backlash from the halo as soon as possible, as I wanted to continue hunting more and more of the overly muscular Xerath. The more of them I absorbed before the ten days were up, the better.

    {Um, Rei, a Fairy Lord just informed me that the hive we''re heading to is going to die soon. The nation to the west is sieging it, so we''re wasting our time heading there. Want to head to one further to the south instead? There''s only one to the north and it''s a new one we''ve only recently learned about, so it will only have a few powerful Xerath.}

    Yeah, definitely the one to the south. I''d love to see how the people west of here destroy that hive, but there''s no time for detours.

    {Lots of soldiers and vehicles with a mix of physical guns and magical guns while thirty-two casters channel a destruction spell on the hive. It''s usually just a giant fireball. It''s cool looking but really boring to watch until they finish channeling, and that takes hours.}

    Now that sounds familiar. It''s just like the attack Jasper used against the Moon Eldritch back on Urza but much bigger. It''s really a shame I don''t have enough time to watch them blow up the hive...

    <hr>

    ... Thoughts?

    {I don''t sense anything, so, um, I don''t know what to say?}

    We were at the southern hive and just like before, I had thrown a rock into the ooze to get them to attack me, except nothing happened. I didn''t even turn invisible again. I''m literally standing there waiting for them to come at me, but no Xerath are spawning.

    The hell is going on? I was planning to cut down grunts with Petey until they sent out the Xerath with souls, but now I''m not sure what to do. Walking in there is not an option, it''s too dangerous. I could crawl along the wall again and try to find out if something is wrong inside the hive, but even if there is, then what? I could kill the hive I guess, but if there''s nothing to absorb here then this is a giant waste of time.

    {Rei, behind!}

    I turned around and saw a tiny black dot far in the distance. I take it that''s the Xerath coming this way?

    {Yes! And there''s lots of strong ones with souls.}

    ... Very strange. Were their forces all outside and are now retreating back to the hive after I appeared? That''s the only explanation I can think of. And while it''s nice that they''re returning, I sure as hell can''t take dozens of them on at the same time.

    Hmm, we''ll watch them for a little bit after they return, and if they don''t split up we''ll just have to stick to hunting patrols. Going after hives is too risky it seems.

    Five minutes later Petey and I were invisible on top of a hill half a mile away, watching the Xerath run toward the hive. However, they weren''t alone.

    ... Luna, what''s the closest town south of here? Or to be specific, which nation owns it?

    {Um, it was called Neizahar, but it''s part of the Xel''nethra now.}

    Well, that would definitely explain what I''m currently seeing. It''s been so long since I''ve seen Xerath killing other Xerath like this...

    There was four Ghoraks and two dozen Gheists chasing the Xerath from this hive as they attempted to retreat inside of it. Both groups were moving at about the same speed, with the Ghoraks moving slightly faster, which allowed them to grab and kill a couple of Xerath before they reached the hive, at which point the ooze finally came alive and began to turn into hundreds of grunts. That wasn''t all though, the Xerath running at the front were accompanied by something that looked like a wagon made out of blackened sinew, the same material lining the walls of the hive.

    What''s in that wagon of theirs?

    {They throw people in there, and it... Um, it transmutes them into something much easier to carry...}

    So in other words, they''re able to clear out entire cities and carry their souls and biologicals back to the hive with a single one of those wagon looking things? That''s beyond disgusting, but also efficient. Efficient in a way I''ve never seen the Xerath before. I was only vaguely worried about these Xerath after I woke up in Termia, but their threat level is now higher than any other Xerath I''ve encountered before now. After the summit is over, if we manage to kill Viktor, then we''ll need to deal with these Xerath as soon as possible. I have a really bad feeling about them... But for now, I''m going to reap the rewards that appeared before me.

    As Viktor''s Xerath engaged with the hordes of grunts flooding out of the hive, I moved to the area behind them, where they had left a trail of Xerath they had slain along the way. I ran toward the direction of the town they had assaulted, scooping up one soul after another, including those from more powerful types of Xerath I hadn''t encountered yet. Oh Viktor, if only you knew that your creatures were greatly increasing the chances that you''ll die in Telebron.

    It took me over an hour before I finally reached a Xerath corpse that didn''t have a soul in it.

    Looks like this is it for me here. Queen bitch took the rest of them, but this was a massive haul so I''m not going to complain. I feel like I just absorbed three or four chimera''s. I had to stop my core from fully absorbing them though, as that''ll take days, which is why I''m returning to Telebron four days ahead of the summit. It''ll give me plenty of time to rest in my room and absorb all of the souls I manage to gather out here.

    <hr>

    {Rei, it''s time.}

    Finally... It feels like I''ve been out here for over a month.

    {Hehe, nope! But you haven''t slept a single second and was fighting one battle after another, so that probably made it feel longer than it was!}

    A white light appeared off in the distance again. I turned toward it and began to run toward the limo that was hopefully waiting for me.

    It was honestly surprising seeing just how bad things were in the south. I had Luna direct me toward hives that were near Viktor''s borders in the hopes that I''d find more battles to leech off of, and while I was lucky a couple of times, I ended up having to kill most of the Xerath myself. But damn, it looks like my hypothesis that Viktor was related to these Xerath is rather unlikely. Luna even confirmed that they''re assaulting his lands far more than they are Termia''s.

    <hr>

    "Welcome back, Rei." Kai said, opening the door for me.

    "It''s good to be back, but it''ll be even better after I''ve had a long bath."

    I ducked into the limo and sat down on the seat facing the TV again. Kai sat down and closed the door behind him as Petey entered through the sunroof before laying down to my left in his usual spot.

    "You should take him in too. He was looking pretty bad before, but now he''s practically covered in dried blood." Kai said.

    "Will the baths allow it?"

    Kai shrugged, "They should, but right now I want to hear about how you did out there. Do you think you''re ready?"

    "More than ready. I just need to meditate in my home until the summit and I know I''ll have more strength than I had back in Xelba. Which is kind of amazing considering how much time I spent in that city. I was so focused on spending time with my unit, that I rarely spent time hunting and absorbing monsters."

    And I have Petey now as well. I''m feeling pretty confident about the future, regardless of what comes my way.

 Chapter 77 - The Final Reprieve

    ~Deep Underneath Telebron~

    ~Hyun''s POV~

    Hyun watched as the creature tore another chunk out of the Neilah''s God. It had gone silent not long ago, albeit, not by choice. It had attempted to defend itself the best it could, but the Nei''lah God was one of the few Eldritch beings who could fly. It wasn''t designed to fight underground in confined spaces, especially not when it was stuck to the wellspring and unable to move its torso more than ten meters away from it.

    And there was no one left who could assist it, as they had all been devoured long ago. Whatever remained of the Crotians was being picked apart by the hundreds of Xerath scurrying around the cavern. And unfortunately for him, Hyun was completely paralyzed, so all he could do was wait for them to decide it was his turn.

    Less than an hour ago he had been back at his office pouring over the phone records he took from the local information hub. He went through a variety of emotions as he began to read them alongside his own internal records that showed all the assignments given to the squads. He found an endless amount of assignments that were given from seemingly nobody. The calls clearly existed, but the phone records showed that there were no numbers associated with whoever was making the calls.

    There were ways to trick the system into giving fake or anonymous numbers, but the techs at the information hub were adamant that this was not what had happened here. There was a record of the phone being used and nothing more. Just a date and no time stamps, which suggested magic of some sort had been used, but Hyun had never once heard of such magic before now.

    And as much as he wanted to look into it, he was more concerned with the amount of assignments that either had little to no meaning. It was as if someone was using the squads just for the fun of it. He had told that white-haired girl that he gave the orders to Rodger''s squad to save face, but if he had known that there were hundreds of frivolous assignments like hers given out, he never would have said something like that. If anything, he was starting to freak out after his last communication with Master Rai''ga.

    He told his Master about what he had found, and surprisingly, Rai''ga''s first question was ''When did this begin?'' It took a bit but Hyun eventually found the first fake assignment, and the date was around three years ago. Immediately Hyun remembered all of the other issues that popped up three years ago. The drug epidemic that sprung up out of nowhere being the main one. Some people would overdose and die, but generally speaking most people would either continue to use them recreationally, or wean off of them all by themselves with no withdrawals whatsoever. And the only sign that people had been using the drugs was a slight alteration on the user''s souls. But no one had been able to pinpoint exactly what the drugs were doing to people''s souls, and that was a major reason they had outlawed.

    And Hyun knew firsthand that they altered people''s souls, because he too had the mark of the drug implanted on his own soul. It wasn''t by choice though. One of the servants had spiked his drink and he''d only discovered it later after one of his colleagues had the police drag off that very same servant for spiking his drink as well. They had a soul specialist remove the marks from their souls, but during a routine monthly scan they both found out that the marks were back. Time and again they had them removed, only for them to re-appear weeks later. He also learned through this that the only way to keep the mark away was by having one of Lunaria''s fairies inside of you, but that was obviously not an option for him.

    There were also a bunch of other strange occurrences that Hyun had paid little attention to three years ago, like how Victoria had changed from this shy recluse to a weird freak who was actively contributing toward the Initiative. She was originally only part of it in name because her parents had been members of the board just like Hyun. And the only reason he had taken her on was because Rai''ga said that she was on their side.

    But Hyun knew that Rai''ga was suspicious of her even now. He only kept her around for her ability to set up warp points and so he could keep an eye on her. And according to Rai''ga she never did anything suspicious with her soul or mirrors. She just rested in her home every day after work and did nothing else that stood out.

    After discovering the three-year duration of his Initiative being used like pawns without his knowledge, Hyun had then sat there in his chair, wondering how it was even possible. There were several measures put in place that should have flagged such flagrant use of the squads, and yet, they didn''t. He would obviously look into this when he had time, but for now he needed to figure out what to do next.

    Surprisingly, he had begun to wonder if he should reach out to Aresa and Lunaria. Master wouldn''t disapprove, so long as Hyun didn''t flip his allegiances. And after speaking to Aresa, he would then reach out to the Supreme Leader. If the Initiative had been unknowingly used to this level, then Hyun needed the others to hear about it, because he also saw non-frivolous missions in the logs as well.

    There were several missions for gathering information relating to multiple places and people, including the wellspring and Aresa. And even more worrying was the disappearing of a few individuals. Niro took care of those according to the logs, but it was obviously too late to ask him about them.

    Just as Hyun had decided to call the chapel, his entire body locked up. Immediately he knew it was something inside of his soul, and Rai''ga had noticed it as well. Unfortunately, Rai''ga''s connection to Hyun was not one that allowed him to meddle with soul, as this was one made of trust. It was merely used for communication and to actively monitor the well-being of his followers. And Hyun was far too distant from his Master''s location, so Rai''ga was unable to directly assist him.

    Rai''ga told Hyun that another group of followers of his was moving to aid him, but they were currently ten miles outside of the city, so it was going to take a little bit of time.

    While that had calmed Hyun down a little, his nerves quickly frayed as his body began to move on its own. He stood up and power walked out of his office, ignoring the guard''s question as he passed by him toward the stairs. He then began to descend down the stairs, one level at a time until he reached the bottom. Once he had arrived on the ground floor, he headed straight out the main doors of the Initiative and turned left. That was when he began to run. He passed one building after another until he finally found himself in the warehouse district.

    All the while Hyun was doing his best to fight off the black spot on his soul that had metastasized into a cursed mark. Lots of individuals had wondered if the mark left on people''s souls from the drugs was a cursed mark, but everyone from the untalented to the best soul magic wielders on Aetheria had all said the same thing. ''It''s not a cursed mark.''

    And yet, here he was, being remotely controlled through a cursed mark. And not just any mark; one that everyone believed only existed in fictional tales. Having the ability to control people like this was something most Humanoid creatures dreamed of doing. After all, anything you desired, regardless of how fantastical it sounded, would easily become attainable if you could control other people as if they were puppets.

    When he turned toward his warehouse, he had an idea as to where his manipulator was taking him. There was a mirror he had placed here for the Crotians to access Telebron when the summit ended. He had considered using it to figure out why he couldn''t contact them or the Neilah''s God, but that was way too risky, especially since the two men he sent into it an hour prior had never returned. He only had a few men he trusted enough to risk letting them know about the Crotians underground, and now he had just lost two of them.

    Also, for weeks now he had two squads watching the warehouse at all times. And there were multiple cameras aimed at the mirror that was hidden behind several well-placed mountains of boxes. So when he approached the warehouse, he could see one of his squads jumping down from a rooftop out of the corner of his eye. They were rushing over to him as he walked through the warehouse''s entrance. And they were moving very fast, so they must have realized something was wrong with him. Whatever was manipulating Hyun was unable to enhance him, so he was running at a regular pace toward the left side of the warehouse where the mirror was hidden. Unfortunately for him, even with his slower speed, the squad wasn''t able to reach him in time.

    Hyun ran through the mirror and no more than a second later he felt his spine tingle as the gnashing of teeth echoed out around him. His eyes were still adjusting to the dim lighting, so all he could make out was the Nei''lah God battling a Xerath that was much bigger than any Xerath he had ever seen before. Some Xerath evolve into nesters who create much stronger units, but they have trouble moving thanks to their bulky frames and lack of legs. It''s a known fact that they are the biggest Xerathian Gods in existence.

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    However, the one he was looking at right now, was clearly not a nester. And yet it was much bigger than any nester God that had been recorded up until now.

    This one was over fifty meters tall, covered in carapace, and hitting the Nei''lah God with enough force that Hyun could feel the shockwaves from where he was standing, hundreds of meters away.

    Hyun wasn''t sure of how long it took, but eventually the Nei''lah God stopped moving after one of the earth-shattering punches slammed right into its chest. The Xerath immediately began to rip chunks off of the God and shove them into its mouth. All Hyun could do was watch in horror, waiting for his turn, which seemed to be coming up soon.

    A pair of Xerath spawn had finally noticed him and made their way over to him before suddenly stopping. The two Xerath looked at the mirror and tilted their heads in confusion. For the moment they lost interest in Hyun and began to investigate the mirror. They slowly reached out and touched it, only to jump back in surprise as they felt the remnants of Victoria''s aura.

    Normally Hyun would have been contemplating the fact that something had guided him here to these Xerath, except those very same Xerath were clearly confused by the warp point he just came in through.

    But such thoughts were beyond him now. All he felt at this point was a mix of fear and acceptance. He had lost his family years ago to Viktor during a raid on a city far to the south of Telebron. His wife and children were staying at one of his villas waiting for him to join them, but he needed to finish up some work before he could head their way. He already didn''t like the Xerath worshiper, but from there on out he was hellbent on ending that Elf and his vile nation.

    Hyun was scared of being eaten alive, which was clearly the fate waiting for him here, but he was also ready to let go and join his family, wherever they may be.

    <hr>

    "So how long do I have?" I asked as I climbed into bed.

    "Four and a half days. Will that be enough?" Kai said.

    "It should be more than enough---Oh?" That was when I noticed the TV on a table next to the door. "When did you guys get that for me? Actually, never mind, it doesn''t matter when. I''m just happy you got it for me. Turn it on! I''ll be able to watch it in my soul realm after I begin to meditate."

    "It was Xi''s idea, and I was opposed to it at the time because I thought you wanted to get one yourself, but it looks like she was in the right this time." Kai turned the TV on and adjusted the volume to a reasonable level. After that he headed for the door and opened it up before looking back at me, "I''ll be fishing out here with your pet. Just have him motion toward the door when you''re done."

    "I will. See you later, Kai. And thanks again!"

    As he left I closed my eyes and entered my soul realm. Once inside I immediately told my body to begin absorbing all of the souls sitting there in limbo. I could feel my body shutting down as the absorption process began.

    {Rei, Aresa says she wants to tell you about the conference.}

    ''The conference'', as in the meeting during the summit?

    {Yes! There is seven of them in total. Or supposed to be, but the plan is to try and kill Viktor on the third day.} Luna continued, {Oh, Aresa wants to know if people can come into your soul realm while you''re like this.}

    They can, but she''ll need to come here, and it might feel a little weird for her inside my realm. My soul is going through a process that messes with my control of it, which is why I usually just shut my mind down entirely or watch TV in here until it''s over.

    A few minutes later Luna said, {Okay, she''s coming over tonight. She wants to show you the plan going forward, and about a new potential issue that popped up. Mom is worried about that too, but I''ll let Aresa be the one to tell you.}

    <hr>

    {Rei, she''s here. Kai is letting her into the room right now.}

    Alright, I''m ready whenever.

    I had been relaxing on the sofa watching the Supreme Leader explain the war effort against the Xerath in extreme detail. I was honestly impressed by how well he was covering it. Based on where I woke up I knew the soldiers were concentrated on the east and southern sides of Termia, but seeing it like this, it''s honestly shocking that I never saw anyone out there while I was running around. They have tens of thousands of troops stationed at multiple outposts on that side. The west side only has a few outposts though, which is what he was about to explain when Luna said Aresa was here.

    I felt Aresa''s soul touch mine, and I immediately pulled her into my soul realm.

    "Ugh..." She said right away, "You weren''t kidding. Your veil does a good job of suppressing your aura, but right now I''m being hit by it directly and it''s gross in a scary kind of way."

    "... Sorry."

    Aresa sat down next to me, "Oh stop it, don''t pretend to look like a little hurt puppy. I know you actually like what you are."

    "You got me. I''m honestly looking forward to seeing what my Uncle thinks of me. It''d be nice to show off my skills to family for a change."

    "You really think he''s still alive? You haven''t been back there in eighty or ninety years."

    "I''m eighty percent positive he''s still alive. Mostly because he only ventures outside when he''s hired to look into ruins that have been cleared of enemies. It helps to have experts like him around at that point. And while you can still be attacked at that point, it''s very rare that groups are wiped out at the relic extraction part of ruin diving."

    I began laughing after I saw just how excited Aresa looked as she listened to me speak about delves. "See? You''re still the same little girl who is dying to go to the Elven continent. Although ruin diving would be way too dangerous for you..."

    "I never said I lost interest in the Elves continent! I''d love to spend a few months there in Arcadia, but I can''t do that until I''ve finalized my connection to the wellspring, which is ages away from being completed. Oh, speaking of which, something killed the Nei''lah''s God underground."

    "... That''s one hell of a bomb you just dropped. And what do you mean by ''something''? I know you guys said that the path they used to get there was unmonitored, but I thought the room itself was being watched?"

    "It''s not. Anything magical is extremely difficult to maintain so close to the wellspring, which leaves us with mechanical tools like cameras. But what would the point of that be? It''s in an area that''s faaaaar underground. We have a specific area that we guard and monitor closely. You can''t spread yourself out too far down there. It''s best if we just have some outposts at certain chokepoints that keep an eye on anything moving around underground. Keeping cameras working four times deeper underground than even our deepest outpost would be really stupid. But we do need to find out what is going on down there, so Lunaria is sending a regiment with fairies for support as we speak."

    "And you know the God died because he was stuck to the wellspring?"

    Aresa nodded, "Yes, but enough about that. I have no more information right now anyway. For now I want to tell you a few things, like what the Supreme Leader really is."

    "That was some strange wording... ''Really is?''."

    "Hehe, I''m sure you''ll be surprised! She learned the ability about ten years back." Aresa smiled widely, "The Supreme Leader is someone Euphemia is creating with that very same ability. He doesn''t actually exist. But if people scan his soul they''ll only sense Euphemia''s soul, so lucky for us, the people who do the scanning, really love having nice homes and expensive wine."

    "Whoa... He''s actually a puppet created through an ability?"

    I looked at the TV. The Supreme Leader was still explaining the western outposts and what the men there do.

    Aresa pointed at the TV, "That''s Euphemia talking through him. Pretty cool, right? We only came up with the idea to use her puppet to bait Viktor back to Telebron a few years back. It was clear he wasn''t planning on attending the upcoming summit, but once we had a new leader who was clearly a fan of his and wanted to join the Xel''nethra, Viktor was suddenly interested in coming to the summit again. Say it''s cool!! I''m so proud of what Euphie has done, she''s honestly amazing. It''s so perfect having her be the one with this ability too, because she knows all about ruling people thanks to her upbringing in Kellog."

    "Wasn''t she just a naive princess back then?"

    "Well yeah, but she still grew up as a royal. And don''t you remember the way she was handling people when uh, when was it... Ugh, never mind. The point is that she learned a lot from watching her Father and Brother." Aresa said.

    "Speaking of which, are those two here helping her?"

    Aresa actually looked stunned for a moment after I asked that.

    "... What? Her Brother and Father? Jeez, what a weird thing to say. They died back in Kellog, silly."

    "Huh? But Tyrell... Hang on."

    It was difficult considering the state of my soul, but I managed to bring up the memories of the Kellog invasion and played the memory of me talking to Tyrell.

    "Now then..." Tyrell glanced around before whispering, "Did your ally warp the princess to Viseux before the invasion began?"

    "You knew about that? ...Seifer? And yes, she got away."

    Tyrell smiled and nodded, "Yes, Seifer told me through a communication crystal. And now that I know for certain all of the royals have successfully fled, it''s time for me to save as many civilians as I can."

    I closed the memory and looked at Aresa, "Now that I think about it, I never did see the King or Prince at your chateau... But at the time I figured Euphie was visiting them at some noble''s mansion or something. She left the chateau quite often after all. Although I''m not sure why I thought they had safely arrived in Termia with all of you if they weren''t at the chateau during the invasion."

    Aresa closed her eyes in thought for a bit before looking at me and sighing, "I''m not sure what to make of this, Rei... Euphie said they both died in Kellog. And Tyrell died during the invasion so we can''t ask him why he said that. So for now all I know is that you shouldn''t bring this up to Euphie. I''ll tell her one day, but not now. We need her at the top of her game for the summit, and this would only add unnecessary stress to her life."

    "Okay, okay, I get it. I''ll let you take care of that. So let''s put that aside for now, as I really want to hear about how you plan to prevent Viktor from warping to his airship."

    Aresa grinned, "Now that you''re going to love..."

 Chapter 78 - Hello Again, Viktor

    From atop the bridge next to my home I watched as the airships slowly came into view. They were moving at a snails pace and wouldn''t arrive at Telebron for at least another hour. Not that it matters when they arrive. The others already said that he won''t enter Telebron until it''s time for the summit to commence.

    I heard the click clack of high heels approach me from my right side. Not long after that a lady with long black hair leaned against the guard rail directly next to me. She was wearing a long flowing black and white dress adorned with all sorts of different jewelry. And some of those pieces of jewelry I actually recognized, which was rare for me.

    "Hello, Euphie. Unlike Cera, you look exactly the same. Is Lunaria keeping you young?"

    Euphemia smiled at me, "Good to see you again, Rei. I''ll admit, I didn''t think we''d ever see you again. I only humored Aresa whenever she brought you up. But I guess even she began to think you were gone for good, as she hasn''t mentioned your name in quite a long time. Until about two weeks ago, of course. And yes, I allowed the Fairy Queen to corrupt me."

    "Any buyers remorse?"

    Her eyes widened for a moment before she put a hand up to her mouth to hide her chuckling. She used to do that in Kellog too... I remember thinking about how weird it was, but Shana said it was a noble thing or something.

    "So blatant! People with fairies inside of them can sense other fairies, so you know I have one as well. Are you not worried about upsetting Lunaria? She can obviously hear you."

    "Nope. She already has enough major issues to deal with. Someone like me asking light probing questions like that especially right now shouldn''t matter at all." I looked around and saw a few guards on each side of the bridge, but the person I was looking for wasn''t here. "More importantly, where is Tyra?"

    Euphie suddenly looked like she wanted to cry, but she switched to her usual happy demeanor almost instantly, "She died twenty three years ago. I tried to get her to pledge herself to Lunaria, but she wouldn''t. She... She lost the will to live after she realized we were never taking Kellog back."

    "I''m sorry to hear that Euphie, truly. It''s sad to hear, but from the interactions I had with her, I can understand why she made that decision. She really did love her nation." I continued, "But I''m also disappointed. Her expertise and strength sure would''ve been nice to have in the coming battle."

    "... You have no idea of how much it means to me to hear you speak of her so highly. When she died everyone gave me their condolences but nothing more, which I thought was enough at the time, but here you are over twenty years later, saying more about her in a few sentences than I''ve ever heard from anyone else."

    Euphie sighed, "And on that note, I need to apologize about Seifer. I had no idea that he was carrying around a soul-stealing scythe that was corrupting him, nor that he was slowly going mad. We had so many problems when we first arrived here. So I''m not making excuses, but I really wasn''t in the best condition back then. Constantly stressed, always trying to figure out how we were all going to survive here. And it wasn''t easy for me to adapt to a, how do you say... Rudimentary lifestyle?"

    "When I woke up in Termia I had wondered just how much you knew about his condition, but the others have long since confirmed that you were in the dark when it came to him. So don''t worry, Euphie. I don''t blame you in the least, and I know Shana won''t either."

    Bells from each district began to ring out, signifying that it was now noon.

    "Are you really going to be in the meeting room with us?" Euphie asked.

    "Mostly as a decoration until day three. Unless of course he tries to flee the second he sees me. At which point I''ve already been informed of what will happen next. And for the record, I do think it''s a bad idea for him to see me before the battle begins, but Aresa is adamant that it won''t change anything."

    Euphie chuckled, "She''s only doing it to see what kind of reaction he''ll have when he sees you. But she''s also right; it won''t change anything. We''re only picking day three because that just so happens to be the day Aresa is positive she''ll reach the next level of synchronization with the wellspring, and that means she will have more control over it, which leads to extra mana for all of us. But strength or mana levels won''t be all that relevant in this battle. It''s about whether he has a way of escaping despite all of our precautions we''ve put into place beforehand."

    "Which is highly possible. He''s overly cautious, to the point it''s extremely annoying to deal with him. I''m referring back to when I served under him, and I imagine he''s only become even more cautious since then. So while I understand the plan you''ve all come up with, it does have several holes in it. Although I know there''s nothing you can do about that since his warp ability has too many unknowns attached to it."

    "That''s true, but as you say, there''s nothing more we can do at this point except pray that we succeed. And honestly, I''m more worried about what is happening underground right now." Euphie said.

    "There''s still no word from the men who were sent down there? I thought they were dropping temporary communication crystals along the way so they could report anything that happened?"

    "They did until about halfway down. After that point there''s just too many twists and turns. They''d need hundreds of crystals at that point, and obviously they couldn''t carry that many."

    {Rei. Alicia is back in Telebron and needs to talk to everyone. It''s an emergency.}

    Euphie and I looked at each other.

    "You get the same message about Alicia?"

    Euphie nodded, "Looks like our one on one time has come to an end. But ''emergency''? I can''t imagine anything that happened on Zhegu would matter to us right now, but she used that word anyway. It''s really worrying me... Let us hurry to my home. The fairy said she''s waiting there."

    I nodded and we both began to walk toward the southern district. All sorts of different people spotted Euphie and stopped to gawk at her or try and say hello as we made our way toward the northern district. Her guards kept them at a safe distance while Euphie smiled and waved at everyone.

    "I see not much has changed since your time in Kellog."

    "Oh hush. I told you I lived a pedantic life here when we first arrived. And even after Hyun''s family helped us we still had to work our way up from there on out. Although his and Lunaria''s aid obviously made it much easier."

    About ten minutes later we reached our destination, a mansion that looked very familiar.

    "Did you rebuild your mansion here?"

    Euphemia laughed as she punched a number into the keypad by the gate, "You''re not the only one who has asked that! But no, I didn''t. This place just happens to look similar to my old mansion, and that''s why my main goal after arriving here was to buy this place."

    As the gate opened we could see Aresa and Benny appear from behind the left side wall around Euphie''s estate. Instead of walking they were jogging, which was kind of fresh to see. Normally everyone had to walk slowly to match her pace.

    "Let''s go! Hurry, hurry!" Aresa said as she jogged past us and into the mansion. Benny however stopped outside of the gate and sat down by the wall. It looked like he was just relaxing, but I could tell from the way he was scanning the surroundings that he was ready to pounce on anyone who tried to enter Euphie''s mansion.

    Euphie just shrugged and began walking at the same pace we were earlier. Once we were inside the mansion she led me through several hallways until we entered a parlor that looked identical to the one I had talked to her in all those years ago. Although there wasn''t a wall made of glass this time.

    "Whoa, she really is back..." Alicia mumbled as Aresa yelled ''Too slow!'', but I still managed to hear her.

    Euphie sighed, "What exactly is the rush, Aresa? We still have three hours before the meeting begins."

    "Blah blah blah! She said it''s an emergency. And I want to be in the meeting room well ahead of time just in case that smug asshole decides to show up early for a change." Aresa replied.

    I sat down on one of the couches as Lunaria walked through a set of doors opposite of where we entered.

    "Hello~! I wanted to be here in person for this, because I heard the message from Mother as well. So I already know what miss orange hair is going to say."

    "What? I got no such message though?" Aresa said.

    Lunaria sat next to Aresa on her couch, "Gods only dear. You think she cares about Lords?"

    "Fine, whatever. Let her play favorites. It''s not like I plan on following any Eldritch decrees anyway. So just tell us what her stupid message is, since that''s what the ''emergency'' is then, right?"

    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

    Alicia(who looked exactly the same as back on Urza) nodded, "Lord Terra''ka told me that Mother plans on purging all of the planets and moons, but he''s not sure of when. She just said ''the process has begun''."

    Silence was the only response Alicia received, which was to be expected. Obviously ''purge'' could only mean one thing.

    Aresa glared at Lunaria as she continued to smile, "... You seem awfully happy about this?"

    Lunaria shrugged, "Because it doesn''t matter? You own the wellspring silly girl. Haven''t I already explained to you how the purge works?"

    "Uhhhh... I think?"

    "Ahh my little Aresa is so cute while also so dumb.~" Lunaria reached over and tousled Aresa''s hair which made Aresa begin to flail around as she tried to remove Lunaria''s hand.

    "Um, shall I explain then?" Alicia asked. She continued after Lunaria jutted her chin at her for her to continue, "Okay, well, the purge is only initiated when the corruption on all worlds reach a breaking point that the Eldritch are unable to contain. And according to Lord Terra''ka, such an instance has only happened once in the past. The last group of Humans were much better at rooting out Xerath corruption you see, but my Lord isn''t actually sure of how they did it. He said that he didn''t pay attention to them back then."

    We all looked at Lunaria. In response she threw up her hands and said, "Don''t look at me! I wasn''t alive back then. Belfos was but good luck getting that sentient rock to stop and talk to you."

    I raised my hand, "Just to make sure I''m following this. Mother told all the Eldritch in charge of the wellsprings to initiate a ''purge'' which will wipe out what exactly? Everyone?"

    Lunaria nodded with a smile still plastered onto her face, "Amazingly ruthless, right? It''s a last resort but not one that really bothers her all that much. They have plenty of Humans and Hybrids on Mother ready to repopulate all of the moons and planets after the corruption on them has been reduced back to zero."

    "Wait! Is that why everything is so unknown on the Elven continent? Because everyone was systematically wiped out and replaced by people who knew nothing? But then why are there only ruins up there and not everywhere else?"

    "There were ruins... Kind of?" Alicia cut in, "I asked my Lord the same question and he said that everything built on the heavenly bodies surrounding Mother all remain intact after the purge. It''s just that the time delay between the purge, removing the corruption, and then repopulation; takes a long time. So by the time people are colonizing everything again, most of the buildings look ancient and are falling apart. But as to why the Elven continent is the only place with super technology and deadly machines running around everywhere, your guess is as good as mine."

    "I..." Euphemia trailed off. I looked over at her and noticed she looked just as terrified as the day Ishar explained about the broodling in her region. "I really need to make sure I fully understand this part, okay? We''re going to be fine so long as the current wellspring owner declines the purge? Is that allowed? Mother will just shrug and give up if Aresa says ''no''?"

    "Probably not." Lunaria said while laughing.

    Alicia sighed, "Please stop jesting Miss Lunaria. Euphie looks absolutely terrified right now." Alicia looked at Euphemia, "Don''t worry, we won''t die. In the event we say no, Mother will send the most powerful Eldritch residing on her to Aetheria, where they will personally deal with the corruption here. She won''t be happy taking resources away from the Eldritch invasion of Gaia, but she''ll do it regardless of how she feels."

    "Whoa hang on, I just realized something else. If the Xerath corruption is to be rooted out, does that mean they''ll be wiping out the Xel''nethra?"

    Aresa and Euphemia looked at me in shock but I noticed that the question had wiped the smile off of Lunaria''s face.

    Lunaria said, "No, they won''t. Mother has deemed his nation ''not a problem''. She didn''t elaborate but after I took some time to think about it, I think I understand why she and Meiza''thul are fine with what he''s doing. You see, the Xerath corruption is an issue because their Gods keep all of the Humanoid souls for themselves. But Viktor barely uses any souls to sustain the ones he is using. He may feed some of his enemies to the Gods he controls, but apparently he has it setup so they constantly drain the souls of everyone in his region. It''s nowhere near enough to hurt them, let alone kill them. And when people do die, Meiza''thul still gets the soul."

    I wonder if he knew about this beforehand...? That seems unlikely though, so my best guess is that the overly cautious Viktor was probably just making sure that Mother understood he wasn''t a threat. And that he would continue to feed souls to the Eldritch regardless of whether he used Xerath or not.

    Aresa clapped her hands, "Okay, I''ve heard enough! I''m going to say no and then Mother will do... Whatever, who cares? Was this really an emergency? We can figure this out later, assuming there even is more to learn at this point. And as for the here and now, we need to leave!"

    Aresa ran out of the room. I could hear her feet hitting the hallway carpet as she sprinted for the main doors.

    Alicia smiled awkwardly at me, "It must have been quite a shock seeing the new her. Are you used to it yet?"

    "I am, but I have something else I need to talk to you about, so I''m glad you''re here."

    Alicia motioned toward the door and stood up, so I did the same. We walked into the hallway as Euphie and Lunaria began to discuss the upcoming summit.

    "I heard a little from Aresa earlier, she was talking to me through the fairies about you. I was shocked to hear that you were with Ishar. We all assumed he had died back in Viseux. And that''s who you wanted to talk about, right?"

    "Yes. He talked about his family back on his homeworld. Do you know anything about them? I know at this point he is probably just some colleague you had from the past, but for me I''d like to do right by him if I could. Not that I have any money yet, but I''m sure I could send something their way with a message that explained what happened to him."

    We walked out the mansion''s main doors and continued heading north. So the meeting takes place near the sea?

    "Don''t say that, Rei. That cranky Crotian warrior may be ancient history at this point for me, but I do still remember him fondly. He was my first mentor after all. And I figured out over time that his aggressive attitude wasn''t a front or done out of disgust for us. It''s just who he was." She continued, "I don''t specifically know where his family is, but I know who would. After I''m done here, with you know what, I''ll go back and tell them to send a message to his family. Just make sure you write it all down for me before then."

    "I''ll do it tonight after the meeting. I won''t have much to do for the next couple of days after all."

    Alicia smiled and then went silent. We walked like that all the way until we reached a building next to the sea that was three stories tall and clearly not the kind of place anyone in the middle class would be able to visit.

    From there we passed through several checks with guards before finally entering the a large room with a circular table in the middle. There were two dozen seats around it and aside from the guards and servants, Aresa was the only person here.

    She had her eyes closed and probably didn''t want to be bothered at this point. Plus we had all said what needed to be said already. So Alicia and I walked to the wall behind her and sat down next to it. Alicia entered her soul realm, while I chose to just sit there and do nothing. I silently watched the room, waiting for meeting to commence.

    <hr>

    "Good to see you again, Jorgum!"

    "You as well, Yulaf!"

    Greetings like that had been going on for a while now as more and more people filed into the room. At this point I had stood up and was waiting to the left of Aresa''s seat for Viktor to show up.

    One group after another entered the room, but not him. And it was now getting to the point that the ''large'' room was starting to feel quite small. That''s how many people had entered it in the past two hours.

    Ah... There he is.

    Viktor entered the room with several other people in tow. One brown skinned woman who I assumed was Vi. And two guards that were wearing much better power armor than the last time I had seen them. How the hell did they get those...? And I see that the werewolf is still using Ishar''s spear.

    The werewolf spotted me first. At first there was a blank expression on his face as his mind tried to process what he was seeing, and from there it slowly turned into a mix of confusion and terror. Not long after that he pointed at me and said something to the others.

    At this point Viktor was smiling as he was greeting the people around him. But whatever the werewolf said had clearly drawn his attention. His smile disappeared as he looked at the werewolf for a second before following the trajectory of his finger.

    Amazingly, the emotions on his face played out almost exactly the same way as the werewolf''s did.

    Another bigwig approached him and he quickly put a smile on his face before telling them he''d be right back. He then looked at me again as he began to walk my way with his arms out at his side.

    Once he stopped in front of me he said, "How is this possible...?"

    "You left my head intact, idiot. That''s how I came back the first time too after the goblins dug me out of the rubble following Xelba''s collapse." I continued, "Thanks for burying me by the way. It made reviving and disappearing much easier." I don''t know if he actually buried me, but he is sentimental about the weirdest things, so I bet he did.

    "She''s a damned zombie?! I told you we should have cremated her!" The werewolf yelled at the other guard who seemed entirely uninterested in what was happening in front of him.

    "Are you really Reimia...?" The lady asked, causing me to look at her and smile.

    "Hello again, Vi. I''m glad to see you made up with your Father! Looks like that ''I''ll never forgive you'' scream of yours came to nothing."

    Vi winced and looked down.

    "Tsk, she just saw the bigger picture in the end, fool." Viktor rubbed his temples, "Goblins huh... Annoying little green rats. But it makes sense. They definitely would have been interested in everything left behind after Xelba was destroyed."

    In the event he does manage to kill me again, hopefully he only cremates me. But odds are he''ll have my soul destroyed this time. He''s too cautious not to do that. Even so, it was worth making him think he just needs to destroy my head or body to finish me off. There''s still a very low chance he''ll do that instead.

    "You''re here to support that girl from Urza I assume. Are you actually a citizen of Termia as well? It''s only a matter of time before I own this place, so it looks like you''ll be working under me again."

    "Very funny asshole. I''m just passing through on my way to Arcadia. I have a feeling I''ll find people there who will be more than happy to assist me when I tell them I''m trying to kill you."

    Viktor shrugged, "Good luck with that. You were only a kid while you were there so you were never able to spend time with the ''adults'' of that society. They''re a bunch of self absorbed elitist whose only passion in life is sending people off to die so they can increase their own clans strength. Lording themselves above one another is the only reason they exist." He continued, "I''m sure you''ll find a few who hate me even now, all these years later. But they''ll never set foot outside of Caedrus, nor will they bother sending anything or anyone down here to kill me. If they were able to do that, they would''ve done it long ago. No, Rei. You won''t use them to kill me. Because those fools don''t know or care about anything outside of their own continent, Caedrus."

    "Then how the hell did you get those? Those are clearly not knock-off power armors like the ones they were wearing the last time we met."

    "Indeed." Viktor said with a smirk before knocking his fist against one of the guards armors, "These are the real deal. But we obviously couldn''t get them through trade or theft. No, I had to go another route, and I''m not going to tell you what it was. I apparently can''t get rid of you, so it''d be a very bad idea for me to tell you anything more than this."

    I''ll still need to visit a temple to confirm, but I might as well ask him this just in case.

    "One last question then. What happened to the branded warriors of Arkaios who were with me in Xethra?"

    "The hell kind of dumb question is that? They''re in Gaia. How could you not know that? Lord Arkaios gave up on this realm long ago. I understand why he thinks it''d be smarter to build his influence from Gaia before coming back out here, but I don''t think it''ll be that easy. The people of Gaia have vastly different priorities from the people of the real world."

    ''Lord'' Arkaios, huh? And what he''s saying does line up with one of the possibilities I had considered, but I''ll need to make sure all the same.

 Chapter 79 - Collapse

    Aresa looked to her left, where Viktor and I were conversing nearby, "I see you''re still alive... How unfortunate. I hoped that your pets would have eaten you by now."

    Viktor smirked, "Now now Lady Aresa, there''s no need for you to worry about me like that. I can guarantee you that my ''pets'' will never turn on me."

    "Wait... I finally realized what was missing the last time I saw you. And I see that he''s still not here with you." I motioned behind him, "Where the hell is Ash? I guess it makes sense that he wasn''t with you before, since you were rushing to meet your daughter, but there''s no way that little brown noser wouldn''t be here at your side at such an important meeting."

    "......."

    The disgust on Viktor''s face couldn''t possibly be more evident as he stared at me. Eventually though, his face morphed into one that almost looked sad.

    "Outside of my close confidants you''re the only person left in the world who would even know that name... I didn''t think anyone would ever ask me about him." Viktor sighed and continued, "I shouldn''t say anything, but on some level it almost feels refreshing to tell you. To put it bluntly, the little shit turned on me. Everything was fine one moment, and the next thing I knew he was trying to kill me. I never saw it coming. Me! Me of all people didn''t see it coming! And even now I still can''t get my head wrapped around it..."

    The first thing that came to my mind was the Abyss monster burrowed into Victoria''s head.

    "This may seem like a random follow up, but how much have you learned about the Abyss?"

    "I know why you''re suddenly asking about them, but they aren''t the reason he suddenly changed. I have much better soul scanners than any of you do, and I''m sure you understand what I mean by that?" Viktor said.

    The Xerath. Having a God attuned to him would make it child''s play to scan people''s souls. But Aresa might even match a Xerathian God when it comes to soul magic, and she only picked up on something weird inside of Victoria one time. Viktor really needed to check the inside of Ash''s head to know for certain, but I''m not going to tell him that.

    For starters, I relish the idea that Ash is a puppet to some monstrosity(assuming this is even true). And two, I don''t want Viktor to know that we have the same issue here. Would there be ramifications to him knowing that? I don''t know, but I''d prefer to convene with the others before dropping information bombs like that. Plus, if Viktor was able to fully examine Ash, he would have. So there must have been something that stopped him after Ash turned ''traitor''. But again, that depends on whether he really is being controlled by the Abyss.

    Honestly, it''s really strange that they didn''t examine Victoria from head to toe the second she changed. At the very least Lunaria should have done more than shrug it off... People being overly lazy is already a problem in itself, but seeing an Eldritch God be just as lazy and uncaring as Humans is... Well, I''m not sure what it is. Annoying? Ridiculous? Either way, it shouldn''t have happened.

    "Oh, that''s right. We should probably talk about that, Lady Aresa." Viktor looked back at Aresa, "I''m sure you''ve heard about the purge? If you were planning on hiding it during the meeting, don''t bother. I plan on telling everyone about it."

    Aresa narrowed her eyes at Viktor, "I wasn''t planning on hiding anything regarding the purge, because it doesn''t matter. I own the wellspring, and I don''t plan on listening to Mother. So as a result the only thing that will happen is the Eldritch on Mother coming here to kill all of the Xerath and any Demons hiding on Aetheria." She continued, "Are they really going to leave you alone? You reduced Urza to nothing! Rei said it''s completely empty aside from that ''Jericho'' place."

    "Oh they definitely reprimanded me for that. On top of Urza, I have two other moons that I''ve purely been using for material gains. Fuel, crystals, ores of all kinds... It''s amazing when I think about how difficult it was to obtain everything back in Xelba, but now that the very sky itself is on my side, well... Let''s just say I''m going to sorely miss owning those moons. They are a mountain of wealth that never stops giving. But Mother, who barely said anything according to the Eldritch who reached out to me, made it a point to tell me that I need to allow them to repopulate those moons. It''s a shame, but I''m not about to turn all of the abominations slumbering on Mother against me. Even I am not that brazen." Viktor said.

    "Viktor, did you know about this beforehand? Hearing about the purge was honestly shocking for me, because suddenly everything on Caedrus began to make much more sense. It always seemed so weird that the entire continent is filled with ruins but there isn''t any information as to who lived there or where they went. Aside from whatever they get from dives of course."

    "I didn''t know about the purge until two days ago, but does it really tell us anything? You''re right about it revealing why everyone suddenly disappeared, but that''s about it. And you''re also wrong about one other thing. They do have information regarding the previous residents of Caedrus and Arcadia, they just can''t access it. They know exactly where the access keys and codes are for the information, it literally says where they are on the network, but they can''t get to them."

    Viktor chuckled, "Heh, I never thought about it until now, but you''d actually be the perfect person to go get them. I lose nothing by telling you this, because again, even if you do go to the Western side of Caedrus and pilfer the keys from those lands teeming with powerful machines that could easily wipe out my entire nation if they came for me, the Elves will still not assist you. They will however bury you in wealth and fame, enough to outfit a small army with high grade power armor, but it still won''t be enough to kill me. Actually, I''d love for you to go retrieve those keys for them. As much as I hate those people, I can''t deny the part of my soul that is dying to know the secrets of Caedrus. The machines and of our origins, Earth."

    "Earth..." I heard Aresa whisper. Looking over at her, I saw her eyes brimming with excitement, just like they were back on the wagon to Thule all those years ago.

    Several bells rang throughout the city, which indicated that it was time. Everyone in the room headed for their designated chairs around the table, Viktor included. Vi took one last glance at me before taking her place behind her Father, while I walked to the wall behind Aresa and leaned against it next to Alicia. That''s when the doors opened again, revealing Euphemia and her ''husband'', the Supreme Leader. At least seventy percent of the room began to clap for him as the two of them walked to their seats which just so happened to be next to Viktor. Behind her there was a maid who looked familiar. Oh! That''s the maid from back in Kellog. Her brother is the one who deciphered Fin''s diary. So she''s still serving Euphie huh... Good thing Shana and I brought her to the manor back then.

    After that a long drawn out boring discussion took place. One that was important, I wasn''t denying that, it''s just that I was used to noble speak, also known as ''politics''. A lot of words were exchanged but they didn''t actually have any substance behind them. It felt like they were trying to hit a word limit on a novel but they ran out of ideas, so they just began to re-iterate the same thing with different phrases over and over to pad the word count.

    Plus, it''s not like any of this mattered. Either the assassination succeeds and Termia is given plenty of time to take out the dissidents surrounding them before Viktor''s nation heals from the Xerath under his control that are bound to attack everything and anything after he dies, or it fails and Viktor will undoubtedly be openly backed by everyone after he was attacked at a supposedly ''safe'' meeting.

    And I personally have a hard time believing that the Xerath really will turn openly hostile after their master is slain. I know it''s Viktor''s ability keeping them under his control, but will it really be that easy? People can teach other''s their own abilities after all. They just choose not to, since it could take forever and why would you spread around the one thing that makes you unique? But I''d bet anything he taught it to Vi or his wife... Which means the Xerath will follow them next if he dies.

    <hr>

    The bells began to ring again, this time signifying the end of the meeting. One by one everyone stood up and began to head for the exit while continuing to talk to one another.

    Alicia stretched and looked over at me, "I really prefer being with the Lizardmen or Crotians... They''re so straightforward and easy to follow. You always know what they''re thinking and what they''re going to do. None of... Whatever this was."

    "A couple of more days and you''ll be back home. Do you even have anything to do back there though? If this ''purge'' is happening, then Zhegu is about to fix itself, right?"

    Alicia sighed, "That''s what Lord Terra''ka said, so all of his forces have been pulled back to his realm. The Xerath and Demons are battling each other everywhere now as they both vie for control of Zhegu. But even with my Lord saying the purge going to happen, I have a hard time believing it until I see it. After battling hordes of monsters for years on end, it''s really difficult to accept someone showing up and saying ''You know those monsters you''ve been fighting for half your life? Don''t worry about them anymore, they''re all about to die anyway''."

    That would put me in a weird mindset as well, so I don''t blame her for being dubious or annoyed.

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Aresa poked my stomach, "You going home? I''m gonna go straight back to the chapel so I can eat and pass out... While channeling into the wellspring of course."

    "That''s the plan. This is all so dull for me---Oh, how is uh... Your friend?"

    Aresa gave me a thumbs up, "She''s good! Xi destroyed her ailment. So we don''t have to worry about that anymore. But for now we left her as she is. After the summit Xi will release her ability and then I''ll pray she can mentally come back from uh..."

    There''s still people around so he had to be vague, but I understood what she was saying. I put my hand on her head and ruffled her hair. This time however, she didn''t get upset.

    Once everyone was out of the room, Benny appeared. The second he walked through the door Aresa ran out of the room, causing Benny to sigh as he ran to catch up to her.

    "Where are you staying?"

    "Euphie''s mansion, but honestly I don''t like it there. It reminds me too much of the past but not in a good way, you know? Don''t get me wrong, I love Euphie, but that place..." Alicia trailed off.

    "Heh, I get it. I did feel odd in there as well. So do you want to stay at my place then? There''s only one bed but it''s really big."

    "I''d love that! I don''t need to grab anything from Euphie''s, I can just go there in the morning to shower before attending another one of these boring meetings."

    "Perfect then, so let''s go. I''ve long since grown tired of this room."

    We proceeded to leave the building and head back the way we originally came. Unlike before, the northern district was now completely packed. The stands had people lined up everywhere with people yelling back and forth. Apparently people haggle for goods here, but from what I could see you''re not only fighting with the stand owner. The people waiting for you are yelling at you as well. The whole spectacle was making me laugh more than it should have.

    "Oh, just in case, I wanted to tell you that you made the right decision. I mean when you stopped teleporting to Aresa''s chateau to check for me."

    Alicia smiled, "You thought I may have been hurt by that decision huh? Well, you''re not wrong, it wasn''t an easy decision to make, and Aresa hated me for years because of it, but it had to be done." She continued, "Out of curiosity... How many years did I miss you by?"

    "Just one year... I think? Or was it two? I''d have to look through my memories again to know for certain, but it was pretty close. However, even if you were still going to the chateau every year, I still would have left, making your ensuing trip pointless. I needed to find Ishar, Shana, and Nisha after all. Just sitting there in the chateau waiting for you wasn''t an option."

    We continued walking through the the city until we finally came upon the bridge leading to my home. Halfway over the bridge I pointed at Petey and said, "That''s my summon. Pretty neat, right? He''s a powerhouse with that sword on the ground next to him."

    "More like scary as hell... So this is what your summons look like? I didn''t get to see them last time, and I''ve only heard about that attack you did on Viktor''s town. I couldn''t bring myself to watch the footage of it."

    "Oh right, I forgot you had to warp away as I joined the Tengu battle. I remember seeing your hair burst into flames, it was pretty wild looking..."

    "That hurt like hell!! The second I appeared in Euphie''s manor I ran into the nearest bathroom and jumped into the tub. Then I just laid there running cold water over my head for an hour while healing myself. I was praying you guys were okay, but I couldn''t move because of all the damned pain."

    We walked past Petey and into my home. I immediately turned the TV on and jumped into the bed. "Normally I bathe at night, but I don''t feel like doing it right now. I''ll do it in the morning as well. Not that I really need to bathe all that often, it just feels good to do."

    Alicia took her shoes off and laid down on the bed to my right, "I''m exhausted despite doing nothing all day long. It''s not even night yet, but I think I''m going to go to sleep. That okay with you?"

    "That''s fine. I''m just going to train in my soul realm then. I found something in the memories of the thing that created me, a large humanoid creature with a red and black halo and a set of wings behind him that had the same colors. I''ve been trying to unlock the wings, but nothing so far."

    "I heard about your halo but I haven''t seen it yet. Wings huh... If you do get them, I''d be careful using them if you can''t turn invisible while they''re out. There''s a reason anything that can fly usually only does it in large packs."

    Because you''re a sitting duck up there, that''s also been worrying me. If the wings also use my veil then I don''t know how often I''ll even be able to use them. There''s too many people and monsters with ranged abilities in our world. Which is why I''m worried about the upcoming plan to kill Viktor. It hinges on the ability to hit those airships. The ones in Xethra were so high up it almost looked like they were about to exit the atmosphere. But the ones in Telebron are low enough that I might be able to jump on them. For Viktor to be that brazen he must be positive that they can''t be destroyed.

    Alicia closed her eyes, and soon after that I did the same as well. Once I was inside my soul realm I began yet another day of training, trying to imagine the same colored wings behind me that the man had.

    <hr>

    While I was training I could see Alicia suddenly sit up on the monitor, and not only that, but everything was shaking as if there were an earthquake. What the hell?

    I immediately exited my soul realm and Alicia yelled at me, "Is this normal?! I don''t remember hearing about earthquakes in Termia before! Zhegu has them all over, but not here I thought!"

    "I don''t know! Nobody told me to look out for earthquakes either!"

    I grabbed the scythe and jumped out of the bed before running outside with Alicia in tow. The men fishing by the river had all backed up and were trying to steady themselves against the wall my home was connected to. Alicia ran up to the two brothers who I always saw fishing outside my door. They had long since become used to seeing Petey around.

    "Does this happen often here?!" Alicia asked them.

    "N-No! We''ve never had an earthquake here before!" One of the brothers yelled.

    And that''s when I began to hear the cracking. I could feel the dread seeping into my thoughts as a dormant memory resurfaced. This was the very same sound I heard while I was chasing Viktor underneath Xelba.

    Petey, let''s go! We''re running to Aresa''s side!

    "Alicia, we''re going to the chapel!"

    Without waiting to hear if she had anything to say, Petey and I bounded up the steps to the bridge and turned left before running full speed ahead to the chapel. The shaking slowly subsided the closer we got to the chapel, telling me that whatever was happening, was happening over by the central district.

    The knights were out at the front gate but this time they didn''t erect a barrier as I arrived. I stopped near the knights just in time to see Kai come running out of the chapel.

    "Rei!! What the hell is happening?!" Kai yelled as he ran over to me and the knights.

    Alicia lost her footing and nearly fell down but Kai caught her just in time.

    "T-Thank you..."

    {Ah! R-Rei, this is bad! Mom and all of the fairies have just woken up, including me. S-Something knocked us out but Belfos managed to wake us up!}

    "We have more problems. The fairy inside of me says that all of the fairies, Lunaria included, had been knocked out until just now. Belfos had to wake them up."

    Kai''s face almost turned white after I finished speaking. But he quickly slapped himself and told us to quickly follow him.

    As we began to run behind him, I immediately understood what I was going to find. Lunaria was tied to the wellspring and had been knocked out, so that meant the current owner of the wellspring was probably...

    We ran through multiple hallways until we reached a large door that Benny was standing outside of. His usual lazy attitude was completely gone. He stood at the ready looking back and forth, making sure no enemies were approaching.

    He merely nodded at us as we ran through the door. Xi heard us approach the bed and turned to look at us with tears in her eyes.

    "R-Rei, she won''t wake up! Her soul is still there but it feels like it''s slowly disappearing!"

    Oh god no, this is even worse than I expected...

    "Xi, can you put her in one of your stasis crystals?"

    "I can, but that will only delay whatever is happening to her..."

    Kai looked at me, "Are you merely seeking a delay to figure things out, or do you have a plan of some sort? I assume the former."

    "No, it''s the latter. This earthquake is obviously related to whatever just happened with the wellspring, and if her soul is disappearing, then she''s probably.... She''s probably dying. I don''t know what happened yet, but we need you to put her in stasis Xi. At this point there''s only one thing we can do. We need to take her to Gaia."

    "Gaia... Oh!" Color returned to Kai''s face, as he quickly realized what I had planned. And Xi must have as well because she immediately began to channel onto Aresa.

    That was when we heard something crashing behind us, and it was loud. Everyone was covering their ears, me included, but it barely blocked out whatever the hell was happening in the city.

    Around thirty seconds later the sound eventually died down. Alicia was the first to move, as she quickly ran up to the window before wrapping herself in an electrified barrier. "I''ll keep an eye on the windows to make sure nothing approaches her. Rei, can you find out what is happening on the other side of the city? And try to see if Euphie is safe. Oh, and also check on Cera and her son, since they were preparing to take down Viktor''s airships, but that plan is obviously canceled."

    Shit, that''s right. Artorus and his Father were going to mask Cera''s aura while she slowly charged her gun on the third day. With Lunaria''s help and the wellspring added on, everyone was positive that they could break through the airships defenses and destroy them one by one.

    The plan wasn''t about preventing Viktor for warping to his airships, it was about downright destroying them. Apparently Viktor''s ships have sensors designed to keep watch for such attacks by sounding the alarm for any spikes in aura, but Cera''s husband and son both have the same ability that would hide her as she channeled her mana. She just needed to do it slowly. The plan was still a little iffy since his airship made mana attacks miss, it didn''t block them with a barrier unless it had to. Even so, Cera was certain his ships couldn''t deflect a blast as big as hers, but there was no way of knowing until she actually fired on the ships. They had a few backup plans in place as well, but like she just said, they''re now useless.

    "I''ll go with you. Benny, Alicia, and Xi can handle anything that comes this way." Kai said.

    Unsure of whether he should stay or not, I didn''t bother voicing any opposition to him coming. I turned around and ran back the way we had entered. Once we were outside of the chapel it wasn''t hard to figure out what had made that loud noise. A large portion of the central district and some of the northern district had completely collapsed underground. From where we were, I couldn''t see if the western district had collapsed as well, but Kai must have feared the worse, because he immediately enhanced himself and sprinted toward what little remained of the central district.

    "How is this possible?!" He yelled out as I ran behind him, "I''ve always been told that they only build cities on top of ground that can''t be destroyed!"

    Not always, but I assume Telebron was definitely one of those cities. Especially since the wellspring was here. I swear I was told that the ground beneath Xelba was invincible too, but the city still collapsed anyway. And I never did figure out what caused it...

    While we were running multiple different events happened at once. The first was Viktor''s airships all falling to the ground lifelessly as if they had suddenly lost power all at once. Next, was all of the Xerath climbing out of the collapsed portion of the ground. The city was already filled with screaming as it was, but as the Xerath flooded the streets screaming had now become the only thing I could hear.

    And lastly, there was a massive black claw digging into the eastern district as something pulled itself above ground. The claw was surrounded in a golden flame, the same flame I saw inside Victoria''s mirror.

 Chapter 80 - Taken

    "Shit!! Over half of the western district is collapsed!" Kai yelled at me as we finally got a good look at the central and western district.

    My first thought was to locate Cera''s family and Euphie so I could quickly return to the chapel, because staying here and defending this place would clearly be a horrible choice. The closer we got toward the hole in the center of Telebron, the more I realized just how big that clawed hand was that''s still digging into the ground.

    Fortunately, it''s taking a while to come above ground, but at this distance I could see that just one of its nails is bigger than me, so I wasn''t all that keen on engaging the massive abomination in combat. And even without whatever the hell that was climbing up to our level, the amount of Xerath pouring into the city wasn''t something I was all that interested in dealing with. The horde of grunts aside, there was also an ungodly amount of pact leaders running around as well. Petey and I have a lot more mana now so beating them would be much easier compared to before, but this was still too risky of a battle to take part in with so many unknowns.

    We really need to regroup and figure out what to do next before anything else. And it''s not like---Ah shit, there goes Kai. He''s running into the northern district but he didn''t say where he''s going. And I''m going to assume it''s not to find Euphie, but to wrap around toward the western district and go help his people. I don''t blame him for wanting to help them, but now I have to do everything myself damnit... I really hope Euphie was at home when all of this began. Otherwise, I''ll have to find her with the Chimera''s ability; which is going to be an absolute nightmare to use in all of this mayhem.

    I reached the central district and stopped about thirty meters away from the clawed hand. Dozens of Xerath began to run at me but I wasn''t even looking at them as Petey attacked them. Instead, I was looking at the downed airships. They had crashed on the southern side of the central district. One of them landed directly on a bunch of residential buildings and I could see flames consuming everything around it.

    The other one however had gone down in the middle of the street. It was still bigger than the street though, so as a result the front and back sides of it ripped through the buildings on both sides of the road. But what really interested me was the group of people gathering outside the downed airship. There was around one hundred citizens hiding behind Viktor''s men who were engaging the Xerath swarm while Viktor''s group channeled onto his daughter, Vi. A few seconds later she disappeared and then Viktor immediately took her place at the center of the group.

    They''re not warping back home, that''s definitely too far, even for him. So it has to be a location they marked on the way here to use in case of emergencies. Fortunately for me, I might be able to make something of this... I don''t know if I''ll have time to hunt him down, seeing as he probably has more airships on reserve waiting something in Termia, but either way it won''t hurt to try and hit him with that lightning sphere.

    Petey, keep them busy here.

    I activated my halo and jumped on top of a nearby building. Once my feet hit the roof, I jumped from one roof to another until I was in range of Viktor. There were a few guards from Telebron nearby who only gave me a passing glance when they saw me drop to my knees. More than likely they assumed I was supporting them against the Xerath, but that was obviously the wrong call. Not that it matters. I''ll disappear the moment I finish casting this.

    It took about ten seconds to channel the lightning sphere to its max, and in that time Viktor''s guards had pointed me out to him. He only took one glance at me and flicked me off before going back to his meditation. By all means, dismiss me asshole.

    From there I waited while focusing solely on Viktor. I wasn''t sure if the sphere would lose its target if I didn''t fire it before he disappeared, so I needed to time it perfectly. The time delay between the warp on Vi activating and her disappearing was less than a second, so I didn''t have much time to work with.

    Every now and then one of Viktor''s guards would have a split second to attack me before engaging another Xerath, and they''d use that moment to take a quick potshot at me. A few of them hit me, but I ignored them and continued to focus on Viktor and only Viktor. Although, I did notice that the Telebron guards to my right were panicking a little as they realized I was channeling a spell on Viktor''s group as they shot at me in retaliation. But they were busy keeping Xerath off of the roof so they had no time to stop me even if they wanted to.

    The moment I had been waiting for finally arrived as another one of the guard''s bullets hit me. I saw Viktor''s body begin to distort and I immediately fired the sphere. The large sphere was blindingly bright at first as it appeared in front of me, but it didn''t take long for it to put some distance between us as it turned left to chase after its target.

    Wow, it actually worked... This felt like a long shot because the idea of any targeted ability remaining on target after they moved tens of miles away sounded ridiculous in theory, but it''s clearly chasing after him. Ahh, I''m so disappointed that I won''t be there in person to see how much damage the sphere does when it finally hits him.

    I released the halo and turned invisible before making my way back to Petey. I was halfway there when Luna put another white dot on the right side of my vision. Except this one was much brighter and even had an audio cue that sounded like a ping.

    {Rei, hurry back to the chapel! Mom says they''re under attack!}

    By who?! The Xerath haven''t made it that far yet, so... The Abyss?

    {I don''t know, just hurry!}

    Well shit, so much for stealthily looking for Euphie and Cera. All I can do now is pray that they''re okay on their own...

    I drop my veil and put the halo back up while casting a quick glance at Petey. He was already leaping back toward the chapel while cutting down any Xerath who approached him. Good work, Petey. Keep doing that until I call for you or you reach the chapel.

    Reaching the end of the buildings I jumped down onto the road and immediately sprinted toward the chapel. There weren''t any Xerath along the way, but I did sense something else jump out of a nearby home directly at me. Or to be more precise, it was heading straight for where I was going to be if I continued running at my current speed.

    I stopped in my tracks and looked up at my attacker. Instantly, I recognized it as the many-faced harlequin creature(or God, I still wasn''t sure if him and the black goo were merely spawn) from Xethra. It''s probably here to get revenge after I punched it through a wall back in Victoria''s room. And considering its speed, this sneak attack might have actually worked before I absorbed all of those pack leader souls.

    The Abyssal creature was still mid-air as it turned to look at me; it''s face changing from one of delight to anger. Before it hit the ground in front of me I put enough power into my legs to leap all the way to the chapel, and just as he was about to land I leaped forward and grabbed a hold of him. His face turned to one of surprise as I flipped him over so his head was aimed directly down toward the ground. He quickly realized what I was doing, but no matter how hard he struggled he couldn''t break free of the hold I had on him.

    He began yelling at me in that disgusting Abyssal language but I listened to none of it as we approached the temple. I saw the stone pathways for only a moment before we landed, and as we did I put a large amount of power into my arms and legs before driving him deep into the pathway.

    I took one quick glance at the creature as I ran into the chapel to make sure he wasn''t moving. All I could see was his legs from the knees down sticking up out of the stone. They weren''t moving, so that was good enough for me. Petey, when you arrive at the chapel, cut this creature''s legs off.

    I ran into the temple and made my way through the corridors until I reached Aresa''s room. Once inside I found nobody but there were obvious signs of combat. The entire wall had been blown off, which was worrying since I was pretty sure the chapel was reinforced, which meant that whoever destroyed the wall had a tremendous amount of power.

    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    Luna, is this pinging white dot where Aresa''s group is?

    {Yes! The ping is Aresa''s soul. I can sense Xi with her, but Benny and Alicia are far behind them. All four of them are moving at a high speed away from Telebron.}

    Change of plans, Petey. Ignore the Xerath and sprint back this way; only stopping for a second to cut that creature''s legs off. After that, follow me toward the east.

    I ran through the broken wall and turned east. The chapel wasn''t the last building in the eastern district, but everything behind it was one massive cemetery until you reached the high city walls that surrounded the eastern district.

    In Petey''s vision I saw him cut the Abyssal creature''s legs off just as I began to run up the cities walls. On the way I could see mud-covered clawed foot prints all over the wall that were clearly new. Crotian feet... Wonderful. Aresa said their God was dead, so there''s only one other God left who they would be supporting. Unless they began to worship the Abyss with their ancient ancestors.

    Once I reached the top of the wall I jumped all the way down onto the ground and immediately sprinted toward the white light. I have more than enough mana now to handle drops like those. No point in saving up mana to avoid fall damage.

    A few moments later I heard something heavy smash into the ground behind me. Looking through his eyes, I confirmed it was Petey catching up to me. Now him I would have preferred took the safe route. But oh well, we''ll regain the mana along the way.

    <hr>

    About five minutes later I ran up alongside two people who were running through the open plains.

    "Okay you two, what the hell happened? Luna only knew that you were attacked. And why is there so much blood on you when I didn''t see any bodies back there? Is Xi okay?"

    Benny and Alicia looked absolutely horrible. The top left side of Benny''s armor was completely gone; as if something had ripped it cleanly off. And Alicia was covered in blood(Benny had plenty on him as well, but nowhere near as much as her).

    Alicia turned her head a little and looked at me, "You caught up fast! Benny said that the fairies would warn you, but we thought it''d take you an hour to catch up so we ran a little slower."

    "So you can''t beat whoever it is without me? Just how many of them were there?"

    "A dozen, but they were powerful. Benny said that the Nei''lah''s army has squads of twelve who handle important missions, and I can confirm that they were both powerful and experienced."

    Benny cut in, "We killed two of them, but their bodies disintegrated the moment they died."

    Interesting ability... That''s one way of making sure your men don''t leave any evidence behind.

    "They moved fast and efficiently, Rei." Alicia sighed, "It''s unlikely that we can beat them even with you and your pet here. I say that because they''re running far faster than the speed I can run at while retaining my mana. Even if we floor it, I''d bet anything that they already have allies on the way, or maybe they already rendezvoused with them."

    "So what''s the plan then? I assume you''ve already figured out that Rai''ga is the instigator, which means that I can''t just stealth in and steal the two of them away. And it won''t be long before we''re in range of his vision, which means we''ll probably be attacked multiple times before we even reach him. Lastly, it probably goes without saying, but even if we managed to fight him alone without interference from the Crotia; killing Rai''ga with just the four of us is going to be extremely difficult."

    "Impossible is a more fitting word." Benny said.

    "Is Lunaria sending help?" Alicia asked.

    Well, Luna?

    {She can''t, I''ve already asked---Wait.}

    I ran forward silently as Alicia stared at me, waiting for a response. Fortunately, it wasn''t long before an ecstatic sounding Luna spoke up again.

    {B-Belfos! Belfos is coming! He was patrolling the southern side of Termia and was returning to Telebron to assist the city, but once Aresa was kidnapped he changed course.}

    I''m glad he is, but why? Shouldn''t the city be more important to him?

    {Um, mom said long ago that Belfos is the guardian of the wellspring. So maybe he''s more focused on defending the person who currently controls it? Or controlled it...}

    "Surprisingly, I have good news. Belfos is coming to support us."

    Benny whipped his head in my direction, "Lord Belfos is coming to our aid?! But how is that possible...?"

    "Luna said it''s because he''s the guardian of the wellspring. In other words, his instincts are probably telling him to save the person who controls the wellspring. I don''t know if Aresa is still attuned to it, but she must be on some level since he''s ignoring the plight of the city to rescue her."

    Luna, do you know where Belfos is?

    {I think so. We can sense him when he''s near one of our caves, and he passed by one about ten minutes ago moving in Aresa''s direction. So um, if he continues like that, he''ll pass by a few more caves on the way. Which means when he passes by the next cave I''ll be able to figure out how long it''ll take him to reach Aresa. Unless the crocodile people speed up.}

    Even without her future math, it''s natural to assume that he''ll overtake us and reach Aresa long before we do. It''d be nice if he was able to save her all on his own, but I''m way too pessimistic to put much hope into that kind of future.

    <hr>

    {Rei, she stopped. And Belfos is about five minutes away from her. It looks like she is at the old Hroth fort. I only know the name and that it''s super old.}

    "She stopped and Luna says it was at a fort named ''Hroth''. Know anything about it, Benny?"

    Benny nodded his head while drinking from the water Alicia had given him a few minutes earlier. We had stopped running about twenty minutes away from Aresa because Luna said the Crotian''s were slowing down, which meant they were nearing their destination. That''s when Alicia decided that we should take a break(while pulling water bottles out of her soul realm, which was beyond impressive), since the two of them would prefer to be in top condition for the battle to come. I was fine after our three hour sprint, but the two Humans obviously needed a quick breather.

    Benny swallowed and finally said, "It''s an old fort that was manned up until about twenty years ago. Belfos kept killing any monsters or Eldritch that appeared out of the eastern mountains, so eventually the top brass just said ''fuck it'' and abandoned the fort. It cost a lot of money to maintain and man the place, but they were only killing one Eldritch every ten years. And it was clear that they didn''t even need to do that, since Belfos would do it for us anyway."

    "Interesting history lesson, but I meant is there anything you know about the fort that''d help us? Like where do you think Rai''ga is going to be? He''s around one hundred meters wide and seventy meters tall."

    "Oh lord, I am not looking forward to this..." Benny sighed, "The main courtyard is more than big enough to house him, and I really hope he''s there, because the alternative is the area directly underneath the fort. It''s one massive underground area with a three hundred meter gap between the ground and the fort."

    Alicia finished drinking and stood up, "You think he might be down there?"

    Benny stood up as well, "Yes. There are light crystals everywhere and there are also multiple ether crystals. The fort used them for power, but now that it''s decommissioned, I''m sure an Eldritch God would prefer to be down there where the air is infused with ether."

    Oh good, so that means he''ll have even more ether to use against us. This just keeps getting better and better.

    "... You think they''re still alive, Rei? Would Rai''ga absorb them right away?" Alicia asked. It was clear on her face just how worried she was.

    "He won''t absorb Aresa. According to Hyun he plans to use her as a conduit for the wellspring. However, it obviously won''t be Termia''s, since the Abyss somehow took it over. Which is something we really need to investigate in the future when we have the leeway to do so. But anyway, if Hyun wasn''t lying, then he''s probably going to take Aresa to another planet or moon and use her there." I continued, "The timing on the attack was a little too convenient, but he may have had that team waiting to go for weeks or months. I''m not sure how they avoided Lunaria''s surveillance network, but it''s clearly not impossible since the Abyss were operating inside of Telebron just fine up until now."

    {They''re hard to pinpoint! Their auras are weird, Rei. They''re all like, wavy and weird, and dissipate into more friendlier auras like Humans. So it''s not our fault...}

    Putting that aside, I purposely left Xi out of my response because I''m really worried about her... Alicia probably noticed that, but she''d understand why I didn''t bring her up. Rai''ga needs Aresa, but he doesn''t need Xi. Unless of course the stasis lasts forever without her manually removing it. That however, sounds very unlikely.

    Now that the two of them were rested, they began running toward the east again. I stood up and sprinted in that direction as well. Twenty minutes there, which means Belfos will be assaulting the fort for around fifteen minutes alone. A lot can happen in that amount of time...

    We ran in silence from there on out until we neared the fort so we could stay focused on our surroundings in case they tried ambushing us, but the only thing that happened along the way was Rai''ga''s vision over us disappearing about five minutes after we began moving again, which was probably the moment Belfos reached the fort.

    {Rei, I see it! And Belfos too!}

    I know, I do too. But it looks like he''s just standing outside the fort doing nothing?

    {His lords and spawn are swarming the fort while he saves his energy for the boss. This is how he always fights.}

    The amount of gunfire and explosions we had been hearing for a while now was worrying to say the least. I knew we''d be stepping into enemy territory, but even I was surprised at the sounds I was hearing. I figured Rai''ga only had some stragglers left over from the Nei''lah after its demise, but it sounded like there was a full army waiting for us up ahead.

 Chapter 81 - Raiga

    "Rei, what abilities do you have right now?!" Alicia yelled as we were halfway to Belfos. The explosions drowned out the last half of what she said, but I heard enough to know what she was asking.

    "There''s only one that may be useful in combat!"

    The sphere is the only combat related one I stole from Rodger''s squad, and sadly it''ll only be useful if Rai''ga tries running. I''ll be shocked if that happens, but it''s not a big deal. Assuming Petey and I can reach him, we''ll be able to do quite a bit of damage from enhanced attacks alone.

    {Rei, Belfos says to go here and wait for him before entering the underground chamber.}

    A white dot appeared somewhere on the right side of the fort.

    "Belfos relayed through the fairy some coordinates he wants us to go to!"

    "After you then!" Benny yelled in response.

    I turned hard to the right, running perpendicular to the fort.

    "We''re going away from the fort?!" I heard Alicia say as she followed behind me.

    Two of Belfos'' Lords began to ram into the left side of the fort, drowning out any other sound so I didn''t bother trying to respond to her.

    It''s fine, she''ll understand why I did this when we circle around toward the white dot. We really need to put some distance between us and the fort before we head for our destination. Running directly for it runs the risk of us getting hit by all of those heavy guns they''re firing. I don''t recognize those guns, but after seeing all of the fiery explosions they''re causing, I know that I don''t want to be in their firing range.

    Just as I felt we were far enough away and began to turn left, the light from Mother disappeared, leaving the world in a near pitch-black darkness. I could see torches and crystal lights activating all around the fort, but out in the plains where we were, it was extremely dark, which was perfect for us. And I had already checked in my soul realm multiple times to make sure my halo didn''t emit light. Every time it was merely red in the inner ring, so I didn''t need to worry about it giving away my position.

    "S-Sorry, Rei! I can barely see anything!" Alicia said after I felt something hard hit me in my back. So that was a rock she kicked into me? With my eyes I can still see the ground, but if her and Benny weren''t enhanced they''d probably struggle to stay standing considering how fast we''re running.

    Soon after that large crystal searchlights began to scour the eastern and northern plains outside the fort. The southern and western sides were being attacked by Belfos, so it was only natural they''d keep an eye on the other two sides to make sure there weren''t any more Lords of his attacking from other sides. This could be problematic for us though if these three are seen. All I know at this point is that there''s no chance these lights are going to hit me. I just hope Petey is agile enough to pull this off. He has more than enough mana, but he''s still bulky as all hell.

    I zigzagged back and forth through the field as the searchlights passed by the areas I had just occupied. The whole time I was waiting for one of the lights to come to a halt and quickly turn back toward us after catching sight of my companions, but they were apparently doing a great job of keeping up with me.

    We continued like that for until we reached the area Luna was guiding us toward. It was a pipe with a steel grate running under the fort. Luna, do you know where this leads? I know a little about architecture but this could be a sewer pipe for all I know.

    {I don''t, but Belfos said it''ll lead to Rai''ga, so...}

    Sewage or not, we gotta go then. But I''m not smelling anything like that so it''s probably just a culvert of some sort.

    I grab the grate and rip it off, causing a blue light to flare up and dissipate on the other side of the grate.

    ... Dwarven runes that were out of mana thankfully. Is this a temporary shelter? Or Rai''ga straight up doesn''t care if someone tries to ambush him, which seems more likely given his ability to see everything around him for miles in every direction.

    I dropped the grate onto the ground and walked down the tunnel, keeping my eyes peeled for any more runes as we advanced, but at this point I was almost positive there wouldn''t be any.

    {There! Don''t go past there!}

    A white line appeared around an entrance at the far end of the tunnel.

    Is that were Belfos wants us to wait or was this your call?

    {Belfos. He knows everything in these lands, including this fort. He already showed me the path to Rai''ga and where he slumbers. Also, I don''t think you noticed since we had already left Telebron, but Rai''ga used that light bombardment ability of his on the Abyssal monster crawling out of that hole. He either killed it or knocked it down long enough that Mother was able to rescue far more people. Isn''t that weird???}

    Hmm... Everyone keeps telling me that Rai''ga is pro Eldritch above all else, so his actions might not be all that surprising. Killing Abyssal or Xerathian creatures is a natural thing for him to do. He sure as hell didn''t hold back when it came to people from Xelba. Most of the units who tried to enter his domain were slaughtered.

    But that also didn''t stop him from using us to take of Viseux. Although, that''s just conjecture on my part. I have no proof that he killed Shiva but it seems more than likely.

    I walked next to the entrance and leaned against it, "Luna said to stop here, orders from Belfos."

    Alicia, Benny, and Petey sat down opposite of me. We had rested a little earlier but it clearly hadn''t been enough, they(excluding Petey of course) were both looking rather exhausted after all of the nonstop enhanced running we had been doing for hours.

    The explosions continued to ring out, causing pebbles and dirt from the ceiling to fall all around us.

    Alicia patted her hair, "This place isn''t going to fall down on top of us is it?"

    "I hope not. I''d rather not die like that again."

    "Oh yeah, I remember you telling us about that. You were crushed in Xelba, right?" Alicia said.

    "Yeah, but I still don''t know how the city collapsed like that. Which is exactly what happened to Telebron by the way. So do either of you know how that happened?"

    Alicia shook her head as Benny looked up and said, "I''m not surprised that you don''t know how to destroy reinforced buildings or ''invulnerable'' parts of the ground. Most people don''t after all. Even the most despotic leaders are smart enough to only share it with soldiers they know won''t babble about it to anyone. After all, they usually live in reinforced buildings, and they obviously don''t want everyone to know how to breach their own homes."

    "I take it you do know, Benny?"

    "Nope."

    "... Not quite how I expected that to end, but okay then."

    Benny shrugged, "I only know that somebody knows how to destroy reinforced buildings and any supposedly indestructible parts of the underground. Lunaria being one of those somebodies. Aresa has been bugging her for years to tell her how it''s done, but Lunaria won''t budge, much to Aresa''s dismay."

    {Don''t ask me. She''ll just say no, and she''s busy.}

    I wasn''t going to, but can you tell me what is happening back in Telebron?

    {They evacuated everyone they could to the northwest side of the city, while everyone in the northern district fled to the boats. Now they''re holding their ground, killing all of the Xerath that are swarming toward them. A lot of the boats are firing from off shore too so it''s helping a lot, but the problem is the Abyssal creatures, or Gods? I don''t know what they are.}

    How many of them is there?

    {Half a dozen, but their abilities are powerful. You''ve heard of one of them before. Aresa told you about the God that was blasting people with light powerful enough that it reduced people to ashes. It has a limited range, but she''s still killing groups of soldiers left and right. And after she uses her ability she needs time to recharge, so the Xerath will pull her back and hide her.}

    I relate to the others what Luna had just told me.

    "Thoughts?"

    "Well, it was pretty obvious but it''s nice to have confirmation anyway. The Xerath are working with or for the Abyss. Except this has to be an isolated incident. The few Abyssal creatures I saw on Zhegu were definitely not friendly with the Xerath." Alicia said.

    "Meaning one of those creatures is controlling them like Viktor can. So the way to victory is also the same. We''d need to kill whatever is controlling them, or kill the Xerathian''s God."

    "Which is impossible, since we know where neither of those are." Benny said.

    Since the Abyss is involved, that means the main hive could be anywhere. And yeah, we have no way of knowing which Abyssal creature is controlling them, so finding either one of them would be extremely difficult.

    I mean, I did have one idea for finding the hive, but I don''t know if we''ll be able to do it now. We would need to spread out as many fairies as Lunaria can spare and try to find the Xerath as they create a new hive. That in itself would require a lot of luck, but if it paid off I might be able to follow their footsteps back to the main hive. It''s not a very good idea, but it''s all I could come up. It''d be easier with Viktor''s airships but it looks like the Abyss has a way of disabling them entirely, so even if I did manage to steal one, it probably wouldn''t help much in the end. The last option would involve me unlocking those wings and flying around myself, but who knows if that''s even possible...

    {He''s starting, be ready!}

    The ground began to shake as if another earthquake was taking place.

    Starting what?!

    {Destroying the ground in the courtyard. Normally the ground can lower in the courtyard, like a magical elevator, so anything massive can go down below, but Rai''ga has control of it.}

    So Belfos has to destroy the ground to get to him basically.

    How many Crotia are left?

    {A lot, but his Lords and spawn are keeping them busy. So they shouldn''t be a problem.}

    I hope so, because they''ll be able to fire those explosives down at us from above if he''s opening up a massive hole in the damned ground.

    The ground shook like that for another minute before it was obvious to all of us that he had broken through. The sound of tons of earth and stone landing on more stone far below it was so loud that all I could hear afterward was my ears ringing and Luna yelling at me through my soul to attack now.

    I turned and was about to run through the opening when a large blast of dust and gravel bellowed out from the opening. Once it stopped we all ran through the opening and found ourselves in a large winding staircase that went down about a hundred meters.

    Petey, don''t drop all the way down this time. I''d prefer to not lose a huge chunk of mana right before we reach Rai''ga.

    I activated my halo and jumped from one side of the staircase to the other, repeating this several times before I reached the bottom. Once I arrived, the first thing I saw was Rai''ga far in the distance fighting off a swarm of Belfos'' spawn, those mantis creatures I saw fighting the Xerath in that hive awhile back.

    I then ran straight for Rai''ga while pulling the scythe off of my back. And in no time at all I could see the massive opening on the ceiling. Belfos, a gigantic bipedal insectoid was doing something with his left hand while firing acid at Rai''ga with his right hand(which was shaped like a sword). A barrier would appear around Rai''ga every time the acid came within fifty feet of him. But the mantis spawn were able to get through his barrier just fine, telling me it was entirely magic based. Which means we should be able to attack him directly, Petey. And that''s exactly what we''re going to do. Let''s go!

    Petey and I swung around the right side of the area, intending to come up behind Rai''ga as he looked up at Belfos, but it clearly wasn''t going to work. His left head, the bear with hardened reptilian skin was looking right at us. That''s fine then, let him focus us instead of Alicia and Benny. Rai''ga''s center head is focused on Belfos while his right head is fighting off the mantis spawn. It''s so bizarre and disgusting seeing a large mantis head with human teeth chomping down onto a bunch of other smaller mantis...

    The area itself was basically empty outside of a few dozen pillars going from the ground to the ceiling, so it was easy to see Rai''ga while also giving us a few areas we could hide in if need be, not that I expected them to be all that useful against him.

    Suddenly the bear head looked away from us and focused on Alicia. She was hiding behind one of the pillars while sticking her right hand out at Rai''ga. Whatever she was channeling had caught his interest, so he chose to attack Petey and I with his tail instead. It grew to four times its original length in less than a second and whipped back and forth, tearing through the pillars and stone flooring as if it was paper.

    I dodged back and forth while making my way toward him, but even I was panicking a little considering how strong the attacks were, and this was only his damned tail. I wasn''t looking forward to seeing what the rest of him could do.

    I felt a sudden spike in mana loss from Petey''s side, so I glanced back real quick to check on him and saw that his left arm had been taken off completely. Re-attach that, don''t leave it!

    Petey quickly dropped down and picked his arm up before placing it against his torso. I could see the blackened blood turning to muscle while reconnecting to his arm. As he was doing this I attempted to hit Rai''ga''s tail with the scythe, but it was fast, really fast, so it took me a bit to even hit it once, and when I did I heard a roar of pain from the bear head.

    It still didn''t look back at me, it was keeping its gaze locked onto Alicia. And Rai''ga clearly had no intentions on allowing her to finish channeling her spell, as three laser beams appeared out of the panthers eyes. He was looking up at Belfos so that''s the direction they went at first, but they quickly snaked through the air and around several pillars until they reached Alicia. But they didn''t hit her, instead, they bounced off of her barrier and flew off in random directions. The bear head''s eyes began to glow as it looked at her.

    {He''s scanning her to figure out how she did that.} Luna said as Petey and I fought off the tail that was growing in both speed and power. Also, the bear must have done something to it, because it was now green and scaly like his face, which had made it very difficult to cut through. The scythe was struggling to pierce it and kept bouncing off of it, while Petey was still managing to take little pieces off of it when he did land a blow, which was rare.

    Rai''ga suddenly leaped backward and soared over both Petey and I. The reason was made obvious as Belfos stabbed the area he had occupied a moment before. With his initial attack missing, Belfos pulled his sword-hand out of the ground and knelt down in preparation to leap at Rai''ga, but all at the same time dozens of lightning tendrils wrapped around Belfos from every area of the underground before connecting to the stone flooring around him. He managed to prevent his sword-arm from being locked up, but the rest of his body was electrified and unable to move far from where he was.

    {Fool.} Rai''ga''s voice bellowed throughout the cavern as he began to slowly walk in a circle around him. {This was the area they originally locked you up in, was it not? How could you not foresee this outcome?}

    After a quick glance around the cavern, I noticed that all of the pillars still standing were shimmering, and that''s exactly where the electricity was coming from.

    Petey, destroy the pillars!

    I turned and ran toward Rai''ga as Petey began to chop down one pillar after another. I could tell from the mana he was using that these were no ordinary pillars, and definitely not something that people were normally able to destroy. *It must be because of his artifact weapon.*

    The mantis head looked at me and bellowed out a sonic boom of some sort. It was too fast to dodge, but after it hit me all I felt was a massive force pushing against me, causing me to roll backwards for a bit before jumping back to my feet and restarting my pursuit.

    {Hmm, so sonic attacks are useless against you? No matter. There are many ways of dealing with flies such as you.}

    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    The barrier around Rai''ga re-appeared for only a split second and turned red before a large wave of fire exploded outward from it. I dove behind a pillar and almost immediately I saw a massive clawed paw ripping through the pillar, coming straight for me. For my part I was still midair, so I punched the ground hard and whipped myself back the way I came.

    While I avoided Rai''ga''s claws, his tail was furiously whipping at me again as another set of lasers appeared out of the panther''s eyes. And to make matters worse, the mantis head was opening its mouth up, and behind its teeth I saw an untold number of white spikes launch out at me.

    I kicked the ground hard toward the left; barely dodging the tail, but the spikes were already about to pierce me, and they were spread out in a way that dodging them would''ve been next to impossible in the time I had left before they hit me. Cutting them down with the scythe was an option, but the icy beams were twisting and turning through the air above me, obviously waiting for the spikes to reach me before they descended.

    With no time left I was preparing to attack the spears while praying I''d be able to dodge the beams, but that''s when Luna projected a flat barrier in front of me that was just barely big enough to protect me. Deciding to put my faith into her, I knelt low and pulled the scythe back as the sound emitting from the beams drew dangerously close to me.

    As the spikes hit the barrier I looked up and saw the three beams split off in different directions, surrounding me in the form of a triangle before heading straight for me. I cut down the beams in the front and to my back-right side, but I knew I wasn''t going to make it in time for the one to my back-left, so I put a large amount of power into my feet and leaped to the northwest.

    I glanced over my right shoulder so I could keep Rai''ga in my eyesight while also tracking the beam, and the beam was indeed following after me, but the real problem was the tendrils growing out of Rai''ga''s back. Each one took on a different element, and they were all pointing directly at me.

    As I cut down the last beam I could see the ends of the tendrils lighting up. Electricity, fire, water, ice, and a purple element I couldn''t pinpoint at a glance. Moments later they all fired in my direction, with only one of them directly at me. The others were all around me and zigzagging through the ground in every direction, cutting off all forms of retreat.

    Jumping away would normally be the only way out of this, but Rai''ga had another set of icy beams darting back and forth around the ceiling, and his tail was also waiting in anticipation up there.

    That was when a large sonic blast hit Rai''ga right in the panther face. It was unimpeded by his barrier so Rai''ga went sliding backwards as blood began to trickle out of his seven eyes. And before he had stopped sliding, another blast hit him in his left side, but this time it was a large sphere made of light that hit his barrier. He was already putting all of his weight forward trying to stop himself from moving back, so the impact to his left side sent him toppling over.

    He quickly flipped back onto his feet, but the anger on the bear and mantis'' face couldn''t possibly be more pronounced.

    I already knew who they came from but just in case I glanced behind me, and indeed the first blast was from Belfos, while the light attack was from Alicia, who was now as far away as possible. And Belfos now had control of his left hand again thanks to all of the pillars Petey was cutting down. He quickly raised it up and did something with it again while pointing at Rai''ga, and that''s when I finally realized what he was doing earlier with his left hand. Oh, so that''s why his mantis spawn stopped moving. He controls them with his left hand when none of his Lords are around.

    The mantis spawn that were lying lifelessly on the stone floor all stood up and fluttered through the air. They spread out around the underground and began to separately fly toward Rai''ga.

    Rai''ga ignored it, clearly more interested in Petey and Alicia at this point. Petey was on the right side of the cavern, the complete opposite of where Alicia currently was, so he had his tendrils fire at Petey while he unloaded several waves of beams and spears at Alicia. These spears were different though, as the bear head had cast something before they left the mantis'' mouth. They looked scaly just like him, and they easily ripped through the pillars one after another on their way to Alicia.

    As he attacked both of them, he also leaped at me again, with far more speed than his massive frame should have ever been moving, once again showing the amount of overwhelming power he had inside of him. However, he stopped halfway to me when he saw all of the attacks bounce off of Alicia again, but also the pillar she was hiding behind as well.

    While it wasn''t evident on the mantis or panther''s face, the bear however was clearly confused. And I was right there with him. Those were by no means weak attacks. Hell, the Tengu back in Kellog would''ve struggled to survive that attack, and here Alicia was so easily deflecting everything he sent at her. The pillar deflected it too though, which is even more bizarre... There''s no way she can make everything reflective, that''d be far too overpowered. So whatever the catch is, we need to kill him before he figures it out.

    That last attack must''ve been the final straw for him, because Rai''ga dug into the ground and leaped directly at Alicia, barreling through one pillar after another. Despite the hundreds of yards between them, he reached her in about two seconds, bringing down both of his front paws down onto her. The pillar she was behind crumbled just as easily as the others this time, but Rai''ga''s next actions told me that he must have missed her, because he was looking around everywhere for her with his three heads.

    That''s when I felt a pulse from Rai''ga wash over the room, and he immediately looked down into the earth in my direction. His three heads were tracking something I couldn''t see that was moving fast through the earth, and a few seconds later I heard something emerge next to Petey far behind me. Looking back there I saw Alicia and Benny appear out of the floor before they ran behind another pillar.

    {Annoying little RATS!! I found your pointless struggle against me rather entertaining at first, but I am quickly growing tired of your antics. It''s time to end this!}

    Rai''ga leaped directly at me, using the same exact attack he had just used against Alicia. Unlike her, I couldn''t just burrow into the ground, so I dodged backward and immediately his tail came down at me. I evaded to the left as his right paw came down at me again.

    I dodged back and forth like that over and over while attempting to cut him down with the scythe, but the bear''s armored buff was making it impossible for me to penetrate him. Shit, Petey''s sword is all around better for this battle, but I can still feel the scythe ripping away at his soul; stealing who knows how much mana every time it connects. It''s just a matter of whether we''re even putting a dent into his mana pool.

    While this was going on Rai''ga was blasting both Belfos and Alicia with an unending barrage of spells. What he was doing before barely looked like a warm-up compared to what he was throwing out at them now. Beams from the panther''s eyes and his tendrils, sonic waves, spears from the mantis'' mouth. The spears and several of the tendrils were aimed at Alicia while the rest was aimed at Belfos who was a sitting duck. I couldn''t see what was happening with Alicia, but I could tell Belfos was struggling to defend against the barrage of attacks.

    Dozens of Belfos''s spawn had also landed on all three of Rai''ga''s heads and were chopping away at them, but the bear''s armor was sadly proving impossible for them to get through.

    That''s when another sphere of light arced through the air toward Rai''ga. In response his tendrils all turned toward the sphere and blasted it before it reached him, but then two other spheres arced through the cavern toward him as well. His tendrils immediately split up, aiming at both of the spheres.

    Before he could hit them another sonic blast from Belfos rammed into him. This time it hit the bear''s head, and this one was far stronger than the previous attack. Belfos must have held the last one back because he wasn''t sure if it would do much against his barrier, but after it hit him directly, he went all out with this one.

    The bear head whipped toward the panther head, smashing right into it, which then dominoed into the panther head slamming into the mantis head. This had clearly disoriented Rai''ga, as his tendrils completely missed Alicia''s attacks, which turned out to be only one attack. One of the spheres disappeared, clearly an illusion, while the other one arced in a way that allowed it to hit Rai''ga from the same side Belfos had hit him. Once it connected with his barrier he slammed into the ground again and rolled over.

    And I had also noticed that the second Belfos hit the bear with his sonic attack, the armor spell he cast over Rai''ga''s entire body had disappeared, so the moment he rolled over both I and Belfos'' spawn jumped onto his stomach and began to cut him up as fast as we could.

    I normally couldn''t hear the scythe at all, as my veil blocked all connections from it, but in this moment the sheer fervor it emitted as it ripped into Rai''ga''s soul could be felt even by me.

    Rai''ga howled in pain and rolled over, keeping his stomach low to the ground in an attempt to crush us, but I and most of the spawn climbed up his side and onto his back, cutting deep into him as we moved. It only lasted a few seconds before the bear re-applied the armor, but it felt like minutes considering how many open wounds we left on him.

    The mantis head turned around and attempted to eat me. Between that and his armor being re-applied, I saw no reason to stick around and immediately jumped off of him. Belfos spawn stayed though and continued to chop away at him. Even if they weren''t doing much damage, they were still dropping his mana down with each attack, so I could understand why they stayed.

    At this point Petey had destroyed most of the pillars(and the ones that Rai''ga so helpfully destroyed as well). There were maybe ten percent still standing, and oddly enough the ceiling hadn''t collapsed yet, but I figured that was just more Eldritch shenanigans.

    Apparently that was enough for Belfos though. The last remaining electrical binding on his right foot ripped into him as he tore his foot out, but he clearly had no intentions on waiting for Petey to destroy the rest of the pillars. Purple blood poured out of his leg as the last remaining pillars crumbled thanks to him pulling so hard on his bindings.

    Petey, come back quickly!

    {Enough...}

    That one simple word Rai''ga muttered was barely a whisper, and yet so very loud. It was filled with pure malice, and was telepathically ejected from him with enough force that the whole cavern shook.

    Belfos stopped in his tracks and created a large directed barrier in front of himself.

    {Rei, run behind him, now!! Petey too!}

    As Luna said that I saw Rai''ga''s barrier flare up like it had done earlier, but this time the fire around it was much more powerful. I blitzed toward Belfos and dove behind him, sliding right into Petey who was already on one knee behind Belfos''s legs. We watched as one wave of fire after another expanded outward from Rai''ga''s barrier. And not only that, but the spears, icy beams, and all of the tendrils attacks were all directed at Belfos. Needless to say, it didn''t take long for cracks to begin to form along his barrier.

    Alicia and Benny were somehow fine as the blazing aura washed over them time and again, and while that was happening Alicia attempted to blast Rai''ga with several more supercharged spheres of light, but the waves of fire kept detonating them before they could reach him.

    The temperature in the area was far hotter than anything I had experienced before, meaning that even if Alicia and Benny were able to avoid direct damage from the blazing walls of fire coming their way, the heat itself was going to kill them soon. Obviously most warriors are prepared with basic self-temperature spells to counter elemental attacks, but there''s only so much they could do. This was too hot, and it was only getting hotter.

    And as if this wasn''t all bad enough, something exploded on Petey and nearly knocked me away from Belfos'' protection. Looking back I saw several Crotia firing those large ass guns down at us. Behind them their comrades were fighting off several of Belfos'' spawn, so they were going to stop them soon enough, but until then we were sitting ducks.

    Luna, I can handle a lot of the damage from Rai''ga''s fire waves right now if we go on the offensive, so can you tell how much mana he has left? Petey and I can run over there and slice into him with heavily powered slashes if he''s nearly tapped out.

    {I-I don''t know, I''m sorry, Rei! But don''t worry, you''ll have another chance soon. Look, Alicia is gone!}

    Gone?

    I looked over at Alicia as another explosion erupted about ten yards behind me. She was definitely gone, and I could see the panther head''s eyes all tracking something underground. He knows she''s coming though, what''s the point?

    When the panther''s eyes looked directly down a sphere of light that was three times bigger than the others she had used slammed right into Rai''ga''s barrier from below, launching him up into the air.

    Immediately Petey and I attempted to run around Belfos toward Rai''ga, but Belfos clearly had the same idea we did. He jumped high into the air directly at Rai''ga as his whole body shined a bright blue.

    Both the panther and bear''s eyes went wide as he realized what was about to happen. Rai''ga quickly re-applied the bear''s armor of his whole body while focusing all of his spells back onto Belfos. It took a few seconds to begin casting everything again, and in that time Belfos halved the distance to him, which left him wide open through the remaining two seconds.

    Two seconds of Rai''ga''s full force directed at you is devastating to say the least. Parts of Belfos literally melted from the fire tendril, while the bone spears penetrated him all over, and the remaining tendrils did an ungodly amount of damage to him as well. But Belfos did not stop, and Rai''ga realized in that moment that no amount of damage was going to stop him, so he changed tactics. His tendrils stopped firing and a shimmer of aura expanded around him, but he was too late. Belfos brought down his sword arm onto the bear''s head, piercing all the way through it. And the second he did that, he used his flying ability to force himself toward the ground, bringing Rai''ga with him.

    Rai''ga slammed into the ground with Belfos'' sword-arm sticking through both the bear''s head and the ground. Earthly tendrils came out of the sword-arm and wrapped around the bears head before digging into the ground, preventing Rai''ga from moving. He tried to pull away as Belfos used his left hand to punch both of the remaining two heads over and over. One of the hits was directly on top of the mantis'' head, driving it straight into the ground. I could see its teeth chip a little from the impact.

    Despite the fact that Petey and I jumped through the air toward Rai''ga at the same time Belfos did, we were only just now landing on his back. That''s how quickly everything beforehand had transpired.

    Wasting no time, Petey and I began to attack Rai''ga, with me trying to chop his tail off as Petey unleashed one full-power swing after another at the mantis'' neck. The mantis head obviously tried to bite into Petey in retaliation, but tendrils of light were wrapping around him from directly underneath him. They were barely keeping it in check at first, but the more tendrils that appeared, the more the mantis head struggled to move.

    While the tail itself was attacking me as I chopped into it at the base, the tendrils turned away from me and did something none of us expected, they began to fire into the bear''s neck. Rai''ga had tried to warp before Belfos reached him earlier, and he only just barely missed his window to do so, and now that we were on top of him, he was unable to warp away, since any warping ability I''ve ever heard of required the consent of anyone touching you. Which meant his only way of escaping this was to remove the bear''s head that was tying him down, but at the rate Alicia was trapping the mantis'' head, he was going to need to cut that one off as well.

    Petey was about one tenth through the mantis neck when he swapped over to the panther. We both silently decided that it was best to see if Alicia could keep the mantis'' head locked down. And even if she couldn''t, he had already done a tremendous amount of damage to it. The wound sealed up fast, but there was still a large pool of blood below the mantis head, proving that the amount of damage it took was by no means small. The blood pool below the bear''s head was beginning to merge with the one below the mantis'' head, making the already very gruesome scene even more disturbing.

    A sickening plop sounded out as the bear''s head detached from Rai''ga''s body. Rai''ga immediately tried to pull himself up and annoyingly he was succeeding. I suppose it shouldn''t have come as a surprise that a God of his level was able to overpower Alicia''s magic tendrils. But he only raised his remaining heads and body about halfway to a standing position when Belfos reached out with his left hand and clamped down onto the panther''s head.

    {WOULD YOU JUST DIE ALREADY YOU WORTHLESS INSECT?!}

    One set of beams after another launched out of the panther''s eyes, burning right through Belfos'' hand and then into his left shoulder. I finally cut off Rai''ga''s tail just as I heard Belfos'' arm fall off. Unfortunately for Rai''ga, that wasn''t the victory he was hoping for. The hand remained firmly on the panther''s head, and now that it was connected to the ground it wrapped another set of earthly tendrils around the head and all the way down the arm into the ground.

    {NO, NO! YOU WILL NOT TRAP ME AGAIN!!}

    The mantis'' head tried to move to the left and bite the hand, but while Alicia couldn''t hold down his entire body, she could prevent the mantis'' head from moving around. But sadly for us, he didn''t need to bite into it to destroy it. Alicia''s tendrils only tied down the top and sides of its head toward the ground, not its jaw, and it was just barely able to turn toward Belfos hand and fire out dozens of spears at it.

    Having completed their previous mission, the elemental tendrils now attempted to destroy Belfos'' arm next, but since I was already done cutting off Rai''ga''s tail, I was now chopping down the tendrils one at a time, which was going much faster. The scythe loves mana after all, and these tendrils were entirely composed of mana. I had already cut down the fire, water, and purple one, and was now moving onto the electrified tendril.

    The spears must have done the job, because I could feel Rai''ga standing up in a hurry, pulling Alicia straight out of the ground. The mantis'' head immediately chomped down onto her, and while it did get Benny and her between its teeth, it was struggling to crush them.

    {Rei, help them! Benny can only protect them like that for a little bit longer!}

    Shit, there''s only two tendrils left! But I can''t stop Petey from chopping into the panther''s neck. None of this will end if we don''t destroy all three of these heads. Or at least I hope that''s enough to bring him down.

    I turned and ran alongside Rai''ga''s back toward his heads when suddenly there was flames everywhere. I ignored it and pushed on, but the heat was tremendous and I could feel Petey''s bones cracking as both of our mana levels plummeted drastically.

    {I didn''t want to do this, but so be it. I''ll take the damage just so I can reduce you annoying fleas to ashes. STAY ON MY BODY ALL YOU WANT, LET''S SEE HOW LONG YOU LAST!}

    The two remaining tendrils fired at Petey without a care that they were also hitting Rai''ga''s barrier when they missed. He clearly didn''t care about self-inflicted damage at this point. He only wanted to end the battle.

    Petey was unable to get a good swing in now that the two tendrils were swerving back and forth trying to hit him, and when they did connect I felt a large chunk of mana dissipate. We had plenty of mana at this point after all of the souls the past couple of weeks, but it still wasn''t a good idea to be taking this much damage in such a short amount of time. What were the other options though? We couldn''t let him distance himself from us again, that would greatly increase the chances of him killing us. And Belfos hadn''t moved an inch in the past half a minute, so he was either unconscious or dead. But either way, he couldn''t help us anymore.

    I reached the mantis'' head and jumped down while grabbing one of the tendrils of light next to its jaw. Its creepy eyes looked over at me as I began to slash at the tendons connecting to its jaw. A weird sound emitted from the mantis'' mouth as it whipped its head back and forth, trying to fling me off while hoping to avoid more strikes to its tendons.

    The panther was releasing one set of beams after another as well, and they were all heading straight for me of course. Between the beams I was cutting down, the weird rollercoaster the mantis head was sending me on, the screams of my two allies inside its mouth, and the massive chunks of mana dropping out of Petey as he was engulfed in flames while the tendrils blasted him from behind; I was in a very strange mental state.

    Everything was moving so slow around me, and my mind was completely calm. Instead of being horrified or panicked, I was instead awestruck by how bizarre the whole situation was. I only wanted to live in peace with my friends in Gaia, and somehow that line of thought lead me to here, battling the most powerful being I had ever come up against to date; all so I could save two of my friends, and one of them was trapped in a crystal as if she were a maiden from one of the video games I used to watch my uncle play.

    I don''t know how long it took, since everything had been moving in slow motion for me, but I eventually cut deep into the left tendon on the mantis'' jaw. That side of its mouth immediately went slack and both of my allies leaped out of his mouth before quickly disappearing underground again. And Alicia must have done something before she jumped out of its mouth, because the mantis'' head was now hanging lifelessly while bleeding heavily out of its mouth.

    I could hear Rai''ga screaming in anger again, but it was all white noise to me at this point. I climbed up and firmly planted my feet next to Petey by turning blood on the bottom of my feet into sharp points that dug deep beneath his skin. Petey copied me before raising his sword high next to the scythe I was holding over my head. Rai''ga yelled again, this time saying something in a panic, but I ignored him; the fire all around us; and the two tendrils blasting into both of our backs.

    All I did from there on out, was two simple motions. Raise the scythe high and bring it down onto his neck as hard as I could. Luna was projecting barriers when she could, and we must have been dangerously low on mana because I could hear her yelling in a panic as well, but again, I ignored it all. Raise the scythe high, bring it down. Over and over.

    At some point I vaguely realized that Petey was no longer chopping at the panther''s neck with me. A quick glance to my left showed me that he couldn''t, as his entire body from the knees up was gone. Goodbye Petey, and thank you buddy.

    The next thing I knew I was laying on the ground, watching the panther head hanging off of Rai''ga''s body by a few strings of meat. He said something again, but I couldn''t hear anything, as the whole world was silent. It was also then that I realized why Rai''ga wasn''t moving during the last part of that battle. Belfos'' last act was to tightly wrap all of Rai''ga''s feet to deep underground. I was surprised that the fire didn''t burn them off, but that just showed how much power Belfos put into that final act.

    And a few moments later the last remaining muscle keeping the panther head attached, tore off completely. I closed my eyes and smiled as the head silently toward the ground.

    Luna, I don''t care how you do it. Get me over to that body. There''s a soul I need to eat, and it''s long overdue.

 Chapter 82 - Mother

    Two sets of footsteps approached me from behind. I tried to turn my head to look at them, but even that was proving difficult in my current state.

    "... You alright there, Rei?" Alicia asked.

    "I''m alive, but something is terribly wrong. My core feels weird right now, and so do all of my senses. Can you uh, tell me how I look?"

    There was a slight pause before she replied, "Well, um, your right leg is gone from around your upper thigh, and your left leg from above your knee as well. Your left arm is gone too, but I really wasn''t expecting you to answer because of your head. Except it''s you, so I figured I had to make sure you were actually dead... Seriously, how are you not dead?"

    "Stop beating around the bush. Is there a big hole in my chest or something? I can just barely see the top of my boobs though and they seem fine..."

    Alicia sighed, "The top half of your head is gone. I can''t believe you''re alive and even talking without a brain. I knew you were different but jeez. All I can see right now is a bunch of black stitching itself together. Watching your head fix itself is not quite how I expected this fight to end, but at least you''re alive I suppose."

    Oh god, so that''s why everything feels so wrong. I only knew it was possible in theory that I''d survive if my head was destroyed because my brain turns off completely all the time. Like when I sleep, or when my core handles everything so my brain can rest. That''s a major reason I''m able to stay up for so long. Although even in those situations it never felt like this, so my brain must have still been active on some level. I just didn''t know it.

    "How long is this going to take?" Benny asked. He didn''t sound disturbed in the least which made me chuckle because it reminded me of Godwin.

    "It''ll take a long time to repair, so you''ll have to find Aresa yourselves and just leave me here. I''ll hide in the ground and heal up while absorbing those."

    It was difficult, but I managed to point at Belfos and Rai''ga''s corpses.

    "Wait." Benny said before circling around and bending down in front of my face, allowing me to look into his eyes. His nonchalant attitude he always had was now gone and replaced with a rather angry looking face. "I know all about your ability to absorb souls, and I''m not about to tell you not to do that, but absorbing Lord Belfos is out of the question."

    "Benny, I''ve been told multiple times that he''s tied to the wellspring, and I''m sure you remember who owns the wellspring right now?"

    I heard Alicia say ''Ahh...'' as Benny''s face blanched. A few seconds later she continued, "Normally Eldritch souls would seek out a Humanoid soul to parasite off of after their death, but if Belfos is tied to the wellspring, that''s where he''ll return, and he''ll immediately be absorbed by whatever Abyssal monster took it from Aresa."

    Alicia then mumbled ''Which is something I really need to investigate but that''s a matter for another day.''

    Benny stood up and walked to somewhere behind me before saying "... Do what you will."

    "Thank you, Benny. Now Alicia, carry me over there towards Belfos. And uh, please hurry. Rai''ga''s soul shouldn''t disappear for another five to ten minutes, but Belfos died much earlier."

    A fluffy cloud appeared in front of me that was shaped like a bed or a stretched. The second it appeared Alicia picked me up and tossed me onto it, and it immediately zoomed off toward Belfos.

    {Mom doesn''t like this, but she understands that it''s for the best. Better you absorb him than those freaks who took Telebron and the wellspring from us...}

    How long has she known Belfos?

    I reached out with my right hand and touched Belfos'' foot. Thank god, it''s still here. I then began to pull on his soul, forming it into a sphere. But since this was a powerful Eldritch soul, it was going to take time.

    {Since she was born. She hasn''t said it, but I can tell she''s really sad that he''ll be gone forever. He''s died a few times but was always quickly resurrected by the wellspring, so she never thought a day would come where he''d completely disappear.}

    Logically what I''m doing is easy to agree with, but emotionally it probably makes her sick. It needs to be done though. Especially if I''m going to end up at Caedrus.

    Eventually a full sphere formed on top of my palm, but it looked nothing like the Eldritch souls I was used to seeing.

    Luna, most Eldritch souls I''ve seen appeared as a dark purple mist, but Belfos'' looks like a bunch of grass swirling around. Have you seen this before?

    {No, but it''s very pretty and fitting for Belfos!}

    True, it does fit him.

    I put the soul into my mouth but unlike what my core has always done, which is suck the soul down and devour it(although it was delayed a little with the chimera). However, this time it gently lowered it and put it in a pocket of my core I didn''t even know existed.

    {I-Is it done?}

    Uhhh... My core is storing it in a separate space instead of absorbing it, but I''m not sure why?

    ... I''ll figure it out later. I need to grab Rai''ga''s soul before it disappears. It could be something simple after all. Like my core understanding I''ll be absorbing two powerful souls, so it saved one for later---Oh?

    Suddenly I felt something behind and above me, which meant it was on the ground level. And it didn''t take me long to figure out what it was because of how familiar its mana was.

    "Alicia, get over here!"

    "I''m right behind you..."

    "Oh. Well anyway, Belfos has a link to Aresa''s soul, even through that crystal of Xi''s. She''s on the ground level back, uh... Shit, hang on."

    Luna, are you able to sense her through me?

    {Yes! She''s still alive, he didn''t absorb her!}

    Then I need you to do something. Leave me and show Alicia where she is. I obviously can''t move right now and it''s best if they don''t carry me up there right now. There''s still Crotia up there since Belfos'' units all stopped moving, and I am in no condition to be eating random explosions right now.

    {Ah... Okay...}

    Hah, don''t be so sad. I''ll catch up to you guys soon enough. And thanks for helping me up until now little one.

    {Of course... See you soon, Rei!}

    I felt Luna exit my soul and fly above my body.

    "Alicia, she''s going to show you were Aresa is. Hopefully Xi is there too. And once you find them, please come back here and dig a hole for me to hide inside."

    "Can''t we just bring you with us? Putting me aside, Benny has crazy powerful defensive abilities. He was the one reflecting Rai''ga''s spells."

    Benny cut in, "Protecting against physical attacks is much harder for me. If those are regular explosions they''re using and not magical, then I would advise against us taking her. I don''t want Aresa blaming me for getting her friend killed."

    "It''s fine, Alicia. I''ll catch up to you later. Don''t forget that I have the Chimera''s tracking ability that I stole back in Kellog, and I know where the portal to Mother is. So if you guys do journey to Gaia before I wake up, I''ll know exactly where you went. Don''t worry, finding you won''t be difficult at all." I continued, "Oh, and take the two artifact weapons. The scythe I used and the sword Petey was wielding."

    It actually might be difficult, but I need to avoid any risk of dying before I absorb Rai''ga''s soul. And I''m still not sure why I woke up so damned weak back on Urza, so the less I die the better.

    "Alright... If that''s what you want, Rei. We''ll be back in a few."

    The cloud swung around Rai''ga''s body, stopping behind one of his massive back feet. Smart girl, if anyone comes down here they shouldn''t see me back here.

    I reached out and touched Rai''ga''s foot, and immediately I felt a surge of rage from it. Hahahaha! So you''re powerful enough that you''re still sentient even in soul form, huh? Well too bad for you asshole, no one''s coming to save you.

    I pulled at his soul as it went through one emotion after another; most of them being pure rage or anger. But once his soul formed into a sphere above my palm, all I could feel was resignation. Even the great Rai''ga knew that this was the end of the road for him.

    I tossed it into my mouth and this time my core sucked it down and immediately began to absorb it. One other thing happened too though, I began to lose consciousness. It was necessary for the absorption process, but normally I''d be the one to make the decision. Maybe because my body is so broken and at death''s door it figured there was no point to me even staying conscious... Oh well, Alicia should bury me underground when she returns. I hope she does anyway.

    Soon after that everything went black.

    <hr>

    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    I woke up surrounded by dirt. Perfect, so she did bury me.

    I activated the halo and began to cast the basic move earth spell to break up the ground above me. Normally I''d let it brew, but I wanted to test out my new mana pool and poured a ton of mana into it, and the ground began to shake above me in no time at all.

    Now that it was soft and I could actually move, I put power into my arms and pushed myself up, feeling a medium amount of weight on my back. She didn''t bury me all that deep it seems.

    Before long I was standing up holding the dirt above my head as it all crumbled around me, filling up the hole. I tried throwing it above me so I could quickly exit the hole but the dirt ran into something and broke apart even more. But it was all much softer by this point so I just further enhanced my whole body and jumped through it.

    I didn''t just power through soil and dirt though, I also rammed straight through a set of stairs before landing on an unbroken part of them. Looking around I noticed I was in the room we jumped down before our fight with Rai''ga. She buried me underneath the bottom of the stairs? Not a bad spot, I would''ve picked a place like that too if I was able to move before passing out. In fact, I think I did hibernate under a set of stairs after I absorbed that Moon-Eldritch back on Urza.

    I removed the halo and turned invisible before ascending the stairs and exiting the keep through the long pipe. Outside it was lit-up by Mother, suggesting it was near the end of the day. Belfos'' soul is still inside me and my core is infusing it with mana... I''m not sure what to make of this, and I have no one to bounce ideas off of until I find the others.

    I decided to check out the fort real quick to see if anyone was here, but all I found was a horde of decayed Crotia corpses and empty carapaces everywhere. The Crotian''s guns were also scattered all over the fort, so I picked one up and began to run toward Telebron. Magical guns huh? I can feel my mana flow into it with a little push. This works out in my favor now that my mana pool is ridiculously high.

    <hr>

    ... Well, they''re definitely not in Telebron. I can''t even approach the city. The abomination that was crawling out of the underground is now above ground and you can see it from several miles away.

    I was still about a mile away and tried walking toward the city again but the feeling of my entire body being irradiated nearly doubled.

    Holy shit, I can''t even approach the city without taking a constant amount of severe damage. That behemoth is on a completely different level from anything I encountered in the Abyss. While the Caster God and his ilk have been nothing more than slivers of their true forms, it''s clear that the being who took Telebron is far from a mere sliver.

    I turned around and ran back the way I came until I exited the abomination''s aura of radiation. Once I finally escaped it, I circled back and ran around the city this time; giving it a wide berth.

    The portal to Mother is west of Telebron. I saw it on a map Kai showed me, so I remember its general location. I can''t imagine they went anywhere else. Arcadia would take them in but they''d have to work to eat and be housed. No free rides in that city. And I doubt the citizens of Telebron or Yulia would be able to farm for relics or power cores. So the only option left is trying to reach Gaia. Well, I bet there is people who fled to Viktor''s lands as well, but I don''t blame them if they did. The stories of how harrowing the trek across Mother is are most likely true, and none of them are pretty.

    I ran like that for another week before finding a small abandoned city. It looked mostly intact, but clearly something had hit it at some point and scared everyone off.

    I found a diner and went inside. It didn''t take me long to find what I was looking for, since there was a map proudly tacked onto the wall with a few pieces of paper tacked onto the bottom of it as well. They explained that this was the way station for Zhegu''s portal and anyone stupid enough to go into Mother''s portal. Zhegu''s was underneath this town, and it showed you how to get there. While Mother''s was twenty miles to the north. ''Just go to the sea, you can''t miss it unless you''re blind''.

    With that out of the way, I looked around the diner for food but only found some old chocolate bars under the counter. They didn''t taste very good but I was starving so I didn''t really care what they tasted like(although I obviously would''ve preferred they didn''t taste old and melted).

    After a quick look around town for food(and not finding any) I ran north toward the sea. I ran into a large forest the second I left the city and it was honestly kind of nice. Xelba and my cave back in the Xerathian realm were surrounded by trees. So I had always felt more at home in a forest.

    Once I exited the trees near the sea, the words on the paper back in the diner echoed in my head. True, you really would need to be blind to miss this...

    The portal was at the end of a long grassy natural bridge into the sea that ended on a medium sized island. And on that island, was only the portal, which was over six hundred meters tall and wide. There was no visual effects in between the stone archways, but everyone would know that this led somewhere ominous. I could feel a strange aura from it all the way back where I exited the tree line.

    I removed my invisibility and flicked on the chimera''s tracking ability. I immediately got the confirmation I was looking for. Everyone was here walking through the portal, so I knew I was on the right track, and that Xi was thankfully alive.

    After turning invisible again, I walked through the portal. Unlike normal portal entries, where you would instantly appear somewhere else, this one instead turned you into something ethereal and made you watch as you traveled to Mother. I was moving at an insane speed, as I had exited Aetheria''s atmosphere in seconds. It was shocking at first, but once I realized what was happening, I found the whole experience to be mesmerizing.

    I could see all of the moons and planets on this side of Mother as I traveled through space. One of the moons was completely covered in dark clouds, and thanks to that it wasn''t hard to figure out which moon it was. Urza is pretty close to Aetheria... I never knew which planet Aetheria was when I used to stargaze in Xelba.

    The closer I moved toward Mother the more I tried to memorize the geography of the area it seemed to be sending me to, while also mapping out a route to Gaia; the yellow beam of light going through Mother far in the distance. We have a long fucking way to go if this is where the portal dropped everyone off.

    Soon after that I flew through the atmosphere and got a quick glance at the world around me before landing between another stone archway and regaining my physical body.

    ... I really hope they didn''t go right from here. After I exited the clouds I saw a black forest filled with miasma and hundreds of tentacle eyes looking up at me. I''d really prefer to avoid that place.

    The area I came out on was a simple clearing surrounded by trees in all directions. The clearing was about the same size as the island back on Aetheria.

    After a quick glance around to confirm nothing was here, I switched to the chimera ability while maxing its range. Alicia and the others could be seen heading straight from where I was, and after enhancing my eyes I could see a small road leading through the trees in that direction.

    Once I was invisible again I began to run straight for the road. And when I arrived I found the road really was quite simple but well maintained, which meant that someone tended to this area, or it was just a ''feature'' of Mother.

    I ran and ran for what felt like days, swapping back to the chimera ability every now and then to make sure they didn''t turn off into the forest somewhere for whatever fucking reason. But fortunately they didn''t aside from the times they setup camp in a couple of small clearings.

    How long was I asleep?! They''re walking and I still haven''t caught up to them. After absorbing Rai''ga I''m not only faster than I was before but I was able to sprint at far higher speeds while ignoring the mana load. And despite this, I''m still not caught up to everyone. I must''ve been out for weeks, or maybe even months... And I''m so hungry damnit. Thinking back on it now, I''ve always been fed by others. Even that cave I lived in as a child had a bunch of delicious fruit in it. Although it only grew in that cave, weirdly enough.

    I finally hit a point where I realized I was pushing myself and decided to stop to rest. I had been running for weeks at this point without sleeping, and the last thing I wanted was to get caught out by a powerful Eldritch while my body was in a weakened condition.

    Speaking of which; forget Eldritch, I haven''t seen anything so far. Just wildlife and nothing else. This isn''t quite the ''horrific experience'' I was promised when I heard about Mother. Although if someone went right from the portal they undoubtedly would''ve experienced something beyond horrific. So there definitely are monsters here, it''s just a matter of avoiding them I guess. Mother is massive after all. Aetheria looked like it was barely one-thousandth the size of Mother.

    I punched out a hole in the ground and covered it with camouflaged mesh before turning myself off.

    <hr>

    It took another two days before I finally exited the forest into a massive open plain that reminded me of Termia. The only difference being that there wasn''t a bunch of Xerathian plants littering the landscape.

    After a quick check I confirmed that everyone kept moving forward, and with that out of the way I activated my halo and destroyed the deer-like creature that was eying my curiously. Sorry little buddy, I''m fucking hungry!

    I ran back to the trees and collected a bunch of twigs and wood before bringing it back and starting a fire with the basic fire spell I had. I wasn''t sure of what was edible on the deer so I just took a bunch of non-organ meat and stuck them through a spear I made with my blood. After holding it over the fire for a while I slowly ate the meat, and it was definitely not delicious. Not even a little. Especially since I forgot to drain the blood. But whatever constitution I had was more than happy just having sustenance in it, so this was good enough for now.

    After I was done eating I began to run toward the ''north'' again. Please find them soon. I don''t want to eat something like that again.

    <hr>

    It was three days later I finally came upon something ''horrific''. There were dead orange tentacles everywhere. They had clearly been cut off, but the owner of the tentacles was nowhere to be found. That is, until I saw one shoot out of the forest a mile to the west of me and stab a large herbivore creature. The second it pierced the creature, it pulled it back to the forest at lightning speed.

    ... Not good. If they were hit by that thing then I can only imagine how many people were taken before they escaped its range It''s obviously still alive so they didn''t try killing it, which was the correct choice, but that means it was attacking them the entire time they attempted to flee.

    I ran north again, passing by a few hundred dead tentacles before they finally stopped littering the ground. Now that I was past the danger zone, I ran for another five minutes before swapping to my chimera ability and confirming that everyone survived. My allies did anyway. The civilians probably died in droves.

    <hr>

    Finally, five days later, I came upon the mountain I remember from my internal map I made before landing on Mother.

    I''m not surprised that they went into here. The only other way is to go around it, and the path to the east is just as long as the route it took for me to get here. After they were attacked by that tentacled monster, I''m sure they wanted to take the shortest route possible. Which means going through this mountain.

    I jogged into the cavern(that was about two hundred meters tall and wide), keeping my eyes on the surrounding while trying to maintain a decent pace. There was glowing moss here and there that allowed me to see my surroundings, but it was nowhere near enough luminosity for the average person.

    One after another I ran into paths that broke off, and every time I was eternally grateful for the chimera''s tracking ability. I would have never found them without it...

    A few hours into the trek I came upon a large door with a bunch of carvings on it and multiple torches lit-up outside of it, which was the first source of lighting I had seen up until now. Aside from the moss that anyway. I can''t read whatever the hell is written on this thing, so time to just walk into it and hope for the best.

    I reached out and pulled on the lever next to the door. It didn''t take long for the door to open after that as it slid into the base of the mountain. But what I saw was a shimmering blue wall that looked like water being hit by droplets of rain. I can''t see past this fake water, but the others walked through here so I don''t have much of a choice here.

    After a quick break to prepare myself for whatever might be waiting for me on the other end, I walked through the ''water'' and immediately found myself in another cavern. However, this time I wasn''t alone. I could see my allies on the right side of the cavern, but there was also a ridiculous amount of other Humanoid creatures in the cavern as well.

    There was a couple of people who clearly belonged to a water species talking to a Tengu Lord. And around the Tengu''s side of the cavern there was thousands of people with black or white wings, but not like the ones Nei''lah''s have. Nei''lah wings are thin and kind of evil looking, but these people had thick luscious wings. Actually, they look exactly like that Tengu Lord''s wings...

    And not only that, but I spotted some familiar faces among the Tengu''s people. Godwin''s kids were huddled around a horde of other people cheering on a fight between Godwin and another man. His whole family, including him, now had those very same Tengu wings sprouting out of their backs.

 Chapter 83 - Old Friends

    I removed my invisibility and began to walk toward Kai''s group. The second I became visible multiple different people jerked their head''s in my direction, including the Tengu Lord. There were several groups at the ready nearby, watching the portal like hawks, so they had entered a combat stance the moment I appeared. However, the guards on Telebron''s side had immediately lowered their weapons after the man leading them had commanded them to.

    "Hello, Artorus. You and your mother made it out just fine I see. I was supposed to help you after the invasion, but, well..." I motioned toward the crystallized Aresa that was currently laid out on the ground near Xi and Alicia.

    Artorus glanced back at her and chuckled, "Yeah, we heard about what happened, so don''t worry about it. But you have some friends over there that have been waiting to talk to you." He pointed toward Godwin.

    I looked over at Godwin and his duel was already over, with him the victor of course. He saw me looking at him and motioned with his hand for me to come over before sitting down on a wooden chair next to his children.

    "I was going to talk to them next, but I probably should start with them."

    Everyone on this side seems fine anyway. Aside from Euphie that is. She looks like a ghost. She seemed fascinated with the outside world in Kellog, but she was obviously a nester, and now she''s lost her home yet again, so it''s not much of a surprise that she''s looking desolate.

    I turned and walked toward Godwin''s family, but on the way a trio of winged people stood up and blocked my path.

    "Is there a problem? I''m on my way to talk to Godwin''s family. I knew them back on Urza."

    The woman in front of me quirked an eyebrow and went to respond, but someone put a hand on her shoulder from behind, causing her to spin around with a furious look on her face. However, she blanched the moment she saw who she was about to scream at. It was a six-foot-five tall man with long grey hair, brown skin, and horns that resembled a Satyr.

    "Now now, Lina. I''ve told you once already to stop being so aggressive towards our new friends. We''re all in this together now. So while I understand your distrust of strangers after what happened to our home, we really shouldn''t be pushing away any potential allies. Especially here. Understand?" The man said.

    "Y-Yes, Master Varuna. It won''t happen again..." She practically whispered the last part while looking down.

    A light smile remained on Varuna''s face as he nodded at the girl and patted her in the direction of her group.

    Once she and her two friends were sitting around the fire again with their friends, Varuna looked back at me with an apologetic look on his face, "Apologies for that, Miss Reimia. We recently lost our home to traitors, and thanks to that coupled with the hell we went through to get here; our people are a little on edge these days."

    "And I''m going to assume it''s also related to the reason you''re all hiding in this cave."

    Varuna''s smile widened a little, "And how do you know we''re all ''hiding'' in this cave? Perhaps we are all just resting before we tackle the next part of our journey?"

    "Oh please. I don''t know what happened to you lot on your way here, but I know my group over there was attacked by an Eldritch being not too far from this cave. I haven''t been able to talk to them about it yet, or much at all period, but I do know that they should be horrified and scared from the ordeal. Instead, what do I see over there? Most of them look bored and tired. Again, I don''t know when you arrived here, but I''m willing to bet that you''re not just resting here after arriving a day or two ago. You''re all waiting because you don''t have a choice."

    "Oho, not a bad deduction. I''d give you a seven---No, an eight out of ten if you were one of my students." Varuna continued, "Indeed. We are stuck in this god forsaken cave until the beasts outside are done draining the lifeblood from a large crystal vein. But I won''t hold you up any more than this. I''m sure Godwin will be more than happy to tell you all about it. He''s done nothing but complain for over a week now, so he''ll be very excited at the opportunity to complain some more."

    Varuna bowed and walked back toward the Tengu Lord who was still conversing with the Merfolk.

    Now that the obstacles were out of the way, I began walking toward Godwin again who was holding his arms out at his side, "About time, girl! Next time just throw those cucks out of your way instead of waiting for ''Master'' Varuna to save you."

    I sat down on an empty chair next to Hera. There were a dozen chairs in a circle around a small fire, with her brother and Father being to her right. Hera and Jasper had smiles on their faces as they watched me sit down. Godwin kind of did too, but the rest of his body language and his narrowed eyes made it clear that he was on edge.

    "Still as impatient as ever I see. And why the hell would I start a fight the moment I arrive here? For all I know that Tengu Lord you''re following would attack me and the Telebron group over there." I looked at Godwin''s wings, "And speaking of which..."

    "Just say it. I already know what you''re going to say after all." Godwin said after I trailed off.

    "Those lush white wings look ridiculous on you."

    "Oh you sly cunt... You just had to slip in an insult huh? I thought you were going to mock us for becoming hybrids to a Tengu Lord."

    I looked at the siblings, "It''s good to see you three again. Honestly, I never thought I would see you again. And on that note; Jasper, would you mind explaining what is going on here? Including the fact that you''re hybrids to the Tengu now. I was under the impression that he couldn''t make hybrids?"

    Jasper chuckled, "Nice to see you as well, Rei! And you are correct, the God can''t alter Humans in that way. But have you forgotten? His Lords are on the level of Eldritch Gods and they''re all different in their own way. The one we chose to follow has his own path and goals that aligned with ours, so we decided to let him corrupt us. Although it took ages to get Father to agree to it..."

    I''m surprised he did allow himself to be corrupted. From what I remember, he was ready to die because he wanted to be with his wife. Which means his two kids must''ve put a lot of work in convincing him to accept the corruption. All so they could keep their Father around.

    "How did you meet the Lord?"

    "That would be a long story... One I''m more than happy to regal, but for now we should talk about what is happening here in this cave." Jasper said.

    True enough.

    "That Varuna guy said Godwin would be more than happy to complain again, so by all means. Start complaining. All I know is that something has you all trapped in here."

    "Bah, ''trapped'' my ass. Our ''Lord'' is merely playing it safe, which is the smart move. I was a leader myself so I know he''s making the correct choice, but I''ll be damned if I''m going to be stuck in this fucking cave for another month." Godwin said.

    "Get to the part where you explain what has you trapped in here."

    "I was getting there you little shit. It''s a herd of monsters known as ''Versha''. I''ll have my son explain them to you. I''m tired of talking about the fucking things."

    So he just wanted to vent about being trapped while tossing the explanations to his son? This is starting to feel really nostalgic.

    Jasper sighed, "I knew that was coming... But it''s nothing too serious, Rei. It''s just a matter of waiting out a race of monsters known as ''Versha''. There is a few different types, but the bulk of their race is made up by twenty foot tall bipedal monsters covered in white fur. They have Ram-like heads and horns, with an unnatural sense for anything using mana."

    He continued, "Generally they just roam around Mother draining all of the crystals of their mana. They are more than happy to eat any meat that dares come close to their camps, but they can survive just fine off of mana and Mother''s lifeblood alone. And you''ll know when they sense mana. Their eyes turn a bright white and begin to shine as they all jerk their heads in the direction of wherever the mana was that they just sensed."

    "Don''t forget about the bones, brother." Hera said.

    "Ahh right, thank you, Hera." He flipped to a page in his handbook and handed it to me. It was a drawing of a large Versha covered in armor made of bones, "You can tell their age by what kind of armor and weapons they''re using. The older they get, and the more mana they absorb, the strong their equipment is. You see, bones grow out of their backs as they accrue strength, and they rip those bones out before molding them into armor or weapons that only they will use. No other Versha are allowed to use their comrades bones. So if you see one covered in thick bone armor wielding an axe as big as he is, then you know you''re dealing with one of their elites. Also, the more powerful they are, the more resistant they are to magic."

    "And how many of them are there? If they found this cave, could you beat them?"

    "... It won''t be easy. That''s all I can really say. We only know what they are capable of thanks to our Lord. It''s not like any of us have actually fought them before. And to answer your first question, there is thousands out there. They''re spread out over several different camps. Some to the northwest, some to the north, others to the east."

    Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    "Well, I can see why you ended up trapped here then. It''d be too risky to try and walk past them with all of these people. All it would take is one person accidentally using some mana, or maybe doing it on purpose to defend against an attack, and all of the Versha tribes would descend upon you, right?"

    Jasper nodded, "Correct. So basically we''re trapped here until they''re done draining the crystals. Which could be today, or it could be another month from now. We have fresh water and plenty of food here thanks to the lake on the east side of the cave. Not to mention all of the delicious mushrooms in this cave. But admittedly, even I am getting a little tired of this place..."

    "Don''t forget all the help those fish people have been giving us!" Hera said to her brother before looking at me, "They love all of the gems our Lord has traded to them. They seem fascinated with shiny objects, so we''ve gained a bunch of seafood thanks to them."

    "Do you think they''d sense you?" Godwin asked.

    "I don''t know, maybe? My veil is strong but it''s been proven many times that anything with a powerful enough detection ability can find me if it wants to. Plus, is there even a point to me scouting out their camps? They sound very basic as a species. If they came toward the cave, you''d all know long before they arrived here."

    Godwin shrugged, "Was just a general question in case they do come here. I wasn''t about to suggest you go to their camps. As you said, it would accomplish nothing." He continued, "That aside, it sure was nice to see Aresa again."

    "Did they figure out what happened to her? She had control of the damned wellspring, so why was the Abyss able to harm her and steal control of it at the same time? Even Rai''ga wanted to use Aresa to speed up his ability to take control of a wellspring somewhere else. So it''s clearly not something you can just infuse your mana into and steal. Or it shouldn''t be anyway..."

    Jasper shook his head, "Your Fairy God spoke to our Lord about it and it was clear that neither of them had any idea as how that happened. It must be related to the Abyssal Gods themselves, or maybe the specific one that took control of it."

    "I saw it by the way. It was irradiating the air around it for many many miles. Approaching Telebron now is next to impossible. I could do it, but I''d take an ungodly amount of damage in the process. It''d be pointless for anyone to try and take Telebron back now. Just let the Eldritch from Mother attack the place instead of going on a suicide mission for a city that''s already long gone." I continued, "They are planning on attacking it... Right? I can''t even imagine what the Abyss plans to do with the wellspring, so it''s not something the Eldritch can just ignore."

    "Don''t worry. Our Lord said that it''s a priority target for the Eldritch. They''ll be attacking Telebron in about a month." Jasper said.

    That''s technically good news, but...

    "And once they take it back, are they going to purge Aetheria? Aresa was going to ignore that command, but she doesn''t control the wellspring anymore."

    Godwin laughed as he accepted a plate of fish from a lady walking around handing out dinner to everyone. "You mean IF they can take it back. My son wasn''t lying when he said Telebron was a priority target for them, but what of it? We heard about you absorbing Rai''ga, and if even you are saying that approaching the town was difficult, then who the hell knows what kind of abomination took up residence there."

    Jasper cut in, "True. And we don''t know what kind of defense the Abyss will mount when the Eldritch show up. Plus, even if it is a ''priority'', the Eldritch are really stretched thin right now since they lost control over almost all of the wellsprings."

    "Wait, what? What do you mean?"

    "Ahh shit... My bad, Rei. You wouldn''t know yet since you just got here, but the Abyss hit every wellspring. Although it sounds like they were only able to take control of seventy or so percent of them. Some moons weren''t hit as hard and thus were able to defend their main city hubs built around the wellspring. Honestly, it sounds like you guys were hit the hardest. They must have really wanted Aetheria." Jasper said.

    "Wow, what the hell... But at least the attack on Telebron makes much more sense now. They weren''t specifically targeting Telebron---."

    Varuna walked up to our group and interjected, "Apologies you four, but I just wanted to let you know that our Lord would love to talk with Miss Reimia here when she has a chance."

    With his message relayed, he quickly turned around and walked off.

    "Why does he have Demon horns?"

    Godwin shrugged while eating the plate of fish on his lap, "Because he was a Demon worshiper long ago. I didn''t know they could corrupt people like that, but apparently they can. And they only do it for those they deem worthy, so that''s why it''s so rare." He continued, "Make of that what you will. I''m still not sure if I trust the man, but he''s worked hard for the colony. And when our home was burning down, he nearly died trying to save as many people as he could. Those are indisputable facts that I can''t deny and make a large impact in how I see him."

    "Our Lord trusts him, and Master Varuna has been training Hera and I for a few years now." Jasper said.

    "He''s an amazing teacher! If you have any questions related to abilities or spells, he''s the one to go to. I''ve already upgraded my telekinetic ability twice thanks to him." Hera followed up.

    It couldn''t hurt to ask him about the wings then. The usual route of unlocking abilities isn''t working so I might as well.

    We talked a little more from there about the current situation while I ate a few dozen fish. I knew the Tengu Lord was waiting for me but I was absolutely starving, so he was going to have to wait a little bit longer.

    "Alright, I''m heading to your ''Lord''. But one last question, have you spoken to Markus or Arkaios in the past thirty years?"

    The three of them immediately looked apologetic when I asked that, even Godwin surprisingly.

    "Sorry, girl. I haven''t seen a single branded soldier since I left Urza. There was none on the moon we''ve been living on, nor were there any missionaries. I heard about what happened to them, and it kills me that I can''t help my old friend out. If he''s in trouble that is. Hopefully we run into some branded warriors in Gaia. Arkaios seemed determined to focus all of his intentions onto that place. I don''t know shit about Gaia, but our Lord decided that we''re all going to live there from now on, so I guess I''ll need to learn as I go..." Godwin shook his head and continued to grumble as I told the siblings that I''d be back later.

    I stood up from the chair and made my way over toward the Tengu Lord. He was situated in the middle of the cavern. There was one massive bedroll laid out for him and he was currently sitting on it cross-legged with his eyes closed. There were a few attendants nearby eyeing me as I approached, but they didn''t say anything as I stepped onto the bedroll. However, once I stopped in front of him and he remained motionless, his attendants looked back and forth a few times before one of them finally said, "Um, My Lord? Miss Reimia is here."

    At this his eyes shot open and he looked at me with a befuddled expression. It didn''t last long though, as he quickly began laughing while motioning for me to sit down.

    "I had heard about your ability to go undetected, but to think I didn''t even hear you approach... What a frightening experience. Even I could be taken in my sleep it seems."

    His manner of speaking was much more basic and friendlier compared to the God. He''s the only Lord I had ever heard speak though, so I had no way of knowing if they were all like this. But I highly doubted it. Also, he was much smaller than the other Lords I had previously seen. He was closer to thirty feet tall instead of forty.

    "What did you want to talk about?"

    "Straight to the point eh? Nothing specifically. I just wanted to meet the only Humanoid creature my Father has ever spoken the name of. It was only one time during one of his announcements to all of his Lords, but it was still shocking to hear."

    "Can I ask what it was about?"

    The Tengu nodded, "He told all of us about the Xel''nethra killing one of our brothers despite his intentions to aid the city; not harm it. Although after watching my brother''s memories it wasn''t quite that simple, as he did attack the city to aid you, but it was clear who the real aggressor was in that conflict." He continued, "My Father was basically sending out a missive to five of my brothers to make life hell for the Xel''nethra, and I''d say they''re doing a damn good job of it so far."

    "But didn''t he already want to kill Viktor? I remember back in Kellog---Ah, that''s a city on Urza five or six years before that event, but back then he was asking me questions about Viktor. He wanted to know his location for some reason."

    The Tengu rubbed the bottom of his beak, "Hmm... If he did want the man dead, he never told any of us. But it''s not rare for him to keep his plans to himself. Not that he doesn''t trust us, mind you. It''s more that he doesn''t bother us with unnecessary things and only speaks to us when it''s important."

    I glanced back at the group behind me. I could see Lunaria speaking to a group of Yulia citizens about something.

    "I used to have a connection to your Father, but Lunaria blocked it when I was inside one of her fountains. Was there any animosity between the Tengu and Telebron?"

    "Not that I know of? We never attacked that city, as we generally avoid the wellspring cities. All of them have eternal defenders tied to the wellspring, like that ''Belfos'' you encountered. They revive quickly and make attacking such places extremely difficult."

    "Urza didn''t have one though?"

    "It did, but I heard it disappeared when Shiva died. It must''ve been tied to her and not the wellspring, or... No. It''s possible they were both killed through the wellspring? I never considered such a possibility existing until the Abyss did exactly that multiple times in the same day."

    Aresa and others have talked about her mother dying, but I never actually knew what happened. Only that she was ''betrayed''. Too late to ask Aresa about that now though... And it''s not like understanding old history on Urza is going to mean much at this point. I''ll save that discussion for after everything is over and done with. Whenever the hell that is going to be.

    "And as for why she blocked your connection to my Father, is it really all that surprising? He''s not exactly a revered figure in our world, is he? It obviously doesn''t help that he takes advantage of people who are their lowest point in their lives before using them as sacrificial pawns in whatever game he''s playing."

    "It felt more like she had a purpose behind it though... Actually, weirdly enough, we were talking about Shiva I think?"

    "Then that makes it even more bizarre. What possible reason could she have to cut off that conversation? Shiva is gone until she revives in her chateau but that''s ages from now, and she''ll be stuck in a purely Xel''nethra territory so she''ll need to work for Viktor. Assuming he''s still alive when she revives. But the point remains, I don''t see a reason for her to block that conversation. So personally, I think she just wanted to cut you off from him. A lot of Eldritch especially those close to the wellspring feel like it''s perfectly okay for them to manifest any desires they want. So if she wanted to block my Father from speaking to you or collecting information about Telebron through you, then she wasn''t going to ask, she was going to act. Your feelings on the matter be damned." The Tengu said.

    "... Alright, fuck it. I''m just going to confront her about it later. I''ll see what she has to say in her own defense."

    The Tengu''s eyes widened for a moment before quickly closing. He was obviously meditating on something so I waited silently for him to finish.

    "Varuna!!" He suddenly shouted.

    "Yes, My Lord?" Varuna appeared next to him almost instantly.

    "We have another group of fools bringing the Versha right to our doorstep. You know what to do, yes?"

    Varuna nodded, "No mana, guns only. Don''t worry, it will be done."

    Varuna disappeared and re-appeared in two different parts of the cave, speaking to both the men guarding the weapons, and a group of people who were eating around another fire. They quickly stood up and rushed over to the weapon pile, picking one up each before running toward the exit of the cave. So he can split himself like Shana? It looks a little different though, but every ability is unique in its own way generally.

    "Another?"

    The Tengu sighed, "Yes, another... At first we thought it was just a group of fools running from the Versha in an attempt to flee, but this is the fourth time. It''s clear at this point someone is using Humans as fodder to draw the Versha to our cave, but we aren''t sure who. It''s honestly something my Father would do, but it''s obviously not him."

    Ahh shit, I already know how this story ends. There''s a good chance we''re going to have to fight them before the herd moves on. An army of anti-magic beasts flooding into this cave isn''t going to be pretty, but at the same time it''ll be a good test to see just how much stronger I am now.

 Chapter 84 - Dilemma

    After my talk with the Tengu concluded I made my way back toward Godwin''s family.

    "Godwin, help me figure out what my enhancement cap is."

    "We can''t use mana, fool. Are you trying to pull the Versha over here?"

    "Can''t we go through that portal and test it over there? I just came through that side and I didn''t see any enemies, so we should be fine."

    Godwin shook his head, "We can''t go back that way. All day long for well over a month now we''ve had people check to see if it''s letting us leave, but as you can see, we''re still stuck in this fucking cave. Otherwise we''d have just retreated back to the other side of the mountain and had scouts tell us when the herd moved on."

    I was wondering why they remained in this cave if it was so dangerous to stay here... Well, shit. I guess I''ll just have to wait.

    "Dad, what''s an ''enhancement cap''?" Hera asked.

    "I don''t know either actually." Jasper added.

    Godwin sighed, "I''m not surprised that neither of you have ever heard that phrase before. After all, your pops here has only met a handful of people who have ever reached their ''peak''. That includes me by the way."

    "Oh? When did you hit your peak?"

    "About ten years ago. Turns out I have a much larger pool of mana than the average person. NOT THAT IT CAME AS A SURPRISE TO ME!!"

    "Father, please stop bragging and explain. We asked about a cap but now you''re using the word peak and talking about maximum mana instead. So now I''m curious about that as well. Can you no longer increase your maximum mana once you hit this ''peak''?" Jasper asked.

    "You can increase it indefinitely, son. But once you near your peak it slows down quite a bit, and you''ll know when you''ve hit it. You can feel it in your soul."

    "Mine went in a weird direction. During my run here from Rai''ga''s lair I realized that my mana regen spiked to an insane level. My maximum went up of course, but it wasn''t at the usual max mana/regen rate that it always advanced after I gained strength. In fact, it was so skewed that I''d say my regen went up almost ten times more than it did in the past."

    Jasper''s eyes widened while Godwin quirked an eyebrow before saying, "How long does it take you to regen your mana now?"

    "About a minute. In the past it took an hour, and that''s when I had a much smaller pool of mana. But it made sense when I thought about it on the way over here. My stealth ability suggests that I should be built like an assassin, which means a swift end in combat, one way or the other. And then there is the skeletons. Maximum mana is always nice, but in this case it would''ve been nearly useless compared to regen since my Liches are the ones who can hold astronomical amounts of mana." I continued, "Basically, regen serves me far better in both aspects."

    "Ooh, I just realized!" Hera chuckled, "The Versha would be perfect summons for you, wouldn''t they? Even their armor is made of bone!"

    Hmm, I can create a really strong set of armor at this point, and the heavy armor Petey used wasn''t all that bad either. But, I am definitely interested to see if a suit of their bones would create a more powerful armor.

    I looked around the cave. The Tengu and Telebron''s people both looked equally exhausted and bored, but it was also obvious that they were all on edge.

    It''s safe to say I''m one of, if not the only one, who actually wants to battle the Versha. It''d be for the best if they left in peace, but I can''t deny that I''d be disappointed if I wasn''t able to get my hands on at least one of them.

    "I know the Versha have a powerful innate ability to sense mana, but do you think it is enough to sense mine through my veil if I''m using a very small amount?"

    Jasper sat back and crossed his arms, "Probably. We''ve been fine even if someone uses a little magic in here. We assume it''s because the cave itself is mostly blocking our perception of the outside, so the inverse should be the same. Our Lord is just barely able to hold his connection to a probe he has outside. It''s there to make sure the Versha aren''t coming this way, and to keep a lookout for any sacrifices sent our way in the hopes of drawing the herd to us."

    I want to create a new suit of armor, but it looks like I''ll need to wait a bit before I can do that.

    "Any ideas as to what is trying to pull them here?"

    Jasper shook his head, "It can''t be Demons or Xerath, the Eldritch on Mother destroy any outside corruption instantly. They never give it time to take root and fester. So that means it''s an Eldritch that either wants them or us dead. Perhaps both?"

    Hera raised her hand, "Can we get back to the ''cap'' and ''peak'' for a second? Why is Rei asking you for help in testing her cap? We can all tell what our internal mana is so this doesn''t make any sense."

    "Good question, my frivolous daughter. To start, let me be more specific. Your mana has a ''peak'', while your enhancement has a ''cap''. The maximum mana peak was explained earlier, so I''ll dive into the enhancement cap now."

    Godwin continued, "I say that, but it''s actually really simple so there isn''t all that much to explain. It''s basically how much mana you can use to enhance yourself. The test she wants to run has no purpose for defense, as you will always block any amount of damage so long as you still have mana in your reserves, no matter how hard you were hit. However, the cap does play a role in how much damage you can do. So our white haired friend here wants my help to see what her maximum damage is without using conduits like artifact weapons. Either that or she''s using it as an excuse to punch your Father."

    "Both are correct assumptions."

    Jasper chuckled, "Well, I can''t say I blame her. But uh, Rei? Where is the artifact armor at? The one you still haven''t paid me for."

    "Somewhere in Viktor''s lands. He killed me and then gave it to someone else or sold it. Either way, I don''t have it anymore."

    "We heard about him killing you again... Our Lord told us many years ago." Hera said.

    "Yep, and that makes it three times now. Xelba, Viseux, and then Xethra. That last one is another city of his. I know it''s hard to tell with how unique his city names are."

    Jasper winced, "Sorry, Rei... That was a dumb question. I knew you had died again at some point, so it should''ve been obvious that you no longer had the artifact. I guess I was happy that you had something from our time together all those years ago."

    "Thanks Jasper, but don''t worry, I''ll get it back at some point after I crush the skulls of Viktor and his two guards. I''d bet anything that one of them has it. That fucking werewolf is still carrying around Ishar''s spear and it pisses me off more and more every time I think about it." I continued, "But honestly, it''s a miracle I even had the artifact as long as I did. I should''ve lost it in Viseux. I can''t believe it was still in the spot I died during the invasion."

    Termia was the perfect opportunity to upgrade the damned thing too. It would''ve been a nice lifeline to have...

    A gong rang out. I looked to my right and Varuna was standing there with a small gong hanging down in his left hand, and a tiny mallet in his right hand. He lowered them both when he had everyone''s attention.

    "Don''t worry folks, the problem has been taken care of. We killed the Humans running this way and the Versha returned to their camps." He said, which made most of the people in the cavern smile in relief.

    "That''s it, they just turned around and went home after the Humans died? Seems... Odd."

    Godwin laughed, "Of course not, idiot. They devoured their corpses and then went home. But why the hell would he tell everyone that? Most of these people are already scared out of their mind as it is. They all just want to reach Gaia and settle down, but instead they''re trapped in this damned cave with a horde of massive monsters out there that could overrun us at any minute now. All it will take is one fuck up, and so even my nerves are beginning to give out after being stuck in this high-stress situation for over a month. I just want to leave god damnit..."

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ... That''s a good point. Sometimes I really forget what it is like for the average person in this fucked up world of ours. While I''m over here thinking about how great it would be to test myself against the Versha; all of the people in this room are only thinking about how badly they want things to return to how they were before. Back when they had homes and lived in relative safety.

    "Rei." A familiar voice said from behind me. I turned around and saw Xi standing there with a light but sad smile on her face. "Thanks for saving me back there. They were going to eat me, literally. But Belfos attacked as they were preparing for dinner and then all of you wiped them out. So again, thank you..."

    They were going to eat her?! They couldn''t have been hurting for food that bad, so it was probably an order from Rai''ga. I can see him doing that just so he could tell us about it after we had arrived, but Belfos arrived much sooner than we did, thank god.

    I reached out and patted her hair, causing her to look down in embarrassment. "I-I''m an adult, you know? Can''t you just hug me instead?"

    "I like doing this. It''s become a habit of mine after meeting Aresa. But back then she was really happy when I did it. I''m still not used to the teenage version of her..."

    "HA! So she''s a moody brat now eh? I''m looking forward to seeing that!" Godwin said.

    "One more reason to hurry to Gaia, right Father?" Hera said.

    "... Yeah. Now that the little princess is near me again, I''m not going to let anything happen to her."

    A fairy with white hair done-up in a ponytail landed on my shoulder. "You''re slow, Rei! Why are you still over here? I wanted to brag about keeping you alive during the Rai''ga fight!"

    "When the Mantis head tried to fill me with holes using those bone spears, right? Thanks for the barrier at that time, Luna. And good to see you again as well." I smiled and pushed my nose into the side of her face, causing her to tip over."

    "N-No! When you were chopping his head off with your pet Crotia. See, after that spear attack I felt like it''d be best if I channeled my mana into a barrier that I''d use during a pivotal moment, ya know? It wasn''t easy just sitting there channeling onto a barrier and not using it with all those attacks coming at you, but ooh I was so glad I did in the end! You would''ve been melted just like your pet was if I hadn''t protected your back."

    So that''s why Petey had died and I was still alive... I equally shared my mana with him so it was a little surprising that Rai''ga had focused him instead of me, or at least that''s what I thought had happened. Turns out he was blasting us both equally, but I was able to survive thanks to Luna.

    "Thanks, little one. Alicia and Benny might have been able to finish him off, but even if they could have, I still would have been dead for god knows how many years. So I''m only here right now thanks to you."

    "O-Ooh..."

    I said it with too much sincerity apparently. She''s suddenly all embarrassed and unable to look at me.

    From there I walked over to Telebron''s group and listened to Kai explain how the battle went as they fled toward Mother''s portal. Once we were done talking everyone turned in for the night as the light shining in through the cave entrance began to dim.

    <hr>

    Three weeks went by as everyone just sat around talking while waiting for the horde to move on. But despite the Tengu Lord''s claims that they''d be ''leaving any day now'', even he was beginning to wonder if that was true or not.

    The Tengu Lord looked down and scratched his head, "I don''t understand... Nor does my Father. He said it usually only takes them a month to drain even the biggest of crystals, and the ones they''re camped next to range from small to medium sized. Also, we don''t even know how long they were here before we arrived. I''ve been working under the assumption they made camp around the same time we walked through the portal, but now I''m not so sure..."

    I, the Tengu, Varuna, Lunaria, and one of the Merfolk''s representatives was sitting on his large bedroll. The Tengu had called us here to try and figure out a plan of action going forward. Just sitting in this cave wasn''t an option anymore because the Merfolk told us that a very old Eldritch was migrating with his people to the north and he was clearly aiming for the portal we all came through. They were going to arrive in two weeks according to them, and if we were to believe the Merfolk, that meant we had to make a decision, and soon.

    Lunaria raised her hand, "And we''re certain that it''s going to attack us?"

    "According to our friend here, yes." Varuna motioned toward the Merfolk. It was a strange looking fish creature when I had first arrived here, but over time it slowly morphed into a more Human-like form(including its voice). It had reached a point that it was mostly Human now, and the only thing odd about it was its webbed toes and weird fins sticking out of its head(but even those had been receding). Apparently they are able to alter their forms to match the races around them. And as a result, they have many allies from all different corners of Mother''s surface. This also means that they know which Eldritch and monsters you want to avoid.

    The male Merfolk known as ''Tam'' nodded, "Sadly, it is true. The Eldritch is named ''Ultros'', and he''s not one to be trifled with. He migrates to different parts of Mother every twenty years and quickly adapts to whatever environment he decides is his new home." He continued, "He is not peaceful, not even a little. While the Versha are more than satisfied to drain Mother''s lifeblood and nothing else; Ultros absorbs everything. He migrates with his spawn and Lords after reducing their previous home to a desolate environment that is devoid of all life."

    The Tengu shook his head, "Well it''s not hard to figure out what such an Eldritch would do if we were to wait here for it. So that leaves us with a rather simple but horrific set of options. We either wait and attack this ''Ultros'' and his creations as they come through the portal, which will probably alert the Versha to our location regardless of how much the cavern is blocking our auras. And the other option is..."

    Drawing the Versha to us and making a stand. But even if we do win, one other problem remains.

    "Tam, how fast does Ultros and his people move? I know they''re ''two weeks away'', but let''s assume we are able to crush the Versha and leave immediately. If Ultros'' migration moves at twice the speed we do, it''ll all be for nothing."

    "A great point, Miss Reimia. While also being a worrying one... Tam?" Varuna said, looking at Tam.

    "Fear not, his migration is slow. See, they stop quite often to ''feed'' off of the environment. While they''re two weeks away at the speed they move, it''d only take you lot a couple of days to reach them."

    Holy shit, they''re really close then.

    "And you only just now spotted him?" Lunaria continued, "Not judging you Tam, as I appreciate the warning. It''s just that we''re kind of screwed here if Ultros decides to speed up the migration now that they''re so close to this cave."

    "It may seem late, but do you remember seeing any rivers on your way here? While we can adapt to any environment, we are most comfortable in the water, so that''s where most of us remain. The only reason we even knew Ultros was migrating here is because one of our allies had warned us a few hours ago. We haven''t actually seen him ourselves, but we trust the source of the warning." Tam said.

    "Tam, do you offer more than food for jewels?"

    Lunaria quirked an eyebrow but the Tengu and Varuna immediately realized what I was hinting at.

    "We do, but it won''t be cheap."

    "Explain what you can offer, and for what price." The Tengu said.

    Tam nodded and pointed at the lake, "We can alter the land around the lake in a way that it''ll inject toxins into anything that enters the area. We already know this works against the Versha. It''ll reduce their speed and eventually paralyze them. Also, we can provide ranged support from the lake."

    The Tengu and Tam went back and forth for a while working out what he was going to buy and what he had to pay. I didn''t know much about jewels, but it was clear from the Tengu''s attitude that they wanted a lot for their services. Still though, the Tengu had no choice but to buy them, as every little bit of help was going to be necessary for the battle to come.

    "Rei, what are you going to do with the greatsword and scythe?" Lunaria asked me while the others were listening to Tam explain what their ''ranged support'' was.

    "The artifacts? You can have the scythe so long as you give it someone who isn''t going to steal it. I need it to bring back a friend of mine and Aresa''s. And I''m giving the greatsword to someone who''s a perfect match for it."

    I remember him using a greatsword during the battle with the Moon Eldritch, so I assume that''s his preferred weapon.

    "... By the way, I see you''re getting along well with the Tengu."

    "Meaning?" Lunaria narrowed her eyes at me.

    "Meaning I''d like to know why the hell you blocked my connection to the Tengu God. If you don''t like him that''s fine, pretty much nobody does, but that wasn''t your fucking decision to make."

    "What...?" She immediately went from wary and annoyed to confused. But she quickly swapped back to being annoyed, "Rei, what the hell are you talking about?"

    "Back in your cave before I traveled to Telebron I was talking to the Tengu next to you as we sat in one of your ponds. But I was suddenly cut off and I could tell it was your aura that sealed off his connection."

    Lunaria just stared at me, lost in thought. It took her nearly ten seconds to finally respond to me, "You were in my pools, which cleanses everything that the person''s soul sees as a threat. But it needs to understand it''s a threat, and that''s why you had to personally break off Rai''ga''s connection to you. As for why the Tengu''s would suddenly break... I''m not sure. The only thing I can think of is that you recognized his connection as a threat which made my water attack it, or the pure disgust I was feeling in that moment as I thought about how you were actually conversing with that creature had been a catalyst that made my water see it as a threat. I''ve never had that happen before, but that was my first time resting in my pools with someone else."

    ... Both sound like plausible explanations, but it''s impossible for me to fully believe either of them. This Eldritch masquerading as a woman is vain enough to cut the connection just because she felt like it.

    Lunaria sighed, "And I even showed up nude for you! Not many people have seen these without clothes on, you know?" She lifted her breasts up and pretended to pout. Like I said, vain. Although I won''t deny that they are really nice to look at.

    Tam stood up and began to walk toward the lake.

    I looked at the Tengu, "All done?"

    "He''s going to relay to his kin what we need, and they should be back here within six hours with the goods. According to him, it''ll take about a day to fully grow everything that he''s sending us, and that''s only if we continuously pour mana into them. Which obviously runs the risk of the Versha finding us, but that''s not something we need to worry about anymore since we''re going to be pulling them back here regardless."

    So this is really happening... Looks like I''m going to get the opportunity to test my new strength much sooner than I had expected.

 Chapter 85 - The Versha

    Lunaria and I were waiting for Luna to finish probing my soul as Xi channeled onto Victoria and Aresa''s crystals nearby. She was making sure they were capped on mana so that in the event that something happened to her, we''d hopefully make it to Gaia before Aresa broke out of stasis.

    Luna appeared out of my chest and floated up onto my shoulder, "Mom, it''s very weird! Belfos is like, symbiotically linked to her."

    Lunaria hummed while tapping her chin, "You mean the same way he was linked to the wellspring?"

    Luna nodded, causing her mother to look at me with a weird expression on her face.

    "If I''m following this correctly, he''s going to spawn out of me at some point?"

    "... Probably."

    "Can you tell me anything else? Like how this is annoying you for some reason."

    Lunaria sighed and looked down, "I''m not annoyed at you, it''s more about how..."

    I waited a bit for her to continue, but she just sat there in silent. And when it became clear she wasn''t going to say anything more on the matter, Luna flashed a wide smile at me and said, "She''s sad and jealous!"

    "... I''m glad to see that my daughter is so much more outgoing now, but did you really need to tell her that?" Lunaria said.

    "Jealous I understand since that''s a lot of extra power I''ll have one day instead of you, but why would that make you sad?"

    "Power has nothing to do with it. Belfos has always been there for me, even if he barely spoke." Lunaria continued, "You have to understand, he was a staple in my life from birth and all the way up until a month ago. No matter what future awaited me, it was nice knowing he was there, protecting Termia. But now that he''s gone, everything feels so..."

    I can understand where she''s coming from, but I''m definitely not passing Belfos over if she asks for his soul. Assuming I even can decouple him from my soul. This is a new phenomenon for me and as usual I have no one around who''d understand how my core works. Maybe the Abyssal monsters could tell me, but would they? The only one I know that might is the monster girl in the museum, but returning there would be really difficult and a major time sink. It''s still an option for me going forward, but---

    Xi fell backward and laid down on the ground, "I-I''m dooone~. Taking care of two crystals is so tiring!"

    "Why is Victoria still in stasis? I thought you purged her of the Abyssal creature inside her skull. Otherwise what the hell was the point of that ritual you did when I brought her to you?"

    "Ew, don''t call it a ritual! That makes it sound Demonic in nature." She continued, "We did release her from the crystal when we arrived at this cave, but she was... Broken. Her mind is a complete mess after being controlled and tortured for years. She was flailing around and screaming, so we decided to seal her up again and pray there is some way in Gaia to make her forget what happened to her. But odds are that won''t happen and I''ll need to keep her crystallized for a long time while we try and find someone skilled enough in soul manipulation of memories."

    I''m good at reviewing memories, but I don''t know the first thing about editing memories. So I can''t help them there sadly.

    I stood up and began to walk toward the back of the cave, near the portal. Luna flew over and landed on my shoulder.

    "Where are you going?"

    "I''m going over there to be alone so I can work on my armor in peace. The Tengu said we''ll be pulling the Versha back to us in seven days. He suspects we''ll need five days of rest after that, which gives us two days of travel time to get away from Ultros. That''s the initial plan anyway. And so before the battle begins I''m going to work hard at creating the best heavy armor I possibly can. With the amount of mana regen I have, I should be able to pour a tremendous amount into the armor as I craft it."

    And it''s not just that, so many parts of me feel different after absorbing Rai''ga. I must''ve broken through to a new level. I even know that I could create the tomb my creator died in. I need a name for it... What did Xi call me again? A necromancer or something? I''ll call it ''The Necromancer God'' then.

    I reached the back of the cave and sat down, placing my back against it. Although I''m not even sure of what I''d do with a big black building. It''d take me a long time to build, and if I ever do know I''m going to die, I''m sure as hell not going to build myself a massive tomb.

    "Oh, Luna. Can you do something for me? Go tell that angry old man to come see me. I need to give him something."

    "Aye aye!" Luna flew off toward Godwin.

    After she left I raised my right hand out in front of me palm up before cutting a little slit into it. I was going to take this slow, so I didn''t need a big wound.

    I focused on my palm, forcing the blood to form around my entire hand. And once it was completely covered, I began to channel mana into it while refining the blood. Yeah... it''s definitely going to take a long time to make a full suit of armor, but it''ll be more than worth it.

    A few minutes later Godwin returned with Luna on his shoulder. "What''d you need? I was just about to eat before diving into my soul realm. This is going to be a hell of a battle, so I''m preparing well ahead of time."

    "I have a weapon I want to give you. It''s a powerful artifact greatsword I took from the Crotia. Luna?"

    Luna nodded, "I know where it is! Mom was still holding out hope that you''d give it to her, but hehe, I knew that wasn''t going to happen." She then pointed toward the makeshift tents Aresa and Victoria were laying under, "That way, angry old man!"

    "An artifact sword huh? I haven''t had one of those in several decades... Funnily enough, that fucker Rai''ga absorbed my last one. Someone stole it and I didn''t find out who it was until a year later when a friend of mine in the church told me that Rai''ga was the one who took it." Godwin laughed, "Well shit, I really appreciate the gift! That''s going to help a hell of a lot in the coming battle. I''ll be sure to return the favor one day, and I''ll tell my son about it so he doesn''t feel bad about losing an artifact armor while not getting paid. Although I doubt he actually gives a shit."

    Godwin turned around and walked in the direction Luna was still pointing. With them gone I went back to fully focusing on the blood covering my right hand. Seven days should be enough time. If not, I''ll just roll with whatever I''ve completed up until then.

    <hr>

    ~One week later~

    "Rei, I found one, but I don''t want to do this again..." Luna said, dropping a dead bird at my feet.

    I exited my meditation and looked at the bird, "I know, little one. And don''t worry, we shouldn''t need to do this again."

    I reached out and touched the bird before pouring my mana into its tiny bones. Just like back in Xethra, it took almost no time at all for its core and new muscles to grow. Once the bird''s new body had fully formed I sent it off toward the Tengu who was talking to a few people near the cave exit. He was leaving in a few minutes to pull the Versha.

    A lot of people protested when he designated himself as the bait, but he saw no reason to have me be the one pulling them. While he was confident I''d be able to outrun them, there just wasn''t any point to it since he has access to the same warp marks that Nisha uses. Thus, it made a lot more sense for him to do it, so I didn''t argue with his decision.

    But I still wanted to see the Versha before they arrived at the cave, so I asked Luna to check the surrounding area for any dead birds. I hadn''t expected her to actually find one, so it was a nice surprise. Plus, it''ll be a great scout to have for the rest of the journey to Gaia. And I want to know who the fuck was sending sacrifices in our direction.

    The bird landed on the Tengu''s right shoulder. He continued speaking with Varuna while giving it a slight glance and nothing more.

    Once he was done talking to Varuna he hastily said something to Lunaria before walking out of the cave. And immediately the entire cave went quiet. Looking around I could see that everyone was in their designated places, just waiting for what was to come.

    "Luna, can you help Godwin out? The middle group is going to need the most help, and it might be a bit before I''m able to aid them."

    "Aww, okay..."

    I know she wanted to aid me again, but this was for the best.

    The lakeside had flourished quite nicely. It was surrounded by all sorts of strange coral plants, and the ground itself reminded me of images of the seabed I had seen as a child. And while there were plants growing out of the lake, which I assumed were the ranged support Tam was referencing before, I was more surprised by the massive bipedal toad relaxing on the back side of the lake.

    I could only see its top half, as its bottom half was under water, but even its top half was over thirty meters in height. It was currently resting against the cave wall with its arms behind the back of its head. And the most surprising thing of all was just how ripped it looked. It reminded me of the Xerathian pack leaders I saw back in Telebron, except on a much larger scale. Also, I couldn''t help but chuckle at how smug the creature looked. Everyone else was completely on edge, but this toad creature didn''t look worried even a little. It was obviously here to put the Versha in their place and nothing more.

    "Impressive, isn''t it?" Tam said after approaching me.

    "Is it a Lord?"

    "Nope, and not a God either. It''s a special type of spawn that requires a large amount of effort to create. But as you''re about to see for yourself, they''re worth the effort."

    "Do I even want to know how much it cost the Tengu to purchase his aid?"

    Tam laughed, "If only we were paid for him! His name is ''Skewalla'', and he came here of his own accord. Our God saw no reason to interfere, as the Versha are a plague upon all of us. Although they do have their uses so we don''t go out of our way to attack them, but thinning their numbers like this every now and then is also necessary."

    "And what are they good for?"

    "For one, they would have attacked Ultros without a second thought. They would most likely lose, but their victory over him isn''t what matters, it''s that they attack everyone regardless of what or who they are. They''re a force of nature that takes out some rather vile creatures from time to time."

    Kind of a shame we''re helping that Ultros Eldritch out, but it is what it is.

    Tam looked down at my torso, "Speaking of amazing..."

    I chuckled, "I only completed the finishing touches on it about an hour ago, so I made it just in time. I knew I''d be cutting it close but not that close."

    Of course, I wasn''t referring to only my new armor. I had created a sword from my blood as well. I couldn''t channel as much mana into it as the greatsword I handed over to Godwin, or most artifact weapons for that matter, but it''s pretty damned close, which was honestly shocking.

    "Can you make armor and weapons like that for us? We''d reward you handsomely." Tam said.

    "I can, but there would be no point. Only I can repair them. So if you want I can try and make a couple of good weapons before we leave, but just know that when they begin to break, there won''t be any way for you to fix them."

    I could be one hell of a scam artist with this ability though. Handing out powerful artifact knockoffs for a high price. But I do have one idea that may allow them to repair any weapons or armor I make, which is leaving a Lich and some ether carriers here.

    I just don''t know if that would actually work. After breaking off from my soul they''ll carry out their last orders until they die, but what if something goes wrong? And it''s not like any rewards they can give me would matter right now. Not for what I could produce in less than a week anyway.

    So instead of bothering with requests like that, I''m going to focus on making sure these people get to Gaia. Knowing Aresa will survive and Shana can be brought back will be more than enough for me. So after I''ve escorted them there, I''ll be heading off to another place alone. And I can tell that it''ll be the final stop of my journey.

    ... It''s kind of fitting that the Elven lands would be where it all ends for me. Not that I know exactly what is going to happen after I find the codes they''ve been coveting for centuries. It''s just this weird feeling in the back of my head that''s telling me it''ll all be over after I''m done with Caedrus.

    "That''s a shame... It''s hard to get artifact equipment here after all." Tam said.

    "What? But there''s Eldritch everywhere?"

    "All the more reason they''re hard to come by! What do you think Eldritch do after they find artifact equipment?"

    "... Right. They''re absorbing them all, aren''t they? That should''ve been obvious in hindsight."

    Tam nodded, "Another Eldritch soul sitting there unable to flee is basically just a free meal for them. And Demons actually use the equipment, while Xerath... I''m actually not sure what they do with them. I''ve never even seen one before, nor has any of my kind. Demons are sometimes stupid or brave enough to traverse through Mother, but the Xerath are practically fictional creatures here."

    Would''ve been nice if I ended up here after being sacrificed. This place has its dangers and horrors, but the Xerath realm is absolutely vile. I''ll never forget the time that the local God corrupting the area outside of my cave had reached its final form. The vegetation outside was monstrous in size, and any little noise or disturbance would catch their attention.

    My feet absorb most of the sound I create, but not everything if the area is ripe with things that make a lot of sound as you walk. And because corruption was so rampant throughout the land, it was almost entirely covered in pustules, eggs, ooze, and Xerath growing out of the ground. Leaving my cave to find souls was a nightmare during that time. I''d make one little noise and a dozen or so Xerath would all turn to look at me at the same time. And the closer ones would bite at the source of the sound, even if they couldn''t see me. Thanks to that I had a lot of close calls back then...

    Tam walked away and entered the lake before disappearing underneath the water. It appears he didn''t plan on joining the battle, not that I expected him to. And with him gone I tested my armor one last time. No matter which way I twisted or turned, my heavy armor would turn soft in certain areas like my knees, allowing me the same mobility I''d have if I were wearing light armor.

    The defenses were really simple, as we didn''t have much time to create much of anything. The backright side of the cave was hidden behind my camo, so it appeared like just any ordinary part of the cave. And that''s where all of the non-combatants were hiding, which sadly made up a large portion of the people here. At most we had two hundred people throughout the cave at different points, waiting for the Versha.

    Most of them were doing nothing except staring at the entrance in silence with weapons in their hands. The only good news in all of this was the amount of firepower Telebron had brought with them. Most of it was magical guns sadly, but according to Tam that was fine. We needed people to pin down the ranged attackers on the Versha''s side.

    He said they were half the size of normal Versha, and they''re all going to stay at the far side of the cave near the wall after entering. They create spears of bone from their bodies and then charge their arms over the course of thirty seconds before firing. It''s a long time, but Tam said the force at which the bones are thrown is powerful enough to easily pierce the Tengu''s barrier in one shot. So while they were obviously a major threat we needed to dispatch as soon as possible, we were fortunate in the fact that they are mostly unarmored. That''s why it doesn''t matter if our side is using magical guns, since they''ll all be aiming at the ranged fighters in the back anyway.

    I even handed over my Crotian gun to someone who was on the ceiling of the cave waiting for the Versha. The Merfolk had created webs for our people to crawl onto the ceiling and there is several large catwalks up there where all of our ranged support is waiting. Again, we''re trusting Tam''s word, but he says so long as we take out the Versha''s ranged support, then they have nothing to worry about up there. Even if the fighters throw their axes up there, all that will do is open them up to counterattacks from our fighters, including me.

    About thirty minutes later I could see the Tengu stop through the bird''s vision. He knelt down and created one final mark on the ground. Knowing he was about to begin to charge it, I made the bird fly into the sky toward the Versha''s location.

    It was night time and raining out, so visibility was limited even with my vision. That''s why I could barely make out one of their camps until the bird was extremely close to it, and the Tengu must have began to channel mana into his marks, because immediately I could see hundreds of eyes light up a bright white as they all turned toward the Tengu''s direction all at the same time. A few moments later all of the eyes began moving at a tremendous speed past the bird. Tam said they were fast but god damn...

    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    I told the bird to fly back to the cave, but it was clear that the Versha were going to arrive much faster than the bird could move, so I instead redirected it toward a tree so I wouldn''t accidentally lose it.

    About ten minutes later the Tengu re-appeared through the cave entrance and he wasted no time in taking his place at the front of the fighters. And as soon as they saw him, Jasper''s group(Jasper, Hera, Lunaria, Varuna) at the back left side of the cave began to channel their mana together.

    This Tengu Lord is more of a caster than his brothers, but he unfortunately has be at the forefront to support the front line, as Humans aren''t exactly built to battle abominations like the Versha, regardless of how much mana they have.

    Through the bird I could hear the beat of drums commence. They slowly faded into the distance as the horde moved away from the bird. Ahh, there it is, the other enemy our ranged support need to take out according to Tam.

    Aside from the sound of the rain and thunder, the cave itself was deadly silent, and it stayed that way for another fifteen minutes.

    That''s when we heard a low rumbling in the distance, but it didn''t stay in the distance for very long. It quickly approached the cave, changing from a low rumbling to sounding like a stampede in no time at all. Even the ground itself began to shake as their hooves and drums echoed throughout the cavern.

    And then, all at once, it stopped.

    The Versha produced no noise as we watched the torrential downpour through the cavern entrance. We waited for around a minute before the first one appeared through the rain. Judging from the amount of armor it was covered in, it was clearly one of the elite. And the others were all right behind him. One after another they entered the cave and took up positions next to their brethren. Shoulder to shoulder they lined up, forming two and a half lines of Versha, with a smaller pack behind them that were hugging the wall.

    The first one that entered paced back and forth in front of the Versha while tapping the top of his palm with the shaft of his large bone mallet. His face was completely covered in bone armor, so I couldn''t see his eyes, but his head was turning to all different sides of the cavern. From the Merfolk and Toad on the right side of the cavern, to the gunmen on the ceiling, to the forces on the back left side that were already channeling onto a singular spell. He must be the Alpha. I can''t see a single bit of fur on him because of all the armor.

    The Versha Alpha snorted. He motioned toward the Versha behind him and pointed up. They looked up and chortled a strange laugh before saying something loudly to the rest of the Versha. They all began to laugh after that, and it sounded like a weird mix of a hyena and a bear laughing.

    Their cheerful demeanor was cut short when a loud smashing sound occurred near the lake. We all looked over there and saw that the toad had crushed one of the Versha who was approaching the lake. He picked the Versha''s corpse up and used its horns to mockingly clean his teeth before flicking the corpse into cavern''s wall. With all of the Versha looking at him he leaned back and relaxed against the wall again while turning his palms up. The derisive look on his face was basically saying ''What are you going to do about it?''

    The Versha all stared at him for a few short moments before the Alpha raised his right hand. The drums immediately began to play again, and it wasn''t hard to tell why Tam had said we needed to kill the drummers. The aura around the Versha spiked hard, and even the untalented could see the wavy blue aura around them now. It kind of looked like they were engulfed in a transparent light-blue flame.

    Skewalla aside(the toad), the first attack came from our side. The Tengu aimed its staff at the Alpha and fired something air based that was moving so fast I didn''t even see it. And the Alpha didn''t either apparently, because the only thing he did was fly backward into the two Versha lined up behind him. And without slowing down even a little the three of them then slammed into the ranged fighter before crushing him into the wall.

    With that all hell broke loose. Everyone on the ceiling began to fire down at the mini-Versha along the back wall as the fifty or so plants in the lake fired off hundreds of toxic needles at the Versha.

    For their part, the Versha split up in an even one-third on all sides. The only surprising part was the amount of Versha attacking the lake side. Tam said they''d completely ignore it and just let the toxins build up, but Skewalla must have really pissed them off, because he had over fifty Versha heading straight for him.

    My original plan had been to help the Tengu battle the elites in the center by resurrecting any Versha I could pick off on the lakeside, since they were obviously going to come after him the hardest, but with this even split it was probably going to be much more difficult. Still though, I needed to do it. After the Versha lined up I had charged my halo so I was more than ready to go on the offensive.

    I ran toward the right side and the moment I neared the group waddling through the corals one of the Versha leaped at me with his greatsword made of bone high above his head. I could have easily dodged it, but this was one of the chances I had been waiting for.

    I readied my sword to the left side and swung it in an arc toward the right above my head, hitting the bone greatsword directly. It altered course and slammed into the ground before sliding along it as the momentum of his attack almost yanked it out of his hands after my deflection. I was given no time to attack the Versha though, as he quickly leaped backward, landing near two of his brethren.

    The three of them then attempted to circle around me as I saw several bone spears pierce Skewalla. He was already fighting off dozens of Versha(although thanks to the toxins they were moving slower by the second), so he wasn''t prepared for any outside attacks. They went straight through him, with one piercing his gut, and the other his left forearm. However, he merely flinched and continued to fight off the horde of Versha attacking him in the lake. They were all standing on the water as if it was solid ground, so him being near the back of the lake didn''t matter at all.

    I took a quick glance toward the back wall and I could see all sorts of explosions and bullets raining down on the ranged fighters, and while it was hurting them, they were mostly ignoring it and somehow healing large portions of the damage at a rapid rate. However, there was some casualties, but it was purely through Kai. He was the only melee fighter back there at the moment because it was too dangerous to attack them head-on without it being a blitz attack, which was quickly proven true as I watched a spear eviscerate the top one-fourth of his body, head included. But I knew he was fine thanks to his ability, so I refocused my attention on my attackers.

    The three Versha had fully encircled me while I was checking the backline. They rapidly turned and bolted toward me before raising their weapons in different directions, clearly not planning on allowing me to parry them all at once.

    The first attack came at me from the right side. I ducked under it and swung high again, deflecting the second attack from above before leaping into the air while raising my knees up to my chest as the third attack came at me low from the left side. Just as it passed under my feet I kicked the weapon down hard, causing the Versha to stumble forward. I quickly leaped back at him as he tried to right himself and flee, but my sword was cutting through his throat before he could even fix his posture.

    I then grabbed onto his fur, swung around his back, and pulled him hard toward the ground. As soon as he landed I jumped onto his chest and pierced his heart, praying he died the same way more biological creatures did, and sure enough he didn''t last long after his heart was pierced.

    The two Versha were preparing to attack me again but they stopped when they saw I was doing something strange to their dead comrade. Their eyes lit up a bright white as they watched their comrade''s fur fall out, its skin and organs disintegrate, and a mass of black liquid spread throughout its bone structure. I was halfway through the process when they went on the attack again. This time there was no plan of attack, they merely wanted to prevent me from doing whatever it was that I was doing to their allies corpse.

    I stood up and continued channeling into the corpse with my feet while entering a ready stance. I knew in that moment why most of the Versha didn''t have much armor on them. It was clear that large amounts of them were just stupid and didn''t have a single tactical thought in their head. All they were doing was one brute force attack after another, which is why Skewalla was managing to fight off so many of them at once. Although things were admittedly starting to look a little dire over there.

    Before the Versha''s attack even finished I threw my sword at the one on the left, piercing him right through his heart. He began to fall over lifelessly as I leaped onto the other Versha''s chest, punching him as hard as I could several times where his heart was. On the first punch I felt his bones crack hard, and the second one shattered his ribs completely. It must have killed him because he dropped his weapon and fell toward the ground as well.

    I jumped back onto the first dead Versha and began to channel into him again, but I was barely on him for two seconds when a bone spear slammed into my chest. It sent me flying backwards into the cavern''s walls, but my armor had prevented it from piercing me. However, the chest area was now crumbling, so I had to make sure I didn''t take another attack to my torso. Thank god I made this armor! My last suit needed to be enhanced and I would have lost all of my mana just preventing that attack. And even then it might have still pierced me...

    I stood up and ran back to the three Versha corpses while eyeing the battlefield. The ranged Versha who attacked me was currently being bombarded from above, but that freed up others to attack again. The Tengu and his warriors(Godwin included) were struggling hard against the elites, even with the fairies support. The Tengu was channeling a spell while dodging the Alpha''s attacks, but he was clearly struggling. The Alpha was swinging his massive mallet around as if it was a toy, so all of his attacks were narrowly missing the Tengu.

    And to my surprise the left side was holding their own... Kind of. It''s more like it was a stalemate, as Jasper''s group was slowing them down with some type of gravity spell, which was allowing their side to avoid the Versha''s attacks, but as Tam had warned us, it wasn''t sustainable. He said that debuffs worked on the Versha but thanks to all of their anti-magic, even the regular Versha warriors would require much more mana to debilitate with magic. And that was made clear from a single glance at Jasper''s group. They were swapping people out to meditate but the amount of people actually channeling was dropping to a dangerously low level. It was probably only thanks to Varuna and Lunaria that the channel was still going.

    ... Alright, while they all need help, there''s one group I need to attack above all else.

    I reached the corpse on the right side and pulled it onto the first corpse before doing the same with the third dead Versha. Once they were all together I began to channel into them. The first one was already mostly done, so when it finished forming I could tell that three was definitely going to be my limit. These things were way too big to be building an army out of.

    One of the elites saw what I was doing but had apparently deemed it as a mere curiosity and nothing more, as he returned to attacking the Tengu''s group soon after that. However, when he saw the three Versha corpses stand up, he said something to the Alpha who stopped attacking the Tengu to take a quick glance at me.

    But I wasn''t about to wait to see if my threat level had been raised enough to warrant elite attention. I jumped onto the shoulder of one of the Versha and commanded them to run forward through the Merfolk area. I already knew their toxins didn''t affect me so my summons would be fine too.

    I heard the Alpha yell something out in his guttural language as I passed through the coral reef near the lake. The ranged fighters who weren''t being attacked turned to look at me, and so did my targets, the drummers.

    The drummers leaped to the side over and over at an annoyingly fast pace, creating distance between us, but the summons were still faster than them. We were gaining ground as a couple of spears ripped through my summons, but their cores were still intact so all that happened was one of the summons needing to repair the tendons on his right arm, which was easily accomplished before we had even reached the drummers.

    Behind me I could hear hooves approaching, but even without glancing back I knew they wouldn''t make it in time. There were three drummers but instead of splitting my forces up, I made them do the same attack they did against me to make sure it couldn''t leap away, and it worked wonderfully. The first one was cleaved into several different parts before we ran after the second drummer, which was moving a little slower than it had been before.

    As we reached the second drummer I looked back and saw that it was an elite pursuing us, and he was going to reach us in a couple of seconds. So I told my summons to kill the drummers and then help Kai finish off the remaining ranged Versha(he had managed to kill a third of them so far with support from above).

    With their orders given, I leaped off of them onto the ground and faced the elite. He was dual wielding two large bone scimitars, and he wasted no time swinging one of them at me as I landed. I blocked it with my sword and was sent sliding along the floor from the impact, but the damned elite was fast. He was already attacking me from the other side, so while I was still sliding I flipped my sword over and blocked the next attack which then sent me sliding back in the other direction.

    This continued for several more seconds, which felt like an eternity as I was hit back and forth. And I would have been more than happy to keep going if my sword wasn''t beginning to break. Thanks to that, waiting for my summons to kill the ranged Versha so they could support me wasn''t an option.

    I was getting ready to leap when a massive ball of water slammed into the elite from the lake''s direction. The force behind it sent the elite hurtling forward as he tumbled along the ground several times before managing to stop himself by stabbing one of his scimitars into the loose ground near the cavern''s entrance.

    I glanced at the lake and saw that the Versha had retreated from Skewalla. I don''t know whether the Alpha had called for them, or it was their own decision, but they were all moving toward the Tengu''s location. While they had apparently cut down all of the plants firing toxic needles at them, the damage had already been done. They were moving at half their normal speed toward the Tengu.

    But it seems Skewalla wasn''t about to sit this one out, despite the fact that he was bleeding from all over. He dropped down into the water again for a few moments before surfacing again with his neck and torso area ballooning in size. The reason was obvious as I watched him spit out another sphere of water like a cannon at the group fleeing from him. It slammed into the back of the group and slammed them forward into the ground. They slid along it straight into the Tengu''s group, hitting a few of the Humans but also knocking several elites right onto their asses.

    Turning back toward the ranged Versha, I witnessed Kai finishing off the last one. The only casualty was one of my summons. It had been pierced straight through its core and I had no time to repair it, as the elite was barreling toward me again.

    I ordered the remaining two summons to assist me while leaping to the left. It brought me closer to the elite which made him pause for a moment, but it didn''t take him long to figure out what I was doing.

    He turned and jumped at the two summons approaching him while raising both scimitars above his head. I maxed the enhancements on my legs and leaped onto his back, shoving my sword between the gaps of his armor, penetrating deep under his right scapula. The elite yelped in pain as he dropped his right scimitar.

    He was already mid-air though, so there was no stopping his descent toward the two summons. He brought his left scimitar down and managed to deflect both of their attacks, but they quickly dropped their weapons and clung onto him as he dropped onto them. They then hugged him as hard as they could, draining my mana quite a bit to keep him from moving, but it was worth it.

    I stood up and ran to the left-side of his back. Unlike his right side, his left side was completely armored to prevent anything from getting to his heart(his spine and head were fully armored as well), so I began to punch the hardened bone I was standing on top of over and over with my right fist. The first five punches seemed to do nothing, but cracks began to form around the sixth, and by the eighth I could tell that the elite was beginning to panic. But no matter how hard he struggled, he couldn''t break free from the two blackened Versha holding onto him.

    Kai jumped up and landed on his back right next to me. He saw what was doing and began to punch into his armor as well.

    It took us about a minute to break through but we eventually did, and I promptly stabbed the Versha in its heart. It stopped thrashing almost instantly.

    Wasting no time I sat down and began to meditate while watching the battlefield. Kai ran off toward Jasper''s side which was doing much better now that the ranged support from above was shooting the Versha in their backs. They were nowhere near as armored as the elites, and with the drummers dead their regeneration had slowed down quite a bit. It was still abnormally fast, but I could see all types of wounds on their bodies, so the damage they were taking was accumulating much faster than they could heal it.

    Meditating multiplies your regen, so the fact that mine was abnormally high now had made it so I only needed to meditate for a minute to refill my mana. And once it was maxed again, I ran toward the middle group which was either winning or losing, it was hard to tell because I could see both Godwin chopping into the neck of an elite on the ground, and the Tengu bloodied and battered as he tried to evade the Alpha.

    Surprisingly, there was already four dead elites and over fifty regular Versha on the ground, but there was also a large amount of people on the ground. Some of them were moving, but most weren''t.

    As I approached the group the Tengu spotted me and yelled out "About time!". The Alpha spared a quick glance at me and that''s when the Tengu released whatever he had been channeling the entire battle.

    He slammed the end of his staff on the ground and immediately the Alpha dropped to his knees as shackles of lightning wrapped around him. His arms were left dangling above his head as the lightning encircling his knees shot off into the ground. It was apparently pulling him down hard because the Alpha was screaming in both pain and anger at the same time. However, I could already see the shackles fizzling out. The anti-magic aura from his armor was no joke. Even with my resistance to lightning I would need more time to break out of that spell.

    The Tengu sat down and meditated while channeling onto the shackles, doing his best to keep them materialized, but even then they weren''t going to last long. So why he yelled ''about time!'' at me was pretty obvious. He had been waiting for me to show up and kill him while he was unable to move, but judging by the amount of time it took me to break through the elites armor, I didn''t have much hope for this plan.

    The summons plowed through several Versha on their way to the Alpha. And one of the elites even tried to block our path, but a water cannon from the lake sent him flying toward the other battle taking place. He tried to stop himself from moving like the last one, but his spear didn''t pierce far enough into the rocky ground to stop him. It immediately ripped out of the ground and he began to roll like a barrel away from us.

    I jumped off of my summons onto the Alpha''s back as we reached it. The shackle holding up his left arm fizzled out and he tried to reach back and grab me but the other shackles were preventing him from moving his back, so he couldn''t quite reach me.

    My summons then began to stab him in the middle of his back, and when they were pulling their weapons back, I''d jump forward and smash my fist into the same area they were attacking. I''d then leap back just as they attacked again so I could avoid their annoyingly long swords.

    "Rei, back up!" Luna said after flying onto my right shoulder.

    I did as she said and backed up as much as I could. I couldn''t go too far though because the fucker was still trying to grab me.

    A concentrated beam of energy drove into the Alpha''s back from above. It lasted for about five seconds and it changed the little cracks we formed into several shattered pieces of bone. We were only halfway through but it looked like they had also cracked the bottom half. Ahh, so that''s what Cera and her family have been doing. I saw the same damage on the four downed elites.

    A bright white light shone out from the other battle as the summons and I restarted our attack on the Alpha''s back. I looked over there and saw the conspicuously absent Alicia had re-appeared. She was holding what looked like a bright white mirror in front of her that was firing a large radiant beam of light out of it. Even if they were lightly armored on that side, I was still surprised to see the light was disintegrating any parts of the Versha it touched.

    The few Versha who had large shields made of bone were slow to reach the front and block the attack thanks to the gravity spell, but even when they began to block it, some of the Tengu''s people grabbed Alicia and flew high above the Versha, which made it near impossible for them to block her spell. Although it looked like they weren''t able to fly for long despite those big wings of theirs because of mana dependencies or some other issue, because they had to land on the other side of the Versa soon after taking off, but by then it no longer mattered, as most of them had been killed.

    "They were fighting a long slow battle to drain their mana while Alicia prepared her spell, all so they couldn''t block it!" Luna said as I continued punching into the Alpha''s armor.

    The shackles on his right arm and both of his knees disappeared just as we reached his flesh. The very second the shackles disappeared he quickly leaped back toward the ground, intending to smash me into it, but I didn''t flee. I instead positioned my sword in the hole we created and waited.

    He smashed me into the ground while also causing the sword to pierce all the way through his chest. And just like the others, he stopped moving soon after that. However, I was unable to get him off of me. While the damage had indeed been great and broke large parts of my armor while draining an enormous amount of mana, it was more about the fact that I wasn''t in a good position to put power into anything and lift him up. Also, the soften earth spell wasn''t working, so I had no choice but to continue the battle through my two summons while turning the Alpha into a third summon.

    But at this point he wasn''t really needed. There were only thirty or so Versha left, with two of them being elites. And between Skewalla, Cera, the other ranged support and Jasper''s debuffs, they weren''t even able to attack us anymore. I mean they definitely tried, but there was just too much ranged damage coming their way and the gravity spell was making it extremely difficult for them to protect themselves, let alone allow them to attack us.

    By the time the Alpha had fully formed into a new summon, the battle was over. Through a stroke of shit luck on my part, they had managed to kill one of my summons, but it didn''t matter anymore. There were plenty of new bodies to choose from now.

 Chapter 86 - Gaia

    "Fifty-two dead, ninety-eight with near-lethal injuries, and forty-two with light or mild injuries... Is five days really going to be enough?" Hera asked.

    Lunaria nodded, "With me here? Of course five will be enough. We''ll have them fixed up in less than a few hours."

    Physically, sure. But both groups have lost their homes and now they''ve lost fifty-two more people in a single instance. To say they look broken would be an understatement. And we don''t even know how much farther we need to go... I can see the large beam of light in the distance, but hell if I know how far away it is. Compared to where I first appeared on Mother it definitely looks larger outside this cave, but according to Tam that portal took us across the entire mountain range which is about sixty-five miles. I feel like it should be more noticeable after warping over sixty miles...

    "Undead girl---No, Reimia. Have you found them?" The Tengu asked me.

    "Yes. Will it surprise you to hear that they''re heading for the crystals in the empty Versha camps?"

    "......"

    Ooh, I can feel his aura spiking quite hard. I had a feeling that would piss him off.

    I looked through the bird''s eyes again. Down below there was a large procession of Human''s and an alien looking race walking toward the Versha''s camps. In the center of the group was a large Eldritch shaped like a centipede that was covered in pustules and dripping ooze everywhere. And there was one other bizarre detail sticking out to me...

    "Varuna, did you clearly see the Human''s trying to pull the Versha toward us? More specifically, did you see any ooze-like appendages on their heads?"

    "Hmm..." Varuna thought on it for a moment, "I can''t recall such a detail. And if the snipers saw it, they would have reported it to me. Why do you ask? Is there Humans over there with such an appendage?"

    "All of them."

    "Come again?"

    "All of them have some type of ooze helmet stuck to their heads. It''s dark green and transparent, which matches the color of the Eldritch. Which looks like a centipede by the way. I''d say it''s about two hundred meters long, and maybe thirty meters tall?"

    The Tengu looked at Varuna, "There''s no way past them?"

    "There is. The mountains continue on the left side, but the right side has a large forest we could use to avoid them. However, traveling through an unknown thick forest on Mother obviously carries its own risks." Varuna replied.

    The Tengu went silent as he pondered our options.

    While he was doing that I walked over to Alicia who was resting alone on the left side of the cave. Her eyes were closed, so she was either sleeping or meditating.

    "Hey, could you always unleash a spell of that magnitude? Why were you only using those light spheres on Rai''ga then?"

    "Pfft... You''re funny, Rei." She opened her eyes and looked at me with a mocking smile on her face, "I have much more mana than your average person, but even I couldn''t have done that alone in less than an hour. Several fairies and three of Varuna''s clones were pouring mana into the spell with me. The fairies aside, I''m baffled and impressed that Varuna''s clones have their own mana supply. He says they collect ether like everyone else, which is wild to me."

    One of Varuna''s clones appeared next to us and bowed, "I thank you for the compliment Miss Alicia. And what about my previous request? I don''t mean to rush you, it''s just that we don''t have much time here."

    "Don''t worry, I asked him a few moments before Rei approached me. Lord Terra''ka is allowing me to bring over a Tetrathon, but five days is much too short. Even six days is cutting it close, so if I am to do this, I need to leave now."

    "What''s a Tetrathon? And on another note where the hell is Benny?"

    "A large chameleon Lord that can spawn all sorts of different Lizardmen. He''ll create an army as we move, but it''s going to take time, and he''ll be defenseless while he''s in spawning mode. Even a peasant with no mana will be able to put a bullet through his brain, so we''ll need to be vigilant." Alicia continued, "And you''re only just now noticing he''s not here...? He split off from us after we made our way to Mother''s portal. He asked us to take good care of Lady Aresa before leaving for his families home that was near Viktor''s lands."

    Ahh, I can understand him wanting to return to his family then. It''s a shame since his defensive abilities are really useful, but he''s free to do as he wishes in the end. And that Lord''s description sounds really familiar... I feel like I saw one of those back when I was captured by the Lizardmen. I think it was on the way toward the portal to Thule? That was also when I first met Alicia, funnily enough.

    "Can''t I just cover it in armor?"

    Alicia shook her head, "He needs light to survive, channel ether, and grow the eggs on his back that''ll turn into Lizardmen. And one of your meshes will still block too much light. Also, it needs to be natural light. Otherwise I''d be able to just create a bunch of spheres inside your armor to keep it alive and moving." She looked back at Varuna, "So, am I bringing it over? I assume yes, but just remember that delays our departure by a day at minimum."

    "''At minimum'' is a worrying phrase. We cannot leave any later than six days. Can you tell me the specific reason you need six days? Warp cooldown? Something related to this ''Tetrathon''?"

    "Both. Warping home will be easy, since I haven''t used my dagger at all in weeks now, but the return is going to be difficult, especially since I''ll be bringing over a Tetrathon in egg form---"

    I was interested in where this discussion was going, but I could see the Tengu waving me over, so I turned and made my way back over to him.

    "What''s the plan?"

    "Now that we''re not dealing with anti-magic beasts, at least as far as we know, this will be a much easier battle. Although, in hindsight I should''ve had you take on the Alpha and elites while I cast spells from behind, but I had a hard time believing that such a small creature would be able to handle them, even if you are different. And I thought the regular Versha would be much more resilient to magic. Tam wasn''t wrong about the elites, but his estimation of the anti-magic properties of the grunts was pretty far off. Normally I''d suspect foul play, but the Merfolk are unaware of the amount of spells a Tengu caster can weave, so this may have been a blunder on my part."

    He continued, "Back to the topic at hand. I''d like to ask you to accompany me to the Versha''s camp. Only I, you, and Varuna will go. My warp marks can only be used by me, and I know you two will be able to retreat back to the cave should anything go wrong."

    "So we''re going to obliterate them huh? Three Versha is my limit by the way. They''re way too big but they are more than worth it. But uh, hmm..."

    I went silent, thinking back to my ether carriers.

    "Go on?" The Tengu said as one of Varuna''s clones appeared next to him.

    "I have several others summons I can create, instead of the basic warrior types. And one of them collects ether from the atmosphere. It''s just that anything sensitive to ether or mana will be able to sense them from much farther away than they normally could. At least three miles minimum. So I technically could create a whole army out of these corpses, but it''d be really risky. Plus, something about  my carriers ether signature really makes any Eldritch or Xerath want to absorb them. The amount of ether they have is obviously tempting, but they could get that amount merely doing nothing, it''s something else that pulls them in. Something I don''t know how to stop." I continued, "Oh, and one last thing, they are very bulky and slow. Which isn''t a huge deal since I assume all of these citizens aren''t exactly fast either."

    The Tengu looked over at my three Versha summons that were standing near the cavern entrance, making sure nothing else entered.

    "... Risky indeed, especially on a world teeming with powerful Eldritch. Varuna?"

    "I am half-opposed, half optimistic. And with that said; Miss Reimia, I assume anyone can use the ether they collect?"

    "I don''t know, I''ve never thought about trying to use them as a battery for others. Want to give it a try? Preferably it should be done with a human body, since a Versha ether carrier''s aura will be detectable at a much farther range than three miles."

    Varuna disappeared and re-appeared near the lake where all of the deceased were laid out. Skewalla was healing nearby, and he promised to take them back to his city where they''d be buried under the seabed alongside the Merfolks ancestors. It surprised me that everyone had accepted that strange proposal from Tam, but I wasn''t entirely certain of where I''d want my loved ones buried, so I stayed out of it. After all, I had left my families bodies right where they died. It didn''t occur to me till many years later that I should have done something for them.

    Varuna re-appeared next to the Tengu, "Seventeen of the dead have no relatives that would oppose you using their bodies. Will that be enough? Even if the experiment fails, you should still use them to create more Versha warriors. Alerting enemies for three to six miles is a massive detriment, but it is worth it in my estimation." He looked at the Tengu, "Your thoughts, my Lord?"

    "Agreed. See it done." The Tengu said.

    "That''s more than enough, but I don''t know which ones are the correct bodies, so please bring them over here."

    While Varuna collected the bodies I decided what to do with the Versha souls I had collected. After the battle I was unable to move for a bit, but as soon as they lifted the Alpha off of me I collected as many souls as I could. I was able to retain over half of them before the queen cunt took them.

    I had absorbed a grunts soul to see what kind of boost I would obtain, and it was still a decent bump in strength despite hitting my peak already. Godwin was right apparently, there was no end to how strong someone could become. It''s just that the people here never have the time required to hit those heights.

    And so in the end I absorbed half of the Versha, while giving the other half to Belfos. It increased his strength a little while boosting his resurrection about thirty percent forward. Which was huge since he was still below one percent even after all of this time. At that rate he was going to respawn in ninety-nine more months.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    I tried funneling mana directly into his soul as a test, but it was rejected. I guess he needs pure soul energy, and that''s why he was tied to the wellspring.

    Varuna laid down another body in front of me and looked around the cave, "I''d prefer nobody saw this, and nobody is looking in our direction, so please do it now."

    I reached down and thought about creating a Lich but decided against it. Even seventeen human-sized ether carriers would only power four or five of these Versha. Which is still a lot, but a Lich would just add a lot more strain to my resources, and his buffs seemed to require mana based on the size of the target, so having one buff a bunch of massive Versha wasn''t even an option.

    I poured mana into each of the bodies, telling them to turn into carriers. A few moments later they were born, looking as fat and awkward as ever.

    "Give them a minute to charge up, then touch one of them and try to pull ether out of it. If it resists, which is probably will, I''ll command it to let it happen. Hopefully that''s all it takes."

    The Tengu nodded and waited for a minute to pass before touching two of the carriers with his fingers while channeling a sphere of darkness above his other hand. As expected, they rejected his soul, and luckily enough the transfer went through the moment I told them to accept him.

    "... ''Batteries'', huh?" The Tengu said, smiling. "Mind wrapping these things around me?"

    "With my mesh? I''ll give it a try." Those wings look like they''re going to be a pain in the ass to avoid though.

    I pulled blood out of my arm and turned it into a light mesh before wrapping it around his shoulders and fashioning it more like a backpack. Once I created an entrance on the side, Varuna and I tossed the seventeen carriers inside and sealed it shut. And as soon as I told the remaining fifteen carriers to give him access to their mana, the Tengu immediately bolted out of the cave. He was clearly rearing to go.

    Varuna was laughing heartily as we ran after him, "Forgive my Lord! He''s very frustrated after that last fight, and I''m sure punishing these cretins who attempted to use us as sacrifices to get rid of the Versha is exactly what he needs right now."

    <hr>

    Well, it looks like I came for nothing. I, Varuna, and the summons have just been watching the Tengu completely annihilate the centipede''s ''army''. Judging by the amount of toxins they''re leaking on death, and the poisonous missiles they''re firing at the Tengu, I''d expect this centipede to be quite the difficult foe for a regular Humanoid force.

    But a spellcasting monster like this Tengu Lord is a really bad match-up for them. They can''t get close to him and all of their poison spells are hitting his barrier. They''re sticking to it like the acid blood did to Lindon''s shield back when we killed that Abyssal cat monster. However, the Tengu told us not to worry about it, and Varuna is merely smiling while watching the carnage unfold, so I saw no reason to be concerned either.

    The Centipede was firing a barrage of toxic needles and liquids at the Tengu, but by the time they reached the Tengu he had already repositioned himself. He was too far away and much too fast for the Centipede. Meanwhile, the Centipede was clearly designed to be a stationary menace. He was practically an artillery line all by himself, but just like his followers, he was completely outmatched and he knew it too.

    Knowing that his counterattacks were proving fruitless, the Centipede attempted to run, and when he actually reached his max speed is was surprisingly fast, but it''s not as if the Tengu was slow and none of the Centipede''s followers were able to stop him from pursuing their master.

    "Anything?" Varuna asked me.

    "Nothing. At least nothing I can see through the bird''s eyes. That forest is annoyingly thick, so it''s hard to see inside of it."

    Varuna and I continued waiting where we were as the Tengu killed the Centipede and then turned his wrath on all of his slain foe''s followers.

    Yeah... He definitely should have taken a caster role from behind us during the Versha battle. We would''ve lost far less people if he did, but I suppose I can''t blame him for thinking I wouldn''t be able to handle the Alpha alone.

    After he was killed the last of the Centipede''s followers he walked into the Versha''s camp and sat down next to the crystal and closed his eyes before yelling out at us, "I''ll be fine here until we''re ready to leave! Keep an eye on them for me you two!"

    So he''s going to stay and absorb the lifeblood from the crystal? Might as well I suppose. The more strength we have going forward, the better.

    Varuna and I turned around and began to walk back to the cave in silence.

    I''m feeling a lot better about our odds after seeing that and having some powerful summons under my belt. Hopefully it only takes a few months to reach Gaia, and then I can finally return home...

    <hr>

    ~287 days later~

    "W-Whoa, look at that, Dad!" Hera yelled as we exited the tree line.

    I had seen it beforehand thanks to my birds in the sky, but I didn''t want to ruin the surprise for them. There was a large city sprawled out before Gaia. It was the very first city we had seen thus far actually, so it was kind of amazing to see.

    "A city...? The hell? I thought there''d be a bunch of powerful Eldritch waiting for us here or some shit." Godwin said.

    The Tengu used a spell to enhance his vision and almost balked when he saw what was waiting for us. "It''s bustling with people, and there are flashing lights everywhere... What exactly is a ''casino''?"

    "Ahh, yeah, I saw that too, but I''ve been having a hard time believing there''s actually a casino here." I continued, "It''s a place where you gamble your money in an attempt to win more money."

    The Tengu scratched his head, "Is this an illusion? Why would there be such a thing next to Gaia...?"

    "I have a theory." Varuna said, causing everyone to look at him. "I believe the reason we cannot see the end to this city, is because it wraps all the way around Gaia. I would bet anything that Mother approved of such a city because it provides one last respite for any followers of her Eldritch to let loose and relax. That way they enter Gaia ready for anything. You never know where you''re going to end up in there after all, or so we''ve been told."

    We''ve met a few nice Eldritch along the way, and they all said the same thing. Once every two days the place you appear inside of Gaia changes. So if these guys were to enter Gaia today, and I entered two or three days from now, we could end up hundreds of millions miles away from each other. Or maybe only ten miles. It''s completely random after all. But that also means that even if I do survive Caedrus and make my way back here, finding them again inside of Gaia is probably going to be impossible. It''s honestly so tempting to just go with them, to end it all and find a new life in Gaia with Aresa, Shana, and everyone else here. But I''m...

    Everyone began to walk toward the city, so I followed along. Saying goodbye could wait a day or two, and I''d love some good food right now. And I was more than happy to use any excuse to not leave right now.

    About halfway to the city Godwin said, "So when are you leaving?"

    If I had a heart it would have stopped in that moment. I hadn''t expected anyone to realize I was planning on leaving.

    "Leaving? Who you talking to, Dad?" Hera said.

    "Rei, is it you? Your soul has been feeling weird lately, but I felt like I shouldn''t ask you about it..." Luna said from atop my shoulder.

    "Ah, yeah, thank you little Luna. I''m just uh..." The words caught in my throat. Some part of me really didn''t want to say the rest.

    "Bah, just say it, girl. You want to kill Viktor, right? Then don''t hesitate and just do it. We''ll be fine without you from here on out. So, you know... Thank you."

    The way he said thank you was so sincere I almost started crying. I really don''t want to say goodbye to all of these guys again, but he''s right, I can''t move on in my life until I''ve killed Viktor. I just... I just can''t. And while I could survive without knowing the truth behind Caedrus and the machines, there''s no denying that I''m dying to see what kind of revelations I''ll find while I''m there.

    "... You''re welcome, Godwin. And I''m going to leave when you all walk through that tall golden light in front of us. It''s kind of wild that it''s not actually creating light. It looks bright as hell, and yet the city needs its own lighting system."

    "True, I expected it be blindingly bright when we arrived here." Jasper said.

    I had more I wanted to say to them, but I decided to leave it at that until it was time to really say goodbye. I could tell Hera and Jasper had wanted to say something but they were biting their tongues as well. The others didn''t know yet, but they would in time.

    <hr>

    We spent four days partying while eating anything we wanted. It turns out you are allowed to stay and eat here for free if you follow an Eldritch who worships Mother and Meiza''thul like Rai''ga did, but the Tengu, well... Let''s just say his reception wasn''t exactly a welcoming one. But we had plenty to trade and the Tengu decided to have everyone let loose before they jumped into a new unknown world.

    "Don''t worry, I''ll see you again at some point, Xi. I promise!"

    I was obviously lying as she hugged me, but even I hoped it was true.

    Along the way, she, Alicia, and I had become quite close. Cera had been smothering me like a mother which was kind of weird and embarrassing at first, but I grew to like it over time. I lost my mother early on after all, so it was a refreshing experience. She was in the back with her family, just watching me with a smile. I had already said goodbye to most of the people here the night before. It''s just Xi who didn''t want to let me go at this point.

    "Rei, I''m sorry I can''t warp you back. I know you''ll be okay, but still..." Alicia said.

    "It''s fine! You already apologized last night, and I''m used to traveling alone. Plus, it''ll be much easier to get there by myself."

    Terra''ka asked her if she''d continue into Gaia with the Tengu. He wanted to see if he could maintain a connection to her after she established a temple somewhere inside of Gaia, but it was likely impossible. Even so, he finally decided to try and gain some influence inside of that dreamlike realm, so this was a good opportunity for him since she was already here with hundreds of Lizardmen. That Chameleon Lord turned out to be a ridiculously powerful support unit. It was smart of him to send one of those along with us.

    I was also given the location of a much closer portal that led to a moon near Aetheria, but I declined. Even if the trek back to Aetheria''s portal is annoyingly long, at least I know the way already, and I know exactly how to get to Arcadia from Termia. The only issue is going to be passing those mountains we were trapped in where we fought the Versha. That was a one-way portal, so hopefully I can find some Merfolk that''ll show me a way to get around it.

    Xi let go and wiped a tear away, "R-Right, we''ll be seeing each other soon enough..."

    "That''s right! Just give me a couple of years and I''ll catch up to you guys." I said after reaching out and rubbing her hair.

    "Reeei~, take me with, please?" Luna asked.

    "Whoa now, hang on." Lunaria said, stomping over toward us before lifting Luna up by her wings. "You''re not going to abandon your dear old mother, are you?"

    "... This is as good of time as any, I''ve been meaning to ask you. Why did you name her after you?"

    Lunaria''s eyes widened for a moment before she smiled at me, but not the usual cunning one. This was an affectionate one as she glanced at the little fairy in her fingers, "She''s a Lord. The only fairy-sized Lord I''ve ever created... She was a pain in the ass to make and I definitely won''t be doing it again since I could just make ten normal Lords in the time it took me to make her, but I don''t regret it... Oh! Rei, all of my caves are still operating the last I checked and you still have access to them. Most of my children wanted to remain behind, and I graciously allowed them to. They''ve never left those caves, so it would''ve been far too cruel to force them to leave, when even the Abyss will struggle to find them there."

    I doubt I''ll need them since I''ll be in a completely different part of the world, but that''s good to know regardless.

    "But I want to go with her! Come on, we''ll be back, she said so herself!" Luna yelled while flailing back and forth, attempting to wring her wings free from Lunaria''s grip.

    "... Sweetie, she was just saying that and you know it."

    "I don''t care. Let go."

    Lunaria sighed, "Rei, please talk some sense into my daughter."

    "Hey, if she wants to come with me, I''m all for it. Any support I can get will be a godsend where I''m going."

    "What? You little..."

    As Lunaria glared at me I walked over to the cart Aresa and Victoria''s crystals were resting on(The scythe was also in there). I placed my hand on Aresa''s crystal and watched her sleeping form for a bit while thinking about the time I had met her in Godwin''s tent all those years ago.

    "... See you later, princess. You better not grow up again before I return."

    I pulled away and said my final goodbyes to everyone. And surprisingly, Luna had convinced her mom to let her go, but she obviously wasn''t happy about it. Although I could see a faint smile when Luna was yelling at her. She was probably happy seeing that her daughter was no longer a scaredy cat hiding away in a cave every single day.

    I watched with Luna on my shoulder as everyone disappeared into the yellow light. They were flanked by the Versha summons, who were given one last order to obey the Tengu above all else. We had a lot more carriers now that were being wheeled around in a cart I made from my blood, and they were now powering the summons in my stead. I was worried that wherever they ended up might be dangerous and attract unwanted attention thanks to the carriers, but it was out of my hands now. All I could do was pray they survived long enough to build a new home there.

    I stood there in silence for a while staring at Gaia, a long while, before finally turning around and making my way back through the city.

    ... It''s finally time to head home. I wish Aresa could have came with me, but I''ll just need to make sure I capture a lot of memories for her along the way. We''ll have another viewing party when I find them in Gaia. Even if it is deemed impossible, if I''m alive, I''m still going to try.

 Chapter 87 - Caedrus

    Finally...

    After forty-five days of running(and two weeks of sleeping) I was now staring up at the portal to Aetheria. If it wasn''t for that damned mountain I would''ve been back much sooner. Flying over it would''ve took no time at all, but it would''ve been way too dangerous.

    I wasn''t able to find any Merfolk in the cavern or near the rivers, so I decided to just swim through the lake underneath the mountain. I was underwater for almost three weeks trying to find my way through all of the different tunnels that twisted every which way. And I''m lucky Luna was there. Three weeks is a small amount of time compared to how long it would''ve taken me without her assistance.

    {I-I don''t like this part... Wake me up when we arrive.}

    As soon as she finished speaking I could feel her aura fade to a glimmer.

    Unlike her, I loved slowly moving through space as an ethereal entity as I traveled to Mother last time, so I was excited to do it again.

    After sticking the bird summon to my waist I jumped into the portal and immediately I was flying through space again. Although this time I was heading toward Aetheria.

    As I neared Aetheria I tried looking for anything that might stand out, and I found quite a bit. First off, the bottom one-third of Aetheria was covered in dark clouds, which was obviously the borders of Viktor''s nation, but it was still surprising to see that he was blotting out the sky again. While I was in Xethra, and when I was eating the Xerath near his nation''s borders, the sky was clear.

    I asked the Tengu about that on the way to Gaia, and he said that Viktor generally keeps the clouds transparent so his people can see the sky. Apparently crime skyrockets when he blots out the sky, and people become more depressed overall, so he only does it in times of crisis, or war.

    So something serious must''ve happened if he''s shrouding his entire nation in darkness. The Eldritch gave him the all-green, so it''s probably related the Abyss and Xerath. It could be a Demonic threat, but considering what happened in Telebron eleven months ago, it''s most likely the former. I''ve got some catching up to do information-wise.

    The other thing that stood out was a long thin bridge I could see connecting the western edge of Caedrus to the dark lands. People in Arcadia probably already knew there was a bridge there, but I had no idea there was one.

    That suggests the people who used to live in the ruins of Caedrus needed a direct line of transport to the dark lands, which was kind of surprising. The only thing giving me pause was the memory of Viktor''s town in Urza, that Jericho place. He was obviously harvesting something from the dark lands there, so the people of Caedrus were probably doing the same thing. No clue if this information will matter in the end though.

    Eventually I reached the portal on Aetheria and rematerialized as I passed through it. I immediately poked Luna''s soul and she woke up with a jolt. Not one of surprise, but excitement.

    {Rei, fly there!}

    Do you not remember what happened on Mother? After Varuna helped me figure out how to create my wings we went flying for a bit to test them out and I was barely in the sky for two minutes before something hit me with a spell so powerful it nearly shattered my armor. It''s simply too dangerous. Especially in Caedrus. That''s what you wanted me to do right, fly to the Elven continent?

    {Aww come on... And why is it worse in Caedrus? Mom told me that the machines there are scary and really strong, but they can''t be stronger than the Eldritch we faced on Mother, right?}

    Oh you cute little naive fairy. Your mom either decided the information was useless and didn''t bother going into detail about how powerful they are, or she didn''t want to scare you. And by the way, I''m talking about the western two-thirds of Caedrus. I can probably fly on the eastern one-third just fine.

    {Don''t try and wrap it up with the word ''powerful'' and say that''s that! Are they stronger than the Eldritch we faced or not?}

    ... From what I''ve seen in my memories, they are. Admittedly I haven''t actually been there or seen them in person, but there is another reason we can''t fly over there, and it''s also the reason none of the mechs in Arcadia can fly. There is a specific type of machine hidden all over the western side that fires at anything flying through the sky. I mean we can still try to fly there since I definitely have the mana to survive a few barrages from them, so we''ll be able to get away. I''m just telling you that we won''t be able to fly over Caedrus until we''re on the eastern side.

    {Then do it! I want to see these ''powerful'' machines.}

    She said the word powerful with such sass I could even visualize her rolling her eyes. It seems she doesn''t fully believe that the mythological machines are as powerful as they''re made up to be, and it''s not really much of a surprise. After all, only the Elves have to deal with them and anyone who moves into Arcadia has to deal with them. And for some reason even if living there is really difficult, when people move to Arcadia, they almost never leave. They either find success, or die. I guess that''s the kind of resolve it takes to move to such a horrible place.

    I activated my halo which automatically brought my wings out as well. Once they were charged up I leaped into the air and began to soar higher and higher until I was around ten thousand feet above the ground.

    Before anything could shoot at me I flew northeast, toward the middle of Caedrus. It''s best I go there instead of flying directly north. That''d land me in an area I don''t think anyone has ever been, and I''d rather not be the one to discover that there are even more powerful anti-air machines over there.

    {Wooow look~, the world is so beautiful from up here!}

    You can fly too, stupid. Why are you so amazed right now? Have you never been this high before?

    {... Mom wouldn''t let us fly very high, even in Telebron. We''re small, but our auras are easily detectable when we''re not inside people. And most things in this world find us delicious, so we were forbidden from becoming ''free meals''. That''s what she called any fairies who wanted to fly into the sky.}

    I turned hard toward the right, flying perpendicular to the coast.

    {Why are you turning? Did you give up? Come on, I want to see the machines shoot you.}

    What a scary thing to say, but no, I am not giving up. I''m going this way to take a quick look at Telebron. I want to see if the Eldritch killed that Abyssal God who took over the wellspring. If they did, then I''ll need to worry about the purge again.

    The sights were beautiful, she wasn''t wrong about that. And I could see threats for miles up here, which technically wasn''t all that different from when I used birds as scouts, but I definitely preferred seeing it all with my own eyes.

    One of the threats was a group of Demons battling one of the Xerathian packs I was attacking previously to get stronger. The Demons had a Satyr with them so they were winning quite easily, but I couldn''t help but think about what a bad sign it was to see Demons this close to Telebron. This increases the chances that Demons are responsible for Viktor going into war mode. Or at least taking part of the responsibility.

    I flew along the coast for around two days before reaching Telebron. It was basically a war zone. There were several different types of Eldritch firing spells and artillery at the Abyssal God in the middle of Telebron''s ruins, but he looked completely undamaged. So it looked like they were only draining his mana, which he could easily replace thanks to the wellspring. But if they really are achieving nothing here then they would have given up already, so there must be more at play here that I''m not aware of.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Between the Eldritch and Abyss were countless bodies on both sides, but it was really hard to tell thanks to all of the fog.

    Luna, did you spend most of your life in that cave, or did you also stay in Telebron sometimes?

    {Most of my life was spent in Telebron. Mom had brought me to that cave when she warped there to see you... Why?}

    How often was it this foggy? And it''s centered around Telebron, so I''m getting a really bad feeling. This whole area is reminding me of somewhere else I was in the past.

    {Um, it was foggy sometimes, but isn''t every place like that?}

    ... She''s not wrong, but seeing a bunch of thick fog emanating from the location of an Abyssal God can only mean one thing in my book. They''re corrupting the area, which is common practice among Eldritch, Xerath, and sometimes Demons. I just didn''t know that the Abyss could do it too. And since this one has access to the wellspring, does that mean he can turn all of Aetheria into the Abyssal Realm?

    If he can I hope it takes him a long fucking time. I''m already going to have my hands full in Caedrus. I don''t want to have to worry about these Abyssal fuckers as well. Although they did have one of Viktoria''s mirrors planted somewhere on the western edge of Caedrus, but I''m still not sure why they had done that. Might''ve been nothing more than a singular instance of the Abyss checking out the machines... Probably wishful thinking on my part though.

    I turned north and began to fly toward Caedrus.

    {Yeaaah, here we go! Get shot!}

    ......

    I flew in silence as the sounds of battle continued on behind me. The amount of highly dangerous auras was the part I couldn''t help but focus on. I had never felt so many powerful beings together in one spot before now.

    <hr>

    {Ah...}

    Luna whispered as Caedrus appeared in the horizon. The jovial feelings I had felt from her up to this point were turning into one of fear and trepidation.

    {Y-You know what, I changed my mind! I believe you now. Very scary robots. Yep, very very scary. So let''s turn east... Okay?}

    Nope. We''re here, and now I want to see them for myself as well. Also, it''ll be nice to see how much damage these anti-air machines can do. It''s best I know now instead of in the future. If I ever encounter a scenario where I might need to try flying away, I''ll need to know if it''s even possible.

    I pushed mana into my armor, ensuring my aura was coating the armor before anything attacked me. This was a test to see how much mana I was going to lose after all.

    {Uuu...}

    Visibility wasn''t the greatest, it had been snowing hard for awhile now, and part of the ocean near the continent was completely frozen. Seeing Caedrus covered in snow and ice again was really hitting me hard. I was still alert, scanning the ground for enemies, but I couldn''t help but feel this overwhelming sadness at seeing my homeland again.

    I was really close to Caedrus when I saw several red lights appear in two different locations. One was kind of close and almost directly below me, with the other being far off in the distance. It was so far away I barely saw the red lights through the snow storm.

    But I didn''t get to look at them for long, as two things happened in quick succession after that. First, a volley of rockets came flying out of the red lights below me, while the ones in the distance fired something supersonic at me. Whatever it was, I only just barely perceived it a split second before it hit me. It sent me reeling backwards as I did one cartwheel after another in the air.

    I managed to right myself and begin flying back toward the south at max speed around the time the missiles were halfway to me. But the machine below me wasn''t satisfied with just that, it began firing a large caliber bullet at me at a very high speed, and they were spread out around me, so even when I began to weave in one direction, I was still getting hit by the bullets that were initially shooting past me in that direction.

    {Need help?!}

    No! Only project a barrier if I''m dangerously low on mana, but so far I''m holding up quite well.

    The first wave of bullets knocked me down a single percent, but it wasn''t anything I couldn''t handle. Although, if I was close to the machine and was hit by hundreds of bullets a second, then I''d really have something to worry about. But hopefully I won''t end up in a situation like that.

    The missiles were fast, but not fast enough. By the time I escaped the bullets firing range, the missiles were already far behind me. About thirty seconds later they fizzled out and fell toward the ocean. The first five or six missiles hit the ice and merely bounced off of it, but one of them must''ve triggered something as it hit the ice because it created a chain reaction of explosions.

    {Oooh that''s so cool!}

    It wouldn''t have been if that had hit us, but I''m certain we still would have survived. Even with that said though, I did get a small taste of what they can dish out, and I know flying over the western side of Caedrus really is not a good idea. I''ll need to look into them more when I arrive at Arcadia, but it''s just too risky. That one below me was over ten thousand feet away and still managed to hit me quite a bit. I''m not all that keen to see what happens when I''m only a thousand or so feet away.

    {How about that regen, huh?}

    Very nice actually. Your support skills really are amazing these days.

    During our trip over Mother a few important things occurred. For my part, I realized that I could no longer overenhance myself, but it was actually for a good reason. Once I hit my peak, my halo kept all of its power, but now it''s considered a regular enhancement, so there is no backlash. Which is massive, and it''s also why I''m able to fly around like this for weeks on end.

    And secondly, Luna and the other fairies kept unlocking more and more support abilities every time we had to do battle. The one percent of mana I had lost from the bullets hitting me has already been returned through the natural regen Luna is giving me.

    It even surprised Lunaria. It''s not like the fairies were new to doing battle, but the strength of the enemies we were dealing with were leagues higher than their average enemies, so it had a profound effect on how fast they grew. It was the same for everyone in fact, and probably why I ended up unlocking my wings. A few tips from Varuna helped as well of course.

    {Hmph, they weren''t that scary.}

    You''re flip flopping again little fairy. And not only did we barely see anything, but we were really far away too. Just wait until we have to fight something like a butcher up close.

    {That''s why they''re considered scary, you all gave them ridiculous names like that one!}

    I ignored her while chuckling. I decided it was best to let our future encounters speak for themselves. Especially since I planned on trying to collect those codes at some point. We''ll be stealthing through though and hopefully not fighting anything during that mission.

    ... Not that I''ve seen the powerful machines either, mind you. The only machine I''ve seen was one of the snatchers. They aren''t very strong in battle, but they hide and then sprint at their prey before plucking them up and running away.

    <hr>

    About a week later I flew directly down toward the ocean until I reached the ice, and then I turned my halo off before quickly turning invisible.

    {Sleep time?}

    I''m not exhausted yet, but I''d like to play it safe.

    I ran toward the land and stopped when I reached the beach. There was a bipedal machine there on its knees with its head and arms hanging down limply. On its knees it was still around eight meters tall.

    {I-Is it dead?}

    I don''t know, but even if it''s not we shouldn''t need to worry about it. I still don''t have proof that these things won''t be able to sense me through my veil, but I''d be surprised if they could.

    I walked past the giant and made my way up the snow covered steps before arriving on a street that probably hasn''t seen anyone alive in hundreds of years. There was a railing running along the entire beach side, with several rusted bikes placed against them. On the other end of the street was a row of homes, and most of them had long-since abandoned vehicles parked out front.

    {What''s that big car there?}

    I looked at the white dot she was projecting on a vehicle and had to stifle a laugh.

    That''s not a car sweetie, that''s a plow truck, and a super advanced looking one at that. In fact, the parts I can see don''t look rusted at all, what the hell...

    I walked through the snow up to the truck and wiped a bunch of snow off of its front and driver-side door. The metal was clean to the point that it looked brand new.

    They must''ve made it out of the same alloy that their mechs are made of. Most of the good ones still look brand new too. Weird that they''d use high grade alloy on a plow truck of all things, but there must have been a reason for it. Like the fact that it snows so damn much here.

    I turned to the right and walked up to the home the truck was parked outside of. The door was gone so I was able to walk inside without breaking it down(although the window was shattered too so I could''ve just got in that way). Inside was a kitchen and dining room on the left, with stairs leading to the second floor in front of me, and on the right side was the living room.

    I walked over to the TV stand and picked up one of the photos. It was a gruff looking man with his hands placed on the shoulders of two much younger looking Humans. One boy and one girl.

    {I knew people lived here at some point, but I feel so weird seeing it like this...}

    That''s because it''s no longer just some distant abandoned place for her after seeing this. People lived normal lives here, and now it''s a ruined wasteland full of killer machines. I can''t blame her for feeling weird after seeing it in the flesh, because even I feel strange after finally seeing this in person.

    There''s a world of difference between hearing about what this place was like, and seeing it in person. It''s so different from every other place I''ve ever been or heard of after all. Normally it''s Eldritch, Demons, Xerath, monsters and corruption. And then we come here and it''s just so completely different from what we''re used to...

    I put the portrait down and walked over to the couch. After wiping the snow off I laid down on it and closed my eyes.

    {On the couch?! G-Go sleep under the stairs like you normally do!}

    There''s no need, we''ll be fine here. And my core will wake me up if anything approaches us anyway. There''s going to be a lot of ''new normals'' from here on out Luna. So you better get used to it now.

 Chapter 88 - Home

    {What is that noise...?}

    An alarm of some sort? I''m actually not sure.

    A few days after falling asleep I had been awoken to a sound neither of us had heard before. It was a long wailing sound that looped from a low pitch to a high pitch over and over.

    I rolled off of the couch and walked through the front door. The sound was much louder outside, and I could see hundreds of bright orange lights blinking on a tower in the distance. I assume it''s a tower anyway. All I can see through the snow is hundreds of orange lights ascending from the ground to a point that appears to be around one thousand meters in the sky. That''s one hell of a tower...

    I was tempted to run over there to see if I could find out why the alarm started wailing, but I decided not to. After I sign up for missions from Arcadia I''ll have plenty of time to scour the ruins. Plus, they likely already know why there is tower alarms out here, so I could just look the information up at home or wherever I end up living.

    I ran back to the beach, sprinting past the dead machine and onto the ice. When I was a safe distance away I removed my veil and activated my halo.

    That''s when I saw something I had missed during my landing the other day. The large machine on the beach was looking at me with two small red eyes. Its body, legs, and arms weren''t moving, but its head was now looking right at me.

    {C-Creepy! That''s so creepy!! Fly away, hurry!}

    I ascended into the sky at an angle toward the ocean until I was around ten thousand feet again.

    {How come we can''t go higher?}

    You know why. I already tried to go higher on the way to Caedrus. I said to her as I began to fly toward the east again.

    {I know that! I mean why do our souls weaken when we try to go higher?}

    Oh, that''s what you were asking... I honestly don''t know why that happens.

    I''ve never known anyone who could fly, but I do recall that Viktor''s first airship was really high in the air, which is why I''m struggling to even come up with a theory on the matter. At first I thought that maybe the moons and planets have some sort of field around them that damages people''s souls, and that we were reaching it by going too high, but then how are Viktor''s people surviving that high up inside of his airships? Hopefully the Elves have an answer to this, because I can go anywhere I want on Arcadia if I''m able to fly higher than the machines can sense me.

    <hr>

    {Is... Is that a ''snatcher''?}

    Yes. I simply replied as I watched the machine sprint through the snow with a human strapped to its side. The person wasn''t moving or screaming, so I had no clue if they were still alive or not.

    {Are you going to help them?}

    ... Hmm. We have to be close to Arcadia right now. I''ve seen multiple outposts and hundreds of vehicles over the past day. Plus, there are people walking around between the ruins as if the area is safe, so the main city should be within the next fifty miles.

    I''m almost positive someone else is going to save them, I can even see several vehicles catching up to them right now. But just in case, I suppose we could help.

    And I may need help myself if my Uncle isn''t alive.

    I flew down toward the snatcher that was barreling through the snow at over sixty miles an hour. It was hunched down like a lanky animal, using its two feet and both hands to pull itself forward. Like several other machines, its frame mirrored that of a human ribcage, and this one was obviously old. Parts of it were broken off all over its body, and I could see that only one of its red eyes were lit up as it looked up at me.

    {They have the same eyes as you...}

    I thought that was odd too, but it has to be a coincidence.

    As I reached the ground it dodged to the right, leaping over fifty yards in a single bounce before restarting its sprint through the snow. Acceleration is no issue for this thing huh? It reached its max speed instantly. I can see why weaker people struggle with snatchers.

    I flew forward and grabbed onto the metal that was wrapped around his captive. The machine had an insane reaction speed and was already leaping through the air as I began to fly toward it, but I was far too fast for it. Plus, I could fly. So catching it in the air was obviously not a problem.

    I ripped the metal off of the man and as I grabbed him I could hear him suck in a lungful of air. He continued gasping for air as we began to fly up into the sky. Fucking thing was crushing his chest, that''s why I couldn''t tell if he was alive or not.

    Even though it was pointless, the machine jumped high into the air after me. That''s when I saw Luna try and grab it with her ethereal fist spell, however...

    {Ughhh, it went right through him! I forgot that these stupid machines don''t have souls.}

    Hmm, I didn''t think about that either, but only a few of her spells are debuffs that require souls, so it''s not that big of a problem.

    As the snatcher landed on the ground a hail of gunfire ripped into it. It tried to flee, but snatchers aren''t exactly known for their durability, and as such it crumpled into the snow no more than a few seconds later.

    I flew toward the ground but slowed my descent this time now that I had a Human in my arms. My usual landings would have probably broken his back or neck after all.

    As soon as I landed several of the men aimed their guns at me while a few others ran out of the truck yelling ''Jimmy!'' and ''Are you okay?!''.

    "I-I''m fi---" Jimmy was cut off as he went into a fit of coughing.

    Once he was done coughing I tilted him so his feet were near the snow, "You able to stand?"

    He lowered his feet into the snow and nodded, but as soon as I let go he buckled. I didn''t reach for him again though, as his friends had already grabbed onto him.

    It was one man and one woman covered in the usual non-power armor attire a lot of people had to wear out here. Thick clothes to withstand the freezing temperatures but also slightly infused with mana which allowed them to take a few hits if need be.

    "Thank you so much!!" The girl yelled before guiding Jimmy toward the back of the vehicle so they could inspect his injuries.

    The man nodded at me, "You really helped us out there. We know the protocol is to shoot its legs but it was just so damned fast and bouncing all over the place. All it would have taken was a couple of misplaced bullets and we would''ve lost my brother forever..."

    Ahh, that''s right. I forgot that people here take damage from friendly fire almost as much as they do from machines.

    "By the way..." He looked me all over, from my wings, to the halo, to my hair and heavy black armor. "Are you a hunter?"

    "What''s a hunter? I''ve just arrived back here after a ninety year absence. I have a lot to catch up on."

    "Ninety years?! You''re up there with the clan leaders in age, god damn... Oh, a hunter is one of the top dogs in the clans. They serve the leaders directly, and because of their strength they stand out quite a bit. So someone who can fly, has a halo, and... Well, you know what I mean." He laughed and looked at my wings again, "If you''re not a hunter, then you''re going to be one soon from the looks of it. But even so, feel free to reach out to the ''Hothgar'' clan if you ever need anything. We''re one of the smaller ones, but we won''t betray you! You can check our history to confirm."

    "Will do then. I have a feeling I''m going to be needing a lot of help soon enough." I prepared to fly as I asked him one last question, "By the way, how close is Arcadia?"

    "Twenty two miles away. You''re almost there." He said with a smile.

    I nodded to him before taking off into the air again. While I gained altitude I saw men from the truck approach the snatcher and begin to take it apart. Ahh shit, I forgot about the power core... Oh well, I can gather them up later if I need to.

    {You hear that, Rei? You''re almost home!}

    ... Yeah, almost.

    {?}

    Despite everything I said up until now, a large part of me never believed I''d end up back here. So many things could have gone wrong along the way, including the fact that I almost threw in the towel and followed everyone into Gaia.

    {Hey, I''ve been wondering. Can''t you beat Viktor as you are now?}

    Too risky. His nation is in warmode so he probably has obelisks everywhere, or at the very least they''re going to be intercepting any possible intruders in whatever city he''s staying in. Plus, even if there''s a good chance that I''m much stronger than he is now, don''t forget that my stats are heavily skewed toward regen. A couple of mistakes is all it takes and that''d be it for me. Lastly, he''s not going to let me revive this time. Even if he bought that Goblin nonsense I told him before, he''s still going to feed my soul to the Xerath.

    There''s no need to rush it. I''ll finish up here and then sneak up to whatever city he''s living in with an some mechs and an army of people in high grade power armor. It''ll have to be a stealth mission though, since knocking on his front door wouldn''t work even for me with an army like that. I''m sure the Tengu will know how to get through his nation undetected. The only thing I''m worried about is whether he has those obelisks everywhere or only near him and other specific locations. It''ll be extremely difficult to sneak through his nation if there''s no way to avoid them.

    Also, I still don''t fully understand how his warp ability works either. I''m fast enough that it shouldn''t prove too much of a hindrance now, but it is still a hindrance.

    I wiped Viktor from my mind and thought about what I was going to find in Arcadia. Odds are my Uncle was either dead or gone by this point, so I prayed our clan''s home was still there in our name or unoccupied.

    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    <hr>

    I landed about fifty yards outside one of the city''s gates instead of flying over them. There were vehicles coming and going from multiple gates, but the one I landed near was empty, so the guards were immediately readying their weapons when they saw me.

    After releasing my halo I walked up to the gate with my arms raised high until I reached them. "I''m not a threat. I''m a returning citizen. I haven''t been back here in around ninety years though."

    The guards were fully armored and I couldn''t see their faces at all. They didn''t move an inch or say anything after I approached them, which would have been unnerving if I thought I was in danger. But I already knew they were reporting me to the head office while asking for instructions. That was my last memory of this place after all... Watching my parents go through a rigorous back and forth with the main office just so we could leave the damned city.

    About a minute later the guards put their guns away and waved me inside as his speakers flared to life. "Entrance twenty seven. It''s in the middle there. And once you''re inside walk straight to the head office."

    I nodded and strode by the men. Past the open gate there was a massive area surrounded by tall walls that were fully encircling it. The place looked like a large dome as a result.

    While I walked I looked around at the hundreds of people out and about. Most were in vehicles coming or going through the main gates, but there were also people driving large plow trucks that looked like the one I had seen outside the home I rested in on the way here. They were pushing all of the snow toward the back of the dome where it was being dumped into a ultra-wide entrance where it all fell down to somewhere else. I forget why they do that. It''s not just to remove snow out of the main area, there was something they gained by collecting snow...

    I walked past several ''entrances'' which were nothing more than a large or small domed building depending on which entrance you used. I eventually found number twenty seven and pushed the button next to the sealed doors. They opened up and revealed a circular platform that could fit maybe five people.

    After entering the elevator I looked for the pad full of buttons, but no matter where I looked the walls were completely smooth. How the hell do I tell this thing where to go? I swear there was buttons the last time I was here.

    That''s when the elevator started moving on its own. I thought maybe someone else was calling for it, but that''s when I realized why this one was so much smaller than even the smaller-sized elevators. This is for people who aren''t citizens. Newcomers or guests basically. I guess I can''t complain. This is a fitting treatment for me at the moment.

    The ride didn''t last long, maybe fifteen seconds. The doors opened up to a long hallway that stretched on for quite aways in both directions.

    "This way, Miss." A female voice said out of an unseen speaker nearby.

    After she said that I could see a long line of lights on the ceiling appear on the left side only.

    "You know, I can see a large plaque on the wall that tells me which direction the head office is."

    "Not everyone can read." The voice said indifferently.

    Is that true? Even the pawns of the Xerath knew how to read and write. But I doubt they''d put on this light show otherwise, so it probably is true.

    I walked in the direction the lights were going until they stopped outside of a set of sliding glass doors. There was a lot of people inside the office, with most of them waiting for their turn on seats to the right of the entrance.

    One of the men waiting near the doors looked at me and chuckled when he saw the lights. "Another newcomer huh? Well, good luck! You''re going to need it."

    "Over here, Miss." The indifferent voice said from the right side of the office. I looked in that direction and saw a lady wearing the same white blazer outfit as everyone else.

    As I approached the counter it was made clear that she wasn''t indifferent, she was just really tired. I could see the bags under her eyes quite clearly up close.

    "Name?"

    "Reimia Navi Velrune."

    She quietly typed away at the computer for a bit before she suddenly stopped. She then looked back and forth between the monitor and me maybe five or six times.

    "Is there a problem?"

    "... Give a minute." The lady pushed a button on the desk and immediately went back to looking between me and the monitor.

    A man came out of one of the back offices and headed straight for the lady''s terminal, placing a hand on her shoulder when he arrived. "What''s the problem, sis? You finally going to leave and get some rest?"

    "No. I need you to look at our ''returnee'' here. She says this is her." The lady pointed at the monitor.

    Her brother leaned down and compared whatever image they had of me on the monitor with the current me and I couldn''t help but laugh when I realized what the problem was.

    "Yeah, I obviously look way different. The last time I was here I was five or six years old, and I''ve been corrupted quite a bit since then."

    The man looked me up and down, "What manner of Eldritch corrupted you...? I''ve never seen anything like this before. Normally it''s something small, like new ears or wings."

    Ahh, I really don''t want to answer this. I thought up all sorts of excuses in case this was asked of me, but in the end I settled on telling the truth.

    "The Abyss."

    The office went quiet as everyone turned to look at me.

    "T-The Abyss?! But how could---" The man spoke at a fast pace but he was quickly cut off by his sister. While she was initially surprised just like everyone else, she had already returned to her usual deadpan expression. "Wait, brother. Yulong will want to see her."

    "Right, good call! He''ll be fascinated with you, Miss---" He checked the monitor, "Reimia Velrune. Huh? Velrune?"

    He pushed his sister out of the way and began to click through something in my documents.

    "... Unbelievable. you really are related to that annoying fuc---Err, old friend of mine."

    His sister rubbed her eyes before looking at me with an annoyed expression, "Please don''t tell me she''s related to Irvine. That man doesn''t deserve to receive any good news."

    The man sighed and looked at me, "Your Uncle will be very happy to have you back. I haven''t talked to him in years, as we had a little falling out over what he did to my sister here, but even so, this is a very good thing for him. Maybe he won''t be such an ass anymore after he has family around him again..."

    "He''s still alive...? I hoped he would be, but realistically it seemed impossible, so I knew he had to be dead by now." I continued, "Oh! Does that mean my clan still owns the R-37Az block?"

    I checked my old memories before sleeping in that ruined home a week ago so I could find my clan''s residential number. There was no way in hell I''d remember it otherwise.

    The man nodded, this time with a smile. "He does---Wait, no. Maybe you own it now? Hang on."

    The man checked the computer again but ended up shaking his head in the end, "Nope, sorry. Your parents left it to their daughter Sera, but in the event she was not around it''d go to your Father''s brother, Irvine."

    Hearing someone else say my sister''s name felt like a punch to the gut. Hell, just talking about my family period with someone else was about to make me burst out crying, but I held it in and smiled at the man.

    "That''s fine! I really don''t care who owns it, so long as it''s still part of our family. But um, do you know if he''s done anything with it?"

    The lady looked at me with an expression full of pity, "I''m sorry to say, no. Your Uncle told me about ten years ago that he hasn''t been back at the clan house ever since his family went missing. I didn''t know at the time that they had gone missing almost a hundred years ago, but don''t worry, so long as he was paying the fees, it should still be clean and ready to move into."

    I heard a beep as the man pulled a card out of a nearby machine. He handed the card and a slip of paper to me over the counter.

    "The card, as you can tell, is your new keypass. While the paper is the location of a man named Yulong. He''s a bit weird, but you can trust him. He''s obsessed with the Abyss and won''t shut up about it. He''s been thrown out of several meetings because of this, but truly, if you want to discuss the Abyss with anyone, then he''s the one to go to."

    The keypass had my picture, full name, clan location, and even my hybrid status as ''Abyss''. While the paper had directions to Yulong''s office, and an image of what the building looked like. I bet the average person who comes here is a little creeped out when they find out that their photo has already been taken without their knowledge. That''s just the norm here though. They probably took it in the elevator.*

    "I see, thank you for this. I''ll be sure to visit him when I get a chance. There''s something I need to show to someone like him."

    "Oh? He''ll be very happy to hear that then! Any amount of information related to the Abyss will make him overjoyed."

    Then his head is going to explode when I show him my memories. Hopefully he''ll be able to translate the books and murals, or at least know someone who can help him translate them.

    "One last question. Where is my Uncle right now?"

    The lady returned to the terminal and began typing on it. About a minute later she said, "He''s currently on a mission, but it''s not very far away. If anything, it''s really close? Strange, but at least you won''t need to wait long to meet him. It says he''s due back in a couple of days."

    Wow, this is really happening... How am I even going to greet him?

    "Wait, I''m sorry, I have one other question. Do I need to register fairies?"

    "You have a fairy with you? Hmm, I''m honestly not sure if they need to be registered. Sis?"

    She typed on the keyboard again before saying, "You can register him or her as a pet, it says."

    I bursted out laughing as Luna sprang out of my chest, "I-I''m not a pet though?!"

    "Whoa, you really do have a fairy with you..." The man trailed off before continuing, "What is your name, Miss?"

    "Luna... No last name."

    The lady nodded and began typing again, "That''s fine. Pet''s don''t have last names anyways. And Miss Reimia, please return your keypass to my brother for a moment."

    "Rei! That lady is bullying me!"

    I think that''s just how she is, little one.

    I handed my keypass back to the man, who promptly inserted it back into the device it popped out of earlier.

    "E-Excuse me!" A voice said from behind me. I turned around and saw a young girl there with a familiar device in her hand. Isn''t that one of the cameras they give to kids? I think I had one too.

    "Yes? What''s wrong little girl?"

    "Um, can I take a photo with the fairy?"

    Ahh, Luna does seem like something young girls would be fascinated with. I watched that cartoon long ago because I loved the fairies. But the God of fairies appearing before me nude while having a rather annoying personality really wiped away any lingering fascination I may have had with them.

    "Sure thing." I said, picking Luna up by the wings and dropping her on the girl''s shoulder. She looked annoyed as I was carrying her but the second she looked at the girl''s face she began smiling again.

    "Miss, it''s done." The lady behind me said.

    I turned around and grabbed the keypass out of her brother''s hands. On it I could see ''Magical Pet: Luna. Type: Termia Fairy'' had been inserted.

    "... Should I register that too?" The lady said, pointing at the black bird stuck to the side of my armor."

    "No need. It''s not alive, it''s a summon."

    I felt Luna enter my soul again as I stuck the keypass underneath the tasset part of my armor.

    {All done! Such a sweet girl.}

    "We all done here?"

    The man nodded, "Unless you need anything else, like directions? Normally new or returning citizens would be given a guide, and we can offer you the same service if you''d like."

    "Nah, I''m good. I looked through my memories before returning here. I know of several different ways to reach my home."

    I waved to the siblings and turned right as I left the office. I continued in that direction until I reached one of the elevators that travels to different blocks. The doors opened as I stepped up to it, and I immediately pushed R-37 after walking inside.

    I could only see stone out of the glass as the elevator began to move, but it eventually revealed a large commercial area as I moved through R-1. Then R-2 another commercial district, with R-3 being a residential zone, etc. etc., until I finally reached my destination, R-37. A medium-grade district that could be used for both residential and commercial.

    Most areas were like that, it was only the main ones that were specialized. But barely anyone actually went up to the first three districts. Only those who lived in R-3 could afford those places. It was R-4 that everyone went to, because that''s where all of the missions were given out. Weapons, armor, ammo, everything was there. I scoured my memories on the way to Gaia trying to remember everything I could while the caravan slept, all in preparation for my return to this place.

    {Where is it, Rei?!}

    Hah, don''t panic, we''re almost there. It''s about a five minute walk from where we are right now.

    I walked forward through a familiar tunnel. A cement walkway with gravel beside it, and on the right side there was a small patch of grass before the wall that was made of that same seemingly-indestructible alloy you see everywhere in Arcadia. And on the left side was a slight slope full of grass and little white flowers whose name I couldn''t remember.

    How does this place look to you, Luna? Be honest.

    {Weird, but pretty? Why is there grass and flowers down here? And it''s so well maintained!}

    About what I expected. It was normal to me as a kid, but after being away for so long I can''t help but think about how unnatural this all looks. Still though, I love it all the same.

    Eventually the tunnel exited to massive area shaped like a dome, much like the area you first see above ground. In the center were a bunch of buildings raised up on platforms, and as usual all of their lights were on. They were almost entirely full of animals or plants. Basically, they''re areas for growing livestock and fruit.

    There was only a few people out and about. This was the residential part of R-37, so it wasn''t much of a surprise.

    I turned left and continued walking along the wall, passing by one door after another until I reached the one I was looking for. R-37Az.

    I pulled the keypass out and walked up to the door. I wasn''t physically shaking, but emotionally my mind was a mess as I stuck the keypass into the slot next to the door. I heard a click as the door unlocked and swung open.

    After a brief moment I walked inside and glanced around the living room. It looked exactly as it had the day we departed for Urza.

    "... I''m home, everyone." I said, closing the door behind me.

 Chapter 89 - Irvine

    There was a large living room on the right side which opened up to a dining room on the other end. And on the left side there was a kitchen that matched the size of the living room, albeit it was half of its width. And finally there was a set of stairs leading up to the second floor in front of me.

    {So weird, this looks like the home we were in before.}

    True. The way it''s designed isn''t too far off, but the residential part of our home is rather small compared to how big the garage is. She''s going to be surprised when I show it to her, but for now there''s somewhere else I really want to go...

    I climbed up the stairs until I reached a hallway with five doors in it. Three bedrooms, one closet, and one bathroom. I headed for a door on the right, at the end of the hallway. Once I was in front of it I reached out and turned the knob before slowly pushing the door open.

    Inside the room had both pink carpet and walls, with stuffed animals packed on one side of the small bed.

    {You really liked pink, huh? And aww, look at all the teddy bears!}

    My mom loved pink, which lead to both mine and Sera''s rooms being caked in the damn color. I doubt I cared since I was a kid, but I know Sera hated it.

    I walked over to the bed and laid down on it. I was a bit too tall for it, but I didn''t care about how comfortable it was.

    I looked around, marveling at how nostalgic and yet unfamiliar everything felt at the same time. The cabinet full of children''s books I used to read. The TV with a game console next to it(although my mom only let me play a couple of the non-violent ones). Despite literally laying in my old bed, I was having a really hard time believing I was truly home again.

    {You okay?}

    I don''t know. I really just... Don''t know.

    I focused on my core and told it to turn off before Luna could respond.

    <hr>

    A sound I vaguely recognized woke me up. It was the telephone. At least it''s not a weird tower alarm this time.

    I rolled out of my old bed and returned downstairs so I could find the console attached to the wall in the living room. All outside communication was done through it, but I hadn''t been paying attention to it during the recaps I watched of my memories. I think it''s near the entertainment set?

    I reached the living room and I was only off by a little bit. It was on the same wall as the TV''s entertainment set, but it was much closer to the stairs and front door.

    The word ''Head office'' was all I could see on the panel. Uh, do I answer by just pushing my finger onto it?

    I tapped the panel and immediately the text was swapped out for a single blue horizontal line. The only other thing I could see was a ''Video'' option at the bottom right with a box next to it.

    "Miss Reimia, you''re supposed to say hello when answering the phone." A familiar voice said through the console as the blue line twitched along with her voice.

    "Oh, right, sorry... Hello, Miss still-sounds-tired. What did you need?"

    "... Irvine is due to return in an hour. I was wondering---No, my brother asked me to tell you that we can inform him of your homecoming, if you so desire. Otherwise we can give you his address or phone number, which will allow you to reach out to him anytime you wish."

    The answer is obvious. The sooner I see him the better.

    "Please tell him that I''m home."

    "Understood." She replied, but from what I could tell she was still on the line.

    "... Thank you and goodbye?"

    "There''s no need for that. I was merely confirming that you don''t know how to work the console. Please have your uncle teach you, it''s a necessary device for running your home. But for now push the button on the right side of the console that''s colored blue."

    I quickly found the button and pushed it, which lead to the monitor becoming pitch black.

    {How nice of her!}

    It sounds like she only made the call because her brother made her, but regardless of the reason, I''m glad she did.

    I walked over to the couch and picked the controller up before sitting down. Unlike the console, the controller felt very familiar. I could have easily used my mind to change things on the TV in my soul realm, but I instead replicated this remote and used it most of the time.

    I turned the TV on and changed channels until I found the news. On it was two different groups of people yelling at each other about the expansion of fortresses. It was hard to understand since they were yelling over one another, but apparently they''ve been gridlocked on whether to expand more or not for almost forty years now.

    Oh shit, I forgot about that. Alicia did briefly mention in Aresa''s wagon that Arcadia had been building fortress cities. She also said that one of them went silent and nobody knew why...? I need to look into this at some point, or I could just ask my Uncle? That''d probably be the better option.

    I idly watched TV for another couple of hours when I suddenly heard the beeping sound associated with a keypass entry being confirmed. A man with shaggy brown hair walked into the room and quickly looked over at me on the couch. His face was a large mix of confusion and disbelief as he stared at me. While he mostly looked the same, I could tell that he looked aged and tired. Although that may have been exasperated by the fact that there were spots of blood on his face and large dried patches of it all over the front of his exploration suit.

    "H-Hello Uncle Irvine, long time no see...?"

    At that his face contorted to one of pure sadness. He stumbled over to me and dropped to his knees before pulling off his gloves. He then lightly pushed my cheeks from one side to the other as he looked at my hair and eyes while tapping parts of my armor. In the end he finally looked at me with disbelief again.

    "How...?" He said, almost a whisper.

    "It''s a long story... Why don''t you go get cleaned up first? I need to do the same too. I haven''t had a bath in ages, and the last time I was even in a place with water was back on Mother."

    "You were even on Mother..." Irvine said, pinching the brim of his nose.

    "Yes! I was helping some friends reach Gaia, and the path there was filled with battles. I''d love to tell you about it, but let''s clean up and then go out to eat somewhere? I haven''t eaten in weeks and the last of my reserves are running low."

    "Reserves? I''ve never heard anyone use that word when referring to food unless they''re talking about their supplies for a mission... My god, what have you been turned into, Hime?"

    Ahh, I saw it in my memories, but it''s an entirely different thing to hear him say that word again. He used to call me Hime which means princess in one of the Earth languages he was studying back then. He said it was because of how much my mom sheltered and pampered me.

    "It feels so weird hearing you call me that again, but it''s also very nostalgic... However! You''re covered in blood damnit, and I kind of am too, so go get cleaned up. Obviously something bad happened, so let''s talk about it over dinner."

    Irvine stared at me for a bit with downcast eyes before mumbling, "... She''s all grown up, Will."

    .........

    I stood up and walked around him, heading up the stairs toward the second floor bathroom, but just before I lost sight of him on the stairs I stopped and looked at him. "I''m glad you''re still here, Uncle Irvine..."

    After saying that I walked straight up the stairs and into the bathroom on the left side.

    {He looks so sad... Am I going to be the same way when I see mom again?}

    Probably? When we departed I''m sure your mom thought that she''d never see either of us again. So if we ever do find them again, she''ll probably react the same way my Uncle did. I''m sure he was positive that we were all dead. I don''t need to be a mind reader to know that.

    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

    I poured mana into the armor and forced it to expand until it was so big it fell onto the floor. Alright then, time to clean up, including my armor. I hate cleaning my armor, I don''t know why but it annoys me every time I need to do it. I wonder if the cleaning services here extend to clothes and equipment? Uncle''s been paying the fees, so I really hope they do.

    <hr>

    Upon descending the stairs I saw my Uncle sitting in his old recliner. He was wearing a t-shirt and slacks.

    "How is it? Even if they were keeping this place clean, that chair is still old as hell. The couch was really rigid and it smelled brand new."

    Irvine slapped one of the chair''s arms and shook his head, "Good fucking question. I''ve been sitting here wondering why I ever sat in this damned thing. It''s hurting my back and I''ve only been sitting on it for ten or so minutes."

    "How old are you now? I know hybrids can live for a long time, but surely something starts to break down as you age?"

    "I''m closing in on one hundred and fifty. And maybe they begin to break down? Except we''re not hybrids, but it''s not a surprise that you think we are since you didn''t grow up here. It''s not a well guarded secret by any means, but there''s an unspoken agreement that we don''t spread it around." Irvine stood up and looked at my armor, "Hmm, you need some clothes, right? That armor of yours is pretty bad ass, but I''m sure it''s a pain to wear all the time. I''ll transfer a shitload of money to your account tonight so you can buy whatever you want tomorrow. I have more money than I know what to do with, so I''ll be happy knowing it''s helping out... My family..."

    "Thank you, Uncle Irvine! I was going to gather a lot of power cores to build up some currency, but thanks to you I won''t need to waste my time doing that."

    Irvine quirked an eyebrow, "You make it sound like it''d be easy to kill that many machines. You either forgot how dangerous they are, or---"

    "No! No more talking! Come on, let''s go! I need food badly."

    He shook his head and laughed, "Okay, okay! I get it, so let''s head to my usual joint."

    Irvine opened the door and I followed him outside. We continued walking in silence for a bit, passing by several people who were making an effort to avoid me. My Uncle started laughing after the third couple gave us a wide berth.

    "You do stand out quite a bit, and that armor isn''t doing you any favors either. I think it''s fucking awesome, but these weaklings are going to do their best to avoid anyone who looks like a merc."

    "What do you mean? Shouldn''t mercs be just like anyone else here since everyone has to spend time out in the frozen wastes? Mom was always whining about the day they''d have to send me out there."

    "Holy shit... I knew you had been gone a long time, but it''s only now sinking in just how long you''ve been gone." Irvine said just as we reached one of the tunnels. "We haven''t had that practice in forty or fifty years? The top clans had been trying to avoid sending their precious little shits out for their mandatory service for years, and they finally got the push they needed after one of our fortresses was annihilated."

    "Hang on. So no one has to ''earn their place'' out in the wastes now? They''re just... What? Elevated to clan leaders based off of stump speeches or something?"

    "Sadly, yes. And thanks to all of these changes, this place has created a large two-tiered society. Obviously there was always favorability toward the larger clans, but at least you knew they had earned their place. Even if their parents were trying to prevent them from having to go outside, you''d see their children purposely going to hazardous areas or choosing dangerous missions because they wanted to make a name for themselves. And the ones who survived ended up being great leaders in the end. But all it took was a couple of horrible marital choices from those ''great leaders'' and a fortress disappearing for everything to change overnight. And none of it was for the better."

    We reached the elevator and walked inside. Irvine ran his fingers over the buttons until he pushed R-72.

    Wow, that''s way down there. I don''t even know what is below us here at R-37, let alone what we''re going to find at R-72.

    "They''re all so weak now. It makes me sick whenever I have to enter the upper levels. Only R-4 is worthy of your time, but even then you still run into chaperon groups sometimes. The very sight of them makes me so mad."

    "Chaperon? I don''t know that word."

    "It''s a term we use for illustrious clan members or their children who leave to ''experience'' the outside while surrounded by high level mercs that are decked out in the best gear. They used to bravely tackle the wastes like everyone else, but now they surround themselves with guards so they can traverse the safe areas of the wasteland like it''s a fucking tourist spot." He shook his head and sighed, "You''ll know them when you see them. I don''t mean to be complaining this much when you only just returned, but the sight of those doormats avoiding you really got on my nerves."

    Eventually the elevator stopped and opened up to a dark environment that was only lit up by a row of streetlights on the path in front of us.

    "What the? Why is it so dark in here? I mean, I love this kind of environment, but I had no idea there were places like this here."

    Irvine chuckled, "Of course you didn''t. Your mom wouldn''t let me bring you down here. She was another one of those---No, never mind that. Let''s go, it''ll take a bit to reach the bar."

    {A bar? I thought you were going to eat?}

    I guess he wants to get drunk to celebrate? But it''s probably like the bars on Urza. They also served food. Unless he really is taking me to a place that only serves alcohol, which will obviously piss me off.

    "By the way, Uncle. There''s someone I need to introduce you to. Come on out, Luna."

    Luna slowly crawled out of my chest and through my armor before fluttering up onto my shoulder.

    "H-Hello Mister Irvine..."

    Irvine''s eyes widened as he looked at Luna, "A fairy?! We thought they were all gone! Ae have been trying to get Lunaria to send a fairy to us for years but her demands were too much. No matter how much I offered, she wouldn''t take my damned money... But enough about that. Little fairy, can you cleanse people?"

    "Y-Yes? I''ve done it in combat for Rei, so it should work... Um, why are you asking?"

    "You''ll see when we arrive at the bar. There''s a few people who are cursed, but no one has been able to remove it from them. So I really hope you fairies are as powerful in cleansing magic as your God said you were." Irvine said with a big smile on his face.

    "Friends of yours, Uncle?"

    "... Something like that. People I''d die for if I had to."

    As we continued down the walkway I could see homes, apartments, and other types of buildings lit up all around the dome, but the spaces between the buildings and above them was pitch black. This is so bizarre looking, and the buildings look like the ones I''d see in Viktor''s towns. Except these are pretty damned old looking. Some of them even look like they''re about to crumble any second now.

    "Oh right. That lady at the main office really hates you, huh? What did you do to her?"

    Irvine chuckled, "Did Shannon tell you she hated me? I don''t blame her if so. We had a fling for a while and then I ghosted her when it started to become serious. I actually really liked her, but I''m... It''s hard to explain. Maybe another day. This is a time of celebration after all! So don''t hold back, alright? Although, even if it wasn''t a celebration you could still order whatever you wanted. But regardless, you''re going to love the food here, I promise. And hopefully the people too!"

    About ten minutes later we reached the bar which was a large square wooden building. The name ''Riverside'' was on the roof''s sign. Wood again... Nowhere in my memories did I see regular wood buildings like this in Arcadia. So it must start to look like this past a certain level?

    "Well shit, looks like you survived again eh? The cosmos gives luck to the worse kinds of people." Said an old black Human male on a rocking chair. Luna retreated back into my soul before he saw her.

    Irvine walked up to the man while laughing and clasped his right hand in a way that looked like they were arm wrestling in the air.

    "Of course I came back! No way in hell I''m going to die before you asshole."

    "We''ll see about that..." The man looked at me, "And who''s this? A new merc? Never seen armor like that before, but I don''t think that metal armor is going to save you here, girl. Machines will cut right through it as if it was tissue paper."

    Irvine stepped back and put a hand on my right pauldron before grinning at the man, "This right here, is my niece."

    "Yer what? But I thought all of your family was..." The man trailed off, staring at my face in confusion.

    "Yeah well, I thought they were all dead too. She''s going to tell me the details over dinner, so I decided to bring her here."

    "Talk that shit out at home you fool! The hell you bringing her to this dump for?"

    Irvine shook his head and laughed before jutting a thumb toward the old man, "This here is Bertram, an old friend of mine. He technically owns the bar here, but he doesn''t actually do anything except eat and drink. His daughter and the employees handle everything."

    "I''m the owner so I don''t have to do shit." He looked at me, "Well god damn, if you really are his niece then welcome home! And if it makes you feel any better, you didn''t miss a damn thing. This place sounds magical to everyone from the outside, but it''s nothing more than a god damned death trap for all of the dreamers who---"

    Irvine scrunched his face up as Bertram continued to rant about how horrible Arcadia was, "... Never thought much about it, but from the outside we really do complain a lot."

    "What was that, mother fucker? You sayin I''m just complaining here?" Bertram threw an empty can at Irvine who smacked it into the ground, "I''m telling the TRUTH! It''s best she learns now before she gets all hopeful about this shithole. If she starts talking about going on dangerous missions or trying to make a name for herself, you best warn her now that she''s wasting her time."

    "Actually..." I said, causing both of the men to look at me, "I''m planning on retrieving the codes Arcadia needs to access the core systems."

    Bertram sputtered and threw his hands up into the air, "YOU SEE WHAT I MEAN?! Girl, really, you DON''T want to do that! You''ll be one of millions who died trying to get those stupid fucking codes."

    "Millions? Surely that many people haven''t died trying to get the codes?"

    "Damn right they did. What do you think all of those fortresses were for? They were slowly expanding toward the west until they had a nice foothold from which they could launch a protracted assault on the west to acquire the codes. Even now people die all the time trying to keep the remaining fortresses active, but I don''t know what the fucking point is. Most of the clans gave up on retrieving the codes long ago."

    "... Hime---No, Rei. Please tell me you aren''t being serious. I don''t know what you''ve been through up until now, but you would need an entire army to get those codes, and even then you might still fail. So please don''t sacrifice yourself pointlessly for something like fame when you just came back into my life..."

    "Hime? The fuck is that name?"

    I ignored Bertram and smiled at my Uncle, "Don''t worry, Uncle Irvine. When I''ve finished telling you about my past and shown you what I can do, I''m sure you''ll both be much more open minded about my plan to grab the keys alone."

    "A-Alone...?" Bertram trailed off as him and Irvine looked at each other in complete disbelief.

    Yes, alone. If the clans really are as weak as my Uncle said they are, then I''m not sure if the codes will revitalize them in any way, but there''s only one way to find out. At the very least, I''ll get the fame and fortune I need going forward. My Uncle isn''t lying when he says he''s rich, otherwise there''d be no way for him to afford my families clan home when he doesn''t even live there. But I doubt he has the kind of money I need. And the codes are the quickest route there.

    I''ll probably grab a few simpler missions first though. Unlike in Telebron, I''m not on a timer or in a rush to gain strength. I can take my time here in Arcadia, and it''s honestly a huge relief.

    {Hehe, this is so funny! I can''t get enough of their expressions.}

    I know, right? But by the end of the night they''ll change their tunes. It''s just a question of how much.

 Chapter 90 - Emblems

    "Go on then, girl. Wow me with your plan to take the codes by yourself when even the clans themselves have given up on them." Bertram said.

    I turned invisible and quickly circled behind Bertram before removing my veil. I attempted to tap him on the shoulder but the moment I removed my veil he rolled forward out of his rocking chair and immediately pointed a shotgun at me.

    {Wooow he''s fast~! And where did he get that gun from?}

    It was laying next to his chair. He grabbed it and dove forward in one fluid motion.

    "Impressive! Most people panic when I appear behind them, and sometimes they straight up lose the ability to move."

    Bertram stared at me for a moment before lowering his gun. "... I don''t know what war is like out there, but you always need to be ready for surprise attacks here. Even some of the bigger machines can sneak up on you if you''re not careful."

    My Uncle was staying uncharacteristically quiet as I looked at him. He was looking down with one hand over his mouth. A pose I used to see him do back when he was thinking deeply about something.

    Bertram shouldered his shotgun and waited patiently for him to speak.

    The sounds of people arguing about something behind me in the bar is all I could hear until my Uncle eventually lowered the hand covering his mouth down to his chin.

    "Rei, how long can you stay invisible?"

    "Forever if I''m alone and not blasted by light."

    "So it doesn''t drain mana and light is its weakness..."

    Bertram snorted, "If I''m alone, huh? You suggesting you can cloak others too?"

    Irvine cut in, "It wasn''t the same as cloaking. You saw it yourself, there wasn''t a shimmer."

    "I know that dipshit, but that''s the word I''m used to using."

    "You two are taking this in stride... I didn''t expect a reaction like this."

    Bertram walked toward me and rested the shotgun against the rocking chair before sitting in it again, "No denying that I''d love to hear how you obtained such an ability, but that''s not important right now. You use what you have in missions, and if someone is going to approach me with a broken invisibility ability, then I''m damn well going to use it instead of wasting my time fawning over it. I mean shit, girl, you might actually---"

    "Hang on, old man." Irvine said, holding his right palm out, "Let''s not get ahead of ourselves. While her ability is broken at first glance, it will only work if they aren''t aware of her. There are plenty of machines and ruins with automated defenses that aren''t shy about blasting light everywhere. Don''t forget that some of them even use it as a tactic to blind us. And on that note..." He looked at me, "Any other cons you''d like to share?"

    I walked around Bertram and sat down in another wooden chair on the porch, but before I could reply to my Uncle, Bertram spoke up first.

    "Ey, girl. Don''t go telling anyone else about this ability. As your Uncle just said, it will only work if people don''t know about it. I''m friends with almost everyone who visits this bar, but all it will take is for one person to blabber about you and things could become problematic real fucking quick. So all I''m sayin is, don''t risk it. And uh, well..."

    Irvine chuckled while shaking his head, "What he''s struggling to say is ''Thank you for telling me''. Old fool still doesn''t know how to be nice to others."

    "Don''t worry, I was only planning on showing my Uncle if he was still alive. But after seeing how friendly he was with you, I decided that one more might be for the best. You were clearly an old veteran, and in my experience, those are the people I can trust the most."

    "Bah, they''re just as likely to sell you out for some extra funding to enjoy their retirement a bit more."

    "Like I said, he doesn''t know how to say thank you." Irvine said, "Forget telling me about the cons for now, we should go eat. You''re starving right? But one thing first; Luna, can you come out please?"

    Luna crawled out of my chest and waved at Bertram, "Hello Mr.Bertram!"

    Bertram rested placed his face into his palm, "A Fairy... You gotta be fuckin kiddin me." He lowered his hand and looked at Irvine, "Can she...?"

    "I hope so." Irvine walked up to the door and cracked it open, the sounds from inside the bar quadrupled in volume, "Luna, can you come look at my daughter, please?"

    Luna flew up onto his shoulder, "I-It''s your daughter?! Why didn''t you say so? Let''s go!"

    Bertram stood up and inserted his shotgun into a slot in the wall. "And my granddaughter. So if you can help her..."

    I got up from the chair and followed the three of them inside.

    "Hey, look who survived again!" One patron yelled while pointing at my Uncle.

    As he talked to the people around him, I checked the bar out and found that it was pretty much what I expected it to be. Nothing amazing, but nothing bad either. A rather homey old bar that reminded me of Urza. In fact, I remember a bar in Xelba that looked almost exactly like this one.

    There was a line of booths along every wall except the left side where the bar and kitchen was. The only oddity was the two arcade machines in the left-side corner on the entrance side.

    Lastly, the lady attending the bar had the same skin color as Bertram and a blindfold over her eyes. Weird choice for an accessory. Can she see through that?

    "Rei!" Bertram yelled. Looking in his direction I saw he was near the back-right booth, standing next to a little white girl with long platinum blonde hair sitting in a wheelchair.

    I''ve only seen one wheelchair in my life, and it was on a fictional TV show. Very few people are unable to have their body parts restored through soul magic. It does happen, but it''s so rare I can count with my fingers the amount of times I''ve seen it happen.

    So that could be why she''s in a wheelchair, but I''m going to assume she''s the one who was cursed. Who the hell would curse a little girl though? And I''m still having a hard time coping with the fact that my Uncle has a daughter---Wait, doesn''t that mean she''s my cousin? I went from thinking I had no family, to suddenly having two left...

    I began to walk toward Bertram around the same time Irvine said he''d ''be back in a bit'' to the people he was talking to. So we ended up walking together toward the two waiting for us, and the closer we got the wider my Uncle''s smile became.

    When we reached them Irvine knelt down next to the girl and kissed her on the forehead. The girl brought a teddy bear up to nose and whispered behind it, "Hi Daddy..."

    It took me a sec to figure out why she was whispering. Her eyes kept looking at me and then quickly darting back to her Father. Ahh, she''s nervous because of the weird white haired girl.

    "I''m back, princess! Were you good for your mom while I was gone?"

    "Mmhmm..."

    Irvine chuckled when he realized why his daughter was so quiet. "You don''t need to be so scared of her. This here is your cousin, Reimia! She''s my brother Will''s kid."

    The girl lowered the teddy bear and looked up at me, "Cousin...?"

    I leaned down and smiled at the girl, "Nice to meet you, little cousin. What''s your name?"

    "Nia."

    "Nia huh? Now that''s a really cute name!"

    Luna landed on Nia''s shoulder, causing her to jerk away in surprise. But once she saw it was a fairy her eyes widened to the max as she looked back and forth between Luna and Irvine.

    "Okay princess, Daddy needs you to do something for him. Luna, the fairy here is going to enter your soul and try to cleanse that curse of yours, okay? Do you remember what you had to do for the other people who tried cleansing you?"

    Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    "Y-Yes, I remember!" She said, smiling at Luna who was smiling right back at her.

    After she finished speaking, Luna immediately crawled into her soul through her shoulder. From what I could see there was zero rejection, so Nia definitely knew how to accept the mana of others. Which was odd for a girl so young as her outside of Xelba, but it made sense considering her situation.

    "How long does this take?" Irvine asked me.

    "I don''t know? You should''ve asked Luna that."

    About a minute later Nia looked up at her dad, "S-She says it''s going to take a long time. Many days."

    "So she can get rid of it..." Bertram mumbled before slumping down onto one of the nearby booths.

    I don''t know what they went through up till now trying to get that curse removed, but I wasn''t worried at all since I knew that Luna was a Lord. Even regular Fairies have powerful cleansing abilities so a Lord like her is unlikely to ever run into a curse or debuff she can''t remove.

    While Bertram looked like a huge weight had been lifted off of his shoulders, my Uncle was as still as a statue.

    "Are you doubtful, Uncle?"

    "... Yes. Please understand that it has nothing to do with your fairy friend. I''m just having a really hard time believing it''ll all be fixed so easily like this out of the blue. I mean shit, I had nearly given up hope after Termia was destroyed."

    Well, I can''t really blame him, and I''m sure Luna will succeed, so he can save all of his joy for when that time comes.

    Bertram stood up and walked over to the bar where the lady behind it was currently handing over a grilled cheese and fries to some drunk at the counter.

    "I''m guessing that''s her Mother? Is she your wife then?"

    "Pfft, no chance in hell. She dropped me long ago. The only time we talk now is on matters concerning Nia." Irvine said, causing Nia to chuckle.

    She saw me quirking an eyebrow at her and she laughed while saying, "It''s funny when mom and dad fight!"

    I don''t think I''ve ever heard that line from a kid before. Isn''t it usually the opposite?

    Irvine sat down in the corner booth behind Nia and motioned for me to sit across from him, which is exactly what I did.

    "I don''t care what it is, just have her bring something edible. And a lot of it. I can eat way more than the average person now."

    "Heh, that''s fine by me, I''m starving too after the shitty week I''ve had." Irvine said before reaching out to a nearby console and typing something into it. Once he was finished I heard a loud ding from the kitchen. Considering how old school everything here is I didn''t think this place would have consoles like they do above.

    "Now then, tell me what happened. I already know the answer to this, but just in case... Is anyone else still alive?"

    Nia turned her wheelchair around and listened in as I began to tell him everything that happened to me, all the way from the beginning.

    <hr>

    ~Four hours later~

    "Well god damn, girl. That was one sad and weird fucking tale." Bertram said before looking at the dozens of empty plates, "... And you eat way too much. Is this an every day thing? Your Uncle has the money, but I bet he''s sweating after seeing this."

    "No no, I was running on near empty, so this amount maxed my reserves. I should last a couple of weeks like this. Although I can always force myself to eat more, and I think I will. You have no idea of how much I missed food that was this delicious... Xelba didn''t exactly have bad tasting food, but it wasn''t great either. I remember Viktor complaining one day that the only thing he missed from this place was the food."

    "Speaking of Viktor..." Irvine leaned back into the booth and crossed his arms, "I need to look into this fucker. I thought I knew all of the ins and outs of Arcadia''s clans, but I have never once heard of this ''Viktor''. Do you know what his last name was or what clan he belonged to?"

    "No, but when I mentioned the clans and how I wanted to request their assistance in killing him, he talked as if they''d obviously know who he was. He doubted that they''d bother to come after him, but he didn''t doubt that they wanted him dead. So someone here has to know him. Oh, and he had a brother but we called him ''Bear'' or ''Master''. So sadly, I don''t even know his first name..."

    Irvine leaned forward and held his hand out, "Give me your keypass for a moment. I need to see the ID number. And don''t worry, I''ll figure out where Viktor came from and why people here want him dead."

    I unclipped it from under my tassets and handed him my keypass. He placed it on the table and typed something into a small console he had attached to his waist up until now.

    "Alright, I''ll send the money over tomorrow. You said you watched your old memories, so did you have any memories of your parents at the bank?"

    "Nope. I''ll need to figure it out from scratch. Is it easy to learn?"

    "It''ll be easy, the people there will show you how to access your account and whatnot."

    I looked at the empty wheelchair. A few hours ago Nia was falling asleep so her mom came over and carried her off to bed, but before she left, she said to come back another day so she can properly thank me for helping her daughter.

    "Your daughter is really cute. But it''s going to take me a while to get used to having a cousin..."

    "Isn''t she though?!" Irvine said, nodding with a smile on his face.

    "Bah, obviously she''s cute, but enough of that, I want to hear what your plans are, girl."

    "Hmm, I''ll go to the bank tomorrow and then probably sign up for a mission? A simple one that I can do alone. As much as I don''t mind working with others, I work better alone."

    Irvine tapped the desk for a moment while rubbing his chin. Bertram saw that and snorted, "Now what are you thinking? Don''t tell her to go straight for the codes. I think it''s best she takes a few easy missions too so she can get used to this place and get some experience with ruin diving." He continued, "Oh, but girl? There are no such things as ''solo missions''. Only you could do that. I''m sure you understand why we only operate in groups? Anyone who was stupid enough to go out there solo would have their death certificate written up at the same time as their mission statement."

    "I was thinking about exactly that, old man. I think I know of a mission she can do."

    "Oh fuck off. You did not just conjure up a magical solo mission out of nowhere."

    Irvine grinned, "What about emblem recovery missions?"

    "......"

    Bertram looked down, lost in thought. While he was silent I asked, "What''s an emblem?"

    "To put it simply, we don''t create clans. They''re already there in the database from the people who lived here previously. It wouldn''t be a stretch to say that the emblems are the only reason the ''big'' clans are big. They''re like the codes you''re trying to acquire. Once you have your clans emblem back, you gain access to the clans main housing unit, which comes with a shitload of perks, like power core creation."

    "Creation?! But I thought the machines were the only way of getting power cores?"

    Irvine shook his head, "Nope. You can make them as well, but only with the full power of a clan house, and there are only six fully operational clan houses. Outside of two, all of the other emblems are located in places that are too hard to get to."

    "And what''s the problem with those two?"

    "They''re within range of two of the fortresses, but that doesn''t mean you can just stay outside forever. The longer you''re out there in the hazard zones, the more you risk being found by the machines, which is why despite the dozens of attempts to find those two emblems, the clans and any mercs looking for them have been unable to acquire them. Their names are..."

    Irvine brings his personal console back onto the table and taps away on it for a bit before saying, "The Hothgar and the Inoue clans."

    "What the hell are those names... But I do recognize one of them. I saved someone from the ''Hothgar'' clan on the way here. One of them had been caught by a snatcher around twenty miles west of here."

    Irvine smiled, "Do you really want to know? I know which country those names originate from back on Earth."

    Hearing him say that brought an old memory to the forefront of my mind. It was an image of me and a blue haired girl with golden streaks riding on top of a wagon covered in snow.

    "... I really wish Aresa was here. She wanted to visit this city and hear about Earth more than anyone else I''ve ever known."

    "Ah, that was your Eldritch Lord friend, right? I hope your allies were able to heal her in Gaia." He took a drink and then continued, "Now that is a place I know almost nothing about. I was considering bringing Nia there, but her mother wouldn''t allow it."

    To remove the curse? Not a bad idea since he thought the fairies were all dead.

    "Girl." I looked over at Bertram, "Your Uncle, loathe I am to admit it, came up with a damned good idea. I''ve been going over it in my head, about whether it''d be detrimental or not opening up more clan houses, but maybe this will be the jump start those fuckers need to get their asses in gear. And that''s not even taking the main core''s codes into consideration. God damn, there is a lot to look forward to! I retired a few years back but now I''m roaring to go again."

    Irvine snorted, "A few years? You mean fifteen?"

    "Uncle, how do I sign up for those emblem missions? If I''m to hide my invisibility, then won''t it look odd that I''m taking on such ridiculous missions alone?"

    "That''s simple, I''m going to sign you up with a group I know that''s currently at the fort you''re heading to. They''re already on a mission, but if I call them and tell them to pretend you''re a part of their group, they''ll agree. I''ll have to pay them of course, but that''s not an issue. Plus, it''ll help having someone there at the fort who can explain where you need to go and what to expect."

    "You talkin about my little sister? You two still haven''t told me what you''re up to." Bertram said.

    "You never asked, asshole. She''s being paid to see if the machines behavior has changed at all, seeing as how the amount of casualties we''ve received in the green zone has gone up by quite a bit the last five years. And I had already agreed to help her back when I stupidly proposed to make her rich if she''d escort us to Gaia. I thought Dana would be delighted at the idea of us all going to Gaia and removing their curses, but then she turned me down, and I still had to hold up my end of the fucking bargain."

    "Obviously she was going to say no!"

    Before my Uncle could respond I stood up and waved at the two men, "Alright, I''m going to bed. We''ve been at this for hours and while I don''t need to shut down, I''m mentally exhausted and want to rest until tomorrow. By the way, how long will I need to wait before I can actually do the mission? You''re signing me up tomorrow, but when can I leave?"

    "Anytime you want. So just swing by here---No, we''ll use your parents garage as a meeting place to prepare you for the mission. You really only need a transmitter and a portable console, but still, it''s best that we go over it all beforehand. I still need to hear the finer details of your ability and teach you about any potential problems that may arise in regards to light, especially from machines."

    I nodded and turned to leave. Halfway toward the exit my Uncle yelled ''I''ll call you in the morning!''.

    I opened the bar doors and walked outside. It was still as dark as ever. Off in the distance I could see some kids playing basketball in a run-down court with lights shining down on it, but everything around it was surrounded in darkness. This is such a weird place compared to the top and mid levels of Arcadia. I never would have imaged this was down here if my Uncle hadn''t shown it to me.

    I began to walk toward the elevator while thinking about my soon-to-be mission. This will be a nice test run. If I can acquire these emblems, then I''ll know that I can also acquire the core''s codes. At least in theory anyway. They are housed in the most dangerous part of Caedrus after all...

 Chapter 91 - Preparation

    "... Never thought I''d be in here again." My Uncle said after we turned the lights on in the garage.

    It was a massive open room with its own personal elevator used to move goods from this room to a holding room on the surface.

    Thinking about it now, the design here is really convenient for moving things to the surface or your home. There are people working up there in the holding room all day long that are ready to pack your goods into a specific block for you to pick up anytime you want. Not that I expect to be moving anything I can''t just carry myself, but it may come in handy in the future.

    In the middle of the back wall was a massive television with a full suite of couches, chairs, and tables around it. The television was at least two hundred inches long, making it easily viewable from anywhere in the garage.

    My Uncle headed for the main couch in front of the TV and turned it on after picking up the nearby remote. After going through several menus he eventually landed on a large map of Caedrus, at which point he began typing away at the TV''s keyboard that was placed on a swivel arm attached to the couch. It was a convenient way for anyone on the couch to use the keyboard without needing to move.

    "Here. I marked the two forts and the location of the two emblems. And as you can see, one of the emblems is kind of close to the southern fort, while the northern one is going to require you to run for a hell of a long time. You said you can go weeks without eating?"

    "Yes but I''ll bring food anyways. After all, you severely undervalued just how far away they would be from the forts. You said they were ''within range'' last night, so what the hell are these distances?! The ''kind of close'' one is still sixty miles away, while the other one is damn near two hundred, and it''s teetering near the edge of the red zone on this map. I assume that''s where all of the powerful machines are?"

    Irvine nodded, "This isn''t one hundred percent accurate either, so you may end up running into some of them long before you reach the emblem, but keep in mind, we only have names for a few of them and nothing more. I can bring up photos or videos of the ones people have seen from the Leviathan, but past that nobody actually knows what they''re capable of."

    "The Leviathan... When is it due to return to Arcadia? I''d like to use that to get close to the codes."

    Irvine brought up the Leviathan''s tracks on the map and its current location. It was at the northwestern edge of Caedrus and about to turn south for its return to Arcadia.

    "Looks like you have about a month then. That''s way too short though... You can''t acquire both emblems before then, can you?"

    I shrugged, "Maybe? If I don''t run into any problems I should be able to. I told you about it last night but since I can fly, getting to the middle of Caedrus will take me no time at all. It''s just that from there I''ll need to run to one of those forts thanks to all of those anti-air machines. I already tested them by the way, and I was fine at ten thousand feet in the air, but I''m not all that interested in finding out what happens when I''m close to the ground, especially since I won''t have Luna with me." I pointed at one of the forts, "How do people normally get there?"

    "I''m still having a hard time grappling with the fact that you can fly, but that''ll cut down on time for sure. And we have convoys that go back and forth between the forts, carrying people and supplies. Those convoys usually score a good amount of power cores along the way, so people are more than happy to sign up for those missions."

    "Hmm... Can you bring up the current location of the convoys and their routes?"

    After some more tapping on the keyboard seventeen different groups appeared on the map.

    "Wow, that was more than I was expecting."

    "I assume you don''t plan on using any of these, but I can see several different routes that pass by the bottom emblem. If you need any help or have something you need them to carry, this could come in handy. Although it looks like you''re screwed on the northern one, which is to be expected considering where it is."

    I picked up the remote and after a little trial and error I was able to use it to move the map and draw lines on it. The more you zoomed in, the more detailed it was, but only for specific areas.

    "There is so many places that are blank on this map, have they truly been unexplored this entire time?"

    "You''ll understand why eventually. Maybe not this time if you successfully take the emblems without fighting, but one day when you see what happens to us if we are caught by machines in the high threat zone, you''ll understand why we''ve made so little progress." He zoomed the map out and brought up the borders, "And just so you know, the ''high threat zone'' is what what we call the middle of Caedrus, which is where you''ll be going. While ''hazard zones'' are places that machines are known to frequent. And lastly, the ''dead zone'' is the big red area on the left, which should be self explanatory."

    I continued drawing lines from the southern fort to the bottom emblem, but as I was doing that another set of lines appeared on the map that almost mirrored mine.

    Irvine chuckled, "People have already tried for this emblem many times, and this was the safest route. The problem is that every single group has run into a Screecher and was unable to kill it before it called the others."

    "It literally just calls for others by screeching I take it? But yet again that makes no sense. Whenever I''ve thought back to this place and the machines, they always seemed so weird and illogical, and this ''Screecher'' might be the worst one yet. Why would it scream for allies when it''s a fucking machine? Are they not networked or something?"

    "Oh, Hime... You would''ve made so many people here roll their eyes or laugh at you if they heard you say that. It''s what all the newcomers say after spending some time here after all." He laughed while bringing up a diagram of a machine that had information related to it all over the image. "No one knows why they are the way they are, so don''t bother asking, because you''ll only be ridiculed. And hopefully whatever database is unlocked with the core''s codes will enlighten us... Honestly, I''m still having a hard time believing that might actually happen. And the fact that nobody even knows that everything is about to change is making it even more dreamlike."

    "What if the codes unlock something stupid like a cooking database?"

    "Don''t say something so ridiculous!!" Irvine leaned back into the couch, "Oh god, the very idea of that happening is horrifying..."

    "I was just messing around! Come on, forget that and tell me why you brought up a diagram of a Screecher."

    "... If something is preventing you from killing it, then try and destroy this part at the very least." Irvine highlighted the line going into the machine''s throat. Unlike the Snatcher, this machine appeared rather well made and armored with no open holes. It''s entire structure was rather small overall and it had four legs that ended in small three-clawed feet.

    He then highlighted its legs, "It''s very fast, as you can see here in the details. It needs time to speed up and struggles with fast turns, but if it''s able to run directly away from you, it can reach up to seventy miles an hour. And it''ll be screeching the whole way, which means you need to get the fuck out of there."

    Another diagram appeared on the television. Even without reading the name at the top, I immediately knew what I was looking at. Besides the snatcher, this one was the only other machine I knew by name.

    Irvine highlighted the massive chainsaw-like sword in the machines right hand, "Do not get hit by this. If you''re alone, then you''re completely fucked, because there is something to this weapon that won''t allow you to escape if you''re channeling mana. So if you''re enhancing yourself, which you obviously need to do in a fight, then you''ll be trapped if this weapon touches you. No matter how strong you are, the serrated part will start moving and chew through your mana in no time, and you won''t be able to do anything about it. So out of all of the machines in the high threat zone, this one right here, the ''Butcher'', needs to be avoided. Please remember this, Hime."

    Uncle Irvine showed me another dozen or so machines before he explained how to use portable consoles. My family had dozens of them in the corner, so we just used one of those.

    "Oh right, Uncle. Why were you covered in blood when I first saw you?"

    "... Rookie got hit. We all heard the whistle, which meant that a lobber was firing at us, but not only did that kid react way too slow, he also slipped and fell while he was trying to run away. The bomb fell soon after that and blew him to pieces. I was just unlucky enough to have one of his legs hit me in the face."

    Irvine picked up one of the twenty backpacks we had and handed it to me, "This is a good one. They''re worth a lot of money and kind of hard to get your hands on these days. It''ll survive quite a lot of damage so if you do end up losing it then that means you''re in a situation that no backpack would have survived anyway."

    Hmm, I was planning on making my own backpack, but this might be better. I''ll just coat it in a small layer of the same flexible heavy armor that I''m wearing.

    Irvine walked toward the door leading back to the living room. "Now follow me, I''ll take you to R-4 where I accept all of my missions. There''s a few places we can go, but this is the one I''ve always used."

    I followed behind him and dropped the backpack in the living room before we headed outside. From there we took the elevator up to R-4 which was absolutely bustling with people. R-37 looks like a ghost town compared to this place...

    The floor, walls and ceiling were pure white. And as expected, they were made out of the same unknown alloy seen only in Caedrus.

    Along the left wall was an endless row of stores, while the right side was mostly walled too but it opened up to side streets more and more as we progressed further into the area.

    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    "There it is." Irvine said about ten minutes into our walk. When we neared the center of the area it had opened up to much larger spaces, and this one was shaped like a circular town square, with the building he was aiming for being between two large streets.

    Two large double doors opened up automatically as we neared them. We both walked inside and my first thought upon entering was that it looked like a restaurant. There were people eating everywhere while talking with one another. However, there was one clear difference from your usual restaurant. Everyone here looked heavily armed. I even saw a few sets of power armor that looked like they were made out of the same alloy I had been seeing everywhere.

    "Uncle, what are those two there wearing?"

    Irvine stopped and looked over at the two men I was pointed at, "Ahh, you mean the Tyranium suits? Someone found a stockpile of thirty of them ten or so years ago. He lives comfortably in the top layers after selling them to one of the clans. They can''t activate the core system on the suits, but they''re still the best ones we''ve ever seen. So those two must be high members in their clan."

    "You don''t know them? You used to know everything that was going on here. Or it seemed like that with the way you argued with Father."

    Irvine continued walking toward the front counter, "Those days are long gone. Now I''m just..." He trailed off, staying silent until he reached the counter. There were three attendants spread out, and this was the only open one.

    "Back so soon, Irvine? The world must be ending." The lady said.

    "Good to see you too, Evette. Now give me two specific missions. Maya should have already called em in."

    The lady narrowed her eyes, "... She did, but we assumed she was joking or there was some sort of interference in the communication."

    "Just give us the damn missions, Evette. I can already tell you''re going to drag this out more than necessary."

    "I don''t have to hand out anything, or did you forget how this place works? And who in their right mind would just give you two emblem recovery missions? Not one, BUT TWO! Have you finally gone insane?"

    The two men wearing Tyranium armor looked over at us at the mention of emblems. I also saw a lady with short black hair wearing a maid outfit turn and look at us as well.

    "Maybe I have gone insane, what of it? But don''t forget that Maya''s team is the one who called it in. I''m merely here to sign up their last member. She''s going to be joining them."

    The lady looked at me and raised an eyebrow, "This girl here in medieval armor is going to be assisting them? This just keeps getting weirder and weirder..."

    Irvine grinned, "I''ll tell you what. I will bet my entire fortune that they''ll successfully retrieve both emblems. The houses of Hothgar and Inoue will have full access to their houses within the next half year."

    The ladies eyes went wide as the two men in Tyranium armor stood up and tapped Irvine on the shoulder. "Apologies, Mr.Irvine, but I couldn''t help but overhear that. Are you truly willing to enter into such a bet? My Lord would be quite happy to take you up on it."

    Behind them I could see the maid quickly walk over to a console on the wall, where she pulled out the earphone from it and put it into her ear before making a call.

    "Tell your Lord that I''m more than ready to apply my keypass to the bet."

    The two men looked at each other. One was holding back a smile, while the other one was looking back and forth between his friend and Irvine with a befuddled look on his face. The first man then took his helmet off the table and placed it over his head. It seems these two know my Uncle and how much he''s worth. He must not have been kidding about having a ton of money.

    "... Irvine, what are you doing? I know things are rough with your kid and ex-girlfriend, but come on, this is too much." Evette said.

    Irvine shrugged, "Consider me crazy if you want. I already have more money than I know what to do with, and now I''m about to have double that!"

    Evette shook her head and began to type on her console. While she was doing that the man removed his helmet and smiled at Irvine, "My Lord agrees and is cordially asking you to visit him at our clan house. He''d like to sign the bet now before the mission takes place." The man could barely stop himself from laughing when he said the word ''mission''.

    "By all means! Let me finish up here so you two can escort me or you can just insert its location into my console. Either way works for me." Irvine said with a big smile on his face.

    "Excuse me." A voice said from behind the men. They turned around and moved to the side when they realized the girl was trying to talk to us.

    Irvine quirked an eyebrow at the girl with shoulder-length blonde hair wearing a maid outfit in a hall full of mercs, "Yes...?"

    "Master wishes to speak with you before you go. He is the current head of Clan Inoue." She turned toward the men in Tyranium armor, "Please accept my apologies, but he promises it will be short. He''s nearby and wants to see who was stu---brave enough to accept his mission." She wanted to say ''stupid'' huh? I actually prefer them being this cynical about it. It''s going to make my victory all the sweeter.

    "Don''t worry, Miss Shizue. We aren''t bothered by this at all. We''ll just finish our meal here before escorting Mister Irvine here to our Lord." The man said before the two men walked back to the table they were sitting at previously.

    "Well, where should we meet him?" Irvine asked.

    Shizue shook her head, "There is no need to leave. He''s coming here right now and will arrive shortly."

    ... There is something off about this girl. Her soul is very weird. It''s not Human, hybrid, Eldritch, Abyssal... What the fuck is it that I''m feeling right now?

    Less than a minute later a six foot tall man with long wavy white hair entered the building. Next to him was a girl with long straight black hair and bangs. She looks so familiar, but why would I recognize anyone---Oh!

    I looked toward the right wall and one of the posters was of this exact girl. She had her hair done up in a double bun and it was saying something about a beautiful up and coming hunter.

    Irvine followed the maid toward a table where the man had sat down. As he sat down at the table I noticed that the girl was glaring at me. Not a huge fan of me it seems.

    "Miss?"

    I turned around, "Yes, Evette?"

    "I need your keypass. And..." She looked at my armor, "Can I touch that? I didn''t notice it at first but I''m sensing something after being next to you for so long, and I''m very curious..."

    "Heh, that''s fine go ahead." I said while putting my keypass on the counter. She immediately reached out and touched my armor, but the second her fingers touched me she pulled back fast and gawked at me.

    "H-How much mana is imbued in your armor?! My fingers felt like they were on fire!"

    "You could tell that just from touching me? Are you highly sensitive to mana or something?"

    Evette nodded, "Yes! We receive training for this job because it''s necessary to evaluate our clients, but this... It''s not artifact armor. I thought it was, but the mana used is far too different and unknown to me. Can I ask where you found it?"

    "I made it."

    "Come again? You made it?"

    "Yes, I made it. And as for how, well, let''s just say I''ll be paying a visit to a Mr. Yulong after this. He and I need to have a chat."

    Evette''s eyes went wide, "The Abyss addict..."

    "Everything good here?" Irvine said from behind me.

    "Y-Yes. Just wait one moment, Irvine." Evette said, grabbing my keypass.

    I was keeping an eye on them, but the two men to my left were too busy eating and talking to hear what we were talking about. I wasn''t particularly worried about them finding out about my ''Abyssal'' armor, but for now it felt like it was for the best that I remained a nobody. That is, until I returned with the two emblems.

    About a minute later Evette handed my keypass back to me and wished me luck.

    "What the hell happened while I was gone? I knew the clan head of Inoue showing up would shut her up, but I wasn''t expecting her to see you off with a smile." Irvine said.

    "She touched my armor and sensed how much mana I have packed into it, and I also told her it was Abyssal. So maybe she has some semblance of hope that I''ll succeed? I don''t know, but how about you? I see those two still haven''t left, and the girl is still glaring at me."

    "Hang on. Talk after." Irvine promptly said, barely audible. We were close to their table now so he was putting it off until we were outside apparently.

    Once we exited the building he stopped and looked at me, "I think she''s just jealous. She seemed very unhappy that someone else was attempting to acquire her houses emblem when her brother absolutely refuses to let her do it. And he''s right to stop her of course. Their emblem is the one next to the dead zone after all. Apparently she''s some up and coming hunter but she''s out of her mind if she thinks she''d survive a trip next to the dead zone."

    I did notice that the only areas near or in the dead zone that were mapped out, were areas next to the Leviathan''s tracks. In other words, no one has ever surveyed a single foot of the western side of Caedrus. Aside from that one man who managed to send photos of the western edge of the continent before being killed by a machine. God only knows how he managed to do that though.

    "But I thought you said people had tried to acquire these two emblems before? So people have tried for theirs, right?"

    "I did, but when I said ''dozens of attempts'' I wasn''t being specific enough. All of those attempts except one have been for the Hothgar emblem down south. Only one team was insane enough to try for Inoue''s emblem. I looked into it and there isn''t even a record of how it ended. Normally there is, but they suddenly lost contact and were never heard from again. That happens sometimes near the dead zone, so there must be a machine over there that disrupts electronics. Long story short, no one attempted to try for their emblem again."

    I wonder if it disrupts the electronics in power armor and mechs too? Although I doubt I''ll ever really know the answer to that.

    "Well, what are your plans?" Irvine asked.

    "I''m going to see a man named Yulong. I mentioned him last night when regaling my past. Have you heard of him?"

    "Hmm, I can''t say that I have, but if you think showing him all of your memories from the Abyss will help you in some way, then I say go for it." Irvine jutted his chin out toward the building behind me. I turned around and saw the two men in Tyranium armor walking through the doors, "As for me, I have somewhere I need to be. I''ll see you later, alright? And don''t forget to call your Uncle!"

    I laughed and waved at Irvine while turning to walk away, "Don''t worry, I''ll call you before I leave. Bye Uncle Irvine!"

    After that I walked through the square, taking in the sights. Despite being the ''merc layer'', only about thirty percent of the people here were armed or armored. It made for a weird contrast seeing a girl in a breezy dress sitting on the same bench as a guy in power armor.

    I didn''t feel like going home, so I walked through one street after another, looking for anything of interest. I was stopped a few times along the way by people asking for pictures. They thought my look was ''awesome'' or ''weird'' and wanted to save it on their consoles.

    Nothing had really surprised me, until I was in one of the back streets that was nearly devoid of people. I was walking by a lone building that had an emblem on top of it that I recognize. A familiar looking sword and shield that had a cross on it.

    ... No fucking way.

    I walked toward the building and passed through the invisible barrier surrounding it. The aura was welcoming me in, just as it always had before.

    I opened the doors and walked into the temple. A voice echoed inside my head when I reached the middle of the room.

    {Hello, Reimia. Welcome home.}

    "... I''m home, Lord Arkaios."

    I had this weird feeling all along that he was the one who created the Elves. He said his children were too fascinated with their technology and gadgets these days and that they ignored him. I thought about it again when my Uncle said that we weren''t hybrids, but I quickly forgot about it because of everything else going on.

    "Lord Arkaios, there is one thing I''ve been dying to ask you. Are Markus, Keith, Lindon, Nisha, and Albel with you? Viktor said they were in Gaia but I had no way of knowing if that was the truth."

    {They are. He had a powerful unit of his men and Xerath carry the artifact to Gaia. He was already planning on sending them there, so it changed nothing for him. Once inside, it took a few years but eventually one of my men was able to find them, and they happily passed the artifact to him. Markus and the others were revived soon after that.}

    ... So he really was telling the truth. In the back of my mind this had always been bothering me. The not knowing if Viktor had kept the artifact and was using it as a paper weight. So this news was a huge weight off my shoulders. And while it''s highly unlikely that Godwin''s group would run into Markus, it''s possible that they could meet a branded along the way. It''d be nice if they met again before I find them in the future. And who knows, maybe I''ll run into Markus'' group before I find Godwin?

    But that''s for the future me to figure out. For now, I need to prepare to leave. I''ll rest for one more day, fill up on food, and then begin my flight toward the southern fort Bertram''s little sister is stationed at. All things considered, I''m excited for what''s to come. There were a few things my Uncle warned me about, and so long as I avoid them, I should be fine. But just in case I''ll use my rest day to look up more information on the machines in the high threat zone and try to see if I can get the footage from the groups who attempted to get Hothgar''s emblem.

 Chapter 92 - The Mission Begins

    I felt Arkaios reach out and connect part of my soul to the temple.

    "Now that was a familiar feeling... Did you just create a reset point for me?"

    {I know of your mission. A bold and very dangerous choice. Use it in case of an emergency.}

    "... Thank you, Lord Arkaios."

    I knelt down and prayed for a little while before looking around the temple. It was as pristine as all the others, but this one felt lifeless. It was clear that nobody had been here in ages.

    "Sir, um, how do I word this..."

    {As I have said in the past. My children do not follow nor worship me anymore.}

    "But wouldn''t your powers be a massive boon for them against the machines?"

    {Indeed. They were quite the ''boon'' back when I had hundreds of warriors here. Unfortunately, with the diminishing support from my followers I was forced to send my warriors elsewhere. One at a time I lead them to other worlds, other temples, until one day, I no longer had any warriors or supporters left here.}

    "Doesn''t the temple also naturally gain power through your connection to the planet? Surely you could have continued to support a few warriors who would preach your name to the people?"

    {Half correct. I draw very little power here because I can''t draw more. The land is rife with Demonic corruption, and it increases in strength underground until a point where I can barely connect to the core. This temple, my very first temple, was doomed the moment I began to lose followers.}

    "Demons?! But how could..." I shook my head and waited a moment for my mind to clear, "I''m sorry but how could there be Demonic corruption here? There''s still a lot I need to learn about Caedrus, but not once have I ever heard someone mention Demonic corruption."

    {I do not understand either. The corruption has been here from the moment I connected to this realm. In fact, this corruption is the very reason I ended up in Arcadia. Xerathian corruption is the easiest to grasp and use as a connection, while Demonic is the lowest. However, the corruption here runs deep. I have only seen Demonic corruption this deep in areas they''ve owned for a decade or more.}

    "Have there been Demon sightings? And I know there is a lot of snow covering things up out there, but you''d think there would still be signs of Demonic corruption somewhere. I''ve been to areas they control before and I specifically remember all of the red spikes sticking out of the ground."

    {A few Demons over the years, but that''s normal everywhere. And they were slain by the machines; my children only found their frozen corpses afterwards. Alas, you are correct, there should be signs of corruption, and yet there isn''t.}

    "... This is very strange. I need to talk to my Uncle and Bertram about this."

    {Very strange indeed. However, I have long since given up on such a mystery. And this temple is now full of energy, despite the flimsy connection to the planet, so feel free to use the reset even for transportation if you want. It matters not anymore.}

    Wow, he really has given up on this place. And while his words have always been monotone in nature, that last sentence almost sounded kind of sad. But if my Uncle truly is right about the people here, it''d be impossible to create new branded warriors even if I tried. There''s no way these people who live in luxury would sign themselves up for an eternity of fighting and pain.

    I stood up and walked toward the exit, "Thanks again, Lord Arkaios. I''ll be back sometime."

    {Reimia.} He said as I reached for the door.

    "Yes?"

    {My children go to bed every night with full bellies and nigh a worry in the world. After the second clan house was activated they still struggled to survive, but on the third they began to have much more leeway, and by the fourth they became lazy.}

    "You''re confirming what my Uncle told me already, albeit with information he didn''t have, but are you trying to tell me to not acquire the emblems?"

    {They matter not. Two more fully functional clan houses would only create more strife and drama. Mere entertainment for the useless and lazy. What I am concerned with however, is the core codes. I do not know what information is hidden in the mainframe, nor what kind of systems it will open up, but I do know that if it leads to something dangerous, my children will be doomed. They may be lazy and useless, but they are alive. You risk them being not alive. I merely want to confirm that you are okay with this.}

    "I don''t know how it could lead to that, but I''m willing to take that risk. Their unpreparedness is on them. And I refuse to quit because of some ''what if''. Hell, this whole damn continent is a massive ''what if''. The machines seem to be mindless for some reason, but who is to say that will last forever? And the Elves lost an entire fort for reasons that are still unknown to them. Whatever wiped it out stopped there, but that doesn''t mean the threat has disappeared forever."

    I continued, "I could go on forever, listing reason after reason as to why I''m not going to stop, so instead I''ll ask you; do you truly dislike that I''m bringing the codes back here?"

    {Not at all. I only wanted you to know the potential risks involved. And it''s as you say, anything that happens is on them. I still love my children; the only living creatures I have imbued with my own energy, but they have forsaken me, so they need to stand on their own two feet or die in the process. I can no longer assist them. Not anymore.} He repeated the line ''Not anymore...'' a moment later.

    "... I see. Well let us hope that I don''t bring ruin to the city then."

    I walked out of the temple and headed straight for home. All things considered I hadn''t actually been out all that long, but I was feeling weirdly exhausted, just like I had been back at Bertram''s bar. I decided to put off meeting Yulong until I was back from the mission. There would be plenty of time to talk to him about the Abyss before I left for the core''s codes since that mission was going to require far more prep work.

    <hr>

    "And who do you think is likely to win the tournament this year?" The host asked.

    "Why that''d be Clan Uruguay of course. They''ve won the past three years, so why would this one be any different? The other clans can change their rosters all they like, nobody is going to beat Leon." Her guest replied. It was a woman whose name I had already forgotten.

    A tournament to see who kills the most machines huh? At least their entertainment involves them actually doing some work out there. But from the looks of this years schedule, it appears this is one of only two things that actually involve the clans going outside to kill machines.

    I returned my focus to the blood spreading out over the backpack again while vaguely listening to the TV drone on about a tournament I wouldn''t be partaking in nor watching. I continued creating a thin sheen of armor over the backpack until I saw a familiar figure on the TV out of the corner of my eye.

    "What about Lady Eve? She''s been making great strides for Clan Inoue the past year. She even upgraded her mech license to cover nearly every known mech in less than a year!" The host said.

    It was showing several images of a girl named ''Eve'' from different angles while changing her clothing in each image. Oh hey, that''s the girl who was glaring at me back in the mission building.

    The next image was at ground level and it was aimed up at her from behind. Whoa, interesting angle there... She has one hell of a nice body on her.

    "Eve has improved a hell of a lot the past year, I''m not about to deny that, however, she is far from ready to win this tournament. I''ll give her points for having improved so much while not having the funding a full clan house would have, but there''s only so much you can do with such, how do you say, mediocre funds..." A different male guest said.

    "My! Master Gale, surely you aren''t suggesting that only the top six clans have a chance of winning, are you?" The host said.

    Gale shrugged, "That''s exactly what I''m saying. She can get all of the licenses she wants, but if she can''t afford a mech, or doesn''t intend to pledge herself to a clan who can afford a mech, then they''re nothing more than achievements without value. Words on her keypass that mean nothing. This will upset the general populace, so I''d just like say that if you don''t like my opinions on the matter, then too fucking bad! BOO HOO BITCHES! WELCOME TO REALITY!!"

    The end of the show devolved in a shouting match that was very reminiscent of the talks I saw concerning the forts. In between the screaming I managed to pick up some interesting tidbits about Gale. He was the brother of Clan Uruguay''s leader, and one of the few clan members who actually went on missions outside. He may or may not have described ''Leon'', the tournaments number one contender and his brother''s son, as a ''self-absorbed loser''. It was hard to tell with all of the yelling, but that''s what it sounded like.

    While that was going on I completed the finishing touches on the backpack. All done!

    I flipped the backpack around and tested its latches several times, confirming that I hadn''t sealed anything shut while hardening its outside.

    Perfect. Now I just need to fill it up with food and soda. I could heat up the snow and drink that but eh, that''s a last resort. The network says the water tastes fine out there, but I''ll pass if I can help it. I''d like to take a break from all of the survival nonsense now that I''m finally back here and enjoying good food and drinks again.

    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    I muted the TV and walked over to the console. Once there I navigated to the phone menu and dialed my Uncle. He didn''t pick up so I called Bertram''s bar instead. His daughter picked up and told me that Irvine and Bertram were on the porch as usual. I thanked her and hung up before leaving my home. I''ll stay one more night and then head out. All I need to do tomorrow is grab the food and drinks, which will only take a few minutes.

    About ten minutes later I walked up to the porch and waved to the two old men who were both pointing at a large plate of food behind my Uncle. It was sitting on a small round table near a bench placed up against the wall.

    "I assume that''s all for me since it''s the same shit that I ate last time. Thanks for ordering ahead of time for me you two!"

    Bertram shook his head, "It wasn''t us. It''s an all-you-can-eat day so the place is packed, that''s why we''re out here. But uh, my daughter made a plate for you and said you could have it. The fairy says she''ll be done by the time you return, so my daughter is happy as all hell."

    "We all are!!" Irvine began rocking in his chair, "Man, I haven''t been this happy in ages. My niece is back, my daughter is going to be cured, and the core codes might be found... I''m just waiting for the inevitable bad news to ruin everything."

    "And you''re about to double your income, right?"

    "Heh, yep. As soon as you come back I''ll be making an enemy out of Clan Uruguay after taking that much money from them, but who gives a fuck. They shouldn''t have taken the bet if they weren''t prepared to lose." Irvine said with a big smile on his face.

    I sat down and ate while the three of us chatted about my mission. It went on for a while but the two of them went silent after I brought up Arkaios and the Demons.

    "What''s the problem? You two run your mouths about everything, but I bring up Arkaios and suddenly you have nothing to say?"

    Bertram sighed, "It''s not that, girl. This is just a topic that I struggle with, but hell if I know why your Uncle is silent."

    "Because Arkaios is a sore subject for the Elves! That much should have been obvious. I mean shit, we did abandon him... And it doesn''t help that his last warriors were sacrificed to Demons." Irvine said.

    "... He left that part out of the story he told me earlier. But he did tell me about the Demonic corruption that''s deeply embedded in the continent. Is it tied to that?"

    Irvine shook his head, "No... Or so we believe? Honestly, Arkaios is the only one saying that there is Demonic corruption here. No one in Caedrus has ever said that they found signs of it, so it''s a weird topic for us, because we do trust his words, but what are we even supposed to do with information like that when nobody can find this supposed corruption?"

    The door to the bar opened up and Nia came rolling out on her wheelchair. She saw me and smiled, "Big sis! Come play with me!"

    B-Big sis?? She was super scared of me before and didn''t talk once while I was regaling my history to Bertram and Irvine---Oh, I bet it''s because of Luna. She''s probably been singing my praises.

    "Okay! But what are we going to play?"

    Nia turned her chair around and went back inside. I followed behind her and she immediately pointed to the pinball machine by the wall. "That!"

    I''ve never played one before, but I know how they work and they seem simple enough.

    I followed her over to the pinball machine but once we arrived she lifted her arms up at me.

    "Um, what is this hand motion you are doing?"

    "Lift me up, silly! And place me on the right side of the machine. I''ll push the right stick, you do the left, okay?"

    Oh, so that''s how she wants to do this.

    I bent down and lifted her up onto the pinball machine. Her legs were dangling off the right side, which lead to her twisting her torso to the left so she could see the game. I wasn''t sure how to start it so she told me where to put my keypass and which button to press.

    As the game started up I could see her mother smiling at me from the counter before another patron showed up and took her attention away. This place really is packed, but she can obviously see, so why does she have a blindfold? I''m really curious as to what her curse is, but I don''t know if this is the kind of thing you aren''t supposed to ask...

    We played pinball for a long while(which was shockingly fun) before Nia said, "Luna says you''re really sad and lonely. Is is true, big sis?"

    Pfft... So much for singing my praises. Is that how she sees me? She''s not entirely wrong, but come on...

    "Uh, well... Maybe? Wait, is that why you invited me to play?"

    Nia turned her focus back to the game and meekly nodded.

    "I see... Then thanks for looking out for me, little cousin~." I rubbed her hair the same way I used to rub Aresa''s hair. At first she went to push my hands away but she suddenly changed her mind and just smiled at me instead.

    I''m still having a hard time seeing her as family. It''s not easy when I thought they were all gone... I had a few other Uncle''s and Aunts but I haven''t asked Irvine about them yet, and he hasn''t mentioned them, so it''s not hard to guess whether they''re alive or not. Even so, I really should ask him the next time I''m back here. For now though I want to relax with this cutie a little more before heading home.

    And that''s exactly what I did. I played with Nia while eating as much food as I could before saying goodnight to everyone there before leaving. On the way out my Uncle gave me directions to a good store for rations on R-4, so thanks to him I now knew where I was buying my food tomorrow before stopping at the head office.

    On the way home I realized how much I had been enjoying my time in Arcadia. There was still this lurking dread in the back of my mind, always expecting the worse to happen, but all in all, I was pretty happy for the first time in a long while.

    <hr>

    "... Miss, these aren''t trial products." A worker said as he watched me eating one of the stores rations.

    "I''m testing them to see which ones I want to bring on this super long mission I''m about to go on. Why, what''s your problem?"

    "My ''problem'' is that you need to BUY the products before you can open them. You can''t just take them off the rack and then eat them!"

    "... Okay fine, I''ll take one of each of these."

    The store worker nodded, "Now that''s better. And you''ll also be buying those four that you already ate."

    Yeah yeah, I know.

    I followed him up to the counter and inserted my keypass into a hole in the counter. While he was doing whatever he needed to do to finish the sale, I began eating one ration after another at an abnormal speed, dropping crumbs all over the counter. The man looked quite annoyed but I ignored him and ate all thirty ration bars that were on that on one section of the isle before telling him to give me twenty five of the blueberry cereal bars, and twenty five of the chocolate granola bars.

    While he was gathering them up I asked the lady attendant nearby to give me a bunch of red soda bottles, but she said that they don''t carry soda in the mission supply stores because nobody brings packs full of heavy soda bottles with them.

    So after the man returned with my bars I left the store and began searching for a store that sold soda. It didn''t take me long, as the area I was in was filled with stores of all kinds. Most were mission oriented, but there were a few casual stores like this one, which carried all types of packaged food and drinks.

    I ignored the strange stares from the attendant as I packed the survival bag full of blue and red soda drinks. Once I was done I finally set out for the head office.

    <hr>

    "Hello, Reimia." The no longer tired attendant said as I arrived at her counter. I think my Uncle said her name was Shannon?

    "I''m heading out, Shannon." I placed my keypass on the counter.

    Her eyebrows went up a little when I said her name, but she said nothing as she picked up the keypass and placed it into a slot near her console. About a minute later she narrowed her eyes at me and said, "... Interesting first mission choice. It looks like your Uncle wasn''t a fan of you returning after all."

    "He''s not sending me out there to die. You''ll see soon enough when I return with both emblems."

    "Uh huh." She mumbled while typing away at the console. After a little while she pulled the keypass out of the console and handed it back to me. "You know you aren''t signed up for any convoys, right? I can''t force you to stay here or sign you up for one, but I''d be remiss if I didn''t point out how stupid this is. Just how are you planning to reach Fort Weiss?"

    "Don''t worry about it, I''ll be fine. And now I''m off!"

    Before she could say anything else I left the office and walked into one of the nearby elevators. There was a group of eight people already in there, talking about their current mission. I vaguely eavesdropped while waiting for the elevator to reach the top level, and I heard one of the girl''s whisper something about how I was going to freeze to death. I glanced back at the group and saw that they were all in heavy-duty winter gear, which is to be expected considering where we were going.

    The elevator doors opened as it stopped, revealing a pure white landscape. After exiting the elevator all I could hear was the wind and the sound of plows. Damn, I forgot to ask my Uncle what they were doing with all of this snow. I doubt it''s important but it''s so weird! I could look it up on this console but eh, I''m curious to see what Uncle Irvine or Bertram say about it.

    I thought about flying over the high walls but decided to walk up to one of the exit gates instead. Half of them had vehicles coming or going, which left the other half open. As I approached a set of guard one of them threw his hands up in the air in annoyance while the other one was clearly laughing at him.

    After the one guard had stopped laughing he looked at me and said over his speakers, "S-Sorry Miss, this fool here had heard about a new arrival with white hair that showed up in this freezing climate wearing a black suit of armor and he thought that they were bullshitting so he placed a one week bet on it. And he was about to win since the men who saw you have been struggling to find any information on you. The head office refused to divulge information over a bet, so... Yeah, you showing up here means that he just lost a shit load of money."

    I handed my keypass over to him, "So they clamp down on personal information even within Arcadia? I thought that was just to outsiders."

    He scanned the keypass and handed it back to me, "You''re good to go. And nah, we''re pretty strict with information here. There were some problems in the past which resulted in the current situation. You should look into it when you''re back. But for now, good luck on your mission!"

    No comment about what the mission is? Whatever popped up on his console must not have described my mission then. It probably just said that I had one or that the head office had green-lit me.

    I waved to the two guards and walked through the open gate. I continued walking for a little bit before activating my halo and flying into the sky. Ahh, it feels so damn good to be up here again...

    I turned until my console said I was looking directly at Fort Weiss, and once I was aligned with it I immediately began flying forward.

    <hr>

    Over the past week I had flown over multiple convoys that were mostly just driving along, but I saw a few that were parked because of machine attacks. I watched from the sky to see if they needed help, but it was clear that they didn''t. It almost looked casual the way they were handling it, which I suppose was to be expected. There were over fifty men in power armor with large energy weapons decimating a horde of Warrior machines. They were aiming for their legs, so they could blow their heads off with projectile weapons. It was one of the easiest ways to secure power cores without destroying them supposedly(that''s what I was reading on the console anyway).

    Uncle Irvine said that Warriors always moved in packs and that they make up the bulk of the machines forces. Also, when a Screecher calls for help, Warriors will hear it from much farther away then other machines, so you end up with multiple different packs of Warriors barreling down on top of you. Which is a major problem for small groups of people, and an even bigger problem near the back half of the high hazard area, because that''s when Warriors start using weapons, including ranged weapons.

    Warriors are also the most basic in design. They quite literally look like ten foot tall Human skeletons made of metal(supposedly up to twenty feet near the dead zone). They''re not as sleek as the Screechers, but they''re pretty close. There''s some open bits and tubes here and there, but in general they might freak me out the most because of how closely they resemble people.

    A couple of red lights lit up on the ground before a hail of bullets pierced through the air in my direction. Looks like I''m on foot from here...

    I was halfway to the ground when the closest anti-air machine fired a red laser at me that I barely managed to avoid in time. It fired a few more at me as I approached the ground but now that I knew it was coming it was much easier to dodge.

    The second I hit the ground I blitzed into a home and turned invisible. I then ran outside while the sound of a Screecher echoed out from far to the north. I didn''t see one on the way down, but I''m glad it was there. Now I know they keep an eye on the sky too.

    I ran south away from the Screecher for about ten minutes before turning west toward Fort Weiss. Alright then, it should only take me a couple of days to get there, and then that''s when the real fun begins.

 Chapter 93 - Invisibility / Machines

    I slid along the ice until I came to a complete stop.

    "......"

    Nothing on the right... Nothing on the left... Is it behind me?

    I looked behind me and saw nothing. At this point I still wasn''t sure of what spooked me into silence, but I remained motionless all the same for at least another twenty seconds until I finally saw it.

    Ahh, so that''s what it was...

    I had been running on the frozen part of the sea about one hundred yards away from the shore since I assumed it''d be safest out here, but apparently that wasn''t the case. Directly in front of me about fifty yards away I could see the air slightly shimmering as something inched its way in my direction.

    This is either a Stalker or a Lurker. Uncle showed me two different machines that could stealth, but the only thing they have in common is that they both stealth and move slowly while their stealth remains active. Unfortunately, it''s really hard to know which one you''re dealing with until they show themselves. There are ways to reveal them or make sure a Stalker isn''t, well, stalking you, but I don''t have the tools required for that, and unless something goes terribly wrong I shouldn''t have to deal with them anyway. Although, Uncle did say that the Stalkers have really powerful soul detectors, so just in case...

    I ran much farther out toward the sea before running toward the west again. I kept an eye on the shimmering figure and it didn''t appear to be doing anything differently. It was still slumbering along toward the east.

    <hr>

    So this is Fort Weiss... I wasn''t sure of what to expect, but I know that ''joyful banter'' was probably last on my list. I thought one of these forts would be a miserable hell hole, but I arrived around the same time a convoy did, and right now they''re all laughing with the gate guards about something that happened on their journey here.

    I removed my veil and walked toward the group outside of the gate. The guards spotted me right away but they didn''t train their weapons on me, nor were they spooked like the last time I appeared out of nowhere.

    "Reimia Velrune? Maya is waiting for you above." One of the guards said as I reached the group. He made a sign with his hands toward the men on top of the walls and then told me I was ''all clear for entry''.

    Ahh, so they had been expecting me. I figured they were, but I didn''t know they knew what I looked like or that I''d be walking out of the snow alone. The convoy definitely didn''t know, that much is obvious. They''re no longer laughing and looking at me like I''m a ghost.

    I thanked the guard and then made my way up the ramp, which turned out to be a very long ramp. This was surprising since the fort wasn''t propped up on a mountain or hill, it was built right on the ground level.

    I reached the top of the ramp and found myself in a wide open courtyard. Judging from its size, it made up at least seventy percent of the forts upper level. There was a building on the right side, but all things considered this was far more open than I had expected. However, the most surprising part of all was how warm it was. There was no roof, and I could see snow falling onto the courtyard even now, but it was melting soon after it landed. It feels like a warm summer day in here... I''m curious to see if this is tech or magic related.

    "Holy shit, I can''t believe you really came here alone..." A voice from my right said. Looking over there I saw a young man in casual wear laying down on a foldable chair that was fully spread out. He was wearing large sunglasses, which was a rare sight for me, and they especially stood out in this environment that rarely saw the sun or Mother.

    I walked up to the man, "I did, and I assume you''re from Maya''s group?"

    "That''s right! I was told to keep an eye out for you since your console said you were getting close, so I thought you came with the convoy, but I''ve been watching the gate through these glasses you see, so imagine my shock when you weren''t in the convoy but instead walking out of the damned snow like a wraith."

    He rolled off the chair-bed-thing and stood up before motioning for me to follow him toward the lone building behind him.

    "Maya was the only one who actually believed you''d show up here alone and get the emblems. I sure as hell didn''t think you would, but after seeing you walk up to the fort alone, well---"

    He continued speaking about his group while I looked around the courtyard. Most of the men and women were just lounging around. In fact, there was even a large sports match going on between thirty different people.

    "So carefree... Is it always like this in the forts?"

    "Huh? Oh, you mean how laid back it is? Nah, Fort Jarvil is nothing like this one or the Forts in the green zone. And it''s not like we aren''t ready. It only takes a moment to run into the comm center here and gear up. Stalkers don''t come here and Lurkers are destroyed by the automated defenses, so nothing can sneak up on us anyway." He said as he lead me into the ''comm center''.

    The first room was indeed designed solely around ''gearing up''. There were hundreds of power armor lining the walls and placed in contraptions that hung down from the ceiling. I only saw one Tyranium armor suit, but there were about a dozen different kinds inside the room. Should I be investing in power armor? I feel like my armor is great as is but if I used my ability to increase the defenses of a power armor, maybe it''d be crazy powerful as a result? Something to consider in the future.

    He led me down a set of stairs and through several hallways before finally stopping in front of a door that automatically opened for us. "This is it, have fun. I need to go help that convoy unload now that my job here is done."

    I watched the man walk back the way we came for a moment before entering the room. Inside there was only one person, a tall black muscular woman sitting on a chair with her eyes closed.

    The room itself was clearly designed for units to live inside. The left side had ten bunk beds with sacks of clothes, equipment, and other goods nearby belonging to their residents. While the middle of the room had a large table with an electronic 3d map rising up from it. And there were all sorts of other needs they may require, like a TV, bathroom, etc.

    "Well shit, I still had my doubts but here you are." Maya said as her eyes opened and focused on me.

    "Your squad member there said you''re the only person here who believed I''d actually show up."

    She grinned, "Of course I''m the only one! No one else was going to believe that bullshit story my brother told me, but I know he wouldn''t lie about something like this, not him. So there was only one conclusion. You were going to come here alone, and then you were going to go get those shitty emblems." She shook her head and laughed, "Fucking insane... I don''t know how you plan on doing it, but I won''t push you for information. All that matter is that you do it and that your Uncle pays me, and he''s already done that."

    She stood up and walked over to the map. I approached it from the other side as she pushed a few keys on the console attached to the side of the table. After a slight delay the map expanded out and showed three different routes.

    "Alright, now listen up, ghost girl." She said, before tracing a route that went from Fort Weiss to the Hothgar emblem, and then straight northwest to the Inoue emblem, "This is route A. If you believe you can do it without needing to stop by Fort Jarvil, then I suggest you take this route."

    "Any idea of what I''ll find? Over sixty percent of the route is shrouded. That means no one has been there or lived to tell the tale, right?"

    "Correct, which means I have no fucking clue of what you''ll find. BUT, I am suggesting this route because of this right here." She highlighted a large stretch of the route that wasn''t shrouded, "Risk takers go to Jarvil so they can enter this stretch of land right here. It''s full of ruins and for some reason it''s strangely devoid of machines. It''s still possible to run into them of course, and it''s close to the dead zone so when groups do run into machines, they almost always perish. But this is where dozens of Tyranium suits were found a few years back, and all sorts of other relics, including a new weapon two months ago that had never been seen until now. So the fuckers come in by the dozens trying their luck at making it rich every now and then."

    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    "So I should be pretty safe during this stretch of the journey, and it does constitute at least twenty-five percent of the distance I''ll need to cover. Not a lot, but not a low amount either."

    Maya shrugged, "It''s better than the route from Jarvil, which is only mapped thanks to a single group of people who had do battle multiple times to even reach the point where they disappeared. Still though, the choice is yours."

    "And how much distance is it from here to the Inoue emblem? As opposed to Jarvil I mean."

    After a little bit of typing on her end some numbers popped up on all of the routes.

    One hundred and eighty seven miles from Jarvil, while the full route from here to both emblems is two hundred and thirteen. Ahh, the route from here definitely saves me some time. Not a lot, and it takes me away from the convoys as I head deeper into shrouded lands, but I might as well try it.

    "Alright, I''m going to take route A in a few days. You mind if I sleep here? I don''t need to be comfortable, I can just pass out in the corner there."

    Maya pointed toward a bunk with no supplies next to it, "Take that one. No one is using it anyway and I don''t expect anyone to suddenly join my unit out of nowhere."

    I thanked Maya and walked over to the bunk before taking my backpack off and sticking it to my chest. Once it was secure I laid down on the bed and told my core to turn off until I was at max strength.

    <hr>

    I opened my eyes and rolled out of bed. After a quick glance around I saw Maya was still in the room watching TV with three men. One of them saw me waking up and jutted his thumb at me so Maya could see it. She looked back at me and sighed, "''Few days'' my ass! I had to call my brother and ask him why you weren''t waking up. You''ve been out for almost a week! I would''ve assumed you were dead if your Uncle didn''t say that you were fine. What a weird fucking hybrid you are..."

    "Ahh, sorry about that. I really should have warned you beforehand." I stuck the backpack onto my back again and looked around the room for some food but couldn''t find any. "You uh, have anything to eat? Or is there a cafeteria here?"

    "There''s a mess hall, but can you pay for yourself? After seeing what you consider ''sleeping'', I have a bad feeling that your idea of eating is going to be way different from my own." Maya said.

    ... She''s not wrong. I was planning on gorging myself so I wouldn''t need to use my rations for a long time.

    Maya had one of her men show me to the mess hall, which looked almost identical to Kellog''s mess hall. It was pretty much the same room design but with more space in it and the walls made of a strange alloy instead of stone. I felt a kind of whiplash seeing something so similar to a place so far away in my past.

    One of the ladies at the counter looked at me with disbelief when I told her what I wanted, but she completed the order all the same, and even brought it out herself about an hour later(the mess hall was filled with people eating).

    The lady watched me for a bit to make sure I was actually going to eat all of the food I ordered, and when she realized I was she ran back to the counter where I could see her giggling with the other ladies at the counter. I''m sure it looks strange, but hey, looking strange means nothing compared to being able to fill up on weeks worth of food.

    Once I was done I stood up and left the mess hall, but I didn''t go back to Maya''s room, I went straight out into the courtyard and then left the fort entirely. This was only a waystation for me, and hopefully the last one I need to go to.

    Arkaios said I could use his reset for transportation, and I can still feel him connected to my soul, so if I probe it I assume he''ll bring me back? At least I hope that''s what will happen. It''ll save me a ton of time if so.

    The only thing that could go wrong with this plan is if the emblems have souls in them. From what I remember of the reset in Urza, my artifact armor was the only inanimate object resetting because it was made from a soul. No one said the emblems were made in the same manner as artifact equipment is, so they most likely don''t have souls embedded in them.

    One of the convoys was heading north to Jarvil and they were more than happy to let me ride on the roof with another group of mercs. I figured instead of going northwest through a shrouded path, I could go at it directly from the west, the same way most of the other attempts had been done. They all failed because a Screecher managed to get away from them. It''s rife with destroyed buildings and lots of hiding places, but that shouldn''t be an issue for me.

    The ride wasn''t uneventful by any means, but if something did happen, it was over fast. They sniped a couple of Screechers before they became a problem, and even took out a couple of Lurkers through their stealth.

    The man who killed them both let me use his gun for a bit. It was a large rifle with a scope that would highlight Lurkers and Stalkers. Apparently it was going to take him another ten years to pay it off because of how sought after this specific weapon was, and he was stressed out every day over the idea of losing it.

    I need to visit the weapon shops when I''m back in town. I didn''t know they had a monthly payment system. Although my Uncle would probably buy me the best weapons there anyway... I''d like to get my hands on the energy weapon I used in the Abyss. That God of Change had only just been born so it was kind of weak, but even so, it''s still impressive that the gun ripped right through him.

    <hr>

    A few days later we reached an outpost that was used as the halfway point between Weiss and Jarvil. Which also served as the point where everyone went west toward Hothgar''s emblem.

    After saying goodbye to the convoy I turned invisible and began running west. It didn''t take me long to reach the areas full of destroyed buildings. It was just rubble and toppled buildings everywhere.

    It''s pretty obvious why the other groups were ambushed so easily here, but it''s not like they had better options. They tried other paths, even coming from Jarvil, but it was rubble everywhere. This area is quite different from the place I originally slept in after landing in Caedrus. The homes over there were falling apart from being abandoned for centuries, while these ones were clearly destroyed by something.

    I saw something shimmering ahead of me. It was moving away from me, but even so I pivoted to the left toward a large toppled building nearby.

    As I was running through the snow I suddenly stepped onto a very light layer of snow and hit something below it. Something made of metal.

    Immediately whatever I had just stepped on bursted out of the snow, flinging me forward toward the toppled building.

    I kept my eyes on my potential ambusher as I landed on the side of the building(making my feet stick to it in the process). It was easy to identify the machine thanks to the big chainsword it was wielding in its right hand. A butcher... The fucker was hiding in the snow. My Uncle warned me about this but god damn, I didn''t think it''d happen so fast.

    It was turning every which way trying to find whatever had just stepped on it, and when it couldn''t find me it began to cut into everything and anything around it. I had seen the footage my Uncle showed me but it was still surprising just how loud its sword was when its serrated parts began to spin around the blade. I couldn''t hear anything except the sword cutting through rock, steel, and everything else nearby.

    I waited on the wall for a few minutes, watching it rampage until it whipped toward the northeast and sprinted away. Did it hear something? It didn''t look like a random action, but at least it''s gone.

    I dropped down onto the concrete below and ran into the toppled building. Its corridor was at a weird slant toward the right but it had somehow been connected to multiple other toppled buildings at each end. I was able to run forward for quite a while before it became apparent that something had turned these fallen buildings into a long slanted walkway, but fortunately I didn''t run into any machines.

    I eventually came out the other end and leaped up onto a nearby two story home with a roof that had mostly crumbled below. I shimmied around the remaining portion until I reached the other side and then took a long look at the path ahead of me.

    Rubble... Rubble... And more rubble. This place is a mess. I''m surprised anyone tried to get to the emblem if they had to go through places like this to get there. There''s no way in hell I''d be here if I couldn''t turn invisible and was unable to block most soul scanners.

    Far in the distance I caught site of something black sticking out of a toppled buildings window. It wasn''t moving, but I knew what it was from its shape. It was one of the Sniper machines. Uncle said they can see through stealth technology, so these are the ones I need to look out for the most, since we don''t know if their sensors are enough to see me as well. But their weapon doesn''t fire instantly, and you can see it charging up so if I keep an eye on it I''ll be fine even if it does shoot at me.

    I jumped to the next rooftop, and then the next, making my way northwest on a route that''d pass by the sniper''s trajectory. I couldn''t see any other machines nearby so this was the perfect testing ground.

    I landed on a home that was still far to the right of where it was currently aiming, and the gun suddenly spun in my direction and stopped.

    I went completely still and stared at the gun, waiting for the supposed ''charge up'', but it didn''t come. Instead the gun just sat there, looking in my direction, unmoving.

    At first I didn''t understand why it wasn''t firing, but that''s when I saw the snow had crumbled a little on this roof''s ceiling when I landed. Part of it crumbled onto the outside and that''s what must have caught its attention.

    Testing this, I slowly moved forward to the other end of the roof, and the gun didn''t move. It couldn''t see my footsteps thanks to the railing, as even I can''t prevent myself from leaving some imprints in the snow, sadly enough. It''d be easier if I got rid of my heavy armor, but I wasn''t about to do that.

    Since the gun wasn''t following me, I jumped to the side of the building that would hide me from the sniper, and once I hit the ground I immediately jumped to another building ahead of me. The test was done, so now all I needed to do was hide my footsteps from the machine and I''d be fine. This is going to take much longer than I expected. I only just started and I''ve already ran into three machines...

    <hr>

    About seven days later I was finally staring at a massive rectangular building that was still intact. Yeah... Much longer than I expected it to take, but at least I''m here.

    I checked the console one last time, and the database said that the emblem was in the building ahead of me.

    It used to be a car maker factory apparently. I watched some footage of one before coming out here, so I have a decent idea of what to expect, but the problem is that the database only says that it''s in there somewhere. Looking at past emblem mission data, two of them took forever to complete even with access to the buildings. They''re either really easy to find, as in literally just laying on a random table, or a nightmare to find. Either way, I''ll know soon enough.

    I walked forward, keeping an eye on my surroundings as I went, but the area was covered in abandoned vehicles, so my vision was limited. Not that this scenario was much different from the entire path I had to tread to get here.

 Chapter 94 - Observers

    A couple of these cars look like they''re in pretty good condition. Although, even if they remained untouched all these years, it''d still be really difficult to get them to run again, right? Or maybe even impossible.

    I stopped halfway through the lot when I began to hear heavy footsteps from behind the building. At first I wasn''t sure if they even were footsteps, since it just sounded like snow was being crushed enmasse, but once whatever it was stepped onto the lot''s cement, it was obvious that it was a machine walking around.

    About a minute later a familiar looking twelve meter tall machine walked around the right side of the building. Ahh shit, this is the half-dead machine I saw on the beach when I first arrived in Caedrus. A fully functioning one looks far more frightening...

    While a butcher looked like a machine designed to match a medieval torturer, it was still full of openings that could be exploited. Its armor really didn''t look all that protective. However, the machine in front of me was clearly of a much higher quality. Thick armor plating covered nearly every part of it, and the gun it had in its right hand was almost six meters long. I didn''t know what kind of damage a weapon of that magnitude would put out, and I wasn''t interested in finding out either.

    I tried looking this machine up on the console at home, but there was no record of it, so I assumed it was a half-broken machine from the dead zone that somehow ended up in the high danger zone. A zone the people of Arcadia are known to frequent thanks to the forts. And yet, here I am seeing another one... Is it because nobody has ever made it this far? Nobody mentioned machines guarding emblems before, but what if...

    I watched as the machine circled around the building, slowly disappearing behind it on the left side. Once it was out of view I hopped up onto the roof of a vehicle and waited for a little while, and sure enough, it re-appeared around the right side as it continued to circle the building.

    It''s definitely guarding the building... This doesn''t bode well. I hope the inside isn''t filled with machines, but it probably will be.

    Once the large machine was out of view again I ran through the lot until I reached the front doors. I stopped in front of them and slowly made my way inside through the broken glass doors, finding myself in a normal looking lobby. A row of chairs (toppled and broken) lined the walls near the entrance, while there were two large angular desks placed against the walls in the middle of the room. Behind them was four separate doors, although only one door actually remained intact.

    I brought the console up again and it read ''0 Meters''. Bah, I know my Uncle warned me that it''d only give you an approximation of where it was, but still, I couldn''t help but hope it wouldn''t be this abstract.

    Just then a warrior machine knelt down and entered the lobby through the right-side door before ducking into the middle door. Yep, of course they''d be in here... And the damn thing was carrying an energy weapon.

    I walked to the left door (the only one that was intact) and turned the knob but it was locked. So for now I settled for looking through the small glass window on the door, which revealed a set of stairs going up and down. Hmm, I''ll stick to this level for now, but it''s nice knowing where the stairs are already.

    I swiftly looked through the two desks behind me, stopping for a moment every time a warrior passed through the lobby. There was a bunch of drawers (and a few hidden ones for some reason), but sadly, I didn''t find the emblem anywhere.

    With that out of the way, I waited until the next Warrior patrolling through entered the open double doors in the middle and I immediately followed behind him, but I had to stop barely a few feet into the hallway because of the glass lining the floor. My feet would probably absorb enough noise to prevent Humans from hearing it, but I didn''t want to risk it with a machine.

    Once I could no longer hear the Warrior I walked through the hallway until I entered the next room which was the main factory floor apparently. Rusted machinery filled the room, and it had a thin layer of snow in it too since large portions of the roof had caved in.

    I hopped onto the wall behind me so I could get a full view of the room. One, two, three.... Seventeen. There is seventeen Warriors patrolling this room. But that''s not the biggest problem. The real issue is the other machine in the middle of the room.

    An Observer. My ''mortal enemy'' according to my Uncle, and I agreed with him after finding out what they were capable of. It''s a large floating ball with a mechanical red eye that can see for miles and just so happens to have the most powerful soul scanner they''ve encountered to date. But you only need to worry about that when it''s looking in your direction... Supposedly.

    This was far riskier than the Sniper encounter, but I decided to wait until the Observer had finished spinning around. It was spinning ever-so-slowly toward the right as it looked around the room, and it was about to look in my direction.

    As soon as the corner of its eye had reached me, the entire eye whipped to the right until the center of its eye was looking directly at me. I saw the black lines in the eye changing positions, almost like a lens focusing on something, and that''s when all of the Warriors in the room turned to look at me. Oh hell no, I''m out!

    After seeing that horror scene play out in front of me, I quickly leaped onto the floor and sprinted back toward the lobby.

    I could feel a massive vibration rocking through the air. The sound was low in tone but the vibration was so powerful that the entire building was shaking. This was obviously the Observer''s doing, and it was made even more apparent by all of the stomping I could hear as the Warriors inside the building all converged on the main factory room.

    I stopped multiple times to hug the wall as several Warriors ran past me, and once I reached the lobby I could see the large machine from outside was ducking low so it could look inside the building.

    I was going to hide in a corner of the ceiling until the machines calmed down, but I noticed that the locked doors to the stairs were wide open. Some of the Warriors must''ve came from another floor and opened them for me. I guess I''ll head up for now and pray I find the emblem on a floor that doesn''t have a fucking Observer in it.

    Going up however, lead to the walkway above the factory floor, and while I did see a few rooms that were probably used by the higher ups back when this was an actual factory, I decided to check them out last. The room was filled with Warriors and they were jumping up and down from the walkway, training their weapons on every little noise, including those from other Warriors.

    I headed downstairs this time, and came upon a heavy metal door with a keypad next to it. Fortunately, the Warriors had already opened it for me.

    The inside of the room was filled with completely different types of machinery. These ones were made of the same alloy used to build Arcadia, and all twelve of them were the same. There was a podium holding the bottom half of the mold up, and the upper half was attached to the ceiling. And thanks to how they used molds, it was easy to figure out what these contraptions created. The very same energy weapons that the Warriors were holding. Plus, an even more worrying fact was that it was really hot in the room because several of them were currently creating more weapons while releasing a lot of heat in the process.

    So this was a car making factory that coupled as a weapons factory? But this room is really small and only houses twelve creation units, isn''t that a bit low? Or maybe that''s all they needed... I''ll show this to my Uncle and Bertram later. They''ll understand all of this far better than I can.

    I made my way through the room toward the door at the end, but I already knew what I was going to find since there was a bright white light on inside of it.

    After walking through the door I glanced around for threats and found nothing, so I quickly looked through the desk in the ''office'' but came up empty again. However, I did find a weird button attached to the underside of one of the drawers.

    ... Should I leave this for last? I feel like the Observer is associated with far more risk than this button, but I suppose this could lead to something even more dangerous.

    After a minute of contemplation I just said ''fuck it'' and pushed the button, which lead to part of the concrete wall sliding away, revealing a dimly lit-up passage behind it.

    I waited a bit to make sure nothing dangerous was approaching before entering the passage. From there, I walked for what felt like fifteen minutes (and was confirmed through my console) as it constantly wound slightly down and toward the left, before finally opening up to a large open cavern full of walkways with old-school lights hanging off of them, and machines. Lots and lots of machines.

    It looked like the Warriors were filling a rusted-up train full of boxes while two Observers spun around slowly in a way that would allow them to look at the ceiling too.

    There were many exits out of the cave, with four of them having train tracks, but the only ''building'' was a large cement one in the center of the cavern. One of the Observers was hovering on top of it.

    I watched silently for ten minutes, making sure the Observers spinning wasn''t random or altered as they moved, but it became clear that their movements were static and easy to read, so all I had to do was wait for the moment when both of them were looking away for me and then make my move.

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    As I was getting ready to jump down, the train began to move, releasing a lot of steam as it went. Again, none of this makes sense. These monstrous machines with some form of artificial intelligence are using an old steam train?

    The Warriors and one Observer left soon after that through one of the non-tracked exits, resulting in only one occupant remaining in the cavern. The Observer on the roof.

    Once it was looking away from me I jumped all the way down onto the cavern floor below, which was about a two hundred foot drop. It only took a split second to pass by the Observer and hit the ground, but in that moment I saw the Observer whipping in my direction again, so I quickly ran through the open door in front of me and hid behind a file cabinet near the wall.

    It was hard to tell since my hearing was nowhere near as good as my sight, but it sounded like the vibrations the Observer gave off were right outside the door.

    I snuck a quick peek from the corner, which just barely allowed me to see a tiny bit of the open door, and I could see part of the Observer behind it. It was definitely outside the door now, either looking around the Cavern or inside the building.

    Soon after that the vibrations calmed down (I was late to realize that even the wall was vibrating), but I waited a couple of more minutes before peeking out to look through the door. There was nothing behind it, nor could I hear any vibrations anymore, so wherever it was, it wasn''t close to the building.

    Now that I could finally look around, I saw that the building was one massive warehouse with a single smelter covering the entire back wall. It was currently cooling down, but the temperature in the other side of the warehouse was still over eighty degrees Celsius according to the portable console.

    After exploring the warehouse I found that most of the metal containers were empty, while a few had large shiny ingots lined up inside of them. They were silver or gray, but past that I didn''t know what kind of metal they were made from.

    As I neared the smelters I could see a yellow door on the right wall with a medium sized glass window next to it. The lights were on and it was clear that it was another office.

    I walked up to the door and tried to turn the doorknob. Surprisingly, it opened right up.

    The inside was just as basic as the other office above, with one exclusion. There was a Human skeleton sprawled out on a couch with a large metal rod piercing straight through his ribs into the couch. There was dried blood all over the couch as well, but it''s not like I needed more evidence to know that whoever it was had been killed. Probably in their sleep too.

    I closed the door behind me and sat down at the desk. Just like I had done previously, I attempted to turn on the console, and shockingly, it actually worked. I could see the monitor scrawling through lines of code as it booted up.

    However, the first screen that popped up was requesting a password, which I obviously didn''t have.

    I tried looking through the drawers in the hope that he was the type to leave his password laying around nearby, but I couldn''t find anything.

    I really didn''t want to leave it at that though, so I attempted to look up some way around this with my portable console, and it suggested booting up in ''safe mode''. I didn''t know what the difference would be, but I followed its instructions and the console did in fact boot up in this so called ''safe mode''.

    The portable console had warned me that I''d have limited access, but I was still happy to be able to look through the desktops folders. That is, until I saw what was actually in them.

    There was a folder full of pictures showing a man in different aspects of his life. Work (this place), fishing, shoveling snow, etc. And the other folder had a few text files written by the foreman here, but he sadly didn''t talk about anything that wasn''t already known in Arcadia. He was mostly griping about his wife and how his kids don''t appreciate him. I could''ve found this hard-hitting commentary literally anywhere else in Aetheria.

    I attempted in vain to open everything else, but anything that wasn''t on the desktop wouldn''t load thanks to the safe mode, so that was all the information I could pry out of the console. The other option was carrying back the entire console and letting the people in Arcadia break through its encryption, but I really didn''t want to lug the large work console all the way to the dead zone. The area around me was already dangerous enough as is, and I fully expected the Inoue emblem to be much more dangerous.

    I was about to turn the console off when I noticed something. The photos were all named a long string of numbers, but it cut off after four letters. ''Hoth''. I looked at the photos properties and saw the name ''William Hothgar Sr.''

    So the foreman was a Hothgar huh... He might have information about the emblem on the console but I can''t fucking access it.

    I stood up and started combing through the room. There was a large contraption with a blank piece of paper laying on the top of it, but I wasn''t sure what it was for, and a cursory glance proved there was nothing there anyway.

    I then opened the large locker next to the couch and froze when I saw what was inside of it. The emblem. It was hanging on two notches sticking out of the back of the locker, and it was only half visible thanks to William''s extra work outfit that was hung up inside the locker.

    It wasn''t easy to find, but it also wasn''t hard either... But hey, I''m more than satisfied with this kind of mild victory.

    I reached out and picked the emblem up. Two things happened in quick succession after that. A clicking noise occurred when I picked it up and a second later a very loud alarm began blaring all throughout the factory. But it wasn''t just that though. I could also feel the building vibrating as the Observer began to call for help.

    I removed my invisibility and powered my halo as I pulled the pipe out of the couch. I then blasted through the door and ran through the warehouse until I was outside, upon which I immediately spotted the Observer about thirty feet away next to the warehouse looking at me. I powered my arm up and threw the pipe at the center of the Observer''s eye. I wasn''t sure of how powerful its defenses would be, but they weren''t enough to withstand my attack, as the pipe went straight through the Observer''s eye and exited out the back. The Observer stopped vibrating and went dark as it fell onto the ground.

    I knelt down in preparation to jump back to the top level just as Warriors came running out of two different exits, firing their energy guns at me all the while. I ignored them and jumped all the way up to the ceiling, where I swiftly pushed myself down toward the walkway below.

    I landed on it and dashed toward the door I came in from earlier. Down below I could see half of the Warriors leaping onto the walkway below me while the other half continued to fire at me, hitting a few of their allies in the process.

    As soon as I reached the stairs I could hear a cascade of stomping above me, so instead of running up the stairs I repeated my ascent I just did a moment ago, I knelt down and leapt up to the ceiling, flying past dozens of Warriors. Three of them managed to grab onto me, but all they did was drain some of my mana as their arms were torn off.

    I hit the ceiling and launched myself forward, smashing through two Warriors before my feet hit the ground. I slid forward until I reached the lobby and that''s when I realized that my plan to just power through everything and then hide outside had a fatal flaw. Something I had forgotten in my haste.

    The Machine outside was looking through the lobby again. This time its red eyes were glued to me, and while I could ignore the Observer advancing toward me from the factory, the problem was that I could see two other Observers surrounded by Warriors out in the vehicle lot coming this way. They obviously weren''t there earlier, and I don''t know where they came from, but that was something I either had to quickly deal with, or attempt to run away from, and I chose the latter.

    I ran toward the lobby exit and the large machine straightened itself out in preparation to fire at me, and fire at me it did. It was close to one round a second, and each impact would result in a mini-explosion. I dodged the first one and was propelled forward as it exploded. I rolled along the ground for barely a second but the amount of Warrior''s weapon spray and the impending second shot from the large machine made that second feel like an eternity.

    I righted myself and bolted forward, this time managing to not get knocked down by the blast. And completely by chance I dodged a Sniper shot from ahead of me as I shimmied to the right to avoid the large machine''s third round, which had just blown up four vehicles on impact. Shit, shit! This isn''t going to cut it!!

    I could see that there were two Snipers now charging up in the distance, and several Butchers were running through the snow toward me. I sprinted toward the right as the end of the building came into view, giving me what I thought was a nice shield from the large machine for a moment, but apparently he didn''t care if the building was in the way, which also resulted in another revelation about the rounds he was firing. They were exploding when they hit the building, when they exited the building, and when they hit the ground around me. Needless to say, the building wasn''t going to serve as a visual impediment for very long. It was already partly collapsing after only six seconds had passed.

    It only got worse from there though. The Butchers were close, too close. So I decided to risk it and flew up into the air. Dodging the large machine''s rounds and the Snipers was easier in the air, but the spray from the Warriors was finding their mark quite often purely by default. There was just no way to dodge all of the multi-colored beams flying past me, and it wasn''t long before I saw nine different large red lights flare up in different parts of the environment.

    The second all of the anti-air guns began firing at me I angled down toward a large home with an Observer on top of it. It tried fleeing, but I blasted right through it and into the house.

    I then frantically searched for a basement door, which took me only a few seconds to find but I''ll be damned if those four or five seconds didn''t feel like two years.

    I ran down the steps into a carpeted basement with two couches, a console, and a large TV placed in a divot in the wall. I was about to move the TV forward so I could punch a hole out behind it while praying the machines didn''t find it, but then I saw a sliding door that led to a washer, dryer, and two large boilers.

    Between the dryer and boilers should work! I began punching the ground between two appliances, swiftly creating a deep hole that was big enough for me to fit in and continue digging, but not big enough that the dryer would fall through it. So I pulled the washer back, and then got into the hole and pulled the dryer over the hole. I couldn''t see anything as I began punching deeper and deeper. The ground above me began to vibrate as I punched one last time. However, instead of merely making the hole deeper, my fist went straight through the rock and I had to stick myself to the side of the wall so I wouldn''t fall down through the new opening.

    Below me was a tunnel with minimal lighting and a set of train tracks lining the ground. There weren''t any machines around so I took this moment to turn invisible and crawl along the ceiling until I reached the wall.

    I created a camo mesh and pulled the pack off my back before settling into it so I could eat and drink for a bit.

    It''s highly likely an Observer could see through my camo, but if this area is reserved for the trains and only the trains, then I shouldn''t need to worry about Observers for the time being. Although, if they find the hole I created in the basement then things could quickly become problematic. It''s unlikely they would though. Only the Warriors can fit through the home''s doors, and if they decide to destroy the house looking for me, then that would only help conceal me.

    I broke open several of the blueberry cereal bars and began eating them.

    Well, I think it''s safe to say that even if a group did manage to make it all the way to that factory, there''s no way they would have survived long enough to secure the emblem. And I may have been fine this time, but I can''t be repeating what just happened near the dead zone... There''s no guarantee that I''ll even have the option to stay stealthed the entire time, but even so, I need to avoid making a scene again.

    I slowly twisted open the cap to one of the sodas so as to avoid the sound of decompressing air echoing through the walls of the tunnel. Once it was open I drank the entire bottle while thinking about a specific machine that I truly never wanted to see again.

    ... The Observers have a simple design and yet they were still far worse than I expected, so I really hope there isn''t a ''dead-zone'' equivalent of them waiting for me over there.

 Chapter 95 - Deathbringer

    ... Looks like this is the end of the line.

    I scanned the room ahead of me, counting over one hundred Warriors, two Observers, and three non-stealthed Stalkers that appeared to be turned off. I had seen images of the Stalkers before, but they look far worse in person. They look like horribly disfigured metal panthers.

    I had followed the train tracks northwest for over fifty miles until I finally reached this room. It was directly below the ''safe'' area Maya had pointed out to me before. She said that people do plenty of ruin diving in this area because the machines are surprisingly scarce here, but it looks like the underground is still flourishing with them. Except uh, don''t most ruins lead underground? That''s what it looked like on the videos I watched.

    I turned around and ran back several miles before punching into the ceiling. At this distance they would probably still hear me, but I wasn''t worried since I knew I''d reach the surface before they managed to follow the loud noises back to their source.

    It took me about five minutes to reach the surface, which looked like the area I was in before albeit with way more open space. There were still destroyed buildings everywhere, but there was plenty of space for people to move about, which was proven by the tire tracks I could see in the snow. There were also prints following behind the tracks, and judging by the size and distance between each stride, I felt like the prints belonged to a Butcher. It was probably chasing after one of the vehicles out here.

    I brought the console up to confirm, and it showed that I had about seventy miles to go. A shame I couldn''t... Wait, can I still take the tunnels? All I need to do is avoid that one room where the trains converge, but the problem is that the tunnel turned quite a bit, so guessing where to punch into the ground could take some time... Ahh fuck it, I''ll try advancing above ground for now. This is supposedly a somewhat safe area after all.

    I ran northwest for quite a while before coming upon a dead Butcher. Part of its torso had been completely melted while its head and right leg were missing. Feels nice seeing one of these fuckers turned into scrap metal.

    It was really far away, but I could hear the echo of both physical and energy weapons being fired from somewhere in the direction the tracks went. I followed them until I found an armored vehicle parked outside of a mansion. The gunshots still sounded really far away, making it clear that they had descended underground from some place within the mansion. I figured I''d talk to them for a bit since I''m here, but looks like that aint happening if they''re already underground.

    I circled around to the front of the vehicle and removed my invisibility before giving the vehicle a thumbs up. There, now I''m recorded on the vehicle''s cameras. I''m making history out here, and I just gave these guys a little bit of footage of it. Aren''t I kind?!

    Supposedly my console was recording everything too, which is how I had seen videos from other people''s missions. You''re paid by how valuable or interesting your footage is, so mine better bring in a good amount of money...

    I restarted my journey to the northwest, running through the snow-covered open area, avoiding all of the buildings as I advanced.

    <hr>

    The air is getting thin... Not a problem for me thankfully, but there''s something really unnerving about it. I knew this side of Caedrus eventually hit a point where there was no atmosphere, but coupling that with the fact that there is a bunch of unknown monstrous machines over here is frightening. Even for me.

    Another quick glance at the console told me I had three miles to go. Through a miracle of some sort I hadn''t run into a single machine outside of Snipers and Lobbers(both hiding in or on top of buildings) for almost thirty miles. The group who tried to acquire Inoue''s emblem disappeared about forty miles east of here, so this is all unknown territory.

    I chose to walk instead of run while keeping an eye on my surroundings, but I had barely passed the first mile when I heard a familiar sounding alarm.

    Looking in the direction of the alarm I saw hundreds of orange lights ascending from the ground up into the sky. This is that same alarm tower I saw when I first arrived in Caedrus... I forgot to look into it back home.

    I brought the console on my left arm up and searched the database for tall towers with orange lights. There was a few mentions of it in a database, but nothing of value was said. These were towers near the dead zone that wailed and lit-up from time to time, that''s all they knew. Far from helpful, but I suppose I shouldn''t be surprised if they''re only near the dead zone.

    The problem however, was that my destination was in the direction of the tower. I walked toward it while praying it was nothing more than some abandoned tower that was unrelated to the machines, as unlikely as that was.

    Along the way I did notice something that stuck out. The sniper far behind me was now looking in the direction of the tower, and a Lurker(or Stalker) ran out of a building ahead of me directly toward the tower. Is it calling for them?

    I walked through the snow, listening to the wailing sound drone on and on until I finally reached my destination, which was in fact a building next to the tower according to my console.

    While the car maker factory had a large open parking lot in front of it, it was nothing compared to the open field in front of me now. There was at least a mile of open field between me and the tower in this direction, but on the other side it looked like there was nothing but open plains full of snow. I couldn''t see a single intact or ruined building.

    And as for the building next to the tower, I realized it was more like twenty buildings that were all surrounded by a tall fence. Half the buildings looked like long elongated domes, while the other half were made of concrete and still in good condition. There were also watchtowers placed around multiple points of the area near the fence that had three meter tall guns placed on each one. Is this a military base...? It sure looks like one.

    It had begun snowing hard again, so it was hard to see far out, but it looked like several different machines were running toward the west. The alarm is obviously a call for them to do something, which would normally suggest enemies of some sort, but the database for these alarms didn''t even theorize about such a possibility. It does seem far fetched after all.

    Upon arriving at the fence I saw a little building behind it and an intercom on my side of the fence. I suppose this was how you gained entry normally? But there obviously isn''t any guards around, so...

    I jumped over the fence with ease, doing a quick scan around me and the watchtowers upon landing to make sure nothing was reacting to my presence, but aside from the towers wailing, I couldn''t hear nor see anything change.

    After that I ran up to one of the domed buildings on the left. The door was open and inside was quite literally just a very long row of bunk beds. Yep, definitely a military base. This is really well designed too. It all looks so sleek and minimalistic with no wasted space.

    I looked through the entire bunker for the emblem, and after I was certain it wasn''t there I moved onto the next one, and then the next. I was on the fourth bunker when the alarm finally turned off.

    ... Nothing. It was too much to hope that it''d be in one of these empty bunkers huh?

    I left the last bunker and made my way over to one of the concrete buildings. There were no doors so I walked inside unabated.

    The inside was dark. Really dark. But even then I was still able to see my prize. The emblem and a horde of other items was sitting inside of a glass case that extended from one side of the room to the other. The room itself, which made up almost the entire building, had four long tables in it that also extended the entirety of the room. It was obviously the mess hall, but... That''s one big fucking trophy case. It kind of feels out of place in this sleek environment, but they had their reasons I''m sure.

    I walked up to the middle of the case, the part holding the emblem and quickly found the latch that opened this part of the glass. I lifted it up and then stared at the emblem.

    "......."

    I picked up another object that looked like it weighed the same amount as the emblem and placed it on the hooks the emblem was on as I picked it up. The new object was a little heavier, but all the same I didn''t hear any clicking noises like last time.

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    Even so, I hid near the corner of the wall for ten minutes, listening for anything that might be out of place. But no matter how long I waited, all I could hear was the sound of the strong winds outside.

    I eventually came out of my corner and left the building while shoving the emblem in my backpack. Could it really end this easily...? I expected far more resistance than the Hothgar''s emblem provided, but yet again I have my invisibility to thank. It makes certain insurmountable tasks much easier than they have any right to be.

    I left the building and took one last look around the base before deciding it was time to return.

    I probed the slight connection I had to Arkaios(the little blip on my soul where the reset curse was residing), and I felt the curse begin to activate, however, it was cut off right before it was going to bring me back.

    What the---

    Before I could finish my thought a machine warped into the area in front of me. It was fifteen meters tall despite the fact that it was hunched over. It was looking away from me so I could see the long black cape draped over its back, and in the center of its back was a large red eye. As I looked down at its hands, which held five extremely long claws, the eye on its back focused on me.

    Something happened in that moment that felt disturbingly magical in nature. A red mechanical eye appeared in the air about twenty meters above the machine. Eight long bands of black that looked like tentacles extended out from the eye that all had eyes of their own spaced out along the bands. The moment all of those eyes looked at me I felt far more than just being seen. I could tell that they were all trying to curse and debilitate me in a myriad of different ways. None of them had succeeded yet, but I knew it was only a matter of time before they pierced my veil.

    I turned to run while activating my halo but the machine whipped around and swiped at me with its right claws. It was abnormally fast. The old me (before I absorbed Rai''ga) would''ve been dead before I even had time to move.

    I jumped toward the machine and kicked off its forearm directly at its torso, which looked an amalgamation of steel wrapped together in a way that made no sense. There was no head, just a bunch of red eyes so I wasn''t entirely certain of where to attack. With no specific point in mind I punched a random spot as hard as I could, sending the machine reeling back as its clawed feet slid along the snow.

    Its torso had whipped back and almost hit the ground as it slid, but once it came to a halt it righted itself before immediately launching another attack on me. I was going to leap back this time, but I saw its claws extend outwards for several more meters, so I tried to jump forward again instead but this time the machine corrected course. It was making sure its claws weren''t going to miss their target a second time, but I just barely managed to kick myself forward enough so I''d land in its palm.

    I didn''t have time to protect myself as it smashed into me, sending me flying through the air toward the south. I heard the tower alarm begin to blare again as I exited the base, and I could see the machine running along the ground below me with both of its hands at the ready to shred me the moment I landed.

    I had time before I landed though, the damn thing had sent me flying fast through the air so I made the best of the situation by meditating. I managed to regain the mana I lost from the attack(over half my max) before I began to slow down and lose altitude.

    That''s when I saw them. I had vaguely heard what sounded like combat in the direction I was flying, but I was still surprised at what I saw below me. Xerath were flooding out of one of the ruined homes, attacking all of the machines around them. Or I should say that they were trying to attack them. The two Lobbers were making short work of most of them by continually bombing both sides of the home they were coming out of, while the Warriors melted the remainders. There were also a few Butchers standing by with some Xerath corpses at their feet, but they clearly didn''t have much of a purpose in the battle.

    As I flew over them I saw all of the Warriors looking up at me as they continued firing at the Xerath, but none of them turned to shoot at me. They kept to their current mission; eradicating the faceless creatures.

    For a while the eyes in the sky didn''t move from the military base, but as soon as I began to descend they warped to an area behind me.

    Right before I fell low enough for the machine to attack me, I flew up into the air and punched at the eyeball, but the eye warped fifty feet away just before my fist connected with it.

    As all of the anti-air machines(that were strangely absent after the machine hit me) came to life, I noticed that the dreadful aura emanating from the eyeball had dissipated quite a bit after it warped. That''s when I saw that two of the tentacles had disappeared, leaving only six remaining.

    The machine picked up a massive chunk of cement and whipped it at me. Again, it was way too damned fast so the only option was to destroy it. I pulled both my feet back and kicked down at the cement as it hit me. The damage done to my mana was almost as high as when it had punched me, and I could see the machine turning around to grab another chunk of cement already.

    I turned and flew toward the eyeball, forcing it to warp away again before I reached it. Two more tentacles disappeared as I heard a weird sound behind me. I glanced back and saw the machine drop the cement as it buckled at the knees, but it managed to catch itself just before it fell down.

    Annoyingly, barely a second passed before it was grabbing for the cement again.

    The bullets ripping into me from the anti-air machines were a problem, and the missiles two of them just released were an even bigger problem, but I had to take this eye out here and now. My instincts were telling me it was the only way to get away from the machine on the ground.

    I flew toward it and punched at it again, but this time, it connected. It had tried to warp away, but it was just too slow this time. The eye shattered and disintegrated as the machine fell to the ground again. This time a mechanical scream of anger erupted from it as it struggled to stand back up. I wasn''t able to look at it for long, but I could tell that the mechanical eye on its back was now dimmed and barely visible.

    Wasting no time I flew toward a ruined building between me and missiles. I was planning on entering the building and ''weathering the storm'' so to speak, but another idea came to me as the missiles lost sight of me behind the building. I removed my halo and turned invisible before running toward the south.

    As I had hoped, the missiles didn''t continue tracking me. They instead flew into the building that I was planning on entering beforehand.

    I turned toward the east, heading back to the ''somewhat safe'' strip of land I was in earlier. Even though the mark is still there, the connection to Arkaios is gone, so using him to return is no longer an option. Not that I''d want to try it again after what just happened... Seriously, what the hell was that?!

    <hr>

    "Y-You really made it back?! Come on... There''s no way you got one, let alone both... Right?" Maya''s subordinate said to me after I ascended the long ass slope up to the fort. The guards said they were informing her of my arrival, so it wasn''t much of a surprise to see him.

    "I did. Now show me to your... Whatever that room was called. I''ll show you the emblems and then I need to eat and sleep. Thanks to that fight I had near Inoue I''m past my limit, I really need to recover."

    "......"

    He stared at me for a moment. He clearly wanted to say something but he thought better of it and decided to just lead me to their units room.

    Upon arrival there were four people in her squad waiting for me, while Maya stood there with her eyes narrowed. Instead of speaking, all she did was motion with her palm for me to place something on the mission table.

    I pulled out both of the emblems and set them down on the table. Maya put her hand over her face and shook her head while the silent squad members went wild. They bombarded me with questions as I pulled out some more cereal bars and a bottle of soda.

    "Hang on I''ll be more than happy to answer you after I''ve eaten. But I only have time for a few answers right now. I need to sleep as soon as possible."

    The female in the squad was saying I should just show them my console''s footage when Maya smacked her in the back of the head. "Idiot, you know better than to ask that."

    "Is that really a bad question?"

    Maya quirked an eyebrow at me, "So strange to hear that from someone who so easily accomplished..." She shook her head and laughed, "Fuck it, this is no time to be so uptight. What you did was amazing, Reimia! And yes, it''s a bad question. Your footage is your footage. It''s bad form to be asking someone to show their recorded video to others. Offering money for it is fine of course, but generally the owner should be the one to put the footage up for sale. Either at the mission building, or by putting it on the auction site."

    I just nodded while scarfing down the last of my bars as fast as I could. I then downed the last soda and looked at the group who was waiting for me to say something.

    "Err, I said I''d answer questions but the more I think about it, there''s a reason I can''t show my footage or really say all that much about how I acquired the emblems. However, I can tell you what I encountered at each of the emblem''s locations." I looked at Maya, "Uh, is there a way to show only specific parts of someone''s footage? There''s a few moments I''d love some outside opinions on. Including machines not in the database."

    I thought that part would surprise them but Maya merely nodded and then laughed when she realized that I was confused by their lack of reactions. "It''s kind of a given that you may have seen unknown machines over there! And as for your footage, it''s possible, but it''ll take time to show you how to do that so you should get some sleep for now. We''ll get it all setup when you''re refreshed, yeah?"

    "Yeah, sounds good..." I said exhaustedly. There were only a handful of times in my life my core had been begging me to sleep like this, and while the fight was obviously stressful, it was still surprising seeing how tired I was.

    I''m beginning to suspect it has something to do with the way that thing messed with my soul. It struggled to pierce my veil but it had access to my core for a split second when I tapped the connection to Arkaios. I didn''t feel it do anything in particular, so the way it destroyed my connection must''ve done more damage than I thought.

    I thanked Maya and walked over to the bunk I slept in previously. After laying down on it I couldn''t help but chuckle after seeing the state of my armor.

    That smack from the machine put some cracks into my armor, but that''s it. That''s honestly amazing when I compare it to how much mana I lost from the internal damage I sustained from the attack. That''s just how powerful the impact was. But enough thinking, I need to pass out and then head home after a little bit of resting. Except there is one thing bothering me...

    I thought back to the machine as it appeared in front of me. If I have one regret, it''s that I wasn''t able to finish the fucker off. I obviously made the correct choice by fleeing, since I don''t know if it was only temporarily disabled after I destroyed the eye, but even so, while I''m used to running away, I really wanted to kill that machine. Next time... Next time I''ll finish it to the end. Which is a really stupid pledge to make since there could be hundreds of the damned things in the dead zone for all I know.

    I briefly laughed which I''m sure looked odd to the others, but I didn''t care. I was feeling great after acquiring both emblems.

 Chapter 96 - Yulong

    The sound of an alarm blaring woke me up from my slumber. I opened my eyes and saw that everyone in Maya''s unit was jumping out of their bunks. I sat up and watched them hurriedly bolt out of the room. How long was I asleep... My core still feels like it needs to rest.

    I checked the console and it showed that ten days had passed since I first arrived back at the fort. And I''m still this exhausted? My core must''ve really been stressed to the max holding off all of those curses... Wait, how did it block the curses? When my halo is out I lose the veil on my core, so...

    I rolled out of bed and activated my halo. At first it seemed like it always had; no veil. But after inspecting further I could sense a really thin but dense layer of veil covering my core. I was unable to interact with it, and it even kept disappearing from my senses as if it was never there. How long has that been there?? I mean, thank god it was, otherwise those eyes would''ve debilitated me until I could no longer dodge the machine, but it''s still bizarre that I have another veil now... I need to ask Luna about it when I get back.

    Someone ran into the room with a Tyranium armor suit on, helmet and all. They opened a nearby cabinet and pulled out a huge duffel bag. They slung it over their shoulder as they looked over at me, "Sorry, Reimia, we need to leave! The caravan heading north to Jarvil is getting swarmed right now. We''ll talk about your mission another time, yeah?" The person said through their speakers. I could tell from their voice that it was Maya.

    Before I could respond she ran out of the room. It looks so bizarre seeing that high tech suit holding a green duffel bag. But my Uncle said the relic ones were created in a way that makes them really hard to destroy. That''s why he suggested the bag I have right now.

    I picked the two emblems up and put them back in my bag before exiting the room. As I made my way toward the main courtyard I didn''t see anyone or hear anything aside from the alarm that was still blaring, and even when I reached the courtyard there was nobody there. There''s no way they emptied this place out, so all of the reserves must be waiting below somewhere? I suppose with all of the console cameras you don''t need to personally watch the walls, but this still looks odd to me...

    After making my way down the ramp I finally ran into someone, the guards at the gate. They warned me to avoid the North for now, as their sensors were picking up thousands of machines milling about between here and Jarvil, so both forts were out in full force trying to thin their numbers as much as possible. I thanked them and left in the direction I always approached the fort from. The south.

    <hr>

    "No need to scan in, you''re clear. In fact, you''ve been given clearance to land in the main area from now on." The gate guard cut off my reply and continued, "I already know what you''re going to ask. The answer is simple, a clan vouched for you. More than one actually. Both Hothgar and Inoue did. Also, you must have some friends in the head office, because even that would usually not be enough."

    Shannon maybe? Or my Uncle did something. Honestly, it wasn''t that big of a deal having to go through the gate every time, but I suppose this is a nice quality of life change.

    I walked past the guards, through the long open snowy field, and took one of the elevators down to the main floor. ''Welcome back'' an automated female voice said as the elevator doors opened.

    On the way to the head office I passed by several groups that were heading up to the surface. As usual, the looks I received were laden with confusion. I stuck out like a sore thumb after all, and it didn''t help that I still had snow on me.

    I entered the head office and walked up to Shannon''s desk. She was currently helping someone else and didn''t notice me at first, but when she did her eyes went wide as she stared at me. The lady she was helping glanced back at me and quirked an eyebrow.

    "... Apologies, Miss Helia. I believe it''d be faster if I sent you to my boss in the back. Would that be fine?" Shannon asked.

    ''Miss Helia'' was surprised but happily took her up on the offer. Shannon led her to the back where her brother was waiting. I only got a quick glance at his face before she closed the door, but he was clearly annoyed.

    When Shannon arrived back at the counter she tapped on it and said, "Show me."

    As I dug them out of my backpack she was typing on her console to bring up my mission statement. This is the first step upon arriving back at base. You come here and give a brief status update on the mission, and then do a full dive down below at one of the offices on R-4.

    I placed both emblems on the counter and she immediately closed her eyes, pinched the bridge of her nose, and heaved a heavy sigh.

    "How... Just, how?"

    "Magic."

    "......"

    Shannon narrowed her eyes at me for a moment before typing on the console again. A few seconds later she said, "There, I confirmed that you succeeded..."

    I placed the emblems back in my bag and chuckled, "That''s it? Not going to push for information?"

    "No, silly girl. I can just watch the footage later after you sell it. It''ll probably sell for as much as those two emblems are about to net you..."

    Assuming I do sell it. My Uncle will have to show me how to cut out all of the parts where I was invisible, which makes up almost the entire trip, so there won''t be all that much left to sell.

    I said goodbye to Shannon and headed for the exit, but on the way I saw a man nearby talking into his console while looking at me. He was whispering, but I definitely heard the word ''emblem'' at some point, so it was obvious what he was talking about. Eh, if they want to spread it around that''s fine. I think I''m going to have my Uncle turn em in anyway. I''m way too exhausted right now to do it myself.

    After I entered the elevator and entered ''R-37'' I sent a message to my Uncle, telling him to come to my (our?)home.

    What the...?

    Once I reached R-1 I could see that a massive party was going on. The lights were blinking in all sorts of different colors and there were people partying everywhere. On a couple of the large TV''s I could see people talking with the words ''Uruguay Victory!!'' on the bottom. Oh right, that event they were talking about before I left... Looks like Inoue lost, but oh well, whatever sadness they''re feeling right now will be completely wiped away when they find out that I returned their emblem.

    R-2 through R-7 were about the same, with varying levels of partying going on, but only silence awaited me at R-37. Ahh, now this is much better.

    I walked all the way to my home in that same silence. While it wasn''t exactly a boisterous place, it was still a fresh experience hearing literally nothing the entire time. Everyone must be in the upper floors partying.

    I placed my keypass into the slot and entered my home after the door opened. My Uncle was already waiting for me in his old chair.

    "I thought that thing killed your back?"

    "It does and is as we speak, but fuck the chair, tell me what happened!"

    There was a big smile on his face as he watched me pull the emblems out of my pack and hand them to him.

    "You got here fast too, were you nearby? I sent that message maybe ten or fifteen minutes ago."

    Irvine nodded, "I was visiting someone a few doors down who used to be friends with your parents and I." He flipped the emblems over and scanned every part of them with his portable console. "Unreal... You really did bring them back. Put the footage on the TV! I gotta see this shit for myself."

    "That''s fine, but you remember we can''t sell it, right? Not the parts where I''m invisible."

    "Hell yeah I remember. Those cunts are already going to have their eyes on you after this, and finding out you can turn invisible will make it far worse. I''d like to think they wouldn''t do anything drastic, but who knows what they''d stoop to these days... Oh, speaking of which. I found out why nobody wants to talk about Viktor and everything related to him is so buried."

    I paused for a moment as I was plugging the TV into the console, "... And?" I said as I inserted the cord.

    I walked over to the couch and laid down on it as my Uncle flipped through multiple menus on the TV.

    "He was one of Arkaios'' last Warriors here in Arcadia. So that means he was also in the group that had been sacrificed to Demons."

    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    What...?

    I thought back to the time I met him in Xethra. His weird out of character appreciation for Arkaios when the man seemed to hate anything that wasn''t related to the Xerath. That also explains how he ended up in the Xerath''s realm...

    My Uncle continued as he searched through the footage for the moment I left the outpost between Fort Weiss and Jarvil, "But I haven''t been able to find out who sacrificed them. And I gotta say, it''s not earning me any friends as I go digging up this old history. The big clans have their eyes on me now. Which is going to make it all the funnier when I cash in on that emblem bet."

    As Uncle Irvine played the footage (while fast-forwarding through the dull parts)I knew I couldn''t really put it off anymore. I needed more sleep.

    "Uncle, you''ll see why near the end, but I need to rest badly. My core is still exhausted. Turn in those emblems for me when you get the chance, okay?"

    "Don''t worry, I will. And I''ll take care of the fallout that will accompany it. But are you sure you don''t want to do it yourself? It''ll invite some problems, but you''re also going to be praised by a hell of a lot of people. It''s sad to see that you''re going to pass all of that up... And aren''t you into girls? You can get any girl you want after the feat you just pulled off!"

    "Heh, I''ll think about it after I''m rested up. For now it''s hard to think properly when my core is begging me to sleep."

    I rolled on my back and locked my arms over my stomach. "Goodnight Uncle. I''ll see you in a week or two."

    "Right... Goodnight, Hime. And good work out there... I mean it."

    As usual, I focused on my core and told it to turn off. A moment later everything went black.

    <hr>

    I woke up, finally feeling refreshed. All of the heaviness in my core had disappeared. About damn time... But how long was I out?

    I turned the TV on and the date on the screen said that twenty days had passed since I went to sleep. Fucking machine... It laid me out for way too long. I''m not going to feel better until I kill one of those cunts.

    I went up to the bathroom and removed my armor. For the next hour I rested in the tub while cleaning both me and my armor. I could hear the console downstairs beeping at one point but I ignored it.

    Once we were fully clean I walked downstairs and looked through the console''s history. There were several missed calls from ''Expedition Lounge''. The hell is that? The mission giving place is my first guess but I never heard the word ''expedition'' yet pretty sure.

    I checked on the console and it confirmed that the place I received the mission from was indeed the ''Expedition Lounge''. Hmm, I should call my Uncle first.

    I went through the numbers until I found my Uncle. After only a single ring he picked up and said, "You''re finally awake! Holy hell, Hime. You''re far richer than I am now. Not immediately though. Instead of money upfront, I signed you up to take a percentage of all profits they make from their clan houses for the next one hundred years."

    "How much percentage are we talking here?"

    "One percent, and I know that sounds low, but trust me. A fully functioning clan house brings in a ridiculous amount of crystals. And, well, they couldn''t really pay you outright anyway... They''re both hardcore in debt, as most clans are that don''t have access to their faculties." Irvine said.

    "Then why even keep the clan title? I don''t get it."

    "Eh, there''s a shitload of different reasons to keep a clan tied to your family even if you''re broke, but I''m sure they also have their own personal reasons that outweigh any practical ones. Especially the Inoue clan members. I got a weird feeling from them the two times we''ve met. They''re far more uh, passionate than I''m used to. They even went all-or-nothing on their bet with Uruguay on the machine hunting event. I don''t know if you saw, but they lost, so they''re basically owned by Uruguay now. They didn''t think you''d actually retrieve the emblem, so..."

    So in other words, if they had waited they''d be rich and prestigious, but now they''re slaves because they never expected someone to actually retrieve their emblem. Sucks to be them, but for me it doesn''t matter who owns the clan house since I''ll be getting paid regardless.

    "Oh, Uncle. Why the hell is the Expedition... Office? Or no, was it called a lounge? Either way, why are they calling me?"

    Irvine paused for a moment before replying. "I took care of everything, so they''re either going to pester you for the full footage, or someone put in a specific request for you. Which isn''t much of a surprise after what you just did."

    Specific requests huh... Is there a single reason I should accept them? I returned here for three reasons. One, was to spend some time in my families home again. Next, I needed money to kill Viktor. And finally, I wanted to acquire the core''s codes. I don''t necessarily need to do that last one since I''m now passively acquiring money through the clan contracts, but there''s no fucking way I''m going to pass up the opportunity to unlock all of the secrets to this place.

    "I''d rather not take on any special requests directed at me. Can I tell them to leave me alone?"

    I could hear him laughing through the console, "I knew you''d say that! Whatever they''re trying to offer you will pale in comparison to your true objective, right? Don''t say it over the line, but yeah, you can tell them to fuck off. Maybe don''t put it like that but you''re free to decline any requests that come in from the lounge."

    Good. There''s really nothing I can gain from them except... Well, I suppose they would be kind of fun. I''ll admit I''m curious but I think it''s for the best that I just focus on my mission. I''ll either die trying to kill Viktor or survive and make my way to Gaia. Then, and only then, will I relax and have fun when I find my friends again. If I win of course---Actually, wait... There would be plenty of down time after I get the core''s codes, as they''d need time to go through all of the information and whatnot anyway. So...

    "... You know, I''m thinking about leaving right away for the---Err, you know what."

    "What?! You just got back! Or well, not quite ''just'', but from your point of view you''ve barely been here an hour. Are you sure you want to leave already?"

    "Not immediately. I still need to see two people before I take off. Arkaios and Yulong."

    "Yulong... Oh, that one Abyss obsessed scientist? I see. Well, if that''s what you want to do, then I''m not going to stop you. And the Leviathan is going to arrive back here in a week, so there''s that too."

    Only a week? That''s some great timing then. It gives me just enough time to do what I need to do here and prepare for the mission.

    After that I made plans to meet my Uncle at Bertram''s bar later on and hung up.

    Okay, now where did I put that note Shannon gave me... My bedroom, maybe?

    I walked upstairs and entered my old bedroom, finding the note with Yulong''s address on it sitting on the headboards of my bed. Thank god I didn''t lose it. I really didn''t want to call her right now.

    As I punched the note''s address into the console I couldn''t help but notice the ''R-3'' part. The man obsessed with the Abyss lives in the top residential district? I didn''t see that coming. I figured he''d be somewhere in the twentieth or thirtieth layer.

    After walking back downstairs I stopped at the door and looked down at myself.

    I could create a regular outfit, but it''d still be pure black... Looking through my Mom''s or Sister''s closets for anything that fits is also a possibility but I feel weird just thinking about that.

    After some deliberation I decided to stick with my armor. I felt safe inside it, and after my Uncle''s ominous words, I figured the safer I was, the better.

    <hr>

    Ugh...

    At first I thought the reactions around me were the usual ones I''d receive; people weirded out by how I looked, but I quickly realized that wasn''t the case this time. One girl even ran over and took a photo of herself next to me without even asking me for permission.

    And the fact that I was on the third layer was making it far worse. These were the nobles of Arcadia after all. While they were elegant looking, a lot of them also had robotic parts attached to different parts of their bodies, or they straight up replaced their limbs with mechanical ones. One guy even had two robotic legs. They appeared to be rather well done, but still, it was hard to adjust to the sight of them since I was pretty sure none of these people ever saw a single second of combat, which meant that they were removing their own body parts to replace them with robotic ones purely for aesthetical reasons.

    For combat reasons I''d understand if it was the superior choice, but is that even possible? Obviously power suits exist and the higher in quality you rise, the better they are at handling any mana you pour into them. But they''re just replacing a single body part, so... Yeah, I really don''t know.

    It took me a little while even with directions, but eventually I found myself at Yulong''s place. I knew it was a possibility when I saw that he was on the third layer, but I can''t believe he''s in one of the six main clans...

    I had previously seen images of the clan houses, and they were all built into the side of the layer. Just like the home in front of me. Maybe he''s one of those bored nobles that isn''t interested in the local politics? At the very least he''s not wanting for money if he''s living in this place.

    I pushed the console button next to the gate, but nobody responded. I pushed it again, but still, nobody responded.

    I continued like that for another five minutes before I finally heard the speaker flare to life.

    "I was ignoring the console because I wasn''t expecting anyone, but look at what I find when I do check the camera feed... What an interesting creature. White hair, red eyes, black armor, and yet you have Elven ears... So very strange. Oh yes, I remember now. I was going to yell at you for disturbing me. So then, strange girl, why is it that you are here ringing my doorbell over and over like an annoying little gnat."

    "Hmm, I gotta say, my first impression of you isn''t very good. Are you Yulong?"

    "And she''s so very honest! A refreshing trait in this sea of filth. Pattering on, day after day about their birthrights, love affairs, prestige. But did you know, girl? At the end of the day, they are nothing more than common rabble. Glitter up the garbage all you want, it''s still garbage."

    "... That''s nice, but I''m here to talk about the Abyss, not the people of Arcadia."

    "Not interested in the garbage but she is interested in the Abyss? You''ve advanced from vaguely intriguing to mildly intriguing..."

    The gates opened up as Yulong said, "Do be quick about it. As intriguing as you are, I was in the middle of something very important when you arrived."

    My first thought is that he''s rather bizarre, but he''d have to be to be interested in the Abyss, so it''s not like I wasn''t expecting this.

    I walked through the long courtyard until I reached the large double doors that were opening on their own as I arrived. I expected a large grand hall but instead all I saw was a rather quaint lounge area and six different doors.

    "Far left door. Take it all the way to the end of the hall and then turn right. I''m in the first door on the left." Yulong said over the speakers.

    I followed his directions down the hallways until I entered the door he specified. The inside was a much larger room than the one I first saw. There was a set of stairs leading up to a small office-like area and there were bookshelves full of books lining the entire wall. I also saw beakers and other tools up there. Meanwhile on the ground floor there were several couches, a mattress on the floor, some chairs, and a massive TV. Yulong (A handsome tall man with short black hair, wearing a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt) was currently sitting on the couch playing a video game.

    "Oh yes, this definitely looks ''very important''." I said after approaching him on the couch.

    "Sarcasm, how nostalgic... Now what is it that you want in relation to the Abyss, weird girl."

    "I''ve been to their realm, and I was hoping you could make sense of the things I found while I was there."

    Yulong dropped the controller and looked at me with pure disbelief.

    Heh, what a funny reaction. I''m really going to enjoy this.

 Chapter 97 - The First Step

    "... What did you say your name was, girl?" Yulong asked.

    "I didn''t tell you what my name was yet, but it''s Reimia Velrune. And what''s with your name? I expected a Kitsune with a name like Yulong, but you''re clearly a Human."

    "I made it up long ago." Yulong said as he picked up a keyboard on the table in front of him, placing it on his lap. The TV switched from his video game to the mainframe''s database that everyone has to access when they want to make a query.

    "You made up your own name? And you came up with Yulong of all names?"

    "I used to argue with an old friend of mine quite often. The fool repeated the phrase ''You''re wrong'' so often that I changed my name to ''Yulong'' on a whim one day. I know it''s clever, so you don''t need to confirm it audibly for brownie points."

    ... It''s really not. Never in a million years would I have deduced a lame connection like that to someone''s name, and his barely even forms the connection he was hoping for.

    Articles popped up on the TV that had recently been updated with photos of someone. Photos of me.

    "So you''re the one who brought back those two emblems... Your story is far more plausible now."

    Yulong leapt off the couch and placed the keyboard back on the table before motioning for me to follow him up the nearby stairs.

    As we neared the top of the stairs I noticed there was far more up there than I had originally seen from below. Several tables, chemistry equipment, a full king sized bed, a couple of couches. It was a whole other room in of itself.

    "Now then..." Yulong stopped next to one of the couches and looked at me, "I... Struggle, with Human interaction such as this, so I am not quite sure how to word this in a non-strange way---"

    I cut him off, "You want to look at my memories, right? Don''t worry, I specifically came here to show them to you."

    Yulong stared at me for a bit in silence before finally smirking a little, "You are surprisingly agreeable, so far. A very rare occurrence for me... Now, if you will?" He motioned toward the couch.

    As I laid down on the couch he pulled over a recliner until he was directly next to the couch. He then sat down on it and kicked it all the way back before reaching out his left hand toward me. "I am ready."

    "You''re not going to ask me anything beforehand? For all you know I was only there for a split second."

    "No need. I thought the story about someone returning two emblems was embellished or misreported. ''Clearly it was just one emblem and it had to originally consisted of a full squad but only one of them managed to make it back'' was my first thought upon reading the initial reports. But after seeing you and hearing you speak so casually about being in the Abyss... No, there is no need to hear anything. If you can claim emblems like they''re nothing, then you could have easily been to the Abyss as well. And if you truly are here to trick me and kill me by trapping me inside your soul realm, then I''ll take the loss. It''s worth the gamble."

    I don''t know why he''s so interested in the Abyss, but I''ll leave that question for later. I can see his hand trembling right now after all. He''s obviously dying to know what kind of memories I have of that realm.

    I grabbed his hand and pulled him into my soul realm. Once we were inside he looked around and motioned toward the swamp around us, "And this is?"

    "Lord Terra''ka''s... Planet? Moon? I''m actually not sure. He''s an Eldritch that''s close to becoming an Old God. I''ve only been to his planet once but I loved the view, so I made my soul realm reflect it."

    Yulong looked up at the night sky, "It appears to have no atmosphere, just like the western side of Caedrus."

    "It only looks like that. There were plenty of people breathing just fine while we were there, so I don''t know why there isn''t a sky here."

    I brought up the scene where I jumped through the Demon''s portal to Veca.

    "Hmm, I''m honestly not sure where to start with this. Me and my friends were there for quite a while trying to escape Veca, the moon where the Abyssal God and portal to their realm exists. Err, I say ''portal'', but it''s more like part of Veca is directly connected to another realm. The Abyssal Realm."

    "Veca... I know all of the moon and planet names, and this one is no different. However, I know very little about Veca itself. You''re saying it''s the birthplace of the Abyss, and that it completely merged itself to another realm? But how would..." Yulong trailed off.

    I fast-forwarded the memory to the room the God of the Abyss was in. "This is their God. Want to study him first, or do you want me to show you how the realms are merged?"

    "... The realms, please." Yulong said as his eyes ran up and down the Abyssal God''s arms, studying the runes.

    I showed him the scene of me traveling to the Abyssal realm through the staircase multiple times, but all he ever said when I reached the bottom was, "Again." as he stared unblinkingly at the scene in front of him while rubbing his chin. Finally, after the fifth time he sighed and said, "There''s nothing... Absolutely nothing to suggest you moved to another realm. You''re there in Veca one second, and the next when you step into that desert area, you''re suddenly in the Abyssal realm... How could two realms be merged so seamlessly?"

    He continued, "The Demons would rule the universe if they could merge realms like this. The largest struggle they face is getting their proverbial foot in the door, and then they need to keep their corruption high in whatever area they congregate to so Eremnon and his Lords can create small doorways between the realms, but even those have their limits and constantly need to be recharged. Meanwhile, the Abyss is just... There."

    I brought the scene back to the God. "Perhaps you''ll figure something out through him or that building over there."

    Yulong smiled, "I must admit, I''ve never been more intrigued by a single building in all my life. It could not possibly stand out more if it tried. So if you will, please take me there. I have images of these runes and the God stored in my memories now, so there''s no need to stare at them any longer. Not now anyway."

    I showed him the girl who ambushed me at the entrance, and went through the entire ''tour'' with him. For the most part he was silent, only motioning toward me with his left hand when he wanted me to continue. We actually would have been done here in no time at all if it wasn''t for the fact that he needed to see me flipping through the books page by page at normal speed.

    Once that was done I showed him bits and pieces of what took place before we reached that point. He found the Tengu and Arkaios'' full resets interesting, but he was far more interested in the Abyss, so I showed him what took place both times I was in their realm. And lastly for good measure I showed him what I found through the Abyssal portal in Victoria''s room (her mirror).

    "... That was far more than I could have ever hoped for. I found you intriguing before, but now I must admit, I cannot tell if you frighten me, or if I''m blessed to witness the embryo stage of someone who eventually ascends to Godhood."

    "Godhood?!"

    "Yes? Why does this surprise you? While the, how do I say this... ''Taunt effect'', your ether carriers emanate is indeed a massive negative, it can also be seen as a positive under the right conditions."

    "I didn''t expect you to bring up the ether carriers of all things... But are you talking about how I could use them to pull in more monsters for consumption? I tried that several times on Mother at the instigation of a few people there, and the Tengu Lord. It worked... Until it didn''t. A powerful Eldritch from hundreds of miles away caught my scent and hunted us for months thanks to that little stunt I pulled. The carriers are just too much of a risk."

    "But have you tried creating them from something other than bones?"

    "I''ve tried creating summons out of many things, so yes, only bones work."

    Yulong folded his arms across his chest, "Return us to your creators tombstone."

    I brought the memory back to the tower where the Necromancer God had enshrined its own corpse.

    Yulong raised his hands out to his sides and spun around, "Do you not feel that?"

    "It''s the same energy I give off, I know that. But isn''t that just latent aura? Although, hmm..."

    The ability to create summons won''t work without bones, and over time I figured out why. It''s because the bones retain a certain level of soul residual for a long time after their owner died. However...

    "I''ve tried it with armor and meshes I''ve made in the past. It didn''t work."

    Still though, it couldn''t hurt try it... All I need to do is make a building like this one and try to inject the carrier ability into it, and I know how to make it after spending time in my creator''s obelisk (or tombstone).

    I changed the scenery to that of the fields outside of Termia. They were simple, flat, and wide open. The perfect spot to try and build something.

    I sat down and began to pull blood out of my arm. To my right I could see Yulong lay down in the grass and close his eyes.

    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    "By the way, why are you interested in the Abyss? And what information do you even have on them?"

    "I believe they are related to Arcadia or the machines in some way."

    I channeled into my core, creating more blood as it streamed out of my arm, forming into a large rectangle in front of me. "And you ''believe'' this, because...? If anything, wouldn''t it be the Demons? Your continent is rife with their corruption after all."

    "Conjecture, although I must admit that information did come from a very reliable source..." He continued, "And I believe the Abyss plays some role in everything here because of the logs. The mainframe may have locked up most of the information, but there were some old logs on personal consoles that were left behind. One of them describes the fear they felt when the ''Creatures from below'' had approached his family. The logs said the creatures spoke in a tongue that reverberated in their skulls and made them feel sick... Sound familiar?"

    That definitely sounds like the Abyss... So they might''ve been here in Caedrus long ago, huh?

    "Makes me even more curious of that mirror they placed on the western side of Caedrus---Oh, Yulong, is it normal to find the Xerath here?"

    "It happens sometimes. Why?"

    I created my usual TV and placed it in front of him. The memory of my fight with the machine near Inoue''s emblem was inserted into it.

    While he watched that I focused on the building, but it was going slow. Very slow.

    I guess I''ll have to speed it up just to see if it works, but this is the maximum speed I can create it in real time, which means that even if this works I''ll need months to make one of these in the real world. Although, once the first one is done the next tower would be completed much faster since I''ll have Liches building it with me. They''ll be powered by the first tower, and then from there... I think I''m beginning to understand what he meant by Godhood if this works. The only issue is that an ether carrier in the form of a tower would draw attention from half the fucking planet.

    I increased the ''speed'' at which I was creating the building to one hundred times while a had another TV appear that was keeping track of the amount of days that were actually passing if it was done in real time. Still too slow.

    After increasing it to one thousand times faster, the building was completed in a couple of minutes. I looked over at the TV and it said that ninety-one days had passed. So it''ll take me three months to make the first one... Normally whatever I have to deal with requires immediate attention, so I can''t imagine a time when I''ll have three months to prepare, but you never know I suppose.

    I told the tower to turn into an ether carrier, and the tower responded. Soon after that I saw large blackish ethereal sacks growing inside the tower (it was back to normal speed at this point). It wasn''t long before I could feel the immense amount of ether radiating from the tower, and while I was happy, I felt it needed to be tuned before it was ready for creation in the real world.

    Yulong walked up next to me and exhaled, "Captivating... Disgusting... So many different emotions I feel looking at this amalgamation of horror and sleek marblework. Nevertheless, I believe I''m leaning towards ''disgusting''."

    It''s not marble, but I suppose it does look like that.

    "I don''t like that the inside is filled with those disgusting sacks. Yes, I agree it''s disgusting. Before I make this tower out there I''ll need to figure out a way to make it so it remains a tower that I can actually use as well. Or I suppose I can make it so only the room where my creator was is actually empty. I shouldn''t need the stairs."

    "Residing in it is an option, yes. But you can''t stay there forever." Yulong said as he ran his finger along the outside walls.

    Right... It''s going to be attacked so it''ll need automated defenses. Summons, basically, but I''ll have to figure all of this out another time.

    "Yulong---Actually, what''s your real name? I know you just gave me some amazing inspiration here, and I really do appreciate it, but that name is......"

    "Yulong." He said promptly without turning around.

    "... Fine. So, ''Yulong'', do you think it''s possible to translate the books inside the Abyssal Museum?"

    "I do not know, but I''m going to try. And..." Yulong scratched the back of his head while looking away from me, "Ahh, ahem. Yes, what I wanted to say was thank you for showing me your memories. It was also nice having someone to talk about the Abyss with. My only friend has been quite busy for a few years now, and he doesn''t share my fervor in uncovering our history. And don''t even get me started on the rest of these tools. They''re only interested in one-upping the other clans or their own family members---"

    As Yulong complained about the clans I looked at the tower. Even now I was having a hard time believing it was real, so the impact of how ridiculous it was hadn''t quite hit me yet.

    "Hey, Yulong. Where is the rest of your clan? They out on a mission? I expected a clan house to be filled with people."

    "... They normally are, but I''m all that''s left now. Four bad missions and a couple of ''accidents'' is all it took. Now it''s my duty to repopulate the clan or die off and let someone else take the ''Napoleon'' name. And the hounds are already at the door. I know they''re just waiting for me to leave the safety of my home, which will lead to: ''Oh no! The young master of the Napoleon house suddenly fell and cracked his head open!!''"

    Yulong Napoleon? Just when I thought it couldn''t sound any more ridiculous.

    "Yulong, you said you want to know the history here?"

    "Out with it. You''re obviously going somewhere with this, so just say it next time." Yulong said.

    "Well, the emblems were just a trial run. I''m actually aiming for something else."

    I picked up on it while I was showing him different aspects of my Abyssal memories, but Yulong is very good at hiding his emotions. Except I could tell that he was unbelievably excited almost the entire time we were in my soul realm. And while he had time to calm down as I created the tower, he was already back to his overly-excited self again.

    He put one palm over his face and chuckled, "Invisibility in its purest form sure is something else... But I am not jealous, as I wish for a different set of abilities. Although, I cannot deny the sheer strength and survivability your powers grant." He continued, "And don''t worry. I won''t speak about your invisibility to anyone. You can even place a curse of silence upon me if you so desire. I know how to cast it, but it might be difficult to cast it on myself."

    "It''s fine, just focus on translating those books. I''m dying to know what''s in them... And I''ll be heading out when the Leviathan arrives in a week. I plan on using it for the return trip as well unless something goes terribly wrong, so I''ll be gone for quite a while. But remind me please, how long does it take for the Leviathan to do a full lap around Caedrus?"

    "Sixty-five days. Can you really---Never mind. Obviously you can survive out there alone for that long." Yulong said with the first genuine smile I had seen on his face.

    After that I said my goodbyes to Yulong and made my way toward Bertram''s bar. Along the way a few groups stopped me and asked for pictures, while one of the groups invited me back to their place where I''d be an ''esteemed guest'' at their party, but I declined.

    I''ve seen what noble parties look like after all. Sex, drugs, and then more sex. I still remember when Viktor had me following one of the Xelba nobles, which ended up with me stuck in a corner of the room watching one of those parties for half a day... Although it did help me understand that I needed to be more discerning when it came to understanding other people.

    I had a crush on one of the cities noble girls who seemed so different from the others. She was really nice to me and appeared so pure no matter which angle I looked at her from, but no one was happier or more proactive than her at that party...

    <hr>

    "There she is! About damn time, girl. We''ve been waiting ages for you to visit." Bertram said from his rocking chair.

    Irvine laughed from his chair and shook his head, "Ignore him, he''s just being impatient for someone else." My Uncle then typed something into his console and a few moments later Nia came running out of the bar and hugged my legs.

    "Big sis, look! I can walk again!!"

    Luna was on her shoulder looking up at me with a proud look on her face.

    I thought about picking her up but I wasn''t sure if that''d be awkward for a girl her age so I rubbed her hair instead and smiled.

    "I''m glad for you cutie... Seriously, good work, Luna."

    Luna flew into my chest and a familiar feeling soon took hold in my core.

    {I didn''t want to say it out loud, but it''s bad, Rei... That curse was super strong! And it was a uh, I forget the word, but it goes through parents to their offspring. So, you know...}

    In other words, she got it from her mother. I had a feeling that was the case, since it was far more unlikely that someone managed to stealthily placed a powerful curse on two different people without anyone noticing. But now it becomes a question of whether we should even bring this up to her. For now I''ll ask these two.

    "Nia, can you wait inside for a moment? I''ll be in to eat in a little bit and then we''ll play the pinball machine again, okay?"

    "Okay! D-Don''t take too long though!" She said before running back inside. I saw her fall down and slide along the ground before the door closed, but she was laughing instead of crying.

    "Alright you two, has Luna told you what she found yet?"

    Irvine nodded, "A bloodline curse, and I know why you''re bringing this up, but there''s no point in asking her. That stupid girl wouldn''t tell me why she was cursed and it''s why we---"

    "Bah, don''t go crying about that shit again." Bertram looked at me, "I don''t know who cursed my little girl either, and she won''t let the fairy cure her, but that one makes sense. She acquired an ability that lets her see without her eyes. Sounds fucked up eh? But it works! And she can see all sorts of shit. Much better than before so yeah, she''s fine as is."

    "... To be fair, Bertram. Even if she''s fine with it, it''s not about just her. I''m sure you understand why Uncle Irvine wants to know who was responsible for his daughter being cursed."

    "God damn right I understand! I want to kill the fucker too, but she won''t tell us who it was, so that''s that."

    Irvine sighed, "Don''t even bother, Hime. He believes in complete autonomy, and he raised his daughter to have the same values. And also, he believes Nia should be the one to find out the truth when she''s older. Can you believe that shit? They really expect me to just drop it... It''s really pissing me off the more I think about it again."

    Just out of curiosity, but were you able to discern anything related to the curse bearer through the curse itself?

    {No. That''s like, really rare you know? It needs to be a curse they''re channeling mana into, or something...}

    Hmm, that sounds about right. I remember that''s how I located Nisha after she warped me with that trap ability of hers. I could tell which direction she was in, while also being able to somewhat discern how far away she was.

    "Now enough about that horseshit, I want to talk about those two machines." Bertram said, and I immediately knew which machines he was referring to.

    "Can we talk about the Inoue one first? I''d really like for someone to explain to me what the hell happened. Arkaios was pulling me back and that abomination cut the connection while warping in front of me. And I think it goes without saying, but without a veil like mine, most people won''t even be able to move when its eyes lock onto them."

    Irvine tapped the side of his chair for a moment before responding, "I don''t think anyone is going to have a sufficient explanation for you. But the best suits will be able to block curses up to a certain point, so they won''t be helpless until the suit can no longer keep up." He looked at Bertram, "What do you think, old man?"

    "Shit, even if the suits block all of the curses, the real problem is the fuckers speed and power! The Tyranium suits could withstand a few hits like the one it landed on her, but what about the poor sobs inside the suits? An impact like that would turn their insides to mush, which means they''d need a lot of mana to survive. We have people like that of course, but..." Bertram stood up and turned toward the bar''s entrance, "God damnit... Seeing that fight made me think about how lucky I was to make a living by killing simple machines like Lobbers and Warriors..."

    Irvine nodded, "We all grow up here hearing about the ''scary'' machines in the dead zone, and the few images or videos of them that exist were proof of that, but your fight was on another level, Hime. Our mechs would fair a lot better against that machine you fought, but what about the other machines? That one felt like it was designed to fight people, but that''s just one of many. The dead zone is probably full of machines that are designed in a way that''d make them deadly to our mechs. And there''s that one that can shut down all communications. It goes without saying that it might even shut down power armor and mechs as well. And if that happens..."

    They''d all die, obviously. But so long as the machines stay over there in the dead zone then the people here have nothing to worry about.

    .............

    ... But if they did come here, then I really don''t know how Arcadia would survive. It''d be a massacre no matter how I look at it.

 Chapter 98 - Leviathan

    "Are you sure you won''t meet with the head of clan Inoue? He really wants to thank you, even if he is nothing more than a vassal to Uruguay now. And it seemed like he had something else he wanted to talk to you about, but he wouldn''t tell me when I probed him about it." Irvine said.

    I strapped the armored backpack onto my back and turned off the TV. "... I don''t think I will. I really don''t know why either. I''m just so..."

    I could have been celebrating this entire time, surrounded by people who would praise me endlessly while attempting to bring me to their side. In other words; I''d be a very useful pawn for them. I''m glad I came back here, because this place is definitely amazing, but over time I''ve grown weary of the game. The game of words, hidden meanings, people using me for a means to an end, and so on and so on... I''m just gonna get the codes, buy my army of mercs and super soldiers, and then chop Viktor into a million pieces. Oh right, that includes his two fucking stooges that follow him around everywhere.

    As happy as I am to see my Uncle again, and to meet that cute little cousin of mine, I''m having a really hard time seeing this place as ''my home'' or somewhere I should be staying for a long time. Instead, all I can think about is how I belong in Gaia with the others. However, even if Viktor was already dead, I''d still be going for those codes and waiting to see if Yulong can decipher those texts. This is the one chance in my never-ending life to unravel those mysteries, and I''d rather not leave em as unknowns until the end of time.

    A light smile formed on his lips and he ruffled my hair, "Okay, I get it. I won''t ask you again. You do whatever it is that you want to. You''re an adult now after all, which is something I''m still having trouble coming to terms with..."

    "And you used to be this hyper-focused Uncle of mine who wrote books and argued for hours on end about different topics with anyone you met, but now you look worn-down and exhausted all the time. Which is fine by the way. I think it''d be stranger if you were still overly-enthusiastic about everything after almost a hundred years had passed."

    Irvine looked up with a distant look in his eyes, "... I haven''t been like that in ages. The last book I wrote was before you all left for Urza." All at once a look of pure rage appeared on Irvine''s face as he hit the small with the side of his fist, "I told them... I fucking TOLD THEM not to travel to those shithole moons! But noooo, my weak little brother just had to listen to his domineering wife about how it''d be good for them to travel for a living. Oh the money was definitely good, no doubt about that, but there are plenty of ways to make a living in Arcadia, and yet it wasn''t enough for that stupid fucking...!!"

    I stayed silent as he raved about my parents (mostly my Mother) for several minutes. Eventually he just shook his head and walked over to the couch, plopping down on top of it before sighing. "I''m sorry, Hime... The truth is, I hated your mother. The weakness infesting our society began with people like her, and as if that wasn''t bad enough, that fucking fool talked your father into bringing both of their daughters with them on their last trip to Urza. To ''show them the world'' or whatever the fuck she said. I can''t remember the exact words she used but I know her reasoning was complete garbage." He sighed and rested his forearm over his eyes, "Did you know that Sera had just been picked up by one of the main three clans? She was phenomenal at piloting the spider mechs, and she was the main pilot. Not a co-pilot or one of the weapon pilots. I''m pretty sure your parents just wanted to spend some time with her before she was whisked away by another clan, but still..."

    I didn''t know that, but it was by choice. When I first came back here and had dinner with him I was going to ask him about my family, but I realized in that moment that I really didn''t want to talk about them.

    It''s just how I''ve always been. It''s how I''ve survived and pushed on despite everything that''s happened. I lost my family in the Xerath realm, then my friends in Xelba, and then Shana and Ishar... I just try my best to not to think about it while continuing to push forward.

    My Uncle noticed I wasn''t responding and smiled sadly at me, "I shouldn''t have said all of that... I did notice that you haven''t talked about your parents or sister once since returning, so I was avoiding the topic as well, but it still gets to me sometimes. And now every time I see you in this new form I feel a surge of anger toward your parents again. Except uh, yeah, I know I shouldn''t be blaming them for my downward spiral into the person I am today. Sneering and complaining all the time while actually doing nothing."

    "Would settling down with someone help? What about that Shannon lady at the head office."

    "She..." Irvine sighed, "I really don''t know if it would help. Whenever a relationship is entering the emotional attachment territory I feel this strong urge to run away now. And Shannon actually reached out to me while you were getting the emblems, but I''ve been avoiding her since then."

    "What did she do that''s making you avoid her?"

    "She showed up at the bar with... Cookies."

    "Oh my god were you okay?!"

    Irvine rolled his eyes, "Yeah yeah, laugh it up..." He paused for a moment, "Maybe I will call her today. I don''t want to, but some part of me really wants to at the same time."

    The console began to ring, and after a quick check I could see that it was Yulong calling. I reached out and pushed the button on the right side, connecting the call.

    "You find something?"

    "Perhaps, but we''ll talk about it upon your return. For now, I am merely wishing you luck for your journey ahead. Try not to get killed out there. You are one of two people that I can talk to now, so don''t reduce it back to one."

    "Heh, will do... See you soon, Yulong."

    I hung up as my Uncle stood up from the couch and walked over to the door. He looked back at me and said, "I''ll walk you there. I always like the initial part of any mission. A lot of people hate the cold and the snow, but I think it''s beautiful, and it''d make for a great place to live if it weren''t for the bloodthirsty machines."

    "I love it out there, but I barely remember what it feels like to be cold, so that obviously helps."

    My Uncle and I walked to the elevator in silence, but once we were inside he said, "You only need to sign up for the mission and you''re ready to go, right? You already prepped yesterday after all."

    "I also need to visit Arkaios really quick. I was going to visit him the day I went to Yulong''s place, but I''ve been putting it off until now for whatever reason."

    The elevator stopped at R-4 and my Uncle and I made our way to Arkaios'' temple. There were a few people around this time, but it looked like they were residents of the area. Nobody was going near the temple though, as per usual.

    My Uncle sat down on a nearby bench and waved me off, "I''ll wait here. I don''t think I''m in the mood to feel even more disappointed in myself."

    Understandable I suppose.

    I entered the temple and immediately I could feel Arkaios'' aura around me. Soon after that I could feel the connection between us being repaired. This time however, it felt far more dense, like it was packed with ether.

    {That machine cut the connection as I was pulling you back. I''ve made it as durable as I possibly can this time, but I would still only use it in cases of emergency. Even now it may not hold up long enough for me to finish the transfer.}

    Straight to the point huh?

    "I see... I was really hoping I wouldn''t have to wait for the Leviathan to return to Arcadia, but it looks like that''s going to be the safer option."

    {It is. Hide as you usually do and hibernate until the train arrives.}

    "Will do, and thanks again, Lord Arkaios."

    I entered a prayer pose but Arkaios immediately cut my concentration by speaking again.

    {Its energy was Demonic in nature. It overpowered the connection with its own mana, so I could feel it directly. It was one-hundred-percent Demon energy.}

    "Do you think the machines were made by Demons? But with how powerful they are, how come I haven''t seen them anywhere else? You''d think Eremnon would be flooding every planet and moon with them if they were his."

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    {Sadly, I have no answers to this. Hopefully the codes will enlighten us. As I said before, I have long since given up on understanding the reasoning behind all of the Demonic corruption in my lands, but I am now cautiously optimistic about what you may find.}

    I said goodbye to Arkaios and headed for the Expedition Lounge. It was currently packed as everyone was watching an important match of Blitz-Flag, but as we walked through the building more and more people turned to look at us, and that included the maid from before. She walked in front of us and blocked our path, causing us to stop as well.

    "Shizue... Right? Do you need something?"

    "Lord Reimia, I would appreciate it if you''d reconsider assisting my Masters."

    Lord??? Now that''s a new one...

    "I don''t know what they need, as I''m currently refusing all special requests. I have my eyes on something else right now. But after that''s done, I may consider it." The answer will probably be the same though. It''s not my fault they sold their souls to Uruguay while I was out acquiring their emblem.

    Luna, do you sense anything off with this girl''s soul?

    {It''s different, but that''s all I can tell without touching it directly.}

    Shizue stared at me unmoving for a few seconds before stepping to the side, allowing me to approach the main desk. Her movements are so crisp, I''ve never seen anything like it before. And then there is that weird soul of hers...

    "Welcome, Irvine and Reimia." Evette said. She appeared calm, but I could see her eyes swimming. She was clearly wondering what I was going to ask for.

    I leaned back and whispered to my Uncle, "Should I really say out loud which mission I want? There''s a bunch of people nearby watching us."

    Irvine shrugged, "You could just do the mission without actually signing up for it. That''d be unbelievably stupid for anyone else, but it''s not like we''ll be able to assist you out there."

    "I heard that." Evette cut-in and sighed, "If you''re really that worried Miss Reimia, then you are free to write it down so only I can read it. I''ll destroy the paper afterwards, but people are going to know what mission you signed up for by tomorrow. I can only delay it that long. However, it is true that you can still do the mission without signing up for it, but as your Uncle just said, you won''t receive any assistance out there if you do that, nor will you receive the rewards."

    "Bah, you know that''s a load of shit, Evette." Irvine continued, "You''ll get the reward, Rei, just not the one posted on the mission itself. Which is admittedly a shitload of money and a bunch of other rewards, but you''ll still be paid quite well for uh..."

    Evette narrowed her eyes as my Uncle described my future rewards. Since she works the desk that gives out those very missions, she would know the potential rewards of any missions posted better than anyone else.

    Instead of responding to my Uncle, Evette held her palm out and said, "Pass".

    I handed my keypass to her, and she quickly inserted it into a nearby machine. Shizue stared at me without blinking the entire time Evette was typing. I haven''t seen her blink a single time yet... Is she inhuman like me?

    Evette handed my keypass back to me and I inserted it into my portable console. I went through a few menus until I found my current mission log, and sure enough it showed Arcadia''s number one mission; ''Retrieve the core''s codes: Danger level - MAX''.

    "Is this the correct one? If you actually complete the mission and return here---Ah, never mind. Too many ears and you already know what I''m trying to say." She said with a smirk.

    "... It is. Thank you, Evette."

    We left the building with the maid and a bunch of others staring at us. We then went to the head office, where Shannon merely sighed and said ''See you soon'' after approving my departure. Apparently she was already consigned to the fact that I''d succeed, but she was obviously more interested in someone else. She was staring at my Uncle the entire time we were in there, and as we were leaving the office he finally told her that he''d call her when she was off work.

    Once we were outside all we had to do was wait on one of the nearby benches. The Leviathan comes straight through the dome and stops, so it was convenient for anyone who was planning to use it for transportation. And from the looks of things, I was going to be on a packed train. There were hundreds of people waiting around talking, while some groups were lighting up fireworks for some reason.

    "Seven minutes." My Uncle said as we sat down on a bench with two other people on it.

    "Just to confirm, it''s going to take me twenty-nine days to reach my disembark point? And I can''t help but wonder if the coordinates for the codes are correct. I mean, they''re only ten miles from the train station."

    Irvine chuckled, "You''ve seen how much of the map between the station and the codes are shadowed, so you know just how far the other groups have advanced in those ''only ten miles''."

    ... They barely made it a mile when all the connections to their consoles were lost. I''m really worried that the consoles had become completely inoperable, instead of just having their connections blocked. But even if that does happen, Luna says she should be able to pinpoint the location since she can calculate distances from maps down to inches. Still though, if possible I''d prefer to have the console. Plus, I want the damn thing to record my journey. Having it saved in a physical form instead of my soul realm sure would be nice to have.

    I watched a group of people shooting fireworks at one another until I heard the sounds of the dome''s walls on the left and right sides rising up. Soon after that the Leviathan entered the dome and slowed to a stop in front of us. Everyone was cheering, which seemed odd but I had to admit, it was an amazing sight.

    "My god... I can''t believe they call this a ''train''."

    Irvine laughed as he stood up. I got off the bench next and followed him toward one of the dozen entrances waiting for us.

    The ''train'' was around one mile long, but the impressive part was everything else. It looked like a futuristic train on the ground level, but built on top of it was something that looked like a fortress. There was a large amount of cannon barrels sticking out of it mixed with energy weapons and glass domes all around it that had weapons mounted on them. They were clearly meant to be manned, but I couldn''t see anyone inside of them.

    "Is it really true that nobody has ever been inside the fortress portion? The fortress part makes up like ninety-five percent of the Leviathan."

    Irvine nodded as we arrived at the open doors (which was a fifteen-foot wide glass partition that had detracted to one side), "Anyone who tries is immediately melted by the energy guns mounted on it, and no one has tried again in probably thirty years, since there''s plenty of documented history about what happens to those who attempt to enter it. But like I said before, you''re free to go anywhere inside the train itself. It''s also nice that the machines won''t approach it, nor will they fire at it."

    {It''s so cooool!! I never cared about power armor or tanks or any of that stupid stuff, but this is awesome!!}

    It really is... At first it looks odd when you see a bunch of energy weapons protruding out of the walls next to the cannons, but it''s bad ass looking no matter how I look at it.

    "I''d love to see this thing in action. Forget Viktor, I bet I could destroy his entire nation with this thing. Not that I''d be able to do that since it''s stuck on a set of a tracks."

    "Now you''re talking like a true Arcadian." Irvine smiled, "Every time someone here sees this thing, they want to control it for their own purposes. Most of the people here would destroy the machines though. You''re in the minority who would want to take it somewhere else."

    I looked around, watching all of the people boarding the train from it''s multiple entry points. Most of them were boarding, with a few groups being seen off by their family and friends. I just noticed that over half of them don''t even have any luggage. Uncle told me beforehand that it''s used as a tourist vehicle for those with money to spare on the on-board meals that are produced from god-knows-where. But it''s still surprising to see them treating it like a tourism vehicle... Or maybe it isn''t? Technically this thing is the safest place to be on Aetheria.

    "Alright Uncle, I''ll see you in about four months. I know you''re worn out and disinterested these days, but try and be ready for whatever the hell is going to happen after I come back."

    "You don''t need to worry about that. Bertram and I haven''t been this excited in years. I watched that old fucker grow up, so I know it when I look at him. He has that old glint in his eye."

    I said goodbye to my Uncle and boarded the train. The ''compartments'' were abnormally wide and not train-like at all. They appeared to be around one hundred feet wide, which meant that even if hundreds of people had boarded the train, it still felt like the train was abandoned. Right now there was only one group of people in my compartment and they were settling in to play some of the games in the corner of the room.

    I walked toward the back and entered the next compartment. It opened up to a room full of numbered doors on two different floors. I did what my Uncle told me to do and inserted my keypass into a nearby console. It flared to life and showed a long row of vacancies. I picked a nearby door on the first floor and it changed to ''taken'' on the console with my initials next to it.

    I took my keypass back and entered the nearby room. At first it looked like a regular luxurious room with a large bed, a couch, a table, and my own bathroom. Plus the machine that delivers food was in the corner, but that aside, it looked ordinary. However, the console had different themes on it that my Uncle swore would blow me away, and he was right.

    Underwater, fire, sky, translucent... It had all sorts of themes that would change the way the entire room looked. But as amazing as it all was (Luna absolutely loved all of them), I settled on translucent. It made the wall ninety-five percent see-through. So you could clearly see the outside while just barely recognizing that there was still a wall there.

    I took off my backpack and turned the recliner around so it was facing outside.

    "I was stupid to think it was odd that people were treating the Leviathan like a vehicle for tourism. It literally looks like that''s what it''s designed for. Although, the fortress on top sure looks like overkill... Greatly appreciated overkill given the situation on Caedrus, but overkill all the same."

    {It''s so weird that the trip to the codes is like a luxurious cruise. Mom showed me memories of the one Termia used to have before an Eldritch ate it and the people on-board.}

    "What a lovely story, but I''m not too worried about that happening here."

    {But don''t you think it''s weird?!}

    "It''s definitely bizarre... It really shows just how weak the people of Arcadia are compared to what is waiting for them out here. Those forts in the high threat zone are nice and all, but they''d be completely destroyed by the machines in the dead zone. So when I think about it like that, those forts almost look ephemeral. Dreams of what they wish they could do."

    And the codes are only ten miles from the place where I''ll be disembarking. I can''t stop thinking about that... It''s not hard to understand why Luna thinks it''s so weird. The luxury train ride is one thing, but the fact that their most coveted item is only ten miles away from the safety of the Leviathan is truly wild. I can''t even begin to imagine what I''m about to run into out there.

 Chapter 99 - Foreboding

    A plate with a massive steak and easy-over eggs on it slid out of the hole in the wall.

    .......

    Luna, can you go see where the food is coming from? Or just scout out the the fortress part of the train. I want to know what is inside this thing.

    {I tried already! I saw you watching me too, so why are you asking??}

    Oh, I thought she was humping the ceiling or something. I don''t know much about fairies, so I was trying to pretend like I didn''t see her doing that, but it seems she saw me looking at her anyway.

    Was there a barrier? I don''t feel anything when I touch the ceiling.

    {If there is one, I can''t sense it. There''s just something stopping me from going through the ceiling and walls.}

    Hmm... When we return home I''ll ask her to try and go through the walls inside of Arcadia. It might have something to do with the alloy they use in Caedrus.

    A buzzing sound occurred from the door, causing me to stop moments before I cut into the steak.

    {Why would anyone want to talk to you?}

    ... That cut deeper than it should have since she wasn''t even trying to be mean.

    Go check the door, please. I don''t feel like getting up right now.

    You can''t attack one another on the train without it vaporizing you, so she should be fine... Probably.

    I heard the door open behind me as a young boy shrieked with joy at the sight of Luna. He tried saying something but she quickly cut him off, "W-What do you two want..."

    Two of em huh? I can only sense one person behind me.

    I shoved a piece of steak into my mouth and turned the chair around to get a look at my visitors. One was a young boy in a nice green and white outfit with shoulder straps, and behind him was a seven foot tall person in an unknown suit of power armor. The suit must be blocking his aura. I didn''t know they had such an option... Interesting.

    One look at me and the joy on the boy''s face disappeared. He suddenly looked very nervous and kept glancing back at the person in the suit. I couldn''t hear it, but the body language of the person in the suit was obvious. They were sighing while shaking their head.

    "Hah, it''s okay boy, you don''t need to be that scared of me. I''d really love to know why you''re visiting me, so take a breather if you need to."

    The person in the suit stared at me as the boy literally did just that; he breathed in and out several times before looking at me with slightly more determination than he had before.

    "U-Um, Miss Reimia, I wanted to thank you on behalf of papa for bringing back our emblem! I get to go on the train now!"

    I heard a man''s voice chuckle through the suits speakers. He reached out and tapped the boy on the shoulder while shaking his head. The boy looked at him for a few seconds before coming to a realization. "Ah! I meant, uh, Clan Leader Seifer!"

    Seifer... Ahh, I remember that name when I looked up news regarding the Hothgars.

    "You''re welcome, little guy. I appreciate that your family hasn''t been trying to ''win me over'' or anything since then."

    My Uncle turned down their invitation to the celebration dinner and they got the hint through that to leave me alone. Unlike a certain other family.

    The man in the suit nodded at me, "The Clan Leader said we weren''t to bother you, but when the young master here saw you board the train, well..."

    "Aww! She may seem scary and weird, but don''t worry, Rei doesn''t mind!" Luna said, sticking her chest out proudly.

    ... She''s not wrong. A little interaction like this to say thank you is perfectly fine.

    "U-Um, then..." The boy trailed off. His guardian continued for him since it seemed the boy wasn''t going to stop fidgeting anytime soon.

    "Miss Reimia, is it true that you''re attempting to retrieve the core''s codes?"

    We''ve been on the train for a few days now, so I figured it had spread already, but I didn''t expect anyone to actually ask me about it.

    "Yes, it''s true. I assume everyone on the train is doing the full loop back to Arcadia, so I''ll be the only one disembarking along the way."

    "... If I may be honest, a lot of people want to know how you pulled it off the first time. Including me. So you must understand, the idea that you may do it again while we still don''t know how you did it the first time is driving a lot of people crazy. Half the clans are already convinced you''ll be bringing the codes back in a few months and are preparing accordingly, while the other half are dismissing it entirely. The Hothgars in the first group."

    "Preparing accordingly? What does that mean exactly?"

    "Honestly? Not all that much. However, it will unlock the sealed levels, so the second you return we''ll all be going into the new lower levels to see what''s down there." He continued, "But we''ve taken up enough of your time as it is. We''ll leave you to your meal now, and thank you for entertaining us, Miss Reimia." The man said before bowing.

    After the door closed I looked at Luna. "Sealed levels? I don''t remember hearing anything about those before?"

    Luna flew back to me and nestled into my soul.

    {Levels are those uh, R-things, right?}

    Yes, and from the looks of things, Bertram''s bar is located on a level that was never even finished. You remember those people who were shooting flares at the ceiling when we went to his bar a few days ago? It brought enough light to the ceiling that I was able to see up there. It looks like only the framing was done when the people there were wiped out.

    So where are the sealed levels then? Lower? Higher?

    I ate all of the steak and eggs before telling the console to call Yulong. He picked up after a few short rings.

    "You just left. Don''t tell me that something went wrong already."

    "No no, I just want to hear about the ''sealed levels''. One of the Hothgars... Guards? I don''t know what he was, but he was with one of Seifer''s kids. Anyway, he said that the core''s codes are going to unlock the sealed levels in Arcadia. What does that mean?"

    "Exactly what it suggests, but let me correct him on one point. It''s only theorized that they will unlock the R-90 to R-100 levels. The console only tells us that we don''t have access to those levels. Nothing more, nothing less."

    "I see..."

    Ahh, I love mysteries way too much. Now I''m also dying to know what''s down there.

    "That all? Then I shall talk to you again upon your return to the Leviathan." Yulong hung up the second he finished speaking.

    I could hear video game music through the speaker, so I know he wasn''t busy... But it''s fine, he already answered the only question I had for him.

    From there I continued to do the same thing I had done for the previous two days. I absentmindedly watched the world of Caedrus pass by the train. Ruins, snow, groups of people, vehicles, and the rare machine in the distance.

    Eventually though, I forced myself to enter my soul realm and try to make a black-blood building that was seamless and didn''t look like a complete mess after I turned it into an ether carrier. Hmm, ''ether generator'' is a better name for the buildings, while I''ll continue calling the mobile types ''carriers''.

    {Rei, Belfos is at seventy percent now. What are you going to do with him when he''s ready to be resurrected?}

    It''s kind of annoying that he''s only at seventy percent after all the souls I fed him on Mother. But as for what I''m going to do with him, I''m honestly not sure yet. If he obeys me like he did the wellspring then he''ll come in handy versus the machines. At the very least his mantis'' will serve as good disposable scouts.

    <hr>

    A week later I was staring at a large rectangular black building that was designed like a hotel. There was a couple of hallways for getting around in the building, but the rooms themselves were the places that''d be generating the ether. And the main entrance had a small room where you could control the entire building.

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    What do you think?

    {Eh, it''s okay... I like the tower more.}

    I do too, but its design is kind of bad for using it as an ether generator. If I do build towers, they''ll need another purpose. Which means they''d end up as watchtowers and places I''d stay in if there''s ever multiples of them in the world. They''re not easy to build though, so I don''t know when such a time would even come.

    <hr>

    I waited at the doors for the train to stop. There was a crowd behind me, with most of them recording me while talking to one another or to people they knew back in Arcadia.

    A few minutes later the Leviathan came to a stop at a desolate train station. Most of it was falling apart and it looked like it had been ravaged by time just like everything else in Caedrus.

    "Good luck, Miss Reimia!" The little boy from Hothgar said from behind me, causing everyone else to start cheering as well.

    {Hehe, you''re a bit of a star now!}

    ... I''ve never been treated like this before, so I''m not quite sure how to feel. But it does feel kind of good?

    I said goodbye to everyone and stepped off the train. I exited its barrier as I did, and immediately I felt like I was in a completely different environment. The air was thin, very thin. And for whatever reason I could tell I weighed less as well.

    {It''s like we''re in space or something...}

    Looking up, I could see the stars and moons of Mother clearly. There was also one planet that appeared much closer than it did from Arcadia in the rare instances that the sky wasn''t covered by clouds. Amazing how different everything looks over here...

    I glanced back at the train. Everyone was still recording me through the open door. And probably the transparent wall too. It takes so long for the train to begin moving again from these stations... Should I just turn invisible and leave now? After they have the core''s codes they should be plenty busy with everything that happens afterwards. Also, I''ll have my money so I''ll be preparing to leave anyway. But that''s assuming nothing goes wrong, and something always does.

    I walked over to a dilapidated bench covered in snow and sat down on it.

    {Waiting for them to leave? So cautious... Boo!!}

    Ignoring Luna, I brought up the console and looked at my destination. Directly ahead of me, huh?

    There was a large open field full of snow covering my view. It was undisturbed and motionless, like everything else I could see. No wind. No sound of any kind.

    {This place is scary, Rei...}

    I''m not physically effected by things like fear anymore, but she can probably sense it through my soul that I''m feeling a little worried.

    It''s beautiful, but I''m feeling really anxious as well. It''s so lifeless and empty, which is something I''d normally enjoy, however, when I know what''s hiding in the ruins past this field... It''s really hard to enjoy the scenery.

    Past the unmoving snow field was more ruins, but these ones looked very different. They were tall and far more compact instead of spread out like a suburb would be. As a result, I couldn''t see what was inside of them.

    Eventually the Leviathan''s out-of-place chime began to ring, telling everyone that it was going to leave soon. I looked back and waved at everyone inside the train still looking at me.

    A couple of minutes later the Leviathan began to move. I turned invisible and watched it disappear into the distance until the only thing I could hear was a slight banging sound off in the distance. I couldn''t hear that while the train was here, and even now I can still barely hear it.

    I grabbed the backpack and placed it on my lap. After pushing a few things out of the way I found what I was looking for, the bird summon I had saved from Mother. It feels like a waste to have it die here and not have it serve its original purpose, but I need to know what happens if I try flying over here.

    I told the bird to exit its hibernation and fly off toward the ruins while continually ascending into the sky. The bird quickly took off and began to fly through the air awkwardly. Oh right, the air is thin here, so now the damn thing is burning through mana just to fly.

    The bird was about two-thirds of the way toward the ruins and well above them in height when it was completely vaporized. A loud bang rang out soon after the bird died, telling me the shot was from much farther away, but I was barely able to see what had hit it.

    Pfft, so flying is definitely not an option here. I knew it wouldn''t be but still, holy shit...

    I entered my soul realm and brought up the memory of the bird dying. I replayed it several times, slowing down each time until I could clearly see what had hit it.

    {A cannonball? So archaic!}

    I really hope you''re not surprised right now. The Leviathan had all sorts of cannons sticking out of it. In fact, doesn''t one of the most used mechs have a cannon arm on it?

    {O-Okay fine, I get it already... But it''s still weird though?}

    I exited my soul realm and began to run toward the ruins in the distance. On the way I could see that the ''ruins'' were only a couple of buildings that seemed to go on forever. I had seen plenty of buildings over the years that encompassed a city block, as that seems to be the normal in many places, but nothing quite like what I was seeing right now.

    {If you can''t fly, then is your only choice to run back this way if something happens?}

    Either that or duck into one of these buildings. No clue yet if that''ll make things better or worse though.

    Probably worse.

    I walked into the wide street (or whatever it was) and continued forward until a blast of some sort knocked me backwards a little. It wasn''t powerful by any means, but it caught me off guard, as I hadn''t seen a single thing approaching me.

    Once my feet stopped sliding along the snow I heard the console on my wrist die.

    ... Well, now we know what had killed the previous group''s consoles.

    {Was that an, um... EMP? That was the name, right?}

    Yes, that''s the name, but consoles should reboot after an EMP hits it. Stalkers use EMPs and that''s what always happens in Stalker battles, or so I''ve read. But it''s not rebooting, and pushing the power button does nothing, so it must be a more powerful one. But the more pressing question is whether something hit us with it because it sees me, or that was an automatic pulse that goes off on its own.

    {Uuu... I already want to go home.}

    Says the fairy who was beyond excited for this mission before we boarded the Leviathan.

    I waited a few seconds to make sure nothing else was going to happen, and when I was sure that was it I continued moving forward again. Walking of course, not running. And on the way I could see that the snow had been crushed by something at multiple points all over the entire street.

    At least it won''t be possible to deviate off course. It''s just a straight forward walk after all. But please tell me whenever I''m one mile closer to the marker, okay?

    A white dot appeared in the distance and a floating number appeared slightly above my eyeline as well. It currently read ''9.3271'' and was continually decreasing.

    That works too. Thanks, Luna.

    Besides a feeling of joy emanating from her, she said nothing in response, and we both remained silent as I moved forward. On both sides of me the buildings were far from as high-tech as I had expected them to be on this side of Caedrus. At the very least they were nothing like the building I had seen after exiting Victoria''s mirror.

    Sometimes the buildings had windows, sometimes they had large round bronze or steel structures jutting out of them for no reason. There were towers sticking out in some places, large platforms sticking out of the roofs, gaps in parts of the wall that lead to nothing... The structures were full of nonsense like that. I could only think that the architect had gone mad.

    As the number in front of me hit ''6.218'' a part of the wall on my right opened up. I jumped all the way to the left-side buildings and clung to the wall.

    Soon after that six quadrupedal turtle-shaped machines walked out of the wall. They had large red eyes in front of them---

    {Is that teeth...? It looks like teeth below their eyes! But uh, they look kind of weak?}

    They do, actually, but I''m sure as hell not about to put that theory to the test.

    I waited on the wall until the six machines walked far off to the right before I dropped down and continued toward the marker. However, before I fully turned around I saw the weird steel and bronze spheres attached to some of the buildings slightly open up. A dim red eye appeared inside them, and they watched the six machines walk past them.

    .......

    Unsure of what to make of it, I turned and continued toward the market, but this time I decided to run. I was emitting a little sound now, but until something actually took note of it I wanted to move as fast as possible. The sooner I got the codes and left, the better. I might even be able to catch up to the Leviathan if I''m fast enough. Assuming the tracks aren''t a hotbed of machines when the Leviathan isn''t around.

    5...

    4...

    3...

    2...

    1...

    Along the way I passed by a couple of spheres and nothing more. But unfortunately, it seems I had come upon my first roadblock.

    You''re positive this is the place, Luna?

    {Yes, and you know what that means. So, you know, figure it out. The longer we''re here the scareder I am...}

    Hmm...

    I was still in the ''street'', but the number said I was a mile away, which meant it was either above me, or below me.

    Well, this is going to be fun. I see no doors on these buildings, nor do I know how to make the walls open up like they did before, so...

    I ran back a little until I reached a part of the building that had a window. I glanced around real quick, seeing nothing but a couple of spheres with closed eyes in the distance. To prevent them from hearing it (assuming they could), I created a mesh and stuck it onto the glass before breaking it. The mesh absorbed most of the sound and I didn''t see the spheres look at me, so it must have been enough.

    I jumped through the window, landing in what looked like a school classroom filled with with long tubes and wires going everywhere. This place makes about as much sense as I had expected it to.

    I exited into the nearby hallway, which was thankfully not cluttered with tubes and wires, but I could see doors everywhere, which meant that I was going to be here for a while.

    I went through one door after another. Nothing I found made any sense, just like it had outside. However, after doing that for a couple of hours, I finally found a room that did make sense at the bottom of a flight of stairs I had just descended.

    It was a relatively small room with one U-shaped table in it. A white board was on one side of it, and a large map was currently tacked onto the white board. While the rest of the room was filled with the usual things you''d find in a meeting room. A coffee machine, water jug, lamps, pens, papers, consoles, etc. The only thing that was slightly odd at first was the three chairs that were double the size of the human-sized chairs.

    {Rei, there!}

    Luna put an aura over a small object that was placed on one of the side tables. I walked up to it and picked it up. It was a picture frame, featuring six men and women in white coats, and two familiar looking aliens in grey coats.

    Those are the aliens with elongated heads that I saw in the Abyss... The ones that lived in large homes in the city, and the very same ones depicted on the mural that crash landed on Veca.

    I put the picture frame down and walked over to the map. It was a large map of Caedrus, and it said the area we were currently in was the ''training zone''.

    In what world is this place a fucking training zone? It looks like something a child designed and some madman actually created.

    The map showed Arcadia and hundreds of other cities. It also showed a few other places on the western side, but almost all of them had the name ''factory'' in them. Also, most interesting of all was the ''portal'' in the darklands to the west. There were red arrows pointing out of it across the bridge, while there were green arrows from Caedrus intercepting them. It''s obvious what this means. They were being invaded by something from a portal over in the darklands... I''m looking forward to seeing what the core says about this.

    Lastly, I saw something that had really caught my interest. There was a small red circle close to the dividing line between the dead zone and high threat zone, and the only text next to it said: ''God - 72%''.

 Chapter 100 - The Final Prelude

    ~2,000+ Years ago~

    ~Planet Zebal~

    The Sovereign ''Jahar'' looked out upon the masses, struggling to contain his smile, which his aide and long-time friend quickly picked up on.

    "Lord Sovereign, there is no need for you to be so stoic in front of your people today. If anything, they want you to be happy, perhaps even ecstatic, as I''m sure you are." The aide said, ending with a wide smile.

    "... A great point, my old friend. I fear I''m so used to appearing emotionless that it''s become second habit."

    The two men began to laugh, which delighted the onlookers far more than the Sovereign expected, but it was a very pleasing surprise to the man. Everything was about to change after all, and he wanted this moment to be remembered indefinitely as the happiest moment of every attendee''s lives.

    The Sovereign glanced at the construct his people had worked on for over two centuries now. He was a young boy when they started, and was personally on the front lines of every war that took place because of the unintelligent masses who could not understand the former Sovereigns brilliance. No one denied what he found all those years ago, for it was recorded and distributed to all allied and enemy nations in the confederation. The portal, the faceless creatures, the voice from beyond...

    The aide tapped him on his shoulder, knocking the Sovereign out of his daydream. He nodded at his friend in thanks before approaching the podium. Once he stood in front of the microphone the entire crowd (over one hundred thousand attendants) went quiet.

    "My people... The day has finally arrived."

    The crowd erupted into cheers, causing the Sovereign to laugh again. He elatedly shook his head and motioned for the crowd to quiet down.

    "And you know that I share in your joy. All the wars, all the death, the countless famines due to blockades and biochemical attacks from our enemies... That''s all behind us now. And most importantly, we get to tell our enemies that everything they did WAS FOR NOTHING!!"

    He raised his arms high while looking at the construct. The crowd cheered yet again as everyone marveled at the machine that would usher in a new era for the entire universe. The Shindo''rai, the Egnoks, the Tevrans, and so on. Also, even the lesser species who have yet to discover space travel would benefit from what they were doing here today. Ah, that reminds me! I read a report that the creatures known as ''Humans'' have recently managed to exit into space and land on their nearby moon. We will need to invite them into the federation in the coming days, and the timing couldn''t possibly be better for them!

    He turned back to the microphone, "We do this for everyone we lost, and to save all who have survived until today." Some people in the crowd cried, some cheered, some merely nodded. He understood every single emotion they were feeling, for he felt it too.

    The faceless creatures were emerging from every corner of the universe, and not only that, but other alien species were appearing from the uncharted zones as well. But most worrying of all, was that the faceless creatures were creating biological means of traveling from planet to planet, and some of them have even flown from one galaxy to another. There was a new alien species discovered that seemed hellbent on purging the galaxy of the creatures, but when the Sovereign tried to make contact, his ambassador''s ship was eviscerated, so peace was clearly not something they were interested in, and he had no intentions on hoping for this ''enemy of his enemy'' to save everyone.

    "The fools who split up the federation in order to wage war on all of us, the loyal ones who wished to follow the Sovereign''s dream of bridging the gap between our realm and the realm of souls has made this our only form of salvation. Too many lives have been lost, and some of our planets are now completely inhospitable. We are in no position to even discuss whether this is the correct path, as it''s now become the ONLY path we can take!"

    He motioned for the engineers to begin. They rushed to their positions and began to power up the construct - A three mile long and two mile high machine that would require the entire planets electric grid to power it, and even that wouldn''t be enough for very long, but they were all certain that once the realms were bridged, the ''Heaven''s Gate'' (the construct) would no longer have a purpose.

    "But there is no need to worry about any of that anymore. Soon we will have direct access to the realm of souls. Immortality, infinite mana, infinite resources... Soon we will have NOTHING to fear, for everyone and everything else will fear US!!"

    The lights on the island and the surrounding cities all turned off as preparation to power the Heaven''s Gate was underway. But the people weren''t in complete darkness, as the construct itself began to give off a brilliant white glow the that increased in intensity as it powered up.

    The Sovereign was worried that his people may be frightened in this eleventh hour, but all he could see in the crowd was a look of reverence on the people''s faces. Tears of joy, laughing, smiling, and some were even entering prayer poses.

    The only question left is what kind of ''gate'' is going to come out of this thing. In all the mini-tests we''ve run, the gateway was completely random. Some quite literally looked like a gate, while others were shaped like rings in varying sizes, and a couple formed into small bands of light that dissipated at their end points.

    Seven minutes later, he got his answer. A large band of golden light emerged from Heaven''s Gate, which was a beautiful moment, but there were a few problems he could see right away. First; it was also going down into the planet. What this meant for the planet he wasn''t sure, but he imagined it wasn''t going to be good. And second; the band was continuing to shoot up into space unabated. He was going to order the engineers to turn off Heaven''s Gate, but it had already turned off all on its own.

    As he watched it expand further into space, he noticed something else. He thought he was hearing things at first, but when the band of light first appeared, he could hear something cracking, and now the cracking sound was becoming far more intense. The people were jumping for joy throughout most of the event, as they should be, but the cracking was becoming so loud that most of them stopped cheering and were instead looking around worried with their hands over their ears.

    The Sovereign tried to say something into the microphone, but his voice was sadly not amplified, and that''s when he remembered that it currently had no power going to it. With no other option, he was going to shout over the crowd using a sonic ability of his, to at least let them know he was still with them and to not worry, but that''s when the world ''dropped''.

    It felt like he was in an elevator going down, but his vision was telling two different stories. It looked like the entire world was falling, but at the same time he couldn''t actually tell if anything was moving at all. However, he could tell that everyone was experiencing the same sensation as him when it suddenly stopped. It was only briefly, but it felt like the ''elevator'' had abruptly stopped for a second, causing him and everyone else to buckle at the knees, with a few people falling straight onto the ground. One lady fell down and dropped her baby in the process, but right before she could pick her up, the world began to ''fall'' again.

    This process repeated for several minutes, and every time it stopped this loud crashing sound would accompany it. The dropping, the cracking, the crashing, they ramped up in intensity until suddenly it all came to a stop. Jahar and everyone else on the island slammed into the ground as the world ''crashed'' one last time.

    A familiar feeling... Jahar thought to himself as his ears rang incessantly. He slowly opened his eyes, finding the world dizzy as his head felt like it was doing laps around itself. The same feeling he experienced several times in war after explosions had gone off in his general vicinity, leaving him on the ground in much the same manner he was now.

    Slowly but surely everyone managed to climb to their knees as the dizziness began to fade.

    "J-Jahar, what just...?" His aid said before entering a fit of coughing. His friend never called him his name in public, as was custom, but in this moment no one here was even thinking about such improprieties.

    Jahar looked up at the band of light. The end of it was far away at this point, but he could still tell it was continuing to extend through space. However, that''s also when he noticed that the wind had picked up quite a bit. There had been a small breeze here and there throughout the night, but nothing like this. It was at least a seven on the Kurgen scale (forty miles an hour).

    Red streaks of lightning shot through the sky, lighting up the area and causing a wave of fear to stir through the crowd. Not just because of the lightning, but because it was lighting up the sea. The waves were crashing hard against the rocks, which was worrying in itself since they were calm only a little bit ago, but the fear was truly coming from the presence of ten or more large tentacles rising out of the sea.

    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    By now everyone was standing up again, but part of the crowd fell back onto the ground as their knees gave out at the sight of the monster rising out of the sea. It was enormous, almost bigger than the island itself. The large spherical monster continued to rise above the water as the crowd screamed in horror. That is, until the monster opened its one great eye that encapsulated over half of its entire frame.

    The screams stopped as the monster''s gaze pierced everyone there, causing their bodies to completely lock up. Despite the fact that he couldn''t move his body, despite the fact that his mind and soul were overridden with fear, Jahar managed to have one last coherent thought before he and the entire crowd were forcibly put to sleep.

    Our enemies were right in the end... It looks like we truly were the mad ones.

    <hr>

    ~Current Day~

    ~Reimia~

    The air system kicked on, making me jump in surprise.

    {J-Jeez!! Your emotions hit me directly while I''m in here you know?!}

    Sorry about that... I almost never get hit by jump scares like that, but it''s been so damn quiet since we left the train, and the only thing I hear in this building is a low humming sound that seems to extend everywhere.

    I placed my hand over the air vent. It''s warm, and I''m only just now realizing that the building is full of oxygen. Err, probably not so much anymore since I busted that one window open, and that does explain the weird gust of wind I felt after I busted the window.

    {Rei, they have no ''Gods'' here. I''ve asked the others.}

    You talking about that weird note on the board? ''God - 72%''? Yeah, I don''t know what that''s about, but just like everything else here, the core should answer that for us.

    At least I hope it does.

    I left the meeting(?) room and continued down the corridor, checking one door after another. Unlike on the second floor, things seemed much more normal down here. Meeting rooms, lounges, shared bunks, kitchens, etc.

    There''s also an ungodly amount of weapons and power suits too... I''ve found some Tyranium suits and several other types I haven''t seen yet.

    I entered a large room which was obviously the war room that apparently coupled as a lounge. Most of it was one massive table with a hundred chairs around it, while off to the side there was several couches and a single massive TV. Below it was a few game consoles which looked completely out of place.

    I pressed one button after another on the table until finally it lit up and a 3D map appeared above it. It was a map of Caedrus and it was visually showing the trajectory of both enemy and allied forces over the course of the last six months before the purge wiped the people here out.

    {Wow... They lost over a million people in six months? And the enemy only lost one hundred thousand?! What kind of monsters were they fighting???}

    I don''t know, but I''m going to assume the purge wiped them out too. Unless they were the machines...? I don''t see anything detailing what died on either side. It just says casualties. And nothing I''m finding around here is really telling me much of anything either. Although, I''m not exactly combing this place for information since I''m here for something else. I''m only taking a quick glance around as I try to find the way down.

    I left the war room and kept checking rooms until finally I found another staircase down, and this one went much further than one floor.

    It looks like this goes down quite a ways... Luna, tell me when I''m even with it.

    {Stop at each floor then, please.}

    I did as she asked, stopping at each doorway we came upon, and on the fifty one she said ''This is it... I think?''

    Good enough for me.

    I tried opening the door but it was locked.

    Can you try going through the door?

    {And unlock it from the other side? But that''s a keypass swiper, and uh, my physical manipulation spell is really hard to use...}

    Concerning both those worries; I know, but please try anyways, okay?

    {Okay!}

    She went from apprehensive to excited in the span of a few seconds... I could have ripped the door off its hinges but if possible I''d prefer to not make any noise. There hasn''t been anything in here so far, but that doesn''t mean it really is devoid of enemies. Especially since I saw those machines come out of the building adjacent to this one.

    The door dinged and opened up soon after that. As I pulled it open Luna flew back into my chest.

    {Boring. It was just a big stupid button I had to push.}

    After turning invisible again I walked through the door and sure enough, there was a monitor that I presumed was used to show people on the other side of the door, and there was a big button below it with the words ''Open / Lock'' written on it.

    In front of me was a long hallway with rooms on both sides of it, but these ones were made almost entirely of glass, and they were completely different from the rooms I was previously in.

    All of the rooms were clearly used as laboratories, but they had been completely overrun by vegetation. The ground I was walking on was covered in moss and thick bramble.

    {Rei, it''s trying to infect your soul.}

    I know. Not what I expected out of a bunch of plants, and it kind of feels like there''s an intent of some sort behind it, but this was a lab after all, so who the hell knows what they were making in here. It must''ve grew out of control after the people here disappeared.

    I walked down the long hallway until I came upon a doorway without a door. Inside the room ahead of me I could see the door was on the ground, barely visible through all of the vegetation.

    I stopped at the doorway and peaked inside. Tables, consoles, wires, machinery of all sorts lined the room, and it was massive in size.

    {Rei, up!}

    Heeding her call, I looked up and saw a large spherical machine with ten legs and four large wire-like legs attaching it to the ceiling and walls.

    {Teeth again... So creepy and weird on a robot---Ah!}

    I noticed it the same time she did. Something locked onto me from above, and it was obvious what it was.

    The ''Eye'' on the machine opened up, revealing a pinkish-red eye surrounded by sharp teeth, and it was looking directly at me of course. *Yet another one with a massive eye and now this one also has teeth surrounding it like the ones outside did.*

    The machine didn''t move as I removed my veil and activated my halo. Even after I was ready for it to attack me, it just stared at me, unmoving.

    ?

    I walked back and forth near the entryway and it just continued to watch me.

    {Maybe it''s waiting for you to come further into the room? You can easily run away near the door right now.}

    Hmm...

    The numerical display on my vision read ''0.02'', telling me it was in this room, and probably in or near the consoles in front of me, which were directly underneath the machine.

    {I can tell it has mana and an aura, but it''s not probing you or channeling an attack, so it has to be waiting. What are you going to do? I already know, since I know we can''t leave without the codes, but still...}

    I slowly walked over toward the consoles, keeping my eyes on the machine, which is exactly what it did in kind. Kept its eye on me.

    I reached the consoles and it still didn''t move.

    ... Okay, fuck this. If it attacks, it attacks. Luna, warn me if it moves even a little.

    {Ugh, I-I''ll do my best!}

    I didn''t need to power the consoles up, as they were already on and thankfully on their main menus, bypassing any need for a password.

    I clicked through the folders, and found that most of them were images and videos of what had taken place here in their experiments, while a couple of them were filled with text files.

    Anything?

    {Nope, just staring.}

    I skimmed through one of the files looking for anything of interest, but came up short... Kind of. Nothing on the core codes, but I did know what the experiment here was about now. This was one of hundreds of labs, and this one was tasked with two things. One; repairing the atmosphere. It didn''t say what was destroying it, but it was apparently not always like this. And two; to keep tabs on Arcadia''s progress. They needed to make sure it was going to be ready for ''The Grand Voyage'', and this was tasked to them because the head scientist here just so happened to be the brother of the woman leading Arcadia''s construction. They decided it was best that these two could be trusted the most to prevent anyone from prematurely launching Arcadia.

    The word launching being next to Arcadia really caught my interest, but that wasn''t why I was here, so I went through all of the other text files one by one, until I finally found it.

    {Is that really it...?}

    I thought you were looking at the spider?

    {I can pay attention to many different things when I''m inside someone''s soul, stupid.}

    I read the notes of the head scientist here several times to make sure it was definitely what I was looking for, but I had no way of knowing if it was going to work or not without telling the others to test it.

    This time I went through every text file without skimming, but in the end that''s all I could find in relation to the core''s ''codes'', which was more of a trick to get the engine and other bays to unlock. ''Engine'', huh? So it really is a ship...

    I checked the other consoles just in case, which led to a bunch more photos showing the team working, partying, playing games, etc. But nothing about the codes.

    Alright, I guess that''s it then... Here''s hoping that actually works. Pretty clever of them honestly. There''s no way of finding the right numerical input by going one by one, since there are no ''codes'' to begin with. It''s instead a simple manner of opening and closing a subset of programs and folders in a specific *very long* order. The siblings liked this approach when it came to hiding information.

    I looked up at the spider who continued to watch me unmovingly. I backed up while keeping my eyes on the machine, one step at a time, until it finally moved as I reached the doorway. Its ''lids'' moved in a way that made it look like it was smiling, and I swear I could see one of its limbs waving goodbye to me.

    ... Thoughts?

    {I can''t tell if it''s happy or mocking you. I don''t get it...}

    I have a really bad feeling about this now. Am I crazy in thinking this thing wants me to unseal the bottom levels of Arcadia?

    {Maybe? I don''t know it''s all just so weird, especially since it''s not attacking you!}

    There''s that too... I''ll talk to Yulong and the others first before making any decisions when I''m back home. Whatever decision they decide on, I''ll go with. And I need the money from this expedition too, so there''s that.

    {Isn''t everyone expecting you to return with the codes too? You can''t just show up empty handed now, right? Won''t uh, something bad happen?}

    Shit, I forgot about that... Well whatever. It''s not like I haven''t come up against hard decision with unknown variables before. Whatever happens, happens. So for now, let''s head home, Luna.

    I turned around and walked through the entryway, feeling the mocking gaze of the machine digging into my back as I left.

 Chapter 101 - One Last Try

    {Rei, it''ll be here soon.}

    About time...

    I stopped shaping the building in front of me and exited my soul realm.

    Sensing anything above us?

    {Nothing for over a week!}

    I punched through the loose dirt and turned invisible before climbing back onto the ground next to the train station''s bench I had sat on previously.

    After sitting on the bench I looked around and found a few large footsteps in the snow traveling south, but that was it. No machines around as usual. Although I could still hear that loud banging past the ''training zone'', and there was a hail of gunfire emanating from somewhere north of me.

    I sat there in silence watching the lifeless environment and ruins for about twenty minutes before I finally saw the train off in the distance.

    {I want to see it kill some machines... We didn''t see it happen once on the way here.}

    I''d love to see that as well since everyone has talked about how powerful the Leviathan is, but I have yet to see it with my own eyes. The video footage of it killing machines is restricted for whatever fucking reason, so they better give me access to those videos after I hand over the ''codes''.

    That''s assuming I do give them the means to unlock the sealed levels and information... I feel like the others are going to say to just do it though, and I do want to be paid for this. Plus, I really want to know what is going to be in any data logs that are locked up.

    The Leviathan came to a stop behind me. I had already removed my invisibility a minute ago so nobody could see it, so I stood up from the bench and walked through the train''s barrier, but I almost fell back in surprise at what awaited me inside.

    "WHOOA!! SHE REALLY DID SURVIVE OUT HERE?!"

    The massive compartment I exited from last time had barely one hundred people in it previously, but it was now housing at least three thousand.

    What the hell...?

    {Hehe, they wanted to see if you''d actually make it back, but uh, doesn''t this mean they''ll definitely be expecting those codes then?}

    A man stepped forward until he was a few feet away from me. "Hey, uh, did you seriously get the codes? There''s no way, right?"

    The crowd went silent and stared at me, waiting to see what kind of answer I''d give.

    I shook my head, "I''d love to give you guys positive news, but the codes were locked in an area I couldn''t get access to no matter what I tried. This isn''t like emblems, this mission requires more than just reaching the goal apparently. I''m sorry, everyone, but I plan on trying again after asking the clans and others for help. Surely someone will know how to get past that vault door."

    At first everyone looked down, but by time I finished speaking most of them were looking thoughtful.

    "A vault huh... It makes sense that it''d be in such an area, yeah?" One man said to his friend.

    Another person went to ask a question but I waved my hand and cut him off. "Sorry, everyone, but I''m really tired right now, so I''m going to head back to my cabin for now."

    {Lies, lies, lies.~}

    Most everyone there seemed understanding considering where I had just came from, but there were others that were clearly annoyed that I wasn''t going to say any more than that.

    Before anyone could say anything else I said my goodbyes and powerwalked toward my room (I hadn''t signed out of my previous room yet). However, right before I reached the door that lead to the hotel area, one last person called out to me.

    "U-Um, Miss Reimia?"

    I glanced back and saw two girls there. One Elf, and one Kitsune. Haven''t seen too many of those in Caedrus... Maybe a dozen tops?

    "Yes?" I asked, despite already knowing what they wanted.

    "May we join you? I''m very good at giving massages, and Lucy here, well..." The two girls looked at each other and giggled.

    {H-HONEYTRAP!! DON''T DO IT! I SAW THIS A LOT IN TELEBRON!}

    Normally I would have happily accepted. I mean my god, look at them.... However.

    I stole a glance at the group of people the two ladies had been with before they approached me. Just from one look at them I knew exactly what they were all plotting to do.

    {However, what?}

    You can''t tell? I thought you could see multiple things in there Little Fairy? Just take a look at the group these two girls were with before they talked to me. They look like they''re up to no good, you can see it in their faces and their behaviors.

    {? But they''re just standing around talking? A few are looking at you, but that''s all...}

    Looks like she still has a long way to go when it comes to sizing people up. I''d say this is a medium-level test for her. They''re hiding their intentions, sure, but anyone who is used to dealing with those who take from others willingly becomes used to seeing all of the signs beforehand.

    "Sorry ladies, I''d love to, but for the time being I want to be alone."

    "Aww, are you su---"

    I opened the door behind me and ran straight through it and the hotel until I was back in my room.

    {What was that?! Why did you suddenly run away? Did something happen?}

    My will was wavering when she pushed her breasts together, and I really didn''t want to have to kill all of those people.

    {Huh?}

    ... Luna, what did the Leviathan''s rules say about combat on board the train? We read up on them after that Hothgar kid visited us last time, remember?

    {Um, no fighting anywhere or it''ll hurt you. Anywhere from light electric attacks to paralyze you, to obliterating you with energy weapons. It depends on the offense... I think?}

    Right, except you''re forgetting the part where it says the hotel rooms aren''t included, because those are your spaces while you have purchased them. Anyone you let into your room is your problem to deal with, and nobody can force their way in, so the only way they could get in here was with that ''honeytrap'' you mentioned and then opening the door from the inside for their friends.

    {Oh... Oh! Now I get it. But would they really be stupid enough to attack someone who could survive out here alone?}

    Of course. The world is filled with greedy stupid people, and they may have had abilities that were great at restraining people. I severely doubt I''d lose since I would''ve attacked them the moment they opened the door, but still, it wasn''t worth the risk.

    It would clearly be self defense and not cause any issues in Arcadia under normal circumstances. But I''m sure they''d use it as an excuse to harass me. Probably by trying to force me to work with the big clans or something, which would anger me and I''d need to kill a bunch more people. The problem with that, is my Uncle and the others could get caught up in the backlash, so it''s all around better if I just avoid that scenario entirely.

    I activated the hotel room''s console and called Yulong. He picked up after a few rings had passed.

    "Good news?"

    "... I''m not sure. I have the ''codes'', but there''s a bit of a problem. Or at least I think there is? I know you don''t like being around other people, but can the people I trust come to your place or perhaps you could meet us at their bar? I want to run my thoughts past all of you before I hand the codes over."

    "Interesting... After seeing your abilities I knew you''d succeed, but for their to be a problem despite this monumental feat is something that no one here has ever even considered. The ''acquiring'' part was already an impossibility in itself." He continued after a slight pause, "As for the meeting; I am fine with either approach, but I really should get out more... Perhaps I will go to the bar. Except I would appreciate it if you escorted me there."

    I know he''s worried that someone will try and kill him, so that''s fine.

    "Yeah, that''s not a problem. Plus, it''d be easier to show you the way anyway instead of explaining it. Things are a little weird down in R-72."

    "Your friends live in the bowels of Arcadia? I''ve never been there before, but I must admit, I''m surprisingly excited to see what it''s like down there."

    After a little more banter I hung up on Yulong and called my Uncle. He agreed to meet up the day after I was due to arrive back in Arcadia.

    I laid down on the bed and watched the scenery outside through the transparent wall.

    {He said ''impossible'', but you did it with ease. Is that why invisibility is something that nobody else can unlock as an ability, and the cloaking spell costs way too much mana to use?}

    You mean that the universe itself seems to go out of its way to reject it as a concept? It does feel like it. You can cast all sorts of insane shit in our world if you don''t screw it up and are given enough time, but invisibility seems to be something it really doesn''t want people to have access to. Either that or everyone is failing miserably at unlocking it.

    It doesn''t help that a surprisingly small amount of people actually put in the effort to unlock abilities and learn spells. It takes a massive amount of time, and most of it is mind-bogglingly boring. And that''s just for the ones that are already proliferated throughout the world, so people know the steps to learn them. Creating new spells or abilities is far more difficult, and they have no way of knowing if the thousands of hours they''re spending are actually going to end with them actually being rewarded for all of the effort they''ve put in.

    Plus, there is also the fact that most people are just lazy. Which leads to war-thirsty Eldritch societies being the only ones that actually create new spells and abilities, but those societies almost always end up being destroyed in the end. So anything they learned disappears with them. I can think of one society that''s probably different though. I bet Viktor has an entire department setup that purely focuses on creating new spells and abilities. I''d love to get my hands on anything they''ve learned.

    ... Speaking of Viktor.

    I turned the TV on and had it connect to the nearby console. I then looked up news on the ''outside world'' (anywhere outside Caedrus).

    {They''re still fighting the Abyssal monster in Telebron... Wait, what?!} Luna exclaimed in shock as she reached the part of the news talking about the portals, and it was definitely not something I ever expected to hear or read. The portals on Arcadia had all been disabled. According to the Eldritch, it was the Abyss'' fault since they currently owned the wellspring.

    Is that possible, Luna? Aresa never mentioned anything about controlling the portals here.

    {It is, but why would they disable them? The Eldritch can still move between worlds without them so long as Mother allows it.}

    ... Hmm. From what we''ve seen the Abyss can make their own portals, but I don''t know if that''s only because of the Demon General they are currently controlling. But uh, Luna? How does one go about traveling to Mother with her permission? I really don''t want to be trapped here until the war in Telebron is over. Assuming the Eldritch even do win in the end.

    {We''d um, have to ask for permission at one of the portals. I don''t think she''ll give us permission though?}

    Fuck it, whatever. Arcadia is a spaceship apparently. I''ll just fly the whole damn thing into Gaia if I have to. I don''t know how I''ll do that, but if that''s what I have to do in the end, then that''s what I''m going to do.

    I stopped scrolling through the news when I reached a page that showed Viktor and Vi raising their hands triumphantly before a crowd with tens of thousands of people in it. The paper said that people no longer needed to worry, and that Viktor had made a full recovery.

    The article went on to explain that he had been struggling to repair his body after taking a devastating attack during the destruction of Telebron. His soul was in disarray from the damage, making it impossible for him or others to properly heal his body. That''s why he was gone from the public eye. He was resting while slowly healing his soul back to its original form.

    {Devastating attack... But didn''t he warp away from Telebron?}

    He did, but maybe it was that lightning sphere I sent after him? I know it picks up speed and damage as it travels, but for it to have almost killed him outright... Just how far away did he teleport for it to do that much damage? I can''t believe I almost got my revenge from that random attack I did... I wonder if there''s video of the moment the sphere hit him? I bet it''s fucking hilarious.

    I scrolled through a few more articles but there wasn''t much about the outside world. Arcadia only cares about Caedrus after all.

    I turned the TV off and went back to staring outside. It was beautiful, no doubt about that, but over time I was beginning to understand why Caedrus was treated as some sort of never-ending horror. There''s a creeping dread you feel outside of Arcadia, and it only gets worse over time, as I was now beginning to experience.

    <hr>

    "I failed. Can I go?"

    Shannon narrowed her eyes at me. "Can you explain how you failed? You survived out there, and everyone is going to want to know how you did it. Are you going to cut that part out of your video feed again?"

    "I can''t show you my feed because the console was forcibly shutdown and needs to be repaired. At most you''ll see up to the point where I got hit with that EMP blast."

    Shannon sighed, "So yours was disrupted in some way too... A lot of us were really hoping it wouldn''t happen to you too, but I suppose that was too much to ask since it''s happened to every single group who went out there. And hopefully there aren''t any problems that arise from this. You have a very good reason for not having any feed to show this time, but they were already annoyed enough at all the parts cut out of your emblem missions, so I have a feeling they''re going to be enraged over the lack of footage being supplied again."This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

    She keeps saying ''they'' instead of their names, but it''s obvious who she''s talking about.

    "And" She leaned over and whispered, "I''ll see you at the bar tomorrow."

    Oh? Things must be going well between her and my Uncle if he invited her.

    I said goodbye to Shannon and walked out into the hallway. The elevator I usually use is on the right, and to my left I could see several people waiting for me. I ignored them and strode over to the elevator, which was conveniently already on the main floor and waiting for someone to use it.

    After I walked inside of it the people I ditched on the train tried joining me but I pushed them back hard, sending them sliding along the floor before they slammed into the wall. "Nope", is all I said before the doors closed.

    {Maybe you should kill them if they''re going to be following you around like that?}

    I pushed the R-37 button on the elevator.

    No one knows where I live right now, which is why those people were pretending to be my fans, but it probably is only a matter of time before the clans leak my address ''accidentally''. Maybe then I''ll start punishing people for following me. For now I can just ignore them. I have something far more important on my mind right now.

    Before the elevator doors opened I turned invisible and walked all the way to my home like that. I didn''t see anyone, but better safe than sorry.

    {Now what?} She asked as I closed the front door behind me.

    Shower and then relax in front of the TV. I''ve done nothing but train in my soul realm the entire way there, while in hibernation, and on the way back, so I want to do absolutely nothing today.

    During the trip I poured over all my old memories, looking at times I was taught how to learn certain spells but didn''t bother learning them because there just wasn''t any point with my low mana pool I had. And I''ve always been better off just enhancing myself, but it felt like it was time to settle down and learn some spells since I now had a ridiculously high amount of regen, so that''s exactly what I did.

    <hr>

    "... I had seen images of the levels down here before, but actually being here is something else entirely." Yulong said as he looked around the level Bertram''s family lived in.

    "The meeting place isn''t that far away."

    We walked along the path as Yulong''s head swiveled back and forth. "My first thought is that this level was meant to house something."

    "You think it was a warehouse? Why is there a sidewalk here then? Not to mention all of the soil and grass."

    Yulong shrugged, "People feel at ease around nature. While the top levels look sleek and lifeless, the inside of our homes are filled with ''life''. You just didn''t see it because I only showed you my bedroom."

    That was his bedroom? It was the size of a small home.

    Before long Bertram''s bar came into view, but instead of waiting for us on the porch like he usually did, Bertram stood up and circled around the bar while waving for us to follow him. Yulong raised an eyebrow at me but I wasn''t all that worried about an ambush or anything like that from Bertram, so I followed him behind the bar, where he lead us through a backdoor into a room that looked identical the bar we had always been in up until now.

    "Why do you have two bars in this building?"

    "This ones for celebrating and gambling!" Bertram said with a rare smile. He was far more excited than I was used to when it came to the angry old man.

    "And for conversations that we don''t want others to overhear." My Uncle said from the big table in the center of the room.

    My Uncle, Shannon, and weirdly enough Evette (the lady who works at the Expedition Lounge) were sitting around the table.

    "I thought it''d be best if she heard this too. Evette will know far better than I whether what you''re going to say is truly a problem for Arcadia or not."

    I sat down next to Shannon, with Yulong sitting next to me soon after that.

    "I''m fine with it. If anything, it''s better that she knows if you think she''s trustworthy."

    "Ehh..." Irvine looked at Evette, "I don''t know about ''trustworthy''..."

    Evette glared at Irvine, "Oh shut up, I only slipped up one time and it wasn''t even on purpose!" She looked at Yulong, "Long time no see, Young Master Yulong."

    He nodded at her, "Good to see you again, Evette. But can we get straight to the point? I have been rather busy as of late thanks to my new friend here. Happily busy, mind you. But ever since her call I''ve had trouble concentrating on my work."

    "Dying to know what I found?"

    "Yes." He answered succinctly.

    Fair enough.

    Bertram and his daughter came out from the back carrying several platters of food and drinks.

    "Eat up, fuckers. This is a happy day after all! Or it better be..." Bertram said as he set the food down. Steaks, cheeseburgers, fries, seafood of all different types, etc.

    Irvine reached for the lobster first, "Now mind telling us what the problem is?"

    "It''s..." I sighed, "Okay, this is based purely off my own instincts, but I think those ''codes'' are a trap in some way. I''ll have to show you the memory of what I encountered for you to know what I mean."

    "After we eat then!" Bertram said, shoving a large chunk of steak into his mouth.

    Good, because I''m starving right now. I forgot to get food before going home yesterday and I''m really tired of those cereal and granola bars...

    <hr>

    I showed them the long weird buildings, the quadrupedal turtle-shaped machines, the meeting room with ''God - 72%'' written on it, and so on. They all had varying things to say, and while they found it all fascinating to a certain degree, they were far more interested in where I found the codes.

    "This thing really didn''t attack you...?" Irvine asked as he looked up at the machine with the pinkish-red eyeball.

    "Nope, but he''s also a major reason I''m worried about giving you the codes Evette. You''ll see why soon enough."

    ''You have to be kidding me...'' Yulong lightly said as he saw how to unlock main core''s files and lower levels.

    "HA! So that''s why those fuckers couldn''t unlock the core by trying different combinations every five minutes." Bertram said.

    I looked at Yulong, "What''s he mean by that?"

    "We can only enter a code every five minutes, otherwise we''d have just used a program to spam every possible combination. Although, it looks like that would have made us think it was impossible to unlock the core then, since none of the codes would have worked."

    The scene where I left the room played out, leaving everyone in silence for a bit as I ascended the stairs past the greenery. Yulong was the first to come out of his own thoughts and speak. "... A ''problem'' indeed. I see why you were worried."

    Evette shook her head and sighed, "What in god''s name was that? It really did look happy that you were leaving with the knowledge needed to unlock the core. But why??"

    Shannon raised her hand, "I agree that it''s weird, but I also want to talk about the fact that Arcadia is apparently a spaceship?"

    "Shit, that''s the part I''m caught up on most! Then what the fuck part of the ''ship'' am I living in?!" Bertram yelled.

    "Hmm..." Yulong rubbed his chin, "I''m more and more convinced it was a warehouse of some sort. Or is ''Payload bay'' the correct term in this case? It makes sense if the areas directly below this is where the engine and other crucial compartments are."

    "Grand Voyage..." Irvine wistfully said. "I always felt this strong desire to return to Earth. It''s gnawed at me ever since I found all those old recordings full of movies and TV shows from Earth. Maybe they were also trying to return home?"

    I didn''t even consider that, but I suppose it''s possible? Except...

    "Uncle, why did they flee Earth to begin with?"

    He looked at me with a sad expression, "We don''t know. There is plenty of logs we have access to or found in ruins that are filled with people swearing they were going to return home and ''reclaim Earth''. So something took it from us, but that''s all we know."

    "Maybe they really were trying to go home then... But what would make them think they''re stronger now than when they originally fled Earth?"

    Yulong shrugged, "Perhaps they didn''t have the powerarmor, energy weapon, and mecha technology when they fled? There''s also the fact that we don''t know what else is in the sealed levels. If they were planning to invade Earth, there must be something down there that would ensure their victory."

    Not if they were wiped out by the purge before they could make that ''something''.

    We exited my soul realm after that and went back to eating while discussing the machine. There wasn''t much of a consensus past ''It''s risky''. In the end though, pretty much everyone except Shannon wanted to unlock the core. She wasn''t vehemently opposed to it, and everyone understood what she was trying to say anyways, so there wasn''t much of an argument from either side.

    "Well, either way, it''s out of my hands now."

    "... Clever girl." Evette smirked at me. "So that''s why you showed us how to unlock the core?"

    "You can make the decision, and then I''ll still get paid if you do since nobody would be stupid enough to believe it wasn''t me who brought the code back." I looked at Yulong. "Make any headway with the Abyss?"

    He nodded, "Plenty. And I must say, it was smart of you to wait till you reached Arcadia before seeking help in this manner. I was able to find some old records that had translated parts of an unknown language on them, and that language just so happened to be the Abyss'' written language. With that as a starting point I was able to make a lot of headway when it came to translating the murals and the books."

    "How far did you get?"

    "I''m about thirty percent done right now. My console is making it much easier. Once I figure out the meanings behind certain ''letters'' or ''words'', I punch them into the console and it highlights all the new translated portions for me."

    It''s a good thing I did reach out to him then... I had a little bit of hope after seeing him that one day, but this is still far more than I expected him to do in such a short amount of time.

    Yulong agreed to message me when the texts were ready to be viewed, but for now he''d send me the portions he translated so I could see how far he progressed. Bertram and my Uncle were talking about the level we were on and the implications of Arcadia being a spaceship, while the two girls were debating when the best time to unlock the core would be. They worked at the Head Office and Expedition Lounge, so between the two of them, they''d know the perfect day to reveal the news.

    --------------------------------------

    Uncle Irvine hung his console up and looked at me, "It''s done..."

    I was laying down on the couch outside Bertram''s bar, just staring at the ceiling. "You sound scared, Uncle."

    "Because I am! The closer we got to the day they decided to unlock the core, the more anxiety I felt, and now I''m a fucking nervous wreck. I don''t care if I die, but Nia, Shannon, and all of you guys, I don''t..."

    The idea of cute little Nia dying because of the code I brought back was the scariest thing I had heard yet. She was laying down taking a nap on me up until a moment ago when her mom brought her inside for dinner.

    Irvine sighed, "So what are you going to do? As of right now the clans aren''t allowing anyone access to the sealed information or levels, but I don''t know how they''re stopping people from going down there. Maybe only a few elevators can go into those specific areas?"

    "Pfft, they''re free to try and stop me, but it won''t end well for them." I continued, "With that said though, for now I''m just going to wait and see what happens. I''ll give it a few days and then help myself to the datalogs and sealed levels."

    No fucking around on this. If anyone tries to stop me I''m going to kill them. I acquired the ''code'' and then I waited patiently over a month for this day.

    My Uncle said nothing after that. He leaned back in his rocking chair and stared out at the kids playing basketball at the court a hundred yards ahead of us. I said nothing either, as I preferred the muted sounds of the bar while I waited to see if anything bad happened from the core being unlocked.

    {Rei, you''re so nervous... I kept my mouth shut until now, but ever since the day you met that machine and got the codes, you''ve been increasingly more anxious, and now your soul is practically shaking.}

    ... I can''t hide anything from you, can I? I sighed. It''s hard to explain... You''ve seen my memories, right? How I kept bouncing from one scenario to another, making friends and getting involved in their problems, helping them as I went.

    {Yeah, I saw that when you showed your memories to Aresa.}

    I realized that''s just who I am when I returned with the emblems and both the Hothgars and Inoues wanted to meet with me to celebrate. Normally I would have accepted, and somehow I''d end up with seven hundred other problems on my plate that I''d have to solve, because for whatever reason I like making friends and helping them out... So I forced myself to ignore them. To ignore pretty much everyone. But ever since I met that machine I''ve felt like I made a major mistake, and it''s hard to shake off how worried---No, how scared it''s made me.

    {Why did you go out of your way to not make more friends...?}

    Because I felt like I should be finishing up here as fast as possible. Quickly killing Viktor and then going to Gaia so I could be with the others. Although, before I left I was planning on trying to convince my Uncle to join me there with Nia, but I doubt her mother would allow it.

    It didn''t help that things sounded like they were getting worse and worse as time went on. The Inoue''s had straight up died a few weeks after I returned. The white haired leader, his younger sister that up-and-coming hunter, and the maid we saw a few times, they all died on a mission. That''s when the real panic began to set in. I only met them once, while the maid I met twice, but they gave off the same energy as people like Godwin. People who''d do great things. Not the types to randomly die on missions soon after I had brought back their emblem.

    I closed my mind off, trying to subdue the growing unease in my soul. Returning to mindlessly listening to the sounds from the bar as my Uncle rocked back and forth in his chair.

    <hr>

    Everything was fine for the first couple of hours. That was, until we heard the kids screaming from the basketball court. My Uncle and I jumped into a standing position immediately. I enhanced my vision and I could see the kids fleeing the court into the darkness to their right, while the parents tried to prevent something from advancing any further. And despite the fact that I could see it clearly, I had a hard time believing what I was seeing.

    It was a Xerath in a suit of powerarmor. The suit was much larger than the Human-sized sleek ones I had seen up until now. It was bulky, and the Xerath was wielding a long red energy blade. In one swift blow it cut through several of the parents while grabbing another with its left hand before pulling him in and biting half his face off. It tossed the body away as the parents fled in the direction their children had run. That''s when I saw several different colors light up in the darkness to the left of the basketball court. More energy blades, and several ranged weapons tearing through the fleeing parents.

    Uncle Irvine bolted into the bar and began yelling at everyone inside. Contrasting his behavior that made complete sense in this situation, I sighed and began running in the direction of the elevator with my veil up.

    {R-Rei...?}

    Naive, that''s what I was. Obviously it''d end up like this... When have I ever been able to do anything without getting deeply involved in the situation? It was stupid of me to think that I could simply retrieve the codes and then be on my merry way with the core''s information and an army ready to kill Viktor for me.

    Before the entrance to the hallway that lead to the elevator there were several people attempting to fight back against another Xerath in power armor, but their physical weapons were unable to penetrate the barrier surrounding the creature. I passed by them as it grabbed the two men and crushed them into paste. They have barriers too...

    {Where are you going?! What''s the plan!}

    I reached the elevator and pushed R-4.

    {R-4...?}

    As the elevator passed by several levels, I checked the console while periodically looking at the levels we passed by. Both the console and my own eyes confirmed what I had expected. Every level was swarming with enemies. There was no info on the lower ones, but the upper ones were full of machines, not Xerath in power armor.

    There''s only one way to fix this, but I don''t know if he''ll be able to.

    By time I reached R-10 most of the fighting looked like it was dying out, as the machines had already killed most of the people I could see.

    R-7...

    R-6...

    R-5... Okay, a lot more fighting here.

    R-4.

    I turned invisible before the door opened. The scene playing out in front of me was horrible, to say the least. Bodies, blood, guts, it was all sprayed everywhere. There were dead machines too of course, mostly Warriors. The closest ones battling right now were also Warriors outnumbering the men in powerarmor five to one while a Butcher held his chainsword down onto a married couple behind them. They screamed but there was nothing else they could do as their enhancements eventually gave out, leading to a massive spray of blood, guts, and bone hitting the Butcher.

    There were no Observers around as I ran toward the backside of the level, passing by one battle after another. Calling them ''battles'' was a bit much since it was mostly machines butchering people, but every now and then I''d see a group of people decimating a larger force of machines.

    Finally, after what felt like ages, I came upon my destination. Arkaios'' temple. I walked through the barrier and entered the temple. The overwhelming sadness emanating from its aura spoke volumes.

    {Rei, my children...}

    Even if they had ignored him, I suppose he still couldn''t help but care about the only beings in the universe he bestowed his own soul upon.

    "Arkaios, can you do a full reset on someone who has a reset mark on them?"

    {... You are asking that I send you back to the day I placed my mark on you? Impossible. It would require an enormous amount of ether, far more than I have here, since I would need to reset all of Caedrus to fix whatever you set in motion.}

    Ahh, so he does blame me... And he''s right, after all. Since it is my fault.

    "But aren''t you done with these worlds? You''re focusing on Gaia now, right?"

    {Your point?}

    "Is it possible for you to take the energy from other temples? Since you don''t need them anymore."

    He went silent for a moment.

    {... I could, but I''d need to fully drain all of them to make sure the spell actually worked. I''d lose everything, which means I''ll be gone from this temple as well.}

    He went silent again before saying.

    {You''ll only get one chance. Are you sure you can do it? And don''t even think about just ''not getting the codes''. That may seem like a good idea, as it was the catalyst for what occurred here, but if I''m to give up everything outside of Gaia for this, I''d prefer that you find out why this happened, and then I''d like you to prevent it from ever happening before you leave Caedrus.}

    "Understood... I''ll do my best, Lord Arkaios." I thought back to the Inoue siblings and the maid with the weird soul. "I know exactly who to talk to when I return. The reset point was set the day I left for the emblems, right?"

    {Yes.}

    That was the day I met the Inoue''s, so I should be able to find them on R-4 somewhere.

    Several loud explosions rang out behind me as a chainsword began to cut into something.

    {They''re hitting the barrier. I''m firmly connecting all of my temples and pulling the ether here. It seems the machines do not approve of such an action.}

    It wasn''t long before the aura of the temple felt like it was crushing me. The amount of ether pouring into the temple was reaching levels I had never experienced before.

    {The others are currently meditating at a temple in Gaia. Markus, Keith, Nisha, Lindon, Albel... They''re all wishing you good luck. And Keith says you should look into the fort that was wiped out long ago. When I brought up the situation on Caedrus to them, Keith said that was the part that stuck out the most, and the others agreed.}

    The fort that was wiped out while I was still on Urza? Now that he mentions it, it is pretty odd... I feel like my Uncle mentioned it in passing once, but that was the only time I heard anyone even bring up the dead fort. With the exclusion of the multiple fights I saw on TV in relation to the forts, but that was more about the anti-fort crowd using it as an excuse.

    "Will do. And tell the others I hope to see them again one day. After I''m done here with Caedrus and Viktor, I''ll be going straight to Gaia."

    The mass of ether suddenly changed and shifted, filling the room with a spike of aura I recognized. One I had felt many times back on Veca.

    {Goodbye, Rei. I hope to see you again one day. And don''t forget, this will only reset Caedrus, or to be specific, the top one-forth of the planet. Everything at Termia and below will be unaffected.}

    Abruptly all of the ether in the temple disappeared as I felt myself shift from one spot to another, despite still standing in the exact same place.

    Arkaios is gone, just like he said he would be... I don''t sense him anymore. I''ll make it up to him one day by telling him everything that I found here. I think it''s pretty clear that any mysteries remaining will need to be solved before I can save these people after all.

    I turned around and opened the temple doors.

    Alright then, it''s time to find the Inoue siblings... I hope they''re still at the Lounge.

 Chapter 102 - The Inoue Siblings

    "Evette, do you know where the Inoue siblings and that maid are?"

    Evette quirked her head, "Aren''t they still here...? I just saw them over there at that back table a minute ago."

    I looked at where she was pointing but I couldn''t see them, and for good reason. Their table was currently surrounded by a group of people.

    "Are they friends of theirs? I really need to talk to the siblings."

    "Hmm..." Evette stared at the group for a few seconds, "I think they''re Leon''s friends? So no, they''re definitely not friends of the siblings. I''d bet anything that they''re harassing them again. Especially Eve."

    Leon, Leon...

    It took me a moment but I eventually remembered where I had heard that name before.

    Right... The son of Uruguay''s Clan Leader is named Leon, and wasn''t he the one who won that tournament? It took place after I left for the emblems, and that was also why the Inoues'' ended up as vassals to Uruguay. It was because of some dumb ass bet that they made.

    I waited for Luna to respond but she said absolutely nothing, and that''s when I realized she wasn''t inside my soul. I was about to panic when I remembered that she was with Nia when I left to grab the emblems. She''ll probably remember everything from the reset since she was inside of me, but if not then that''s fine. She can easily watch my memories and catch up on her own.

    After thanking Evette for the information I walked over to the table where the siblings currently were, but halfway there I realized that I knew who the people surrounding them were. It''s the two honeytraps and their boytoys... Looks like they were from Uruguay. I didn''t think about that clan at all in the last timeline, but I can already tell they''re going to be a pain in my ass this time around.

    I pinched the Kitsune''s bra strap and pulled it back far before letting go. It snapped hard into her back, causing the girl to shriek in surprise before whipping her head around at me.

    "W-W-WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!"

    One of the men sighed and looked at the girl, "Calm down, Feni. Stop your screaming and tell us what the armored girl did."

    Feni pointed at me, putting her finger mere inches from my eyes, "This bitch just snapped my bra! I''ve only seen that happen to a couple of girls before, and it was always from young boys playing pranks..."

    The man narrowed his eyes as he turned to look at me, "Is there a reason you''re assaulting our friend here?"

    I smiled, "I was trying to get everyone''s attention, and it looked like it worked. Now do you mind leaving? I need to talk to the Inoues'' alone."

    "Was there something you needed to ask us in regards to the mission, Miss Reimia?" The two men between me and the table stepped aside when they heard the man behind them talking, and that''s when I finally got a close look at the Inoue''s Clan Leader. He was smiling kindly and looked very welcoming, but I could see the fury beneath his gaze. It felt like he was going to bite the throat out of someone any second now, and it was clear that nobody here had picked up on it.

    "No sir, there''s something else I need to talk to you about. It''s rather important too, so..." I looked at the grunt from Uruguay, the man who was still glaring at me. He smirked in response and chuckled, "So in other words, you want us to leave? Well too bad little medieval girl, we---"

    I cut him off while addressing the Clan Leader again, "What are the rules on attacking people again? Can I just throw them all out of here?"

    The mood quickly shifted as the Uruguay group began to channel their mana. However annoying they may be, they clearly weren''t amateurs. I expected them to continue shit talking and throwing their egos around, but instead they immediately prepared for a fight. Truthfully, I was slightly impressed and happy to see it.

    The Inoue''s Clan Leader continued smiling at me with his fake smile as he responded, "Fortunately, battles are not allowed in here, as the Lounge is frequented by people who would cause a brawl every day if it was permitted. So no, you can''t throw them out of here and then walk away without facing any consequences. However, you can request a duel."

    I looked back at the man who appeared to be the thug group''s leader, "How about it, champ?"

    "... I accept." Weirdly enough, he seemed interested and disinterested at the same time.

    "Now what?" I asked the Clan Leader, and he responded with, "Either go outside, or go to the arena."

    "I don''t care either way... Just begin walking. The sooner this is over, the better."

    The man practically snarled in response as he turned and exited the Lounge with his cronies in tow.

    <hr>

    ~Eve''s POV~

    I watched as the strange girl in black armor followed Leon''s men out of the Lounge. They turned right at the door, suggesting they were heading toward the arena.

    "What''s with her...? It''s not like we have secret information about our emblem. And if we did, we would''ve forced it onto her instead of just sharing pleasantries with her father!" I asked.

    "That was her Uncle." My brother said, "And I don''t know what she wants with us at this stage, but I''m more than happy to watch one of the Uruguay''s get their faces caved in."

    The way my brother responded made me raise an eyebrow.

    "I was pretty sure she''d win too, since she must be pretty powerful or really stupid to take on our mission alone, but why are you so certain of her victory? You never take guesses, brother."

    He chuckled and jutted his thumb toward Shizue, "Our lovely ''Maid'' here already told me about the strength of our contractor."

    "Shizue, is she somewhat stronger than the ice bastard, or is she a lot stronger than he is?"

    Shizue looked at me, "She''s going to crush him and then devour his flesh in front of his friends. I''ve seen her do it before."

    "... Right, thanks a lot." Messing with me as usual.

    We waited for a little bit, staring at the Arena screen that was always on. There was duels and training sessions going on all the time and people enjoyed watching them, so the largest TV in here was designated as ''The Arena Monitor''. It took about five minutes, but Leon''s friend and the girl eventually showed up on it. No words or time was wasted, as the both of them began channeling their mana right away, which was far more evident on the girl thanks to the transformation she was undergoing.

    "Well now, isn''t that interesting..." My brother said, leaning forward while resting his chin against his hands.

    It''s beautiful... I''ve seen a few people with external manifestations of their aura, but they were nothing like the red halo and wings I''m seeing now.

    Leon''s henchman summoned a massive lance made of ice into his right hand and promptly disappeared from view, but he wasn''t gone for long, a second later he re-appeared behind the girl mid-swing with the lance aiming straight for the back of the girl''s head.

    Seeing that lance was bringing back memories... That man was the one put on trial when two newcomers were found out in the frozen wastes with their heads blown off. Their consoles showed that they had been attacked from behind, and the sound from the attacker was strangely reminiscent of what was occurring on the monitor now, and he was out in the wastes near their locations according to his mission statements. But that wasn''t enough, so he was let go. Normally it WOULD be enough since there was video of him creating headless corpses in the arena as well, except the next thing we knew he was working for Clan Uruguay, so it was obvious that a deal of some sort had been brokered between the two.

    I watched as the girl swiftly turned around and punched straight into the lance. Her fist smashed through the ice until it connected with the man''s face, which resulted in his head exploding into a thousand pieces as it splattered all over the Arena''s glass walls that surrounded it. Outside the Arena I could hear several girls screaming as officials were preventing the men from charging into the Arena to attack the girl.

    "... Shizue, was this the outcome you expected?"

    My brother looked like he was in awe, while shockingly, Shizue also looked surprised, but when she saw me looking at her she immediately reverted back to her impassive face before saying, "No. She has a very unique soul that''s housing a currently regenerating Eldritch soul, so I knew she''d be stronger than the average person, but to punch straight through that lance would be no small feat. That man is... Was, known as the ''Ice Killer'', because of the way he could pour his overenhancements into the ice weapons he created, so that lance would have been far stronger than your average elemental weapon."

    Sounds like it was stronger than most melee weapons? Outside of the high tech energy blades of course.

    "Poor girl... It''s sad to hear that someday she''s going to die to the Eldritch nesting in her soul." My brother solemnly said.

    "Negative, Master. She''s housing the Eldritch. It''s a symbiotic relationship."

    "What...?" Both I and my brother said at the same time.

    Shizue shrugged, "You''ll have to ask her. I''m only reporting what I see in her soul."

    We both went silent as we wondered how such a thing was even possible. While we were lost in our thoughts, the girl strode through the front door and straight up to our booth.

    <hr>

    ~Reimia''s POV~

    "Sorry about the delay, but I really need the three of you to come with me. There''s something I need to show you." The Clan Leader raised an eyebrow but before anyone could respond I raised my hand, "One last thing before then though. I know the girl''s names, but I don''t know yours."

    "Solas."

    "Okay then. Solas, Eve, and Shizue, I''d like to show you something here on R-4 real quick. It''ll make anything I say after it much easier to understand."

    The two girls looked at Solas who smiled at me (this time a real one) in response while standing up. He then motioned toward the door before saying, "After you."

    I turned around and promptly left the lounge. We walked through one street after another until most of the area around us was empty. We eventually arrived at the backside of R-4, which was mostly residential homes that weren''t being used.

    We eventually stopped in front of a large temple and Solas immediately said, "Does this ''something'' involve Lord Arkaios? I''ve only spoken to him once before, and while I am not a prudent follower of his, I do appreciate everything he''s done for Arcadia. It''s honestly sad that nobody here wants to worship him anymore."

    "Becoming a warrior for all of eternity is too scary even for me..." Eve said.

    "That''s not why we''re here. I only want you to go inside, with or without me. You''ll have some questions after that, which is where I''ll finally be able to tell you the full reason I sought you out."

    Eve and Shizue didn''t move, but Solas strode right through the temple doors. I thought they''d all go in merely out of curiosity, but Eve is just staring at the ground while Shizue is emotionlessly watching the temple doors.

    A few minutes later he came back out and closed his eyes while rubbing the brim of his nose. "Well, you were right... I have a glaring question that really needs an answer." He looked at me, "What happened to Lord Arkaios?"You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    "He lost all of his influence in our realm after draining every drop of ether out of his temples, all so he could send me back here. And I can prove it with my memories, but I know there are some rare individuals who can fabricate memories, so that''s why I wanted to show you that Lord Arkaios was gone, as it''d give much more credence to anything I had to say."

    "Back here...?" Eve mumbled behind me.

    "... The possibility of fake memories will not be an issue." Solas glanced at the maid before continuing, "But how far back are we talking here?"

    "Whoa, hang on!" Eve cut in, "Why do you both keep saying ''back''? You aren''t uh, saying she went back in time are you?"

    "Shizue, if you will." Solas said.

    Shizue nodded before looking at Eve, "Lord Arkaios can also rewind time if all of the necessary procedures are done beforehand. Which leads to there being a major hole in your story, Miss Reimia." She turned toward me, "I found the idea of rewinding time fascinating, and while I knew it was something he rarely did as per his own words to me, I still kept an eye out, waiting with hope in my heart that one day the mark would suddenly appear on my soul. But such a day never came... The air didn''t ripple, nor was there a crack echoing throughout the world around us. So I must ask you; was there another way for our Lord to cast the ''Full Reset''?"

    "He already had a reset point placed onto my soul, and the day he placed it, was today. This is one day before I left to grab the two emblems."

    "Hmm..." Solas scratched his chin while looking at me for a few moments, "Let''s return to our Clan home for now. There''s very few people around, but eventually someone is going to notice that Lord Arkaios is no longer here, and it''s best that we aren''t around when that time comes."

    I shrugged, "I don''t care where we do this, so I''ll follow you wherever."

    Solas nodded and began walking toward a nearby alley. We went through one street and alley after another, heading for the elevators in the exact same path I have always took from Arkaios'' temple whenever I visited him.

    <hr>

    "It looks exactly like Yulong''s place. Are all Clan homes the same?"

    Solas inserted his keypass into the slot next to the front gates. "You know Yulong? From what little we managed to dig up on you, you''re new to Arcadia, so you must''ve met him in the future?"

    "It was. I met him after I returned with the emblems." I said as I followed him into the Clan house. The first room looks exactly like Yulong''s again... I guess they really are all the same.

    He then lead us through multiple hallways until we entered a large lounge area. There was a bar in one corner of the room, a fireplace, several couches and chairs, one massive TV, and a weird antiquated looking game in the corner.

    "What''s that called?" I pointed at the game. Solas looked at it and brightly smiled, "Foosball! Only Yulong likes it so I never get a chance to play it these days. Or, well, I could ask Shizue to play, but there''s no point in doing that... Try playing it with her later. You''ll see what I mean."

    He sat down on the chair at the head of the coffee table, while his sister sat on the couch to his left. I sat on the opposite couch as the maid took up position behind Solas.

    "Now then, please continue. I have multiple questions already, but I''ll save them for after you''re finished."

    "I''ll do a summarized version first, and then we can get into the details." After Solas nodded I continued, "I acquired both of the emblems in about a few months? It''s hard to tell exactly how long I was out there because I slept for many days on end multiple times. And before you ask, that''s just something I can do. Stay awake for weeks, then sleep for weeks. But I can tell you that when I returned there was a celebration going on. Uruguay had just won that event, which means you guys lost."

    "What?!" Eve stood up and shouted, but she sat back down after her brother told her to calm down.

    "Did you watch the footage so we''ll know how we lost?"

    "No... Sorry, I wasn''t interested. I had other bigger plans and I left the city again soon after I had returned with the emblems."

    "? You managed to bring back TWO emblems and you immediately left the city? Normally people would''ve been celebrating for a month straight, and we definitely would''ve thrown you one hell of a party, even if we did just become vassals to Uruguay..."

    Shizue cut in, "If this is real, and I''ll confirm it before she leaves, then we have a real problem on our hands, Masters."

    Solas leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling, "True... If we end up as slaves to those freaks it''s all over. And Reimia, I''d love to know why you left the city in a hurry."

    "I decided to put off the celebrating until I finished my real objective. Which I accomplished when I rode the Leviathan to the northwestern side of Caedrus and grabbed the core''s codes."

    "......"

    They all went silent for a moment as Solas continued staring up at the ceiling. He eventually sighed and said, "Okay, I just need to make sure of something, because this was already ridiculous enough as it is, and while Lord Arkaios disappearance is very bizarre, I''d still prefer to have absolute proof before we go any further. Can our lovely ''Maid'' here enter your soul realm for a moment? She''ll tell you how to share your memories with her when you''re inside. She is able to copy and thus validate memories if the other person gives her permission."

    "... I''m ninety percent okay with that, but I''d really like to know what she is first. Her soul is bizarre and nothing like any other soul I''ve encountered before now."

    "Oh?" He finally tilted his head down and looked at me with a smile. "You even noticed that? Only a few others have been able to tell that her soul is different." He continued, "Well, it''s simple really. She''s a relic. My adorable sister and I found her one day and brought her back here. But ever since then she''s decided to be our maid, for whatever reason..."

    "A relic?? That doesn''t sound simple at all. Is there other relics like her that are shaped like Humans and have weird souls?"

    "Not that we''ve found! Lucky us, right? Except we can''t use her for her original purpose, and according to her she was only a prototype anyway. And unfortunately, those fucking Uruguays have been hell bent on taking her from us ever since we found her. That and, well..." He glanced at his sister.

    Now this is new... I never expected there to be a manufactured Human like her. So she''s basically a machine then?

    I waved Shizue over toward me, "Shizue, come here. Let''s get this over with." She quickly walked over and sat down on the couch next to me. I reached out and grabbed her hand, quickly pulling the both of us into my soul realm.

    "Now how do we do this? And if you don''t mind, I''m curious as to what your ''original purpose'' was."

    She looked around the environment; Terra''ka''s planet. "Eerie, feral, colorful, and with a clear night sky... It''s a beautiful world. And for me to copy your memories you only need to bring up your earliest memory you want me to see. I will immediately copy all of your memories from that point forward."

    She continued as I brought up the memory of the day I left Mother, "I was to be a test unit for a new class of mechs, the ''Arcane Mechs''. We would provide support by connecting directly to the mech. You have seen the spider mechs, yes? They were the first generation of Arcane Mechs, but I can''t connect to them without permission from a senior leader in the division, or someone above them in the chain of command. However, I believe unlocking the core functions of Arcadia would allow us to bypass that, so I hope you are telling us the truth."

    "Was the spider mech the only one created from that generation?"

    "No. I drove others before I suddenly woke up one day with Master Solas and Eve standing over me. The lab was spotless when I went to sleep, but when they woke me up it was falling apart, grimy, and..." Her emotionless face changed to one of longing.

    The memory of me staring at the portal on Mother appeared around us. Shizue looked around and said, "Where is this? I thought you''d bring up a Caedrus memory, but there are no pretty summer forests on our continent."

    "This is on Mother. I took the portal over there back to Aetheria directly after this, and then I flew over to Caedrus."

    "You flew---Wait! This is Mother?!" Shizue looked around excitedly. "O-Ooh! It all looks so normal!" After looking around the area she looked at me with clear desperation written all over her face, "... Can you take it back to the moment you first appeared on Mother? You don''t need to worry about us wasting too much time looking at your memories. For every hour in the real world, only one second will have passed in my soul realm."

    Whoa... I had heard of people who mastered their soul realms and were able to slow time down drastically, allowing them to train far more than the average person, but one second per hour is insane...

    I laughed and brought up the memory of the day I left Arcadia with my parents. "Here, take it all. Hopefully the siblings will have some information for me in relation to Viktor, so if they aren''t too bored skipping through my memories, I would like them to take a look at the blonde Elf in them. He''s the man who created the Xel''nethra, and he''s originally from Arcadia."

    She nodded, "We know of him. When the Masters were looking for some way to bring down Clan Uruguay, they found a snippet of information about how they despised Arkaios'' Warrior ''Viktor''. We couldn''t do anything with the information though, so we dropped that line of inquiry and never went back to it."

    Again with the Uruguays...

    I watched as Shizue entered a prayer pose. A golden aura appeared around her that slowly dissipated as she stood back up and smiled at me, "Thank you, Miss Reimia. I now know that your memories are real and will be showing them to my Masters. That is what you wanted, yes?"

    "It is. Thank you, Shizue."

    I exited my soul realm and Shizue immediately told the siblings that my memories were real. Solas went back to staring at the ceiling while Eve looked like she was going to be sick.

    "... Please continue, Rei. We''ll watch your memories in a bit here, but still, I''d like you to finish your summarized version first. I need something of a breather to process this, and listening to you should suffice. It''s not that I doubted you, in fact I found your story highly probable since Lord Arkaios had disappeared, and the only way that would be possible is if he purposely drained all of his energy. But after Shizue confirmed it, and the fact that Lord Arkaios would only send you back here if something catastrophic happened, well... You can imagine how we feel right now."

    "But why us...?" Eve said, causing everyone to look at her since she had been mostly silent since we arrived at their home. But Solas and Shizue quickly looked back at me, clearly both wondering the same thing.

    "If you''re hoping for a well thought out reason, then I don''t have one, it was originally based off pure instinct, but as I sit here I think I know why I felt like I should come to you three. An up and coming Hunter, and a Clan House that I can easily re-acquire the emblem for, giving you much more prestige and power, which is exactly what I need. And it just all around felt wrong when I saw in the news that all three of you had died on a mission. You didn''t seem like the types that were destined to just randomly die like that. I''m basing this off of nothing, I get that, but that''s how I felt. And now that I think about it, that meant this Clan House became part of Uruguay, right?"

    Another suspicious point for that Clan.

    "So we did die... I knew it was a possibility, but I can''t say I''m ecstatic over the idea of seeing my death confirmed in your memories." Solas said while Eve gripped her knees hard. She looked like she was grinding her teeth and holding back tears at the same time.

    I know hearing you died wouldn''t exactly be a great thing to hear, but still, her reaction seems strange? Now that she knows, there''s a good chance she can avoid it, but instead she looks like she''s about to break down... I''m getting the feeling that she''s upset about something else entirely.

    "Basically, I got the core''s codes and handed them over to six different people. I''m pretty sure Evette is the one who turned em in, but the rewards went to me. Not that it mattered in end, but between me returning here and her unlocking the core a month had passed, and you three died during that month. Can I ask why all three of you would be away on a mission? After acquiring your emblem it seems odd that you''d do that, so I can only imagine that Clan Uruguay forced you to go."

    Solas sardonically chuckled while shaking his head, "That''s pretty much the only explanation I can come up with. Unless something in the core gave us information in relation to Shizue. If we can get our hands on some of the later Arcane Mech models we wouldn''t have to listen to anyone. Especially not Clan Uruguay, so maybe... But wait, you said the core was unlocked at the end of the month? Are you positive?"

    "That... Is actually a good question? My Uncle told me that they unlocked the core and a few hours later all hell broke out in Arcadia. There was Xerath in power armor absolutely eviscerating people in the lower levels, while machines were everywhere in the upper levels."

    "What the hell? Xerath in power armor? Even in my worst nightmares I never imagined such a scenario..." He continued, "So you don''t actually know then, but it sounds like it was unlocked around that time, which means we didn''t adventure outside after finding information in the core that told us where we could find some Arcane Mechs."

    Maybe... Now I''m not sure anymore. Any one of those six people could''ve turned the codes in at any time and I wouldn''t have known about it.

    "How do people even know if the core is unlocked? Is a message sent out to the consoles in all the homes or what? I was at a bar in the lower levels resting when the Xerath and machines attacked."

    He shrugged, "I assume no one knows. The core room is on R-1, and that''s about as much as we know."

    As they went silent I thought about what I should be doing afterward. My Uncle is with the Uruguay Clan setting up that bet, but once he''s done I should tell him and Bertram about what happened. Is that everyone though? Is there anyone else I can talk to? I went out of my way to not make any friends here, so... Oh, Yulong! I need to convince him to leave his home, but he should definitely be there for the meeting too... Unless.

    "Hey, Solas. Yulong is a friend of yours, right?"

    "Yes, and if you''re about to ask whether he''s trustworthy or not, I''d say he''s probably the most trustworthy person in Arcadia." He continued, "Honestly, it was shocking to hear that you knew him, but also a happy revelation. That man needs friends but he''s too damned awkward and doesn''t know how to approach others. Plus, it doesn''t help that several of the Clans really do want to kill him so they can try to get someone they know to take over the Napoleon Clan."

    So if someone really did unlock the core much earlier than I thought, then it most likely wasn''t him. I really want him to be in the loop, so I''ll visit him after this, especially since he had mostly finished translating those Abyssal books and murals, so if I show him my memories he can pick up right from where he left off.

    At this point I far more important things to worry about, but still, something might come of it and I''d like to know everything I can about the Abyss before I leave here anyway. So even if there wasn''t any profound reasons behind it, I still want to know damnit.

    "So should I wait here? From the sounds of it you guys could look at most of my memories in the blink of an eye. I don''t see a reason I should leave unless you''re planning on scouring my memories hours from now."

    "... Reimia." Eve said while her brother was lost in thought. "Thank you for bringing this to us. Give me a few minutes and we''ll go inside of Shizue. It''s a little strange at first, but you''ll get used to it, it just takes time. Even I felt weird inside of her the first couple of times." She said while looking at Shizue, but in response Shizue looked away and put her hands over her face. "S-So improper, Mistress. You shouldn''t be telling others about what you do to me behind closed doors..."

    "Ughhh..." Eve exaggeratedly fell back into the couch and looked away from Shizue.

    I was revving up to laugh when Shizue suddenly looked up with a much more serious expression on her face, "Masters, there is a problem. Eremnon is here."

    "Huh? What do you mean ''here''?" Solas said.

    Good question. The God of Demons doesn''t make house calls, so is she making another joke?

    She pointed up, "His eye is in the sky, and he''s dropped a few Demons outside of the city. One of them is speaking and it is demanding entry into Arcadia."

    Suddenly a memory from the distant past popped into my head. It was of Markus explaining to everyone in the Veca temple that the full reset might draw the attention of Meiza''thul and Eremnon.

    I forgot all about that... Well that''s just fucking great. Looks like things are about to become far more hectic around here.

 Chapter 103 - Archdemons and Memories

    I stood up from the couch, "I wanted to guide you through my memories, but I won''t be able to concentrate until I know why the Demons are casually approaching Arcadia. It''s beyond weird that they''re speaking to the guards instead of attacking us head on."

    Solas chuckled, "Heh, I''m feeling the same way, but before we do anything else we really need to get caught up by watching your past. We''ll be right behind you after we''re finished here." He turned on the TV and brought up the consoles personal directory, "What''s your number?"

    I gave him my home and personal console numbers before leaving their home. Once outside I immediately received an emergency report on my console as an alarm began blaring. The entire level kept flashing red lights, just like what happened during the Xerath/Machine assault.

    My first thought was that the Demons had decided to assault the city instead, but I was barely outside of the Inoue''s gate when a loud voice began to report over the speakers that a powerful force of Demons were being invited into R-4, and that all citizens should leave the level or stay inside a subset of buildings near the Lounge that were equipped with automated defenses.

    As soon as the speaker mentioned ''defenses'' I froze in my tracks.

    ... I''ve been told multiple times that Arcadia has defenses inside of it that''ll kill any invaders on sight, or even kill someone who is harming other people (it seems to be on a case by case basis though), however, there were no such defenses when the Xerath and machines were attacking. Were they shut down at the core? I''ve been working under the assumption that merely unlocking the core is what allowed the machines or something else entry into Arcadia, but I haven''t exactly ruled out the idea that it could''ve been someone on the inside.

    The normally aloof machines suddenly converging to assault Arcadia is really bothering me as well. And I don''t even know where to begin with the Xerath in heavy power armor...

    I reached the elevator and pushed R-4. The lady of the couple that entered with me nearly shrieked in surprise.

    "Are you insane?! Why would you go there now! What if we get attacked when the doors open up?!" The man yelled.

    ... I hate that my Uncle is right. These people are just so weak now. I always thought my hometown was filled with mad warriors who braved the frozen wastes to fight an unknown homicidal foe. Instead, most of the people I''ve met since I returned would be unable to do anything if a machine appeared in front of them. Which I''m sure is exactly what happened during the invasion on almost every single level.

    And to make it worse, most of the actual warriors I''ve met or watched footage of were all first generation citizens! None of them were born here... Not a single fucking one. I''ll have to deal with the clans this this around, so I''m holding out hope that they have some real fighters in their midst. And aren''t all of the hunters in the clans too? I really hope that''s not just a fancy title.

    The couple hid behind me as the doors opened, and of course nothing attacked us. There was no one around, let alone a pack of Demons.

    I ran through the level until I reached the elevators on the other side of the level. Since no one was around the elevators I came out of, I could only assume they were at the other ones. They had to descend to R-4 after all, so unless there was a group of hidden ones I didn''t know about, they had to be at my destination.

    Ah, this has to be it... Look at all those people.

    About fifteen meters from the elevators was a large group of people. Over eighty percent of them were in power armor. Their helmets were on too, which was a rare sight inside Arcadia.

    "Reimia? What are you doing here?" Evette said as I stopped next to her and several other attendants from the Lounge.

    "What else? Greeting our new friends."

    "Ha! Wouldn''t that be the day? Demons for friends! They''re sooner to skewer us over a fire and then eat us alive" A man I vaguely recognized said from Evette''s left. "I know you''re fuckin around though, lovely lady. Which means you''re probably not all that worried, yeah? Jestin about Demons in Arcadia so carefreely, while everyone else is pissing their pants."

    "Sir." A female voice said from the power armor behind the man. He turned his head back to look at her, which she took as an affirmative to continue, "That''s the girl who took the two emblem missions with Maya."

    "Oh?" His smirk disappeared as he looked me up and down, "... I''m normally good at gauging people''s strength at a glance, but I don''t know what to make of you. Especially since you''re hiding your aura. Why are you doing that? The Demons won''t give a fuck if---Oh, wait. You are really weird looking, so they''d... Ahh, so that''s why you''re doing it. Very clever of you, but stop hiding your aura after they''re gone. I want to see what I can make of you."

    I''m not positive, but I think he just ''deduced'' that I''m hiding my aura because the Demons love unique things, and so I''m in his mind hiding my aura to prevent them from becoming interested in me. And he''s uh, kind of right? I already know what they''d love do to me under normal circumstances, since I''ve already lived through that once, but my veil is doing the blocking part all on its own.

    The man had already turned and began staring at the elevator with a determined expression. After a few more seconds of studying his face I finally remembered where I had seen him before.

    Gale... I think that''s his name. He''s the younger brother of Uruguay''s Clan Leader. I remember seeing him call his nephew (Leon) a loser on live TV.

    The doors to the large elevator used for transporting groups with goods, vehicles, or mechs opened up. Three pitch black Demons surrounded by a contingent of people in power armor walked through the doors.

    "I don''t recognize these Demons. Anyone know what they are?" Gale asked.

    "Negative, sir." Several nearby suits said.

    Evette whispered since the Demons were getting close, "All I know is why they''re completely black. Apparently they were too hot and it was causing error screens to pop up in the escort''s suits, so they tuned down their auras."

    Demons making concessions to have a chat? This is a new one for me, and unfortunately I don''t recognize the Demons either.

    The one at the front was twenty feet tall with horns that arced behind his head, and he had two wings for shoulders which had an extra limb coming out of the bottom of them. His face almost looked like he was wearing a skull-shaped mask. I could see two white dots where his eyes should''ve been.

    The other two at his sides were seventeen feet tall with horns that arced above their head''s sideways. And all three of the Demons were heavily armored. His two guards had sleek armors with spikes coming out of them at random points, but the head Demon''s armor looked like it was designed with aesthetics in mind, suggesting it was far more important than any Demon I had ever met up until now.

    The group stopped about ten feet away from us. Everyone looked at the head Demon who was currently scanning everything from the buildings, the ceiling, and the floor. He stared at the floor for a while before tapping it with his massive armored right foot.

    "STRANGE... VERY STRANGE."

    "What is, Archdemon Asmodeous?" One of the men wearing a Tyranium suit said.

    Asmodeous looked up, "YOUR BUILDING BLOCKS MY LORD''S SIGHT. NO SIGHT. NO AURA DETECTION. I LOST MY CONNECTION TO HIM THE MOMENT I ENTERED YOUR ''ELEVATOR''. IT''S ALMOST AS IF IT WAS BUILT SPECIFICALLY TO AVOID HIS GAZE." He continued, "AND THEN THE CORRUPTION. SO MUCH DEMONIC CORRUPTION... HIDDEN... HARD TO DETECT... AND YET SO POWERFUL. MY LORD COULD NOT SENSE IT UNTIL THE DAWN GOD BROKE CAUSALITY... NOTHING IN THIS LAND MAKES SENSE."

    "The Demons really couldn''t sense it until now? We''ve had plenty of sightings of Demons in Caedrus though..." Gale said, but Asmodeous didn''t react or respond to him. He instead stared at a random space in Arcadia while tapping the armor on his upper thigh.

    We all sat there in silence for a while waiting for Asmodeous to move or say something. Even one of his Demonic guards looked over at him, seemingly confused by the Archdemon''s silence.

    "... WE WILL BE SETTING UP A FORTRESS NEAR HERE. THIS IS NOT UP FOR DISCUSSION. WE WILL NOT BOTHER YOU, NOR WILL YOU BOTHER US."

    Asmodeous turned around and walked back into the elevator. The men who escorted him down looked at their commander who was clearly taken aback by the Demons words and the fact that he was suddenly leaving. I could hear the people around me finally breathing again as the commander and his men ran to catch up to Asmodeous.

    "I-I had trouble breathing near the end there..." Evette whispered. Once the elevator doors closed I could see Gale rubbing his face before he said, "His aura... It had to be his aura. The longer he was near us, the more I felt something penetrating my soul. We''re lucky he decided to leave so soon... He was supposed to be down here for a while, but whatever he was hoping to learn, he must''ve got it through that little interaction."

    "That was also my first time seeing a Demon converse normally."

    Gale smirked at me, "Seen a lot of Demons have you?"

    "I have actually, but none of them were like those three. ''Archdemons'' must be rather rare. And while he wasn''t as big as a Minotaur, I feel like he''d obliterate one in a duel."

    I severely doubt his claim that they won''t be bothering the people of Arcadia. They''re here to know why a land rife with Demonic corruption was so unknown to them, and he confirmed a moment ago that Arcadia completely negates the God of Demons, so there''s no way in hell they won''t be draining every bit of information they can from the people here... Maybe they''ll try it through offering ''gifts''? The weak people here would definitely be susceptible to offers of great wealth and power.

    Unless he really does figure it all out without any of the information he can draw from the citizens here... Which again, sounds impossible, nor would it be something the Demons would voluntarily choose to do. But there is one thing giving me pause, which is the fact that I don''t know shit about Archdemons. So maybe he''ll surprise me, or maybe he won''t.

    Gale went to respond to me but the woman behind him cut him off with a simple, "Sir." He then looked back at her with a slightly annoyed face. "The Clan Leader is waiting." She said.

    Gale sighed and looked at Evette, "I need to hurry back before he has another aneurysm, and it looks like we''re done here anyway. Not that I had any idea of what to expect, but for the damned thing to only show up for a moment, declare it''s building a fortress and then leave, well... I think my brother really will have an aneurysm when he hears about this."Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

    From there everyone fanned out, returning to wherever they needed to be. And soon after that the red lights and the alarm turned off. I guess I''ll return to the Inoues'' for now. They must have looked through my memories by now.

    <hr>

    ~Solas'' POV~

    "You alright there, my adorable little sister?"

    "... How is this not bothering you?"

    The memory we were currently looking at was of the news report about our deaths. Apparently we had died with a large contingent of Uruguay''s forces, so whatever we were doing, it wasn''t anything trivial. Most of their Tyranium suit''s and over a dozen heavy fighter mechs were sent with us, but that''s all we could tell since Rei didn''t dig into it further.

    "Our deaths, you mean? I see no reason to dwell on it. Our new friend and Lord Arkaios gave us a second chance, and so I''m going to make the most of the gift they''ve given us."

    First and foremost, I need to figure out how the hell we lost in the upcoming machine hunting event. Seriously, how did we lose? I only took that bet because I rigged it in our favor... Eve doesn''t know I did that, but I''m gonna have to tell her soon, which is not going to be a fun conversation. Still though, going forward it''s for the best that everyone knows everything that was at play in our last life. This really isn''t the time to be hiding secrets just cause I know it''ll upset her.

    "It''s eating away at me... We went through hell and back to get this clan house, and even then we''ve been treated like outsider filth. And now here I am, looking at a future where we not only ended up as lackeys to the Uruguay Clan, but we also ended up being killed while completing a mission for them." She brought her knees up onto the couch and rested her face against them, "The only surprising part is that it looks like it was an important mission. I would''ve thought they''d assign a dangerous mission just for us so we would die. Nothing would make them happier than to purge the filth in their midst."

    ... I''m pretty sure she knows why they weren''t trying to kill us after we lost the bet. Leon is in love with her. And while I do find it hilarious since I know it''s killing the Clan Leader that he''s unable to convince his son to give up on her, it''s still a major pain in the ass for us.

    I scrolled through Rei''s memories. My sister needed a little time to herself so I decided to go far back into her past to see if I could find anything interesting, and that''s when I saw a scene of a younger-looking Rei fighting a Satyr. That''s when Shizue took control and rewound the area around us until it showed Rei in an underground city. It looked vaguely similar to our own ruins, as the buildings were all falling apart and the stone walkways themselves were cracked all over.

    "This is where the memory begins, Master."

    Somehow she always knows what we want. I only looked at that memory for a split second too. I found it creepy when we first found her, but she''s been nothing except helpful to the two of us, so I''ve stopped treating her like a potential threat. At this point I figure if she''s going to harm us in some way, then so be it. She''s worth the risk, especially if we can find those Arcane mechs, suits, and weapons...

    I played the memory at normal speed. Reimia was walking slowly along the cracked streets, scanning everything in her view. She was clearly looking for something, and since I knew she was about to fight a Satyr, I could only assume it was quite literally the Satyr she was trying to find.

    "Shizue, why is she here?" Can''t hurt to ask just in case though.

    "Her unit was sent below the city of ''Xelba'' to find the Dwarves. Underground patrols have been going missing for a while now, and finally someone had caught sight of a pack of Dwarves. They ran back to Xelba, reported it, and now here we are."

    Dwarves huh... Now there''s a race I know nothing about. Rei was at war with them at some point? Actually, if she''s tracking Dwarves then how the hell did she end up fighting a Satyr?

    We watched as Rei stared at the stone path while slowly walking forward. She was tracking a set of bootprints in the dust that were swerving back and forth through the path, but that wasn''t all. There were also several prints of dog paws in the dust. They were spaced out in a way that suggested they were running at full speed.

    Both the bootprints and dog''s paws turned left into a ruined building, and Rei followed after them. However, she was barely five feet into the building when the ground gave out underneath her. She tried enhancing herself and grabbing the path she was just on, but a red barrier appeared around the hole she was falling into, and she didn''t have the time required to break through it. Unfortunately for her, the entire shaft was covered in said ''barrier'', so she couldn''t stop herself from falling either.

    It didn''t take long for her to reach the bottom of the shaft. She dropped down into a somewhat large room that looked like it was used for burial rites, as there were urns all along the walls. The ground weirdly enough was not paved, as it was entirely made up of dirt and grass despite the well-designed walls that must''ve taken ages to carve.

    She landed in the dirt and immediately the Satyr that was waiting below pounced at her. It had two large axes in its hands, which was an odd sight since I was under the impression that they were casters, but whatever the case was, this Satyr was clearly well versed in melee weapons, as Rei just barely rolled to the right as the axe came down. But sadly for her, the Satyr was very fast. She hadn''t even finished her roll when he pulled the axe out of the ground and quickly slammed the flat side into her, which launched her into a little cubby hole in the room with two pillars at the entrance.

    Rei''s face smashed into one of the pillars, which sent her spinning toward the ground inside the little room. A massive quantity of black blood poured out of her face as she screamed ''Fuuuuckk!!''. We could tell through the memory that despite her limited pain receivers, she was definitely feeling that one.

    Unfortunately for her, the Satyr wasn''t the only creature in the room. Two Devil Dogs came sprinting into the cubby hole and pounced on her. One of them was tearing into her legs while the other went for her throat, which it quickly realized was a mistake, as Rei gave the dog some of its own medicine by biting its throat out.

    The dog chewing on her legs pulled back and entered a state of wariness. It was taken aback by how fast she dispatched its partner and it didn''t want to receive the same fate, but unfortunately for it, that''s exactly what happened. Rei created a twelve inch thin spear and threw it at the dog''s face.

    She must''ve been overenhanced because the dog wasn''t able to react in time as the spear went into its mouth and punctured three-quarters of the way through the back of its throat, but since it didn''t make it all of the way through the cartilage, the force ended up spearing the dog into the nearby stone wall. It was still alive for now but it was struggling to pull itself free. It was kicking every which way trying to get the spear out of its mouth, but the more it struggled, the more damage it did with the spear still lodged in the back of its throat.

    A large axe slammed into the small area head first. Rei rolled out of the way just as another axe nearly slammed into her between the pillars. They were turned sideways so they could fit, and the force behind them was more than enough to turn her into paste if a single one of the attacks landed.

    She dodged back and forth several times before finally finishing the small sword she was creating with her blood. After another axe was pushed through the pillars she slashed at the fingers holding the pommel, cutting through the Satyr''s thumb in the process, but the sword broke as it was halfway through the next finger.

    Even so, that was enough to get the Satyr to drop the axe in surprise while roaring in pain. Rei quickly ran through the pillars and grabbed the massive axe before whipping it at the Satyr. In response the Demon swiftly rolled to the side, where Rei was waiting for it mid-air with an enhanced fist, which landed squarely on the Demon''s jaw. Its head whipped to the side as it rolled along the ground a few times from the impact.

    The Satyr dug its thumb-less hand into the dirt to right itself, immediately swinging horizontally along the ground at Rei as she landed. She leaped over the axe, but the force was so strong that it blew her backwards, starting from her feet. She ended up sliding along the grass as the Satyr swung back at her from the other direction. In a panic she balled her fists and slammed them into the ground, launching herself above the axe, which yet again blew her in the other direction.

    "I know those attacks are powerful, but isn''t that way too much wind?" My sister said, taking me out of the fight a for a moment as Shizue paused the memory.

    "She''s right... Shizue?"

    She nodded, "The Satyr is currently enhancing his weapon with a wind spell of some sort. It''s not only lightening the weapon, but it''s also blasting pockets of wind along the attack''s path."

    Interesting enhancement. Wind elements to weapons huh... I''ll need to remember to try that for when (if) we ever find the Arcane equipment. Shizue says you can fully enhance and cast spells on everything Arcane, which is what makes them so unique. Adding elements to Arcane weapons sounds like a hell of a lot of fun.

    Rei was blown to the left as Shizue restarted the memory. She rolled along the ground a couple of times before smashing into the wall.

    While she was rolling the Satyr began channeling a fireball that had grown to a size bigger than she was in no time at all. Whoa... I''ve heard that Satyr were amazing casters, but wasn''t that a little too fast?

    The Satyr launched the fireball at Rei who had sensed the attack coming. She flipped around and cast something just before the fireball hit her, causing the sphere to fly back at the Satyr at double the speed it had approached her. The Demon had not expected that, not even a little, so the fireball smashed right into the Demon''s upper chest and exploded unabated.

    The Satyr reeled back and fell to its knees. "GGRLLGURLGRRLL!!" The Demon was trying to roar in pain but its lower jaw was completely missing. A large amount of blood was pouring out of the new hole in the Demon''s face as it glared at Rei who was running over to the axe she failed to hit it with earlier.

    "Just so you know; that was an ability she stole from a Kitsune. It had the ability to reflect all elemental offensive spells." Shizue said.

    She ''stole''...?

    Rei grabbed the axe that was twice her size and sprinted toward the Satyr with it, dragging it along the ground as the Demon roared, daring her to try and best it in melee combat.

    Just before she reached the Satyr she swung down at him horizontally, which the Satyr was attempting to parry, but when the weapons clashed he realized there was no weight behind the blow. Unfortunately for him, he had no time to wonder why that was, as Rei already punching his left legs lower shin with enough force to knock the Demon''s feet out from underneath him. His left foot flew backwards as the bones in it broke, sending him reeling toward the ground.

    He caught himself with his right hand and the axe in his left hand as Rei uppercut him through the hole in his lower jaw, hitting the inner-side of his mouth below his brain. The Satyr flew backwards but not before grabbing Rei with his right hand. She tried to break free but she was given no time in the manner, as the Satyr threw her into the ground with all its might just before smashing into her waist with its forehead.

    The force at which she hit the ground was bad enough, but the Satyr knew it couldn''t stop itself from hitting the ground hard, so it slammed its head at her the moment it landed, destroying her legs and lower waist in the process. Rei screamed in pain for the first time in ages as she grabbed onto the Demon''s horn with one hand while punching its skull with her other hand.

    The Satyr was still reeling from the attack so it was struggling to use its strength, but even so it was still just barely being held down by Rei. Her attacks were beginning to crack its skull so as a last ditch effort it reached over with its left hand and crushed her upper body in its grip.

    Through some miracle Rei managed to break through the Satyr''s cranium and destroy its brain before her mana gave out. She was seconds away from losing, but in the end she was victorious.

    "That... That was amazing..." Eve whispered.

    That''s one way of putting it... What the hell did I just watch? I thought myself as one of the best duelers in Arcadia, and as such I was really looking forward to dueling Rei at some point after watching her destroy that Uruguay clown, but if this was the teenage version of her, then I really doubt I''ll be able to hold my own against the ''adult'' Rei...

    Reimia dragged herself out from underneath the Satyr, slowly pulling herself over toward the wall where she covered herself in some weird mesh made out of her blood. Shizue sped up until her allies found her a few days later. One of the girls was crying when she saw the state Rei was in.

    "Nice to see that she has friends who care about her out there somewhere. I got the feeling that she was a pure loner, but it looks like I was wrong."

    "Most of these people die soon, including the red-head who''s crying right now." Shizue said.

    ... Oh.

    After that we watched many parts of her past. From the end of ''Xelba'', her meeting with the Guardians of Urza, her trek through the Abyss, Termia, Mother, and finally her time spent in Caedrus.

    And at long last, the memory ended as she approached Evette at the Lounge, asking her if she knew where we were.

    We sat in silence for a while, contemplating everything we had just seen. Personally I was still having a hard time believing it was all real. If it wasn''t for Shizue, I''m not sure if I would have been able to believe that was all an actual life someone had lived.

    I looked at Eve, "I''m just now remembering what you said about Rei after we first met her. Mind saying it again for me, little sister?"

    "You''re such an ass... With Uruguay constantly hounding us and your refusal to let me take on the emblem mission, I''ve been really stressed out." She looked at the frozen image of Rei, "I do regret saying that she looked useless, and that I was certain she''d die out there... She didn''t hear me say any of that, but I think I''m going to apologize anyway..."

    My proud sister apologizing to someone? I don''t think I''ve ever seen that before... But I can understand it, considering what we just watched.

    "You should, and while you''re at it you should throw yourself at her. She''s obviously into women, and we do owe her a huge debt..." I smirked at her, and she just rolled her eyes while flicking me off in response. "In all seriousness though, we really need to figure out where to go from here, but we can''t do this alone. Do you have any issues with bringing Yulong into the know?"

    Eve shook her head, "I have nothing against him, and you consider him your best friend, so why not?"

    "Perfect, let''s get ready to head out then. Shizue?"

    Shizue pulled all of us out of her soul realm. I looked at the clock and saw that only ten seconds had passed.

    "Hmm, we''ll need to wait for Rei to return first. And hopefully whatever happened with the Demons is nothing that can largely disrupt our plans going forward."

    That feels like wishful thinking though. It is Demons after all.

 Chapter 104 - Fort Deus

    "Welcome back! How''d it go?" Solas asked after I re-entered the living room I left them in earlier.

    "Hard to say... It was an ''Archdemon'' who only said a few words and left. Apparently Eremnon''s eye can''t pierce Arcadia, so between that and the Demonic corruption everywhere, they decided to create a fortress nearby. Best case scenario is that they really are only here to figure out why they were unaware of Caedrus this entire time despite all the Demonic corruption, but I''ll be shocked if that''s all they really do."

    "There are no known records of such a Demon in the database nor any of your memories. Thus I must ask; Miss Reimia, I know you only just met it, but as a guess, how dangerous do you believe the Archdemon is? One to Ten." Shizue asked.

    She knows every single bit of information from my memories already? Either they watched far more than I had expected them to, or she knows everything from memories the moment she copies them. That''s a really convenient power if so... Not that it wasn''t already amazing as is.

    "If a Satyr is a six, then he''s probably a nine. But as you said, this is just a guess."

    Solas took a drink of his coffee and then smiled at me, "Speaking of Satyrs... We watched you battle with one. That was honestly wild... I''m pretty sure I would have lost that fight. With my suit I''d win of course, but you didn''t have one so as a one to one comparison, I''d have most likely lost."

    "I didn''t kill it though? That was Markus and the templars who obliterated it with Arkaios energy or whatever the fuck that was. A shame they''re aren''t any Warriors of Arkaios left here, they could''ve done the same thing to the Archdemon. He might not be a problem in the end but I can''t say I''m ecstatic about the existence of such a powerful Demon nesting next to Arcadia. Because if he does become a problem..." I sighed.

    Solas blinked at me in confusion for a moment as his sister chuckled. She then shook her head at him as he glanced over at her, "She thinks you''re talking about the Satyr she encountered on Urza." She tiled her head back to look at me behind the couch, "He''s talking about the one you killed underneath Xelba. And I thought that fight was beautiful too by the way. I was feeling quite shitty after all of your revelations, but that fight inspired me in a way I haven''t felt in a long time..."

    "Oh... Oh! You mean that fucker who ambushed me while I was tracking the Dwarves? I haven''t thought about that in ages... You guys really watched that? You went waaaay back in my memories then."

    It took me forever to heal after that battle, but that was probably the happiest time of my life? My unit took a vacation and we just sat around playing board games and cards for weeks. In hindsight I''m shocked that Viktor allowed that. He must''ve been really happy that I killed one of the Demons harassing him, and it was a Satyr too. Not just your run-of-the-mill Demon.

    Solas turned the TV and nearby console on, "As much as I''d love to continuing talking about that fight, I''ll leave it for another day. For now, just know that we watched almost all of your memories from the moment ''Viktor'' sacrificed you and your family. So we know that you''re looking into him, and if possible we''d like to help you too, but as it is I had never even heard the name until now." He brought up the directory and hovered over the name ''Yulong Napoleon'', "You mind if we head straight over to his place?"

    "By all means. The sooner we can plan out where to go from here, the better."

    Solas hit ''dial'' on the screen, and a few seconds later Yulong connected the line.

    "Shouldn''t you be plotting the downfall of your Clan right now?" He said, causing Solas to shake his head. "That was before, and it looks like you were right. We did end up losing the event it seems."

    "? Have you finally lost your mind like me? Your words don''t make any sense, fool."

    "We''ll explain soon, we''re heading over to your place right now. Whatever game you''re playing, pause it. We need to have a serious talk."

    "... A rarity in our friendship. You almost never come to me for help, so whatever it is must be worse than I imagine." He continued, "Fine, I''ll unlock the gate when you arrive."

    Solas closed the connection and stood up. Eve did the same as all of us followed Solas out of the Clan House.

    "Just out of curiosity, what benefits are there to a Clan House if you don''t have the emblem?"

    "Heh, very little, but our Father and I were positive we could get the emblem or die trying. It was a ride or die moment, but in the end he snuck out with his friends and did it without us. I suppose even he couldn''t bring himself to drag his kids off to a likely fatal mission."

    We turned into a nearby alley, making our way toward the elevators. People were finally out and about again. ''Demons'' was a word I heard quite often as we walked.

    "So that was your Father''s group who disappeared trying to get your emblem?"

    Solas nodded but said nothing.

    "It did give us access to all of the training facilities though." Eve said, "I could barely aim a gun when we first got here, but now I can pilot all of the mechs and use every gun proficiently in training. Except uh, I''ve barely been able to use them in real battles. Convoy missions have been it so far..."

    She wanted the emblem mission but Solas wouldn''t let her go, right? And now it sounds like he''s keeping her from most of the dangerous missions. He doesn''t want to lose her, but she doesn''t want her training to go to waste... That sounds like the gist of it.

    Yulong''s gate opened up as we were approaching it. As we passed through it he said ''Faster than usual. Another bad sign.'' over the intercom.

    Solas took us down the same hallway I went down in the past, ending in the same room as last time. He really just lives in this room huh? Such a massive home for these two groups of people, and they use almost none of it.

    We walked into his bedroom (?) and Yulong was on the couch playing video games as usual. "Well? Out with it." He glanced over at me, "... What a bizarre looking girl. She related to your emergency?"

    Solas sat on the other end of his couch, with Eve and I sitting on two of the recliners. While Shizue chose to stand in a position between Solas and Eve as per usual.

    "Yes, and she''s also why the Demons are here." Solas said.

    Yulong put the controller down between his legs and looked over at me, "You really know how to pique my interest... Well?"

    We proceeded to tell him everything that happened. Just like last time Yulong listened to it all with an emotionless face, but I knew from experience now that he was far from feeling nothing as his friend explained the invasion and time itself rewinding.

    "''Reimia'', may I see---Wait, no. Shizue, may I see the Abyss and the progress I made on those supposed murals and books?"

    "That''s for the best since it''ll only take a second or two." Solas said, motioning for Shizue to approach Yulong. She hurriedly walked over to Yulong and immediately pulled him into her soul realm. Literally three seconds later he opened his eyes and laughed in a way I hadn''t seen him do before. He actually seemed genuinely happy.

    "Is this good or bad? This is my first time seeing him laugh like this."

    Solas chuckled, "He gets like this when he''s overly excited, but I''m sure it''s a little weird looking considering his usual attitude."

    Yulong eventually stopped laughing and hung his head down. "... Three things." He continued, "I''m with Lord Arkaios on his suggestion that we should check out Fort Deus."

    "Fort Deus? Is that where everyone disappeared long ago? Strange name... Almost as weird as yours."

    "Number two." He ignored me and pointed at Solas, "Cancel that stupid bet of yours. We can''t be wasting time on that hunting event."

    "I can''t... I already used my keypass at the Lounge to confirm the bet."

    Yulong threw his arms up into the air and leaned back onto the couch, "Wonderful news, now we have to deal with that nonsense first."

    "Can we just ignore it?"

    "Depends." Solas sighed, "Do you think we''ll need power cores in the future? You can turn in the ''codes'' right now and you''ll be able to buy a hell of a lot of power cores in return, but if by some chance we need to use mechs and hundreds of power suits in the future, then you''re going to run out of them pretty quickly. However, if we have access to our Clan House... And speaking of which." He looked at Yulong who immediately picked up on what his friend was about to ask him.

    "Yes I know, I''ll stop selling mine and begin stockpiling them immediately. But even then, we really need both Clans workshops stockpiling them just in case. Understand, Rei?"

    "... Kind of? I''ll need to look into how many the average Clan House can put out in a day, and how many each mech needs to run for twenty-four hours, but I get what you''re trying to say. Except uh, there''s already a lot of Clan Houses fully operating? If things become dangerous here won''t they be stockpiling them as well?"

    Solas shook his head and laughed, "That''s probably wishful thinking. Most of them blow through their created cores doing pointless tours around the wastes or mock battles in the Arena."

    "Third." Yulong cut in, "I believe someone unlocked the core before your Uncle took that call."

    "Based on? I have my own thoughts on it too, but let''s hear your theory first."

    "For starters, I find it highly suspicious that Clan Uruguay sent out a massive force soon after you had revealed the puzzle required to unlock the core. And there''s another part about it that seems a little too coincidental."

    Yulong changed the TV image from the video game to a map of Caedrus. He then zoomed in on a specific area that I had seen before in the past.

    "Isn''t that where the ''God seventy-two percent'' note was...?"

    Yulong nodded, "Let me just fill this in real quick, and you''ll see where I''m going with this." He brought the index panel down and turned on ''Forts'', and the moment ''Fort Deus'' appeared on the map I had a pretty good idea of what had happened to its inhabitants.

    Within moments Yulong made my assumption seem all the more likely. He drew a red color around Fort Deus, and another red square about thirty-five miles to the northwest. "The red around Fort Deus is where your ''God seventy-two percent'' note was, and the square to the northwest is where Solas, Eve, and Shizue died."

    "How do you know that''s where they died though? I only heard about it on the audio broadcast while I was playing with the pinball machine at Bertram''s bar."

    "Oh, is that so?" Yulong smirked, "You must not have noticed, but I saw it clearly in your memory. The lady who runs that bar had turned off the radio broadcast when Bertram went outside. She must prefer video over audio as a medium, because she turned the TV on to the very same broadcast soon after that."

    Well, shit... I didn''t even notice her do that. I almost missed a crucial part of information because I was too absorbed in playing the pinball machine with Nia.

    "Is there really a God there...?" Eve said. No one responded to her, but I was finding it more than likely at this point. Or at the very least I was certain that there was a God there at some point.

    "What''s the plan---"

    "Four." Yulong said, cutting off Solas again, but in response he just shook his head and mumbled ''You said three jackass...''

    "Xerath in power armor." He said, but as we all waited for him to continue, he never did.

    "... And? You have some thoughts about that or are you asking us?"

    "Asking all of you, but especially you." He pointed at me.

    "Well, all I can say is that is the most confusing part of all. The fact that they even exist at all is already ludicrous by itself, and then you add that to the scene of them being in the bowels of Arcadia. If the core really was unlocked early, which means your sealed levels were too, they could have come out of there, but again, if it was unlocked early..."

    Solas scrunched his face up, "''Then why didn''t they appear earlier''? A good question, and the only way to answer it would be to unlock the core and go down there right now, but that''s way too dangerous considering what happened last time, and there''s no Arkaios to bail us out this time."

    "Wait!" Eve said, "Even if they were down there, then what about the machines?? Were they all waiting down there together as a group?"

    "Masters. Our types of enemies aside, I am greatly bothered by the lack of Arcadian defenses in her memory." Shizue said, causing both Solas and Yulong to groan.

    "That was number five... I wanted to bring it up last, because that part is worrying me the most." Yulong said.

    "It was the core, right? Someone must have turned them off there."

    "Or down below." Eve said, causing everyone to look at her. "W-What?"

    "That''s also a possibility... Too many damn possibilities, so I want to focus on what we can do, which is win your stupid gamble and check out that fort---Wait. Should I go to Fort Deus or the area these two died in? The problem is that they might have died before they reached their destination, and even if they did get to where they were going, I only have that giant red square to work with, which encompasses a giant fucking area."

    Solas tapped the chair arm while looking at the map, "Arcadia has sent people to Fort Deus multiple times in the past. With long range cameras we''ve watched them enter the fort, but they never come back out. I think it''s for the best that you don''t go there at all."

    "I disagree." Yulong said, "For all we know everything could tie back to whatever God is sleeping inside or beneath that Fort. But at the same time, it may not even be there anymore. The purge may have hit it as well."

    Solas shrugged, "And I disagree with that. We should win the tournament coming up, which by the way comes with a large stipend of cores and the Uruguay''s support to acquire my emblem. Not that I need help on that part anymore thanks to Rei, but the power cores part is great." He continued, "The real aim should be to equip ourselves in the best tech possible while hiring as many mercs as we can, and when we''re ready we''ll unlock the core. With enough strength and preparation we should be more than ready to battle what we saw in Rei''s memories. And that''s assuming they really did come from the sealed levels."

    "... While I do agree with you for the most part, I still believe she should go to Fort Deus. Her memories prove she''s more than capable of dealing with anything that happens. And in reality, she likely won''t have to deal with anything." Yulong said.

    "When is the machine hunting event again?"

    "Three weeks from now, and the event itself lasts a week. Honestly, I still have a hard time believing I''m going to lose..." Eve said.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    "Hmm... That''s more than enough time to check out the fort and return."

    "So you''re going to take up Yulong''s suggestion?" Solas asked.

    "My old friends and Arkaios himself said I should look into it, so I planned on going from the start anyway. I understand why you''re worried Solas, but even without Arkaios'' saying I should go, I would still end up checking the place out. Odds are Yulong is right about the Uruguay seeing something in the core that lead to them sending out that expedition to a place near Fort Deus, so we''ll end up in that area at some point regardless. Which is yet another reason I want to make sure nothing is waiting for us at Fort Deus."

    "Heh, it''s your choice, and while I think you shouldn''t do it, I''m not vehemently opposed to the idea. Especially after you reminded me that Lord Arkaios himself told you to check it out."

    "And what about you? Any ideas as to why you lost?" I asked Eve. She sighed while leaning back into her chair, "Leon is good, but he''s not that good, so they must''ve cheated somehow. But the event is really simple and it''s recorded from many different angles. They have some Screamers captured that they drop in the safe zone, but even in the safe zone there is still machines here and there, and once a Screamer appears a lot more machines show up. Most likely from somewhere deep underground. In all simulations and outdoor hunts I''ve always been far more efficient than Leon... So yeah, his family is definitely cheating. Although I doubt that idiot is in on it."

    "Would he really not know?"

    Eve nodded, "You''ll understand when you meet him. He''s... Different."

    ''Different'', huh? His lackeys seemed like your average hoodlums, so I can''t say I was expecting much, but now I''m a little curious as to who Leon might be.

    I stood up, and immediately Eve jumped out of her seat as well. "You''re not leaving for the Fort already, are you?"

    "I was going to talk to my Uncle and Bertram first---Oh, and to have a quick chat with Luna through my niece. But past that; yes. I was planning on leaving today. All I need to do is grab some food for the journey and I''ll be ready to go."

    "I see... Well I hope you make it back in time. All those damn cameras but they still managed to cheat? So I was um, hoping you''d follow Leon. While invisible of course." Eve said.

    Ahh, so she wants me to make sure they aren''t cheating despite all the cameras around him? I was planning on doing that anyway.

    I looked at Solas and he nodded at me, "I was going to ask you the same thing, so if you are back in time, then please watch that little shit for me. He''s six foot and two inches tall, has short cropped blonde hair, and he uses a Tyranium suit that''s been dyed red. It''s the only one dyed red, so he''s easy to spot."

    "Reimia." Yulong said as he drew random lines on the map, trying to determine how Solas and Eve reached their death site in the past.

    "Yeah?"

    "What about the Tengu?"

    "The Tengu...? As in, should I reach out to him for help? The last I talked to him he was full on assaulting Viktor, which is music to my ears. And I really have no idea if he''d help us up here."

    He circled ''Route F'' on the map as the most likely route. It came directly from Fort Weiss (the one I met Maya at). "I''m just throwing his name out there as a possible ally in case things go terribly wrong here. I''ll leave it up to you to decide whether to reach out to him or not."

    In the worst case scenario it couldn''t hurt to ask, but I''ll need to repair the connection to him first, and I don''t even know if that''s possible. Hmm... I''ll try asking Luna when she''s done healing Nia.

    As I left the room I heard Solas and Yulong throwing out theories about what or who was attacking the previous occupants of Caedrus from the portal in the dark lands. It was a topic I was highly interested in, so I was looking forward to seeing what they came up with the next time I saw them.

    I walked through the hallway until I reached the main lounge area, but just before I opened the front door Shizue called out to me from behind, "Master Reimia."

    "Master??"

    "Yes, you saved Solas, Eve, and myself, while also sharing your knowledge with us based on... Quite frankly very little. I am still not sure why you chose us to seek out for aid instead of heading straight for Yulong or your Uncle, but that just makes me appreciate it all the more." She continued, "And while I''m happy to have got a chance to thank you, I really stopped you, because..." Her emotionless face shifted to that same longing face I saw back in my soul realm.

    I walked over to a nearby chair and sat down, which made her eyes go wide for a moment. "I didn''t mean to hold you up for very long... There''s no need for you to sit down."

    "It''s fine, Shizue. Come on, sit." I patted the couch arm to my right. She thought on it for a moment and then came over and sat down on the couch''s arm.

    "... I wasn''t telling you to literally sit on the arm. I meant the couch itself."

    "Is there a difference? I am sitting next to you either way." She said, causing me to chuckle.

    Thanks to the way she was sitting, her knees were nearly hitting my chin. That''s when I noticed the heat coming off of her.

    "I don''t get it, are you a Human with machine parts inserted into you, or are you a machine with an artificial soul? I''m assuming the second because of how weird your soul is, but you give off the exact same amount of heat as a Human would when I take into consideration your size, clothes, and this rooms temperature."

    She hummed after placing her pointer finger against her chin, "What to say, what not to say..."

    While she did that I looked at her outfit in full. There was no way to misidentify it, it was quite literally a maid outfit. I had only seen them on TV in fictional stories, so to see one in the flesh was so bizarre. Her skirt normally came down to her upper-thighs, but now that she was sitting down it was barely covering her knees. I was looking at her white stockings when suddenly her legs spread apart as she lifted her skirt up. It was so out of the blue and weird I quickly looked up at her face, which had a teasing grin plastered over it that went all the way up to her eyes.

    "Are you not pleased? You were staring so intensely... I thought you wanted to see what was inside, and I do owe you, so..."

    Ahh, so this is her personality... I knew someone like this back in Xelba. She was in another unit so I barely interacted with her, but I did see her tease other people in the same way.

    "Hmm, I suppose this is another way of finding out whether you''re Human or not, so I''ll take you up on your offer." I reached out with my right hand, but just before I put it between her thighs she snapped them shut and pushed her skirt back down.

    "A joke! It was a joke!!"

    This time I was the one smirking at her, and that''s when she realized I was messing around with her as well. She just shook her head and smiled while saying, "Not as gullible as Mistress Eve... Very disappointing."

    I leaned back into the chair and closed my eyes, waiting for her to answer my earlier question, and she did after a brief wait.

    "I''m Human in design, but no, I suppose I''m not what you''d call ''Human''. Everything is artificial, including my soul." She continued, "And no, I don''t know how I nor my soul were created. All I know is that my creators were wonderful people, which is what I wanted to talk to you about."

    She paused again, and I turned to look at her as I waited patiently for her to continue.

    "I... I dearly miss them. You''ve experienced a lot of loss. How do you get past it?"

    "... That''s the one question I''ve been avoiding this entire time. I wouldn''t say I''ve ''gotten past it''. It''s more like I''ve been forcing myself not to think about it. I''m just going to push forward, finish up this bizarre scenario, kill Viktor, and then go find my friends who did make it. Hopefully they''ve revived Shana by now, but who the hell knows how I''m going to find anyone in Gaia. If the rumors are true then it''s going to take me ages... Still though, time is not a huge issue for me, and with my invisibility I should be able to avoid anyone or anything that is preventing me from moving around in there."

    "Don''t think about it and just push on? Sounds difficult, but I''ll try..." Shizue said, looking down.

    "That''s what I do, I wasn''t saying you should do the same, and it helps if you have a goal like I do. What''s your goal?"

    "Keep my Masters alive?"

    "That''s not a goal, silly girl. You need something past that. Is there nowhere you want to go, or anything you want to do? Let''s say we''re successful in protecting this place, I know the siblings are probably going to stay here since they''ll have their Clan House operating and the main core itself will be unlocked, which I assume will add something useful to Arcadia, but what about you?"

    "......."

    She continued looking down for a bit before suddenly standing up and walking back toward Yulong''s bedroom. She stopped at the hallway and looked back, "I should get back. Thank you for talking with me, Reimia."

    I watched her disappear into the hallway, silently listening to the click clack of her fancy black shoes until the sound of a door opening and closing brought it to an end.

    That was too much for her at the moment it seems. But I''ve given her something to think about, so it''s a good first step.

    I stood up and left Yulong''s place; heading straight for the elevators.

    <hr>

    "There she is! What happened to you girl?!" Bertram yelled from the porch. I could see his shotgun in his hands, which was a rare sight.

    "Why do you have your gun out, old man?"

    "Demons god damnit! What if those fuckers came down here? The report said they left soon after entering the city, but fuck if I''m going to believe that nonsense." He cocked the shotgun and quickly looked to the left and right. "I need my suit. Why did I sell it to build this stupid ass bar? I must''ve been out of my mind when I made that decision."

    "Calm down Father... The Demons aren''t going to come here." I heard from next to Bertram. As I got closer to the bar I saw his daughter sitting in Uncle Irvine''s chair. Weirdly enough, I still don''t know what her name is.

    "Slow day?" I asked while climbing the steps. She merely nodded in response.

    "Everyone ran home to gear up! Fucking Demons, as if we don''t have enough problems..." Bertram said.

    "Did my Uncle return here? I assume not since I don''t see him, but just in case."

    Bertram shook his head, "No. Wasn''t he supposed to be with you?"

    "He was, but we split up a little while before the Demons appeared. At the time he was at Clan Uruguay''s home formalizing a bet with them."

    "Oh for the love of... What did the fucker bet on this time?"

    "Whether I''d be successful in acquiring both emblems."

    "That... That''s actually a great bet? He''s going to clean them out! I can''t believe that fool found the gall to rip off Clan Uruguay of all people, but hey, good for him!"

    I motioned toward the bar, "Nia playing in there?"

    "Asleep in her bed." Her mother said.

    So much for talking to Luna before I leave. Should I wait? I really want to get this over with though, and if anything goes wrong I might not make it back in time for the machine hunting event.

    I brought the console up on my arm and dialed my Uncle''s number. It rang a couple of times before he picked up.

    "You all set to go?" He said.

    "I am, but there''s been a slight change of plans. Can you come to the bar right now?"

    There was a slight pause before he said, "... I just formalized the bet, please tell me you didn''t change your mind."

    "I didn''t! I''m still getting the emblems, but there''s something else I need to talk to you about, and it can''t wait."

    "It''s that urgent? So it must be related to our new guests... Alright, I''m on my way. Be there soon." He said before closing the connection.

    "You know why those Demons are here or what?" Bertram asked.

    "Let''s head into the bar. No one is in there besides Nia, right?"

    "That''s right. Aint a soul besides hers in there. But alright, you got me curious yet again, girl."

    Bertram stood up and we both entered the bar. About fifteen minutes later my Uncle showed up, but we decided to eat before diving into the topic.

    After we were finished, I dragged them into my soul realm, where the two of them took the direness of the situation in stride. My Uncle was a little panicked at the part where he saw himself running into the bar as the Xerath attacked, but he quickly regained control of his emotions. Although it didn''t help when Bertram casually said ''Yep, we definitely died after she left.''

    They talked for a while and in the end they pretty much reached the same conclusions that Solas'' group had.

    <hr>

    "Solas was right, this is a bad idea." Uncle Irvine said as we exited the elevator. A large gust of cold air blew snow onto us while I looked out past the north gate.

    "I''ll find out soon enough whether this is a bad idea or not. But putting that aside, I see that our guests are quickly turning into neighbors."

    My Uncle looked to the north and sighed as he saw that the foundation for the Demon''s fortress was already well underway. "This place was already hellish enough, and now we''re going to have actual Demons walking around the continent. Plus, the feeling of that gaze hitting me from above is really fucking uncomfortable."

    We couldn''t actually see anything in the sky, but it was unmistakable that he was there. This was my third time experiencing it so by this point I was used to it, but it was still annoying to deal with. Especially since he had the ability to crush people anytime he wanted. Markus said there were probably limitations to it, but even if that were true, we''d still have to figure out what those limitations were. And I was pretty sure the God of Demons wasn''t going to run an experiment with us where we figure out how to avoid being crushed by him.

    We walked toward the west gate. Upon arrival I let the men scan my keypass after he told me again about the bet his friend had and just lost thanks to me showing up here. It feels so weird having the same conversations again... This should be the last one though.

    "Good luck, little cousin..."

    I turned and looked at my Uncle. He had been rather stoic after the revelations thanks to his life and long history of combat experience, but every now and then he looked miserable. Bertram yelled at him for it, but I understood it. He''s old, tired, and doesn''t want his remaining family to be killed.

    "I''ll be fine, Uncle Irvine! I''ve been through far worse than this."

    I wasn''t sure if that was fully true, but I did have a long harrowing life that he knew all about so all he could do was chuckle in response. I walked back a little and hugged him, which seemed to take him by surprise, but he hugged me back all the same.

    After seeing him off I left through the gate and activated my halo before flying into the sky. I had only been flying for a couple of minutes when I heard a loud boom behind me and to my right. Looking back there I could see Asmodeous and his two guards flying through the air toward me. They were moving fast, which was made all the more clear when I realized the boom from before was a sonic boom.

    I was fast, but that kind of speed was far beyond my capabilities, so I stopped moving and waited for them, which obviously didn''t take long.

    Asmodeous slowed down as he approached, but was unable to stop completely before reaching me. He ended up a few thousand yards ahead of me before flying back in my direction (at a much slower pace this time).

    He finally stopped in front of me. The flames of him and his guards were running hot. I gauged the area around him was probably around one hundred and fifty degrees Celsius, but it quickly dropped off. It was centering itself around him, which told me it was probably part of his aura, and this was only the passive temperature. I wasn''t all that keen on finding out how hot he got during combat.

    "YOU... FEMALE ASSASSIN. I SAW YOU IN THE MEMORIES OF MY UNDERLING ON VECA... WHERE ARE YOU GOING?"

    His underling... The one who fought with us outside the prison? I can''t think of any other living Demons who saw me, but putting that aside, I wonder if I can get him to go with me? If something really does go wrong, then who better to have for support?

    "There''s a fort far to the west of here along the coast. All of the people in it suddenly vanished one day for reasons unknown, but I found information that the previous occupants of this continent had a God residing there. Or at least we think they did. So I''m going there to check it out and see if this God really exists or had existed at some point. It might explain all of the Demonic corruption too."

    "........."

    The white in Asmodeous'' eyes disappeared as he tapped the armor on his thigh again. And just like last time, he went silent for about a minute before his eyes ''opened'' back up.

    "WE WERE TO LEAVE SOON TO TEST THESE ''MACHINES'', BUT WE CAN STILL DO THAT WHILE ACCOMPANYING YOU... SHOW US TO THIS ''GOD''." He turned around and glanced back at me over his shoulder, "I BELIEVE THIS WILL NOT BE A PROBLEM?"

    Not that I was going to say no anyway, but it''s obvious I don''t have that option regardless. Not unless I want to fight them right now, and I really don''t.

    "That''s fine, but I can''t fly the entire way there. The machines have a lot of anti-air defenses that start to appear after a certain point."

    "THAT WILL NOT BE AN ISSUE. ACCEPT MY AURA, AND WE WILL BLAZE PAST IT ALL."

    I flew up behind him and the guards, half-way accepting the red aura as it reached out toward me (no soul penetration, merely an aura around myself). Soon after that we all began flying forward, but it was at a super slow speed. However, little by little, our speed went up, and a few minutes later we were flying far faster than I was able to. Is this a form of constant acceleration? The speed at which we''re increasing is a static amount... Holy shit, I need to learn this in my soul realm. I could save so much time and even travel to the dead zone with this!

    The guards didn''t have wings. Instead, the same aura that was around me was also was surrounding them. From that I could only assume he was the reason they were able to fly, because I was currently using no mana to move forward. It was entirely done through him.

    <hr>

    Well, that''s it, but there aren''t any skeletons? If they died there should be frozen bodies or skeletons in the base, but I''m not seeing any signs of corpses. Just vehicles, boxes, and all sorts of other shit. Just no bodies.

    We were flying above Fort Deus at the moment. The entire flight only took about twenty minutes, and it was rather uneventful. By time we reached the high threat zone we were already moving far too fast for the anti-air machines to hit us. I was interested to see if we could dodge the ultra-fast air attack I saw in the dead zone, but now was not the time to test that.

    I removed Asmodeous aura from myself and began flying down toward the fort. On the way I began to feel odd, and by time I reached the courtyard I could tell that there was something very wrong. There was an oppressive aura over the entire place, and Asmodeous had obviously picked up on it as well. He landed behind me and both him and his guards looked to and fro, scanning the area for anything that would explain the aura we were feeling, but there was nothing.

    "THIS AURA... VERY FAMILIAR... DEMONIC IN NATURE, AND YET NOT DEMONIC?"

    I went to respond to him but I never got the words out, as the area around us suddenly changed. It wasn''t a gradual change either. We were in the Fort one moment, and the next we were in a completely different landscape. The rocks, gravel, sky... Everything was red. The only part of the environment that stood out was the ruined buildings all around us.

    "WHAT MANNER OF DEMONS ARE THESE...?"

    ... And that was the other thing surrounding us. There were Demons, and a lot of them. However, they were nothing like the Demons I had seen up until now, and apparently that was the same for Asmodeous. It''s one thing if I didn''t recognize them, but for an ''Archdemon'' to be confused by the sight of Demons was not something I ever expected to see.

    A pack of bipedal three-meter tall Demons stopped eating a dead boar to look back at us. They slowly stood up and took aim with the circular weapons grafted onto their arms where their hands should be. As a orange light appeared inside the weapons Asmodeous roared in anger. Fires began to blaze within and around him and his guards as he pointed at the pack of Demons.

    "YOU WOULD DARE ATTACK ME? ME?! ARE YOU---"

    Whatever he had to say was apparently of no interest to these Demons, as they opened fire on all four of us. But while these four would probably be dispatched with ease by Asmodeous, the problem was that the sounds of their energy weapons had resounded through the air, knocking whatever dormancy the Demons had been in out of them, as I could feel the ground begin to rumble.

    All around us I could see unknown Demons of varying types converging on our location, but despite the situation, my eyes still rested for a moment on the sole outlier in this Demonic hellscape. There was a machine in the distance. An abominably large machine. Far larger than even the Abyssal God who took over Termia. If anything, it was closer in size to Lord Terra''ka, and he was an Eldritch God that was close to becoming an Old God.

    Regardless, it was clear in that moment that the ''God'' really did exist, and it was apparently a machine. Furthermore, just like the machine I had fought near Inoue''s emblem, I could see eyes in multiple places appearing on it as it gazed upon us, the invaders of its realm.

 Chapter 105 - Silent City

    Asmodeous dropped his right hand to the ground and whipped it up in the Demon''s direction, creating four horizontal fiery blades from his claws that tore through the energy blasts the Demons had shot at him, while also cutting straight through two of the Demons. One of them managed to roll out of the way just in time, but he was barely halfway through his roll when Asmodeous dashed up to him in a single step; bringing his right boot down onto the Demons back, smashing him straight into the ground. Before the Demon had even realized he had been attacked, Asmodeous brought his right fist down and crushed its head like a grape.

    A massive tower shield and a long club appeared in the hands of one of his guards, while a great axe with an abnormally long shaft appeared in the other''s hands.

    "ASSASSIN, HELP THEM PROTECT ME!! I AM GOING TO OPEN A PORTAL!"

    Asmodeous had barely entered a channeling pose when the guard with a tower shield had to jump in front of him. He brought his shield up just in time to block the hail of explosive rounds being fired from a seven meter tall slug-like Demon. It was sliding along the ground toward us with its bulbous body, firing two rockets attached on its shoulders and one large cannon on its right hand as it advanced.

    The guard with the long great axe threw it at the slug. I could hear the wind from it whirling as it flew past me, and for its part the slug attempted to move out of the way, but the axe was moving too fast for it in the end. The axe tore through the slug and quickly pivoted around; rebounding back to its owner.

    While this was all going on I was channeling a spell I had only used in my soul realm, but this was as good of time as any to start using spells in combat. I was about halfway done when a nine meter tall bipedal Demon reached us. This one didn''t have any weapons, but it was heavily armored.

    The guard with the shield slammed it into the ground and attempted to brace himself, but the Demon completely bowled him over. It was kind of comical seeing the guard rolling backwards along the ground as his shield practically did the same motions as him.

    The Demon had lost a lot of his momentum so it turned and ran past me, but it only got a few feet before the other guard buried his axe into its back. That''s when I noticed that while the Demon was heavily armored, its back had a lot of gaps, and even the armored portions were much lighter than its front.

    As the Demon fell to the ground and burst into flames (the guard''s axe ignited the moment it hit him) I finished channeling. I then used my fingers to draw out lines in my vision along the ground, pinpointing where I wanted my soul to cast it.

    I finally let the spell loose after the first guard returned with his shield. Three meter thick walls of earth came out of the ground, rising a few meters above Asmodeous'' head.

    I was planning on saving the spell for when the Demons had nearly reached us, as it would only serve as a visual impediment with so much distance between us, but the fuckers had begun firing at us so I had no choice. And they were by no means firing a small amount that the first guard could block with his shield. There was a horde of them approaching while firing now. Physical rounds, energy blasts, rockets, grenades, it was all hitting the earthen wall that my mana was still channeling into.

    If all of that hit me head on my mana would''ve dropped to zero long ago, but the nature of the wall itself was dampening the damage by spreading it out, so both my mana and the wall were taking far less damage than they should be. However, even with that, neither were going to last as long as we needed it too.

    To our right I could see bodies pierced onto sharp red rocks all around a singular building. Humans, Dwarves, Elves, Crotians, Kitsune, Nei''lah, the weird aliens from Veca and the ''training grounds'' photo, and there were at least another ten races of beings I had either never seen before, or had seen in passing when I was a child in the Xerath realm.

    The meaning behind why they were there was obvious.

    They were trophies.

    My mana took a massive hit as another Armored Demon blasted through the wall, leaving a giant hole in its wake. But just like before, it had lost a lot of momentum, which allowed the guard with the shield and club to knock the feet out from underneath the behemoth. And just like before, the axe wielder brought his weapon down onto the Demons back before igniting it in a ball of fire (whether this even damaged the Demon was unknown, as the axe itself seemed to do the job).

    After the Demon smashed into the wall I had immediately meditated to recover my mana. I was unable to channel into the wall as a result, so it was quickly being destroyed by the constant stream of attacks from the Demons. As a result, the guard with the shield placed himself in front of Asmodeous again, preparing to intercept all of the attacks, while the axe-wielder pulled his arms all the way back, apparently in preparation to throw his axe again.

    The wall crumbled moments after my mana was full again, but I was barely a second into channeling my next spell when a twenty-two foot tall bipedal Demon warped next to Asmodeous and the guard (we could only see a vague silhouette at this point). Fortunately for them, its ability wasn''t instantaneous like the Draugr''s was (units spawned out of Viktor''s obelisks). It took a few seconds, allowing the guard time to reposition himself in front of Asmodeous.

    The second the Demon''s transfer finished it took aim with its weapon that clearly looked like a double-barreled shotgun at Asmodeous'' head. The guard raised its shield up just in time to block the shot, but since it hit the top of the shield and the guard was no longer bracing itself, it nearly knocked the shield out of its hand, and to make it worse is the fact that the Demon kept firing.

    I glanced at the other guard to see if he was going to handle it but he had already ran off toward the approaching hordes. At the moment he was leaping at a fat Demon sitting on top of a hexapod robotic frame. Why he chose that one first was obvious when I saw that it was firing multiple plasma weapons.

    I stopped my channel, as there was no time to create another wall, instead choosing to place a barrier over Asmodeous. This was a spell I was not a fan of. No matter how much I trained in my soul realm, I was unable to properly wield it, so the mana costs per hit were ridiculous compared to the types of barriers Lindon or Luna could create. But this was the only instant cast save spell I had at the moment, and I needed to act now.

    After the barrier appeared over Asmodeous I flew up into the air and dropped down onto the Demon (who was still trying to shoot Asmodeous, at this point I was certain its bullets were mana fueled and not physical). As I came down I dropped both of my feet onto its skull, driving them straight through it, which was kind of a problem since I was struggling to free myself as the Demon fell over. It only took a few seconds but every second mattered in our current situation.

    I released the barrier as the guard began to block the hail of gunfire again. My mana was nearly depleted, which wasn''t much of a surprise considering what it looked like around Asmodeous at the moment. The amount of explosions, energy blasts, and physical bullets hitting the tower shield and the ground was ridiculous.

    I ducked between the guard and Asmodeous for a moment to regain my mana before stepping out to help the other guard, but that''s when he re-appeared next to us. The reason was clear when I saw just how close the horde was now, and even worse was the fact that I could see at least four of the large shotgun Demons (with two of them wielding different weapons) dematerializing. Which meant that they were about to re-appear somewhere around us, and even without the horde, protecting Asmodeous from four of those wasn''t going to be easy.

    Three of the fat Demons riding mechanical mounts had been channeling onto a blue sphere the entire battle, and the moment they launched it above us I could feel my mana regen completely halt. As the blue sphere floated in the air above our heads, even meditating wasn''t regenerating any mana. A quick glance around I could see its area of influence could visually be seen by a thin veil that made everything outside of it shimmer as if we were looking at a mirage.

    I was about to fly up and try to destroy the sphere when Asmodeous yelled ''NOW!!''. The axe-wielding guard was about to throw his axe again but he paused and looked back at Asmodeous at the same time I did. In front of him was a dark-purple portal, and in the middle I could see glimpses of a familiar looking vehicle. It was one of the armored vehicles stationed at Fort Deus.

    The guard and I turned to run toward him, reaching the portal as the other guard jumped through it.

    The moment I passed through the portal I could feel Asmodeous aura surround me as he destroyed the portal.

    "THAT WILL ONLY BUY US A LITTLE BIT OF TIME."

    After we had flown up into the air and began to make our way back toward Arcadia did the meaning behind his words really hit home for me.

    "Wait, what do you mean ''buy us time''?! They pulled us into our realm, so couldn''t they have just came to ours anytime they wanted?"

    Asmodeous paused for a moment before saying, "NO... WITH THE AMOUNT OF DEMONIC CORRUPTION HERE I SHOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO ACCESS THIS LAND MUCH FASTER, BUT SOMETHING WAS STOPPING ME. THE AREA WAS SEALED SHUT FROM THE OTHER SIDE. IT WAS A ONE WAY PORTAL WITH THE OTHER END BEING SECURELY BLOCKED."

    ... So in other words, there used to be a two-way portal at Fort Deus, but something or someone had blocked the other side out, preventing them from accessing out world. And we just broke that seal...

    I sighed as a hail of gunfire ripped into us.

    This reset is off to a great start... And it didn''t hit me before, but there were no anti-air machines around Fort Deus for miles. Fortunately, we''re about to move too fast for them to matter so I''m not worried about the damage we''re sustaining right now.

    A few minutes later Asmodeous looked back at me. It was hard to tell with the way his face and eyes were designed, but he looked quite angry.

    "OUR LORD SAYS THAT THEY HAVE INDEED RE-OPENED MY PORTAL. THEY ARE FLOODING OUT OF IT NOW, BUT THE MACHINES ARE NOT ATTACKING THEM." He looked forward and continued, "OUR LORD IS ALSO UNABLE TO INTERACT WITH THOSE DEMONS. THIS CANNOT STAND... IT APPEARS WE WILL BE STAYING HERE MUCH LONGER THAN I HAD INTENDED."

    <hr>

    As Arcadia came into view I removed Asmodeous aura and flew toward the city while they returned to the Demonic Fortress. At the back of the ''mid-levels'' of the fort I could see multiple portals were already active (only the foundation was set at the moment, so all of their rooms were clearly still visible).

    The Demons maintaining the portals looked exactly like the one who was channeling into the portals in the Abyss. Well, not exactly like the one I saw in the Abyss. That one looked like it was zombified or something. They were obviously controlling it. Ishar and Greyson said it was referred to as the ''General''? So maybe that''s what their type is called.

    I ran up to the eastern gate where a group of guards were gathering. At the head of them was three people in Tyranium suits. One of the suits was dyed red.

    "Halt!" The man in the red Tyranium suit yelled out as I reached them.

    ... I was going to stop anyway, asshole. After Xelba I really struggle with orders like these. I could''ve just flown over the stupid gate, and yet I was obviously approaching them like this to talk... sigh, just let it go, Rei. You have bigger issues to deal with.

    I stopped in front of the group of guards. Immediately the person who yelled halt removed his helmet, revealing a young man with short blonde hair and sharp eyes.

    "S-Sir, there''s no need to remove your helmet. The speakers---"

    The young man raised his hand, causing his subordinate to shut up.

    "I will do no such thing when her face is clearly visible!" He said to his subordinate before looking back at me, "Apologies for the delay, young... Oh?" He put his helmet back on for a moment before taking it back off, "So you are who I think you are. You''re the young lady who killed one of my men. This isn''t why I stopped you here, but as fate would have it..."

    "Huh? But I don''t remember killing anyone lately?"

    "You..." He narrowed his eyes at me, "Did his life mean so little to you that you don''t even remember snuffing it out? Perhaps you are the monster they''ve made you out to be..."The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    What in the hell is he... Wait.

    "Hang on, you''re not talking about that icy spear guy I fought in the arena, are you?"

    "Of course that''s who I''m talking about!" He roared in response.

    "Well whoop dee fucking doo I killed a thug who brought it on himself. They had tried to kidnap me in the past and then I found out they had been harassing the Inoue''s constantly. And did you see the video? That fucker was not trying to knock me out, he was trying to stab me in the back of the head with a lance made of ice, and it was really well done. Most people wouldn''t have had the mana required to block that attack, so he was obviously trying to kill me. Now can we stop talking about that loser? I have something far more important to report."

    At first the man''s face contorted in rage, but when I said the word ''kidnap'' he looked more confused than mad, and by the end he was lost in thought. To the point where a guard had to step up and talk since the man wasn''t saying anything in response.

    "And what is it that you wanted to report, Miss Reimia? We''ve been awaiting your return ever since the Archdemon left with you."

    "We went to Fort Deus, and well, it''s bad... We found out that the reason everyone disappeared from there is because the entire fort is some sort of gateway to another realm full of Demons that the Archdemon didn''t recognize. They attacked us on sight, firing their ranged weapons at the Archdemon first."

    "Ranged weapons??" The blonde man interjected.

    "Yes, ranged weapons. And they weren''t the only thing in that realm. There was a machine that was---Actually, here, just take my footage and see it for yourself. We need to get the word out now, because Asmodeous needed to open a portal so we could escape, and now those Demons are streaming out of it. You need to tell Fort Weiss to be careful, or maybe they should just straight up abandon it? Because those Demons might find their way there."

    I brought my portable console up and accessed the footage''s data. "Where should I send it? I''ve never done this outside of the lounge."

    "In the ''nearby'' section of networks. Send it to ''all'' please." The guard replied.

    I did as he asked and all of the guards went silent as they skimmed through the footage. The red-suit wearer put his helmet back on and did the same.

    While they were doing that I went into my contact list and tried to call my Uncle, but for the first time yet I received an error response saying the call was blocked. After that I tried calling Solas, Yulong, and Eve, but all of the calls were blocked.

    "Uh, not to interrupt you guys, but why are all of my calls being blocked?"

    "Huh? They''re being blocked?" The red-suit wearer responded. About twenty seconds later he removed his helmet and looked at me with a weird expression on his face, "Mine are being blocked too... Dylan, what is happening?"

    The guard I had spoke to earlier looked at the man, "Give me a moment. Calls should only be blocked in a general emergency if a lockdown order is given, but I''ve received no such orders." He went silent again for about a minute before finally saying, "... Something is wrong. My direct line of communications that is supposed to go through all lockdown orders, is being blocked."

    The rest of the guards who were watching my footage stopped and quickly looked over at Dylan. Almost all at once they said ''What?!'' (I could barely hear it over the red-suit wearer''s dislodged helmet). I''m late to realizing this, but I just remembered that the others had already told me to look out for someone wearing a red Tyranium suit. Isn''t this the son of the head of Clan Uruguay? ''Leon'' should be his name... Eve said he was different, and I''ve seen a few signs of that so far. At the very least he''s not like the hooligans serving under him, which is rather bizarre.

    Dylan pointed at two of the guards, "You two, stay here. The rest of us are going to try and figure out what is going on." He glanced at me, "Miss Reimia, I''ve only seen a little of the footage, but what you''ve shown us is horrifying to say the least. Also, I did see that you''re an expert caster with a massive mana pool, so I''d appreciate it if you joined us."

    I had to stifle a laugh when he called me an ''expert caster'', but it was obvious why he got that misunderstanding from the footage. Since the only thing I had actually done was cast spells during that encounter.

    "And I accept of course. I''ll be right behind you."

    I assume my invitation was more of a ''just in-case'', but he doesn''t know that it''s possible that the city is under assault again. He doesn''t remember what happened last time after all... I really hope it didn''t happen again already. That''d be way too damn fast though, so it has to be something else, but what could it be?

    We ran toward the elevators, only stopping once to talk to one of the men driving the large plow trucks. He told us that he hasn''t been in contact with anyone in the city in a while, and that his radio had cut out about twenty minutes ago, giving us a pretty good idea of when whatever it was had started.

    Once we arrived at the elevators we found problem number two. We couldn''t activate them. Even after a general override by Dylan to get the doors opened, we still couldn''t get the elevator to move.

    I couldn''t hear their discussion, as this time Dylan forgot to (or purposely) turn his speaker on. So instead I waited and watched as their body language made it clear that two of them were beginning to panic, while the others remained stoic and professional. Two out of twelve, not bad. I figured the gate guards would be more lax and prone to flee, but it seems that''s not the case.

    After that they began to run further toward the back, and I followed after them. I didn''t know where we were going until they stopped in front of the loader bays. And yet again, they had to override them to get the doors to open. But fortunately for us, this time the elevator actually moved. Not naturally of course, but through one of Dylan''s men finding a way to reset it, so it exited whatever lockdown mode it had been put under.

    The doors closed and the elevator began to descend. Unlike its usual white and cheery lights, the red lockdown lights were still up.

    "We''re descending to the lounge at R-4. Normally we would go to the head office, but the loaders don''t stop there. The lounge is the next best place. If something did happen, then people are sure to bunker down there." Dylan said over the speakers for me.

    After that the only thing I could hear was the elevator itself. It moved quite slow, and unlike the usual elevators, there were no glass windows. The only way to know where we were was on the small elevator''s console, and the screen placed on the east wall. Dylan tried changing through the channels to see if we could figure out what was going on, but every channel had the same emergency lockdown message going on repeat.

    ''Arcadia is currently under lockdown. Alert level - Max. Please return to your homes and await further guidance.''

    We weren''t going to get anymore out of it, so he turned the channel back to the elevator''s status, which showed a very basic image of where the elevator currently was in Arcadia. We were just now after five minutes reaching R-1.

    "Just so you know, I sent a warning to Fort Weiss before we entered the elevator and lost contact with the ground level. I also sent along the footage of your encounter, so they should be prepared for what is to come regardless of whether they decide to stay or hunker down." Dylan said as we moved past R-2.

    Smart of him. No way of knowing if we''ll get trapped down here after all.

    Eventually, the doors finally opened up to R-4, and the first thing we saw was the corpse of a Butcher.

    God damnit, so it did happen again, and so much sooner than before!

    We moved quickly through the area, making our way toward the Lounge. Contrary to my initial thoughts, we didn''t encounter a single living machine. There were plenty of dead ones, and a few dead people here and there, but it was nothing like what I had encountered in the past.

    A few minutes later we reached the plaza area and could see a large barrier setup in front of the lounge. Both physical, and magical.

    We moved at the same pace as before, keeping an eye on our surroundings as we advanced, but it wasn''t long before we began to run into people. There were groups outside of the lounge moving machine bodies out of the way. They had piled up quite a bit and were blocking way too much vision as a result.

    Dylan and Leon removed their helmets as we reached the lounge. The guards at the lounge did the same in response.

    "What the hell happened here?!" Leon was the first to speak.

    One of the guards shook his head, "No idea, sir. Most of us here weren''t even on duty when we suddenly received a message from the Inoue Clan to gather here. And it wasn''t just us that got that message." He jutted his chin behind him.

    Looking further into the lounge, I could see Shizue, Gale, the hooligans, and several other people who looked like they were on good terms with Gale.

    "Father!" Leon yelled out as he ran forward. He ended up stopping in front of a portly man standing next to Gale.

    "Ooh my boy!! I was worried about you out there, but how''d you re-enter the city?"

    I walked past Dylan and the guards, heading straight up to Shizue who was in her soul realm with Gale. I tapped her on the shoulder and immediately both her and Gale opened their eyes.

    "Welcome back, Master Reimia. But aren''t you back a little too fast?"

    "Asmodeous flew us out there. He has an amazing skill I need to learn. It allowed us to reach Fort Weiss in like twenty minutes? And I have some bad news, but first I need to know what the fuck happened here. How did the machines already attack?"

    Before she could respond Gale stuck his hand out at me. He was still sitting down and it was clear he was asking for a handshake. It was obviously strange considering the circumstances, but I obliged anyways out of curiosity.

    "Thank you." He said after I grabbed his hand. I could tell he was being genuine, which made it all the weirder.

    Shizue chuckled, "I showed him what happened up until now, as per Master Solas'' orders. You see, we had a bit of a problem pop up soon after you left."

    "Obviously you did, but how? And no problem Mr. Gale."

    Solas decided to trust him, so I''ll give him the benefit of the doubt for now.

    In response Shizue reached out her hand while still clasping Gale''s with her left hand. I sat down and grabbed her hand, allowing her to pull us into her soul realm.

    "This is how." She said, bringing up video footage of Evette entering a door.

    "And? I don''t know what that door is, so I''m learning nothing here."

    Gale laughed, "That''s the door to the main core. Your buddies had Shizue monitoring the footage around it twenty four seven after you showed them the past."

    I looked back at the footage and sighed, "So it was Evette... But I don''t understand. How did she remember how to unlock the core? And that is what happened, right? She didn''t just go in there and leave? I don''t know if it''s normal for people to just enter the core room after all."

    "It''s definitely not normal, Master Reimia. And she did unlock the core - that''s the problem. But as for how she remembered... She didn''t."

    Different footage appeared on the screen - it was of the lounge. Evette and the other attendants were taking care of things as usual when she suddenly received a message from someone. The message appeared to be nothing more than an image of a pretty field full of flowers.

    "And here, is the real image." Shizue said, morphing the image to show a line of characters I recognized but couldn''t read.

    "Abyssal... Now hang on. I know Arcadia has powerful scanners that detect any hint of corruption, which is why I was glad that after my initial conversation with Shannon and her brother, that I was confirmed as a hybrid, and not something that was corrupted or cursed. If I hadn''t told them about the Abyss, there would have been major problems for a while, so if she really was one of them, how the hell did she fly under the radar?"

    I didn''t sense anything weird with her soul at all either.

    Gale sighed, "We don''t know. That''s what we were doing in here the past few hours. We''ve been pouring over hundreds of hours of footage trying to find something off with her, but all we''ve found is that she never leaves or uses the elevators. And I mean never. So you know what that means, yes? Although she did once, which was to ride the elevator up to R-1, and she was immediately flagged in the system. But by time the guards had reacted, she had already activated the core and used the elevator inside of it."

    Never using the elevators means she never came into contact with the scanners... But she had to get inside the city through them at some point.

    "How did she originally enter the city?"

    "Birth." Shizue merely said.

    "... She was born here? And then she somehow never used the elevators?"

    "Again, we don''t know. There are no records of her keypass using the elevators, only her parents who had left over ten years ago to live in Termia. It''s rare for people to leave Arcadia for somewhere else, but it does happen."

    "That''s not all though, Master Rei---"

    I raised a hand and cut off Shizue, "Just Rei, please. I know you want to call me master, but I''m not a fan of it."

    "R-Rei... We also accessed the core thanks to what Evette did, so it''s not all bad. I downloaded the entire archive, and it''s very interesting." She continued, "Also, Master Solas, Eve, Yulong, and half of every Clan''s forces have been going through the sealed levels trying to find Evette. I''m sure you were wondering where they were, and so, there you go."

    She materialized a couch, a console, and a very large TV a few feet away from where her and Gale were pouring over old footage. "Here, you should look through the core''s files before you leave. I know you want to join the others, but remember, it''ll only take a few seconds inside my soul realm." She continued, "And I suggest you watch this first. It''s the last video ever aired on ''Earth''."

    What? I wanted to rush down to the sealed levels to help the others, but now I have to watch this. I can''t even imagine what it''s going to show...

    "That video... I can''t get it out of my head. That shit was horrifying." Gale said as I walked over to the couch.

    The video file ''This isn''t your world anymore'' was highlighted.

    ... Well that''s not ominous at all.

    I clicked the play button next to the video and leaned back into the couch.

    <hr>

    The music played first. It was an ambience I expected to hear in a temple or a church. Next, an image of the night sky appeared on the TV as a man began to speak.

    "At the worst possible time, you sent up a flare."

    "In a dark forest, you lit a fire."

    "And now, you are no longer alone."

    The video changed to that of a skycam over a small city. There were fires raging everywhere as bullets rang out from different points of the city. Between the fires and gunshots I could see people fleeing from monsters as others chose to stand and fight. ''Elgin, Texas'' was in the corner.

    "You brought this on yourselves."

    An old man in a wide-brimmed hat with curled brims unloaded his shotgun on a skinless monster running at him with four elongated limbs. The scene ended with the monster devouring the old man.

    "We will not help you. We are going to watch as you face the consequences of your own actions."

    "We will watch, with glee."

    A new city appeared. It was a much larger one, with tall buildings everywhere. The city was silent. Through the lights that were still running, I could see nothing but bloodstains and destroyed vehicles. ''Seoul, South Korea''

    "This fight is already over. Your leaders are attempting to flee... They will not get far."

    "And you... You will also not last long."

    It changed to that of a view from someone''s living room. Through the sliding glass door I could just barely make out the outline of a large monster in the field outside. ''Sochaczew, Poland''

    "Give yourselves up to them."

    The outline of the monster vanished as the outside light shattered.

    "That is your only option now... No one is coming to save you."

    An image of a church with a cross on it appeared next.

    "You''re all alone... And your gods are silent, for they never existed."

    The next image was of six massive arms sticking out of the ground. They were reaching for the sky, and I could see that each of its fingers were different. Human, Reptile, Mammalian, multiple Unknowns, etc.

    "That is one of your gods now. Pray to it, and you may even live."

    The last image was of a giant red fleshy tree. It was taller than the clouds, with thousands of branches. Hanging off the branches were fleshy bulbs that were being cared to by ant-like creatures.

    The base of the tree had much larger bulbs and creatures. They were made up of red sinewy flesh with white metallic porcelain covering them in different parts of their bodies. The types of monsters spreading out from the tree were wildly different aesthetically. Humanoid, Insectoid, Xerath, Demon... ''Hokkaido, Japan''

    "This is not your world anymore."

 Chapter 106 - Revelations

    While I was contemplating the video I had just watched, an image of Evette at Bertram''s bar popped into my head.

    "Hang on you two... You said Evette never used the elevators, but if that''s the case, how the hell did she descend all the way to Bertram''s bar?" I continued, "Ah, Bertram''s bar is where I told everyone how to unlock the core. It''s down on level R-72." I said for Gale''s sake.

    Gale rubbed his chin, "Shizue here told me about that, but you raise a good point... She had to get down there somehow. Perhaps she took the scenic route? You can access all levels through other routes, but it''d take a looong time to go from R-4 to R-72 doing that. I suppose it''s possible if she sprinted the entire way while enhanced, however, even then there has to be scanners along the way... Right?" He looked at Shizue as he finished his sentence. In response she merely shrugged and said, "Don''t ask me, aren''t you in a much better position to know that?"

    "... Maybe, but even so, I don''t know shit about the back routes. I''ve spent my entire life keeping my brother in check, I haven''t had time for scenic walks between levels. Although, I hear a lot of people prefer to take those routes, so they must have something going for them." He continued, "Oh, but they should be blocked right now? I swear my brother told me long ago that physical barriers appear on all levels during a lockdown. It''s to prevent whoever it is that invaded Arcadia from moving around of course. No point in shutting down the elevators if they can just run into the side routes."

    "Is it in the database? How much of the core''s data did you grab, Shizue?"

    "All of it. Apologies, that should''ve been an obvious solution, but I''ve been half listening to this conversation while I focus on this. I think I found something... Give me a little bit of time, please."

    The screen she was watching was fast forwarding at such a high speed that it just looked like a giant motion blur to me. While she did that I went back to the core''s data files. Over the next couple of hours I was finally able to piece together a lot of the mystery surrounding Caedrus. Far more than I had hoped for, in fact.

    <hr>

    ~The following is a summary of what she read in the data files~

    It began when a faction of aliens saw visions of another realm. They called it ''The Realm of Souls'', as they believed that''s where all souls went after they died, but whether they were correct or not, nobody knows.

    That by itself would have been fine. If they had merely believed in this other realm, or even worshipped it, nobody would have cared. Unfortunately for the rest of the Federation (A faction that absorbs or destroys all space-bound life - all depending on whether they join the Federation or refuse. With some other stipulations of course), there was a large contingent of people who believed it was their mission in life to open a portal to the Realm of Souls.

    Again, by itself, might have been overlooked, but in their research the contingent(known as the Sovereign''s Righteous) not only began to open tiny portals into the Realm of Souls, but they began to create a machine intended to quite literally bring the Realm of Souls into our realm. And as if that wasn''t bad enough by itself, the Sovereign''s forces had completely seized every planet in TRAPPIST-1, making it their base of operations. While doing so they either killed or enslaved anyone who opposed them, which of course lead to the Federation declaring war on them.

    As the Federation would come to find out, attacking TRAPPIST-1 was a complete nightmare thanks to all of the planets being tidally locked to one another. The data files didn''t go too deep into detail, but apparently a full on invasion was the only option left for the Federation. Skirmishes, infiltrations, deep space bombardments... Nothing was working.

    They had even attempted to blow up the sun several times, but the Sovereign intercepted every attack using methods that were unknown to the Federation, which was an almost non-existent occurrence in their world. It was very difficult to develop something without the rest of the Federation finding out. Going out of your way to hide research on a planet nobody went to was pointless, because someone would always blabber for a larger payout. And even if you used slaves, the slavemasters would end up blabbing to their mistresses or to spies etc.

    There was a time when someone had attempted to use AI for research, as they wouldn''t need to worry about anyone blabbing then, but that was a grave mistake. The one thing that is absolutely not tolerated in the Federation, and the main reason they wipe out entire planets time and time again, is Artificial Intelligence. The first and only great universe-wide war was because of AI, and again the data didn''t go into detail, but it said that it was a miracle that the newly minted Federation had managed to snuff it out. Apparently the AI was creating a planet-sized machine, all for the purposes of turning the universe into a lower vacuum state - whatever the hell that means.

    Point being, the alien man who built an AI facility for off-world research was forcibly kept alive for half a year as he was tortured endlessly. It wasn''t pretty, but it was necessary in the Federation''s eyes.

    Unfortunately for the Federation, the Sovereign''s Righteous were successful. They created the machine and brought over the ''Realm of Souls'' into our universe, just as they intended. And that Realm, was Gaia. However, in doing so, a Demon had used the tiny window given to him to breach into our realm. And as it turns out, the one who gave the dreams of Gaia to the Sovereign, was that very same Demon.

    Unlike Eldritch, Demons follow a rather simple principle. Every Eldritch is unique, while unique Demons are almost never born. However, it does happen sometimes, and this Demon was one such case. ''Baal'' was its name. It was one of the only Demons that did not obey Eremnon, nor could it be controlled. So when it broke through to our realm, it made zero efforts to bring over other Demons with it. It could have opened a portal, but to Baal that was a pointless act. In fact, one of its very first acts upon subjugating the Sovereign, was to declare itself a ''Daemon''. A new form of Demon that was going to turn our realm into its own personal realm.

    The Federation caught wind of this, of course. How could they not? Gaia was now spreading throughout the universe, and when the machine was turned on the entire milky way galaxy was affected in one way or another.

    Apparently Earth is in that same galaxy, but it doesn''t describe what happened there. However, it does explain how Humans and the Shindo''rai (the elongated-headed aliens who were living underneath Veca and seen in the photos with Humans at the training grounds of Caedrus) came to be working together underneath Baal.

    You see, when Baal subjugated everyone in TRAPPIST-1, he broke them. They were still functional, but outside of influencing the dreams of soul-creatures through the veil of our realms, this was his first time actually interacting with them, and as a result he poured too much of his being into their souls.

    They were still functional... To a degree, but not to where Baal needed them to be. And so, despite his vast interest in creating an AI army (after learning everything the Sovereign was capable of - he was most interested in the power of mass produced AI as a means of subjugating the rest of the universe), the actual result was... Mixed. They were powerful, but the madness behind their creators couldn''t have been more apparent, which was beautiful in a way to Baal, so he wasn''t entirely displeased. It was his first time feeling ecstatic and disappointed at the same time, because there was a glaring issue he needed solved, and these broken people were clearly not going to be able to assist him.

    Even if he was a unique Demon. Even if he changed his name and swore to create his own race of ''Daemons''. It would all be for naught if Eremnon sensed him in our realm. For now the all-seeing-eye had not found him thanks to how difficult it was for Eremnon to breach the veil, but it was only a matter of time, especially since Baal''s own people were caught multiple times trying to force captured Federation members to initiate Demonic rituals. One group was moments away from being sacrificed to summon a Satyr into our realm, and if they had succeeded, Baal would have been completely doomed, and he knew it.

    It didn''t help that TRAPPIST-1 was quickly becoming a Xerathian hellscape. By forcibly breaking open the veil after the machine was turned on, he left a large gaping hole in the universe that was overflowing with Xerathian corruption. Again, thanks to this, it was only a matter of time before Eremnon found him, so he needed to leave, and soon. However, again, he wasn''t sure what to do with his people. On one hand he needed them. On the other, they were going to be the death of him. Eremnon would not forgive him, unique Demon or not, for not reaching out to him and turning TRAPPIST-1 into a solar system the Demons could fully control and use as a base of operations to invade other solar systems and galaxies.

    That''s when he noticed that one part of the Milky Way had been taken over by the Eldritch. He knew they''d find a way here after his stupid people used the machine and broke the Milky Way, but he was still impressed that one of Meizha''thul''s children had been the one to break through. It was a massive ''planet'' that had appeared in such a way that Gaia was literally going straight through it. Baal assumed such an action would either kill or forcibly pull him into Gaia if he attempted the same thing, but the Eldritch planet was fine apparently, so perhaps he would be too if he tried?

    Regardless, he found something very interesting as he watched the Eldritch (while making sure his moronic people didn''t summon Demons over to TRAPPIST-1). It was creating miniature versions of itself. Apparently it was settling in for the long haul, and that area was going to be its base of operations.

    If Baal planned on staying at TRAPPIST-1 this would have outraged him and he would have immediately went to work at destroying them before they were ready to begin spawning Eldritch Gods. However, the Eldritch were already gathering soul-creatures from all corners of the galaxy to themselves, and this is where he saw his opportunity.

    The Eldritch were currently too weak to pose a real threat to him, and where better to hide from Eremnon than next to one of Meizha''thul''s children?

    Immediately he killed all of his people, gathered up the machines into himself, and flew over to the Eldritch''s solar system. At most he felt a wary ping from the gigantic planet as he approached, but the planet-sized monstrosity made no move to attack him. Instead, it silently watched him, waiting to see what the Demon was going to do.

    As for his part, he had long since decided where he was going to settle in. He had already reached out to one faction of creatures who were currently under constant assault from a portal to the west of their continent. They had initially declined any ''help'' the Demon was offering, as the last time they did that it ended poorly for them, but they were losing against the invading force, and both Baal and the soul-creatures knew that.

    And so, he waited. He watched from the sky as more and more of the soul-creatures lands were ravaged from the west. In fact, it was so bad, that the invading force was literally absorbing the atmosphere as they advanced. This action greatly annoyed the Eldritch planet known as ''Mother'', but she didn''t want to intervene just yet. Gathering souls is one of their goals, but allowing her children to grow stronger through conflict is far more important, so she won''t intervene unless absolutely necessary.

    Be that as it may, the situation was quickly becoming out of hand. She and the rest of the Eldritch realized that ''letting things play out'' had put them in a rather precarious position. The invaders were made up of two different aliens, and their technology was on a whole other level. The reason they focused on a single moon first and took it over was so they could setup an energy plant that was draining the moon''s lifeforce. And the biggest issue of all was their portals. They didn''t use ether at all, so even if the Eldritch used magic to deplete the area around the portals of ether, it would be pointless, because they were purely technological.

    This was a feat unknown even to the Federation, and the rest of their technology wasn''t anything to scoff at either. Their ''power suits'' and weapons were wreaking havoc on the Eldritch and the forces of Caedrus. It was obvious that the only reason Caedrus was slowly losing ground is because the invaders were spreading themselves out - attacking all of the moons and planets at the same time.

    Destroying their atmosphere''s was only phase one. The moon they currently dominated was already primed to be destroyed. They were merely waiting until they had captured every single celestial body (Mother included) before they drilled to their cores and detonated them.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    As Baal patiently watched from high above the planet, he was contacted by something unknown even to him. He hadn''t talked to the Eldritch at all, nor did he plan to, but in just this one case he was very curious, so he sent a telepathic package to Mother, asking her if she knew what it was that was reaching out to him from one of her planets. Her reply surprised him in multiple different ways.

    ''That''s not my spawn, and I don''t know what those creatures are.''

    Baal observed the planet for a while and found it was quite different from all of the moons and planets surrounding Mother. For starters, there were ruins everywhere, and on all sides of the planet there were remnants of creatures unknown to him. Whatever happened here, had clearly happened soon after the Sovereign''s machine was turned on, and a winner had long since been declared, which was the creatures of the Abyss currently reaching out to him.

    They knew he was planning on using the people of ''Caedrus'', and one of the Gods wanted to help - or so it claimed. Even from a single glance at it, Baal could tell the God was clearly mad, and at this point he was tired of dealing with mad creatures, but after finding out why the God wanted to help he started to wonder if a timed alliance might benefit him.

    The God was called ''Atraxu'', and it was interested in the invaders technology. He had already encountered the invaders previously, as they were attacking Veca over and over, much to the Abyss'' annoyance. Only Atraxu and a few other Gods were happy about this, as the amount of sacrifices this war was bringing in far undervalued the amount of losses they were incurring.

    But Atraxu didn''t care about that. The invaders technology was amazing, and he wanted it. He needed it. He was a God focused on Mutating, Evolving, Transforming. Always advancing forward through any means necessary, and this was the perfect opportunity for him.

    Assuming the Abyss wasn''t destroyed in the process of course, which was quickly becoming a very real possibility. The invaders (known as ''The Velashar'') had hit the Abyss God''s many arms with a weapon that forced him to retreat underground. It was a laser that ramped up in intensity the longer it was fired, and as such, he really had no choice, but that left the Abyss far more vulnerable above ground. They were managing to hold their ground up until then, but now that their God''s support was withdrawn, they were being pushed back more and more every single day.

    Baal accepted Atraxu''s offer just as the people of Caedrus accepted his, and thus that''s when he and Atraxu moved to the southern-middle part of Caedrus, taking up residence in an unused fort named ''Fort Deus''. One of the Humans had said that an Eldritch God that was helping them that created the Fort and was residing there, but at some point it disappeared and they never heard from it again.

    Baal and Atraxu had an idea as to how it ''disappeared''. They could both feel the tear in the veil, and after some probing they found themselves in a small pocket realm. The Eldritch was alive and well, and surprisingly it couldn''t have cared less about a monstrous Demon and a strange God showing up out of the blue.

    It had a very powerful soul morphing ability. Normally it''d be using it to train soul-creatures into ridiculously powerful warriors, but instead it was capturing Humans, Shindo''rai, Xerath, the Velashar - everything it could basically. It was attempting to merge them together into a new unique lifeform, and while success was extremely rare, every success was worth it.

    This was Atraxu''s area of expertise as well, so he stayed and assisted the Eldritch. For his part, the Eldritch was more than happy for the assistance after seeing what the weird Abyssal God was capable of. Although it was mostly because Atraxu had the essence of all the Abyssal Gods stored inside of him, which opened up his experiments in ways he could only dream of up to that point.

    But before they could hunker down, Atraxu and Baal needed to make sure that Caedrus wasn''t overrun by the Velashar.

    Baal released all of his machines and several of the AI factories the Sovereign were using. He had stored those inside of him as well, knowing full well he''d probably need them.

    He granted access to the Humans and Shindo''rai, who quickly set them up for mass processing while scattering portions of them to all parts of Caedrus. The Velashar were sending in shock troops all over the place, and the AI they had was only a single prototype that couldn''t handle it all by itself. The AI they were producing was the ''Warrior'' machine. The one that looked like a Human. It was easy to produce - easy to program - and quite good at anything you set it to do, but it had no specialties. Which isn''t exactly something they were looking for, but the bizarre machines Baal had brought with him were shifting the war to the west by more than they had expected.

    As a result, the Velashar started launching bombing raids. They were keeping all of their air forces for other harder battles, but after the introduction of Baal''s machines, it seems the Velashar had raised Caedrus'' threat level.

    Now Caedrus had no choice but to create a new machine - one that would focus solely on the air, and thus the anti-air machines were created. Although along the way they ended up creating another one as well - a sniper. While it was good for anti-air measures, it proved far more capable at protecting the edges of Caedrus'' territory against shock troops.

    While all that was going on, Atraxu was setting up his Xerath. The Abyss were not pleased that he was taking all of his forces to another planet, but there wasn''t anything they could do about it. They were his forces after all.

    Atraxu had found a Xerath hive on Veca that was created from a single egg. There was no main hive, which was the first time anyone had ever seen such a thing up to that point. And even more surprising was the fact that these Xerath did not force the soul creatures to obey them. They were purely focused on spreading out everywhere and feeding the hives.

    Atraxu destroyed a group of Xerath who were transporting a new egg to another location (to create another hive), and stole the egg for himself. He then placed it down in the Abyss and fed it until the hive was big enough to spawn another hive - and so on and so on.

    The Xerath weren''t intelligent by any means, but they weren''t abominably stupid either. These hives knew that Atraxu was raising them, and thus he was their ally (including all Abyssal creatures - as they have similar soul structures).

    Also, because the machines and Xerath were primed to attack anything that wasn''t part of Baal or Atraxu''s flock, they had to place little soul markers on everyone''s soul in Caedrus. The people weren''t happy, but their scanners proved that they really were harmless marks, so they put up with it since it was necessary.

    Soon after that Baal was able to create a new breed of Demon with the help of the Eldritch (who preferred to remain nameless) and Atraxu. He wasn''t satisfied with just that though, as he went on to make dozens of new Demons (that he now called ''Daemons''), but no matter how many he made, he wasn''t satisfied. Eventually he realized it had nothing to do with how many new breeds he created - he simply needed them to do more. There needed to be something they could do or bring to the table that other Demons couldn''t.

    That''s when one of the Shindo''rai running an AI factory of his suggested he make them part machine.

    It was an off-hand comment that the Shindo''rai didn''t think much of, but Baal was ecstatic and jumped right on it. He had the scientists test what types of machinery or weapons would work well with each Daemon, and by the end of the year he had a new army of his own. Also, one of the latest Daemon''s he created was a spawner type, which fixed his issue of having a low creation rate. The Eldritch had allowed Baal to corrupt that pocket realm, and as such it was spawning Daemons in relation to its corruptor''s soul, but it was slow. Much slower than they needed for the war. Lucky for him, that was no longer a problem.

    And that''s when it hit him. Why only make his creations part machine?

    While this was going on, the Eldritch and Atraxu were toiling over their lack of progress. The souls of the soul-creatures just weren''t assimilating properly no matter what they did, which was leading to an extremely high failure rate, and even the success stories while amazing, were still nowhere near what they wanted.

    That''s when one of the Eldritch''s spawn brought back a Human who was corrupted by a Xerathian God. As a result, the Human''s soul was bare and easy to manipulate. It was still a failure, but immediately they knew that if they were to succeed in this venture, then it would be far easier using soul-creatures who were under the control of the Xerath.

    Atraxu''s Xerath were incapable of doing that for whatever reason, so they chose to create an enclave in the Xerathian realm. Which was much to their dismay quickly destroyed soon after its creation. The Xerath know where everything is inside their corrupted lands, so creating your own lair in their realm just isn''t an option. Even so, kidnapping people one by one through a portal was not an option either. For starters, while the Xerath realm is the only owned domain that''s possible to breach whenever you want, that doesn''t mean you can just leave a portal open. It''s very unstable and requires constant attention - which is something only the Demons and certain Eldritch are capable of doing, and unfortunately for them, none of Baal''s Daemons had such an ability.

    So instead of an above-ground enclave, they created small underground caves where they would trap people and experiment on them. Again, mostly failures, but the successes showed that they were on the right track. At one point they had successfully turned a Human into a hybrid of one of Baal''s Daemons and the Abyssal War God (the Lion). After some training, the abomination was sent to Veca to make up for all of the time Atraxu had spent not helping them. Needless to say, the abomination was a force like no other, and quickly became the number two to the War God (although they were still losing regardless).

    A long protracted war played out after that, and unfortunately it was clear that the Velashar were gaining more ground with each passing day. Not necessarily on Caedrus, as they were doing a great job of holding them off at that point, but once everything else had fallen, Caedrus was doomed and they knew it. They had a plan to flee, however, there wasn''t much hope of it succeeding.

    Even before Baal or the Velashar showed up, the people of Caedrus had been creating a spaceship. All for the purposes of leaving the hellhole known as ''The Milky Way'' behind, and they had finally finished it, but there was a problem. There had been another race who attempted to fly away in a spaceship on a nearby moon, and the Velashar completely obliterated them. The attack and inevitable destruction was seen through their cameras, and so they knew what would happen if they attempted to fly out of there, but they couldn''t let their plans all be for naught.

    And they also had something else to worry about now... Baal. He had his Daemons create an array over the entire western front, so that every death was sending the souls to the ''Machine God'' he was creating in Fort Deus'' pocket realm. It was one thing if they had won the war against the Velashar and everyone was on equal footing, but it was clear that even if they won, Baal was going to absorb all of them the moment they won, and there''d be nothing they could do about it. His ''God'' that he planned on assimilating into to hide from Eremnon was already three-quarters finished.

    And speaking of that God; despite the fact that it was literally in another realm, its aura was leaking out from Fort Deus, and whatever it was showing up as on the Velashar''s radar systems must have scared them stiff, because Caedrus suddenly became their number one target almost overnight.

    As this was happening the Eldritch and Atraxu had just finished setting up a new underground enclave, and it was the one they had the highest hopes for. They found out in their last attempt that using the Abyssal God of Sustenance''s ability to create food that will slowly influence people''s souls was the best possible option, and that''s exactly what they did. There was vegetables and fruit set to grow indefinitely by absorbing the surrounding ether, so even if they couldn''t return for a while, they''d still be ready to go many years later.

    Unfortunately for them, the moment they returned to the pocket realm they were met with the sight of a massive battle. The Velashar were flooding into the realm and they had brought their ''God Killer'' with them. That vile laser beam that had forced the God of the Abyss to retreat underground.

    For now the machine God was blocking the laser with the support of Baal, but with its ever-increasing-strength, the laser was destined to win in the end.

    All of the AI, Xerath, and people of Caedrus in their reverse engineered power suits (that they were calling ''power armor'') were trying to hold off the Velashar, but the Velashar weren''t fucking around. All of their forces were converging on Caedrus, and none of the Eldritch were helping fight them back. The Abyss were out in full force trying to hit them from behind, while the Black God (Necromancer) was assaulting the Velashar''s main base. She had already destroyed their power generators and portals thanks to them being completely unguarded, but the Velashar didn''t seem to care, as they knew that if they eliminated everyone on Caedrus then there was no one left to stand in their way.

    The Abyss was beyond hobbled, while the Eldritch were mostly hiding on Mother the past year in an attempt to build up their forces for a counter attack. But despite the fact that this should be their moment to strike, they were instead doing something that puzzled everyone, including the Velashar. The Eldritch were concentrating around a specific point on every single moon and planet.

    There was an area full of ether on every celestial body surrounding Mother (Veca excluded), and while it was nice having the extra ether, no one actually knew what the point of those wells were, but seeing that the Eldritch chose this moment of all moments to surround those wells was setting off alarm bells for everyone involved. The Velashar had sacrificed too much for this one last push though, so they couldn''t back off, and as a result, neither could anyone else.

    The last data log talked about how Baal and Atraxu managed to push the Velashar out of the pocket realm for a little while, which allowed them a breather to setup a far stronger defensive posture around Fort Deus, and then... It ended.

    <hr>

    So that''s where the data ends... Thanks to Alicia and Aresa I know exactly what the Eldritch were doing at the wellsprings. They were taking the opportunity to activate the purge, which was actually the correct move in that situation. They took out all of their enemies at the same time, excluding the Abyss but they were already on their last legs and that''s probably why they ended up sealing the underground city. They needed time to recuperate. Although from the looks of things far more happened after that point which lead to the cities inhabitants being turned into poisonous zombies.

    I leaned back into the couch and closed my eyes. There were many points that stuck out to me, and I needed time to absorb them.

    "All done?" Shizue asked.

    I looked to my right and both Gale and Shizue were staring at me.

    "For the most part. Are you guys done too?"

    Shizue nodded, "Yes. I think I know how Evette was corrupted, and now I need to inform the Clan Head''s so we can respond accordingly. No one is going to like it, but everyone needs a full scan. Everyone."

    "And what did you find?" Gale motioned towards the TV, "Anything interesting? I only watched the last transmission on Earth. Haven''t had time to look over everything else."

    "Interesting... Hah, that''s one way of putting it." I rested my head against the couch and closed my eyes again, "I''ll try to summarize it, and yeah, you''re definitely going to find this to be ''interesting''."

 Chapter 107 - Swarmed

    "That''s a lot to take in... Give me a few." Gale said as Shizue nodded behind him.

    A pretty normal response. Hell, I''m still trying to get my head wrapped around it all, and that was only the recounting of one of the techs who had access to the core. Apparently, the core room was always locked down, unlike now where people have been free to go in and out, even if it was pointless. But back then you''d get arrested for even attempting to enter the core room, despite the fact that you''d need the ''code'' to even use the mainframe.

    I looked through the data files until I found the map schematics. From there I tried to get a sense for how much of the spaceship had been locked out, but it wasn''t easy. The ship was abominably large. It was designed to hold all of Caedrus'' citizens on it after all, so the size made sense, but the fact that they had even managed to pull it off was shocking. And it was also really sad seeing how much work they had put in only to get snuffed out in an instant by the purge.

    Hmm... There''s a part of these maps I don''t understand at all.

    "Shizue, sorry to disrupt you, but what is this?"

    Shizue walked over to me and looked at where my pointer finger was aiming.

    "Ahh, those are bay doors and pathways for personnel to exit or enter the ship. They look different because only certain people even knew they exist. I know this because there are a few we''ve had access to all along. They''re down on the lowest levels." She continued after pointing to the rough looking drawings below the doors, "See here? This is the underground. I don''t know if they were actually going down there, but this map suggests they went underground at least once."

    ''The lowest levels''...

    I flipped through the schematics until I found R-72 - Bertram''s level. And sure enough, there was a large bay door near the back.

    From the looks of it though, it''s concealed behind something, which would explain why my Uncle and Bertram never brought it up when I told them about what happened with the Xerath.

    "Shizue, was there really no activity on the lower levels this time?"

    She shook her head.

    Whatever brought them here must not have had time---No, not ''whatever''. I''m pretty sure I know exactly what brought them here after reading these data logs, and if it was him, then I''m honestly looking forward to having a round two with that freak. And hopefully we learn some more about him after Yulong finishes translating the Abyssal books.

    "One last thing. You haven''t mentioned it up until now, but between your mention of them, these data logs, and what I saw last time, I can''t help but think those power armors the Xerath were wearing, were in fact your ''Arcane Power Armors''. Why didn''t you tell me before?"

    "Because if they were Arcane Power Armors, then I didn''t know they were. I spent most of my life in the lab... I was only let out a few times to run tests on different Arcane mechs. I never saw any of the power armors, so I don''t know what they look like. Why don''t you just check the data files?"

    Oh, right... That was stupid of me. I need to get used to the fact that we have access to all of the data now.

    Merely searching ''Arcane'' brought up everything I was hoping to find. There were endless amounts of documents I wasn''t interested in, but the images were fascinating. Especially the ones that showed bulky suits of power armor that looked identical to the ones the Xerath were wearing.

    "That''s definitely them..." Shizue whispered.

    Just then, the image of that machine attacking me near Inoue''s emblem popped into my head, which reminded me of another thing I wanted to look up.

    After a little bit of typing, images of all the machines of Caedrus appeared on the TV, and the fucker I fought was front and center.

    "Deathbringer... That''s a good name for it actually."

    It was a large chart of the machines that had every stat possible next to them, with a list of abilities or spells that they could use as well. From there I used the Deathbringer as the baseline and began to compare it to other machines, quickly finding that the strongest one was apparently that pinkish-red eyed machine that watched me underneath the training grounds as I tried to figure out how to unlock the core. They''re called ''Praetorians'', and there is four of them in total.

    Nothing was mentioned about them or any of the other units in the dead zone in that data log I read through. The other files might talk about them, but I''ll have to read up on it later, for now I want to go see how the others are doing.

    "Alright you two, I''m heading out. What are you going to do?"

    Gale stood up, "I''ve seen enough for now, and we''ll need to convince my brother to have the entire populace forcibly scanned. There''s going to be a lot of people who refuse after all, even though the morons are entering the elevators and knowingly getting scanned all the time anyway."

    "I''ll come with you, of course. I told Master Solas and Yulong that I''d be right behind them." Shizue said.

    We exited her soul realm and the moment Gale sat up his brother was demanding answers. Gale sighed, but I could tell there wasn''t any hostility between the two of them.

    I looked at Shizue over my shoulder and pointed at my back, "Hop on."

    "What...?" She looked at my incredulously.

    "It''s a pain and I''ve only done it a couple of times, but I''m going to put my veil over you too. It should be much better now that I have a lot of mana regen and the only lighting is these dull red lights."

    "O-Ooh, are you serious?! Your memories have been eating away at me... I''ve been wanting to know what it''s like to actually go invisible, so thank you! Even if you are doing it for valid reasons."

    We haven''t seen any living machines yet, but that doesn''t mean there aren''t any left. So it''s better to play it on the safe side. Although right now, I''m assuming I can keep us both invisible, but I''m pretty sure it won''t be a problem from a mana standpoint thanks to the dim lighting."

    She jumped on my back and I ran out of the lounge, escaping the area influenced by the emergency white lights they had placed around the lounge. Once we were far enough away I turned us both invisible and ran for the loader bays that we had descended earlier.

    "I''m trying really hard to hear your footsteps, and I can barely make them out, even though your armored boots look like they should be sending out echoes of clinging and clanging in this dead environment. I want to study whatever it is that you put on the bottom of your feet and boots when we get some free time. I''d love to see if I can copy it..." Shizue whispered.

    It''s not something I purposely do - my body does it all on its own. So it''s one of those things concerning myself that I know absolutely nothing about.

    We reached the loader bay and the doors were still open. I ran inside and pushed the R-1 button while praying it''d work, and it did. The doors closed before it began to ascend to R-1 at a snails pace.

    My mana was holding up just fine so I left the veil up as we ascended, listening to nothing but the sound of the elevator humming.

    When we neared R-1 I glanced back at Shizue and whispered, "How did the others get up to R-1?"

    "Clan Leaders have an override for the elevators. They''re the only ones though, and all of the overrides are logged in the public system, so everyone knows when and where they''re used."

    So in the event one of the other leaders forcibly used the elevators, we would know. Good to know that, just in case.

    The bay doors slowly opened, and when they were about two-thirds of the way up we could see a long row of metallic feet lined up about twenty feet in front of us.

    I looked back at Shizue again and put a finger up to my lips moments before the doors fully opened, revealing around fifteen Warriors in pristine condition aiming their weapons in our direction. They weren''t firing though, as they were obviously struggling to find their targets. Their heads were going back and forth looking for whoever had used the elevator.

    There was a little gap on both sides of the line of Warriors, and so I snuck up to their left side and did my best to make sure I didn''t make sure I didn''t make a single noise. Like Shizue just said, I pretty much make no sound as it is, but these are machines, so even a tiny sound only one foot away from one could be problematic.

    After slipping by the machines I made my way up to the crossroads and saw an Observer with two Warriors walking away from us, while the left side had another set of Observer and Warrior duo''s walking in our direction. The Observer was looking all over the place, so I waited for the moment it was looking back or up at the roof before dashing past the side street and into a larger street full of businesses.

    It was close though, as the Warriors behind us had given up on watching the elevator and were walking in our direction.

    Shizue silently pointed toward the left, and thus I ran in that direction, passing by one store after another. Most of them were empty, but some had bodies inside of them, while the shops with jewelry or other metal (or mineral) goods had Warriors loading them all up inside of some bags that they had also stolen from the shopping center.

    I wanted to ask Shizue why the Warriors were acting like petty thieves, but making any sound at the moment wasn''t an option.

    As we reached the end of the street, it turned to the right and it had several alleyways in front of us. Shizue pointed at one of the alleyways - the one without an Observer in it that was staring up at the ceiling for whatever reason.

    I ran into the empty alley as the sounds of energy weapons discharging mixed with screams echoed out from the other end of R-1.

    The weapons being fired had become uncountable by the time I reached the end of the alley. Shizue pointed toward another alley across the street just as several explosions occurred at the far right-end of the street I was running across. At a glance I could make out a couple of people in power armor and several of the Soldier Mechs were there as well. They were the standard mechs that fit a single person into them. Fifteen feet tall, two arms with varying weapons (depending on what the pilot wanted to bring), an energy blast device on their waist that was used to blast back anything approaching them, and hardened armor that could withstand quite a beating.

    It looks like one of them took quite the ''beating'' already. One of its arms is melted off and I can see half of the pilots legs through a big hole at the bottom of the cockpit.

    A group of Warriors sprinted around the corner and opened fire on the mechs, hitting the pilot with the hole in his cockpit several times, but that was all they managed to do, as the Soldier Mech''s current guns (heavy automatic weapons using rifle rounds) ripped them into pieces.

    Before I ducked into the alley I could see that the pilot who was hit had completely lost his legs, but the mech continued to move regardless. He was either on the biggest painkiller high ever, or he was soldiering on through a ridiculous amount of pain.

    I ran through multiple streets and alleys until we finally reached the end of R-1. Shizue pointed at a half-open door that was covered in blood. Its surroundings weren''t much better, but machines made up the majority of the bodies.

    Upon reaching the door to the core room, I slowly pushed it open, revealing a surprisingly small room. It looked like it could fit twenty people tops. There was a monitor covering the entire left-side wall, and a keyboard in front of it. That was it, besides the open door at the back of the room.

    I ran through the core room and the door in the back, coming upon an even smaller room that had nothing except four elevators.

    "Know where to go from here?"

    "Hopefully that''s where they went." Shizue said, pointing at the number above the elevators. Two of them said ''R-1'', while the other two said ''R-80''.

    Seeing that, I opened one of the R-1 elevators and pushed the R-80 button once I was inside.

    Unlike the usual elevators, this one had no glass on it, so we couldn''t see any of the levels as we passed by them.

    "By the way, a little late to be asking this, but do you have any combat skills?"

    "Um, sorry, no... I am a pure support, and I can only support Arcane equipment, so..."

    So if something does happen then it''s all on me.

    "It''s fine, Shizue. Even without Arcane equipment you''ve been very helpful so far. And this isn''t my first time being around people who could only support others."

    "Nisha?" Shizue said.

    "... Yeah."

    It''s not that I forget she knows all of my past, as I was the one who offered it up to her, but it''s going to take some time getting used to how she remembers it all so clearly, as if they were her very own memories.

    R-77...

    R-78...

    R-79...

    The doors opened as we reached R-80, and for the first time in a while, I was truly stunned. The room was far larger than Bertram''s R-72, and it didn''t look as unfinished and empty as his does. Far from it in fact.

    "A-Arcane mechs... They''re all Arcane!" Shizue joyously said with a wide smile on her face.

    As fascinating as it all was, I needed to find the others, so I ran forward, zigzagging through all of the mechs and mechanical stations scattered around the room.

    It didn''t take long for us to start hearing voices. They weren''t panicked or yelling, which was a good sign.

    I ran toward the voices, and as I passed around a gigantic mech that was blocking my view, the others (Yulong, Solas, and Eve) finally came into view. They were standing around a large console discussing something.

    I promptly removed my invisibility and called out to them as we approached. All three of them looked back at us with confused looking expressions.

    "Uh, shouldn''t you still be gone, Rei?" Eve asked as I stopped in front of them.

    I lowered Shizue so she could stand on her own, "Long story short, Asmodeous made it so we could reach Fort Deus much faster. We have a lot to talk about, but for now, where is Evette?"Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    Solas sighed, "We found her, and I even hit her quite hard with a wind ability of mine, but uh... I mean shit, I still don''t understand what happened! Her mana gave out from the hit, and then she proceeded to fly through the air from the impact, smashing into several different mechs along the way. She should have been dead, but the moment she hit the ground she jumped up and ran away as if nothing had happened. How the fuck is that possible?"

    "And then my esteemed Masters decided to stop chasing her?" Shizue asked.

    "Cute sarcasm, my lovely maid. And yes, we stopped chasing her soon after that. We didn''t have a choice..."

    Yulong pointed at the console''s monitor, "See that? It''s Evette."

    "?" Shizue tilted her head as we both looked at the monitor. The screen showed the safe-zone portion of Caedrus on the map, and west of Arcadia was a dot that was moving relatively fast.

    "Hmm, I doubt she escaped to the outside from down here, so that means she went underground? And now she''s running at a speed I can only achieve while flying. Except uh, her soul didn''t feel all that power? But then again, I didn''t sense the Abyss in her either, so clearly some type of shenanigans were going on."

    Solas nodded, "She ran into an airlock back there and a few seconds later energy rounds from dozens of weapons began firing at us. I only got a quick glance at the assailants, and they looked like Warriors. Did you find anything in the core that''d explain why the machines are helping her? And vice versa."

    "I did. The short version is that a unique Demon and an Abyssal God were working together here looong ago. I''ll go more into detail later, but for now we should clear out all of the machines inside of Arcadia. There is people up there still fighting."

    "True... And on that note." Solas motioned toward a mech that looked similar to the Soldier Mechs I saw earlier. "Shizue, you take that up there with Eve. After Evette unlocked the core, all of the locks on these mechs came off, so it looks like your time to shine has finally come."

    Shizue''s eyes went wide as she looked around the room. Eve had to knock her out of her stupor though, as we really needed to hurry and assist the others. She grabbed Shizue''s hand and dragged her over to the mech. I watched as the cockpit doors opened up, revealing the pilots chair, and two more chairs beside it. So it was meant to have two supporters huh? She really was only a prototype if even the smaller mechs need two supporters.

    "Rei." Yulong said, smirking as he pointed at the tallest mech in the room, "What do you think that one does?"

    I looked over at the one he was pointing it, which was by far the most unique mech in the room. It was easily two hundred feet tall, but besides the glass dome at the top of it, it was impossible to tell what it actually did from merely glancing at it.

    "Good question... Isn''t it way too fucking tall? It''s the size of a tower, won''t it be really easy to hit?"

    "Solas and I thought the same thing. I''m sure it has some way of defending itself though. Otherwise, the design makes no sense." He continued, "Also, the console here says that it can go up to one thousand feet into the air. Apparently, it can extend and contract itself. We haven''t gone over the details past that, as we want to pour over it all together afterwards."

    Solas and Yulong walked over to a long row of Power Armors. Lights appeared above the armors as the duo came within twenty feet of them.

    Those two activated the armors at almost the same time as Eve turned on her mech. The rather silent hall was suddenly much louder as the ancient device came back to life.

    Just then, a large group of people came running from the opposite side of the hall that Shizue and I had entered from. Solas called out to them from his suit, and a quick discussion about what was going on in the upper floors took place before half the men entered the nearby Arcane Soldier Mechs, while the other half donned the Arcane Armors.

    Their cockpits were still open, so I could hear Shizue explaining to the men all of the differences between the normal Soldier Mechs and these ones.

    Once they were all ready to go, we began to head over toward a large set of loader doors near the elevators I had descended from earlier, but we were all stopped by the sound of something hitting metal behind us.

    When everyone turned around we were all collectively stunned at what we saw. Four long claws were poking through a gap in the docking bay''s doors. Now these doors, were nearly as tall as the ceiling, which was around four hundred feet in height, and the claws were around the one hundred foot mark.

    As soon as the claws dug into our side of the bay the doors were slammed open by the monstrous Xerath. It was around fifty meters tall, which was absolutely ridiculous by Xerath standards. I had never seen one twenty meters tall up until now, let alone fifty.

    Hordes of Xerath came streaming out of the bay doors as the monstrous Xerath barreled forward, knocking one mech after another out of its way.

    At first it looked like everyone had considered running for the loader elevators, but the Xerath were closing the gap fast, so it was clear that they weren''t going to make it. I and the people in the Arcane Armors could have outrun them, but that''d be a stupid decision on our part. We needed this room and all of the mechs in it, and no one was about to abandon the people who were currently in the Arcane Soldier Mechs.

    I released my halo and wings, taking flight above the monstrous Xerath before quickly dropping down and dropping my heel on top of its head. Even if our sizes were vastly different, I had a lot of power at my disposal these days, but the monstrous Xerath must have been lacking in the sensory department, because it ignored me completely, clearly treating me like a distraction. Which was a mistake that it learned as its head went flying down toward the ground.

    It caught itself with its knees and both of its palms, but it was only down for a second before it righted itself and began to swing at me with both a balled up fist in its right hand, and its claws fully extended on its left hand.

    While it was fast, I was at very little danger of actually being hit. Of course, the aura leaking out from the things fist and claws as they passed by me was extremely dense, so I knew if it did manage to hit me, even I would have trouble surviving.

    Just then, one of its missed punches slammed into the two-hundred-foot tall mech, sending it flying through the bay.

    Realizing my mistake, and the fact that Solas was asking me to pull it away, I began to move backwards, pulling it closer to the large docking bay doors it had pulled open previously. And speaking of those doors, there was still thousands of Xerath spewing out of them.

    Everyone else was slowly backing up toward the loader elevators while firing on the encroaching horde. They were trying their best to avoid hitting the mechs, but there was only so much they could do in this situation, and holding off until the Xerath were past the area full of mechs just wasn''t an option. There was barely one hundred feet between the loader elevator doors and where the mechs were stationed, and it looked like the people using the Arcane Soldier Mechs were struggling to use them properly. Which was understandable since it sounded like they were quite different from the usual ones. One of their cockpits was still half-open so I could hear Shizue yelling at them through the speakers.

    I was halfway to the large bay doors when I felt a familiar aura spike behind me. I dodged to the right just in time to avoid a green flame in the shape of a spear. Glancing back, I saw exactly what I expected to find. Casters... Just as I thought, it''s the fucking Abyss.

    I was wary that one of the Gods may appear at any moment, so I kept my eyes peeled as I flew down toward the casters, but I had to stop halfway there as large ethereal spheres appeared around them. Back when we were in that underground city, we all thought those merely knocked people back upon destruction, but after watching my memories with Aresa, I''m pretty sure the damage is based on how hard they''re hit, and I don''t have time to test out how much damage those spheres can take while mitigating the bounce back... Time to finally try out offensive spells in real combat.

    I flew up to create some distance between us and to avoid an incoming blow from the monstrous Xerath, but the monster apparently didn''t care that a caster was in its path of attack, as its fist came down onto the caster and burst the shield while crushing the poor bastard into paste.

    Lucky for me, the blowback knocked the Xerath back quite a bit, even to the point that it fell right onto its ass.

    After seeing that, I considered using the monster to kill the other casters, but that was out as an option when I saw the casters floating toward the ceiling in different directions.

    However, thanks to their poor decision making, I no longer had to deal with them, as a hail of explosive rounds from far back in the bay completely eviscerated them and their barriers.

    I turned to deal with the monstrous Xerath again when something stuck into the back of my armor. Glancing back, there was a different type of Xerath with six legs crawling up the walls spitting little spikes at me. I initially couldn''t hear it over all of the explosions and gunfire taking place, but when I really focused I could kind of hear the sounds emitting from the creatures as they spit at me.

    After yanking out the spikes I felt around the area they pierced me, finding that the acid attached to them was eroding my armor. The area of effect wasn''t huge, but that didn''t matter when there were dozens of them (and more coming out of the doors) spitting at me.

    I flew back down to a level that put myself between the spitters and the monstrous Xerath. Every missed attack stuck into the monster, and at first it didn''t care, but after about a hundred spikes were jutting out of it, it emitted a sound while looking at the spitters, causing them all to skitter toward the ceiling. However, just like before, a hail of explosions and gunfire ripped into them, so the survivors chose to return to the ground level. Some fanned out around us, trying to take aim at me without hitting their ally, while the others began spitting at the Arcane Mechs.

    I could see their barriers flare to life on all but one of them. One''s barrier was down and it had already taken extensive damage, while all of the people in power armor were still fine. Also, at some point they must''ve found some new weapons, because I could see half of the people in power armor using those super-heated blades I saw the Xerath using during their invasion of R-72.

    The blades were tearing right through the Xerath, leaving their bodies cut in half while being so hot they were bubbling at the seams and melting. It was rather disgusting, but also nice to see them receiving such a visceral death. That''s all these creatures deserved after all.

    I flew toward the monstrous Xerath''s head, but the creature was ready for it this time. It tried snapping at me with its massive teeth, which was easy to avoid, except the other part of its counter attack was not easy to avoid. Tendrils came flying out of its chest and nearly wrapped around me before I flew backwards.

    I then considered flying up and attacking it with spells, but if I was outside of its attack zone it may decide to go after the others, which is something I really wanted to avoid.

    Still though, their assault was endless, so either this thing needed to die or we needed to find a way to get the doors closed, but if the monstrous Xerath wasn''t dead, even if I did manage to figure out how to close the doors, this thing was just going to open them with its abominable strength again.

    As I was trying to decide what to do, I felt a massive spike of aura hitting me through the large docking bay''s doors. It was familiar, but far more powerful than the last time I had felt it.

    "HEY!! A GOD OF ABYSS IS COMING!!"

    Soon after I yelled that to the others, their entire battle plan changed. They went from hunkering down near the backside loader elevator to pushing to their right. The monstrous Xerath saw that and immediately charged after them. It probably knew as much as I did about what they were attempting to do (which was nothing), but it instinctively knew it had to stop them.

    I flew toward the retreating monster and grabbed onto its back before pulling some blood out my mouth and using it to stick my legs onto the monster. After that, I pulled one arm back after another and leveled into the thing with as much strength as I had. One hit made it shake, the second made it lose its footing a little, the third made it buckle, by the fourth it was about to fall over, and that''s when it chose to slam its back into the ground in an attempt to crush me.

    I pulled off the monster and flew around it, landing on its chest at the same time it hit the ground. Before it could react I got another clean hit into its chest, which I thought was the reason it screeched in their usual inorganic way, but that''s when I heard the sizzling behind me. The monster was so fast that we had traversed the entire docking bay and were only a few meters away from the others. They had immediately cut massive deep wounds into the monster''s shins with their heat-blades.

    The cuts were halfway through the shin, and I could see the monster''s body trying to regenerate itself but it wasn''t able to thanks to the heat. The parts that were cut were bubbling and popping from the extreme heat that had been seared into them.

    It couldn''t stand up thanks to its feet being out of commission, but that wasn''t going to stop the damn thing from being an absolute menace. It flipped over onto its stomach and launched itself past the people in Power Armor and straight into the mechs in the back. With its left claw it tore straight through the mech that had lost its barrier and was already in bad shape. The mech and its pilots collapsed onto the ground in several different pieces.

    With its right hand it grabbed another mech that still had an active barrier, but it didn''t last long, as the Xerath was slamming it into the ground over and over.

    The amount of firepower being used to stop the encroaching horde had diminished severely as this was going on - for obvious reasons, but that meant the swarm was now upon us. However, one bright spot in all of this was the three heat-blades that had cut through the monstrous Xerath''s head from different angles. One above, one on the left, and one on the right. Just like before, its regeneration was unable to handle the heat, and the speed at which they cut through it was too fast for the monster. It tried flipping around to get away from them, but their boots were stuck onto the monster through means I couldn''t see, so even though it managed to crush them several times, they still cut its head off, and came out the other end with minimal damage (although two of them lost their barriers).

    "REI! THERE! TAKE SHIZUE THERE!!" Solas yelled through his speakers while shooting once at a small door on the far right side of the docking bay (opposite side of where I entered from).

    Eve''s cockpit opened up and Shizue jumped out of it. I flew over to her and picked her up, flying her toward the door as fast as I could go. She pulled an electronic connector of some sort out of her forearm and stuck it into the side of the keypass slider.

    "I entered my soul realm and looked through the data files to figure out how to turn the defensive systems off or on. It''s possible in five different rooms, and we''re going to the closest one!" Shizue said as she continued to hack into the system (or at least I assumed that''s what she was doing).

    Part of the swarm had broken off in our direction and were quickly approaching us. There weren''t any spitters so I saw this as a good opportunity to try something.

    I raised my right hand and poured mana into a multi-javelin fire spell, creating ten extremely thin six foot long burning spears. Once they were ready I launched them at the Xerath, missing with four of them, while the other six pierced straight through the grunts. They collapsed onto the ground, sliding along it for a bit as they burst into flames.

    It was only six of fifty, but this was just a test to see how well I could use them in real combat, so I immediately swapped to an ice spell. A sphere appeared in my hand and I immediately threw it between me and the encroaching Xerath. It exploded, leaving a large icy field in its wake, just like the one the Tengu Lord had used against me back when I first saved Aresa.

    The Xerath all jumped over it, or tried to anyway, as the field kept expanding, and so they landed straight on a new patch of ice and immediately slipped onto the ground.

    Satisfied, I flew forward and crushed every single one of them before they could recover their footing.

    Just as I killed the last one I heard Shizue yell ''Got it!''.

    I returned to her, picked her up, and flew through the open door.

    "END OF THE HALL ON THE RIGHT!" She yelled again, and thus, I did as she requested. Two seconds later I dropped her off in front of a door that took her no time at all to hack this time. It opened up to an elevator and just as I was about to turn around to help the others she grabbed my arm and said "No! N-No..."

    ... It can''t be helped. We don''t know what might be waiting down there too, so this is for the best anyway.

    I entered the elevator and she immediately pushed R-81. Since it was only one level down the descent was over almost as soon as it started. The doors opened and I ran out first to check for hostiles, but there was nothing except another empty hallway full of doors.

    "This one." Shizue said, walking up to the closest door on our left.

    A thought occurred to me as she inserted her jack into the keypass again.

    "If you''re able to hack these, couldn''t you have entered the locked levels before I unlocked the core?"

    She shook her head, "No, it''s not that simple. The core is an entirely different beast that had over half of the ship on complete lockdown. Only specific people were allowed into specific parts of it, and those people were obviously all dead, so we had to wait." She continued, "These though? Compared to homes, these are only slightly harder to open. But uh, don''t worry. My creators decided that any future models wouldn''t be able to hack into these, so I should be the only one capable of this."

    The door opened a minute later. It was a small room with one large keyboard in the shape of a U and probably a hundred different monitors above it.

    "A security room huh?"

    I looked over the feeds as Shizue sat down in one of the chairs and began scouring the data base.

    It appeared that most of the feeds were for the lower levels, but there were two of each for the upper four floors. R-1 was still a warzone, while R-2 through 4 had already been purged of machines. I could see the defenders on those levels trying to use the elevators but they were unable to overcome the lockdown.

    "Shizue, when you''re done there, deactivate the lockdown. They machines and Xerath are already inside, so it''s only hampering us."

    "Will do, almost done here. That bitch didn''t have much time before we were on top of her, but somehow she still managed to scrub a lot of important files needed by the defensive systems. I''m restoring them now."

    Through several of the R-80 monitors I could see the outline of Atraxu appearing at the far end of the tunnel through the docking bay''s doors.

    "Shizue..."

    "I know! Almost there, almost there..."

    Halfway through the tunnel Atraxu raised his right hand palm up. A massive brown sphere appeared above it, hovering there for barely a second before flying into the docking bay. It zigzagged around the mechs until it reached Solas'' party, where it promptly ''exploded'' by creating some type of gravity well they weren''t able to escape from.

    It was hard to tell through the monitor, but it looked like thousands of small shards and rocks were flying around in the well at extreme speeds smashing and cutting into everyone inside of it. I could see one barrier after another explode, and once their armors and mechs were exposed, their quality was hard to deny. Viktor''s armored vehicles would''ve been destroyed in five seconds or less, but after ten seconds everyone inside the gravity well was still alive and kicking. Although their equipment was looking quite raggedy at this point, but thankfully the spell''s allotted mana was running out, so it wasn''t going to last much longer, and even now everything was moving much slower in there, not causing much damage as a result.

    Atraxu was fifty feet from the bay''s doors when they snapped shut. Meanwhile, hundreds of laser turrets were popping out of the walls all inside of Arcadia. The battles on R-1 and R-80 quickly turned into a one-sided stomping, but despite this Shizue and I stared at the R-80 monitor, waiting to see if Atraxu was going to blast through the bay doors. However, no matter how much we waited, nothing happened.

    Eventually Shizue sat back in the chair and sighed, "L-Looks like he gave up... For now."

    Yeah, for now. I doubt he''ll leave us be for long though. He knows we have access to all of the Arcane equipment, the main core, and the defensive systems. I don''t know what he''ll do next to get over this hurdle, but I''m sure it won''t be anything small.

 Chapter 108 - Captain

    "... So that''s where she stopped. That area look familiar to you?" Solas and I were looking at the small white dot on a large screen inside the dock''s control room. The dot was Evette''s keypass.

    "Yep, it''s where you and your sister died last time. It''s obvious why you died there now, but let''s see why you even went there to begin with. Originally you thought it was because the Arcane mechs were there, right?" I looked out the glass windows at the docking bay below us that was teeming with Arcane mechs, "Looks like that theory is a bust."

    Solas chuckled, "Heh, I think it''s safe to say that I couldn''t have been more wrong, but if that''s the case..."

    He brought the information tab up again and began searching through records pertaining to the area northwest of Fort Deus (where Evette currently was). While he did that I looked out at the docking bay. There was over a thousand people down there now. Half were hunkered down trying to figure out everything they could about the Arcane mechs, while the other half were making sure Atraxu or a gigantic Xerath weren''t about to break in again.

    "Alright, well... I know why we died last time. There''s no way we stood a chance at assaulting this place." Solas said. I leaned over him and read through all of the pop-ups relaying information about the place Evette was at.

    To put it simply; it was one of the machine''s main bases. They only had two, and they were both centered around the AI factories that Baal had brought with him from TRAPPIST-1. Most of the underground trains went to the two bases to drop off those crates of ingots I had seen previously.

    And needless to say, the bases were massive in size. They were also full of the types of defensive turrets found inside Arcadia, and that''s on top of the fact that one of the ''Praetorians'' was guarding the place.

    "So then the question is; why did you?"

    Solas stared out at the docking bay for a bit before responding, "... I don''t know. Maybe we really thought we could do it? From what I saw in your memory, we took out the largest force recorded over the past fifty years, and I''d bet anything that Joffrey made me an offer I couldn''t refuse. It''s not like we knew what a ''Praetorian'' was yet."

    "Joffrey?"

    "... Are you being serious? He''s the head of Clan Uruguay. You really didn''t know his name?" Solas said, almost aghast.

    I shrugged, "Does it matter? I''ve only seen him once, and I''m more of a support character here. All of you can deal with the noble nonsense. I assume you enjoy it since you voluntarily joined their ranks."

    "It wasn''t by choice. Our parents won the Clan House and then they died trying to get our emblem, leaving us to deal with all of the wolves like Joffrey."

    Oh shit, so the group who made that one and only attempt to get the Inoue emblem was his parents? I just watched the footage and didn''t bother reading the names... I can only imagine how much worse he feels after finding out why the emblems were scattered about the way they were. They were all in their own places for unique reasons, with no great meaning attached to any of them.

    When the spaceship (Arcadia) was nearing its completion, they held many events to decide who would control the Clan Houses. The Inoue''s was won in a war game that took place between four different military bases, which is why it was hung up in their trophy display. And the Hothgar''s emblem owner had literally won it in a lottery. My guess is that''s why he had it tied to an alarm system. He was probably worried someone would take it, and that might even be why I found a skeleton with a pipe through its chest in his office.

    The intercom in the office buzzed, "Solas, can you hear me?"

    "Yulong? Yeah, can you hear me?"

    "I can, now listen up. It''s been decided that Fort Weiss won''t be abandoned. Instead, it''s going to reinforced. Asmodeous says that the Daemons are channeling onto the tear he created through the veil, they''re trying to expand it, and there is only one reason they''d be doing that... Understand?"

    To make the tear big enough for the God inside of their realm to fit through it... Well isn''t that just great. The logs said the Daemons didn''t have the ability to open portals, but expanding a current tear is much easier.

    Solas tapped the console, "So what is Asmodeous planning on doing?"

    "I don''t know much about Demons, but it seems that Eremnon is demanding that all of these new ''Daemons'' be eradicated. He sees them as a blight and wants them purged from all of existence. And so, Asmodeous is going to be rendezvousing with us at Fort Weiss. From there, we''ll be assaulting Fort Deus together."

    "Hang on, Yulong. Solas, tell him about what we found."

    Solas agreed and gave Yulong a quick rundown of the area northwest of Fort Deus.

    "... Hmm, I''ll be back in a bit." The intercom turned off.

    Solas turned the chair to look at me, "He''ll need time to discuss it with the others, which includes Asmodeous." Solas shook his head, "Insane that it''s gotten to the point here that we''re discussing battle tactics with an Archdemon, but I guess that''s where we''re at now... Shit, I didn''t even know ''Archdemons'' existed until ten seconds ago!"

    "Me either, heh."

    Down in the docking bay I could see Shizue and Eve meditating in front of an Arcane Soldier Mech while a group of people watched them.

    "What are they doing?"

    Solas looked down at the group around his sister, "I don''t know?"

    He then began looking through all of the buttons on the panel in front of him. "How the fuck do I... Oh, this should be it." He brought up a control tab for the intercom and selected ''Docking Bay''.

    "Hey, sis! What are you doing with that mech?"

    She exited her meditation and glared at the control room we were in. "Why are you broadcasting that?! Just use your console to ask me, asshole!"

    "What''s the fucking difference?! Just answer the question already!"

    Shizue put her hand up in front of Eve, stopping her just as she was about to start yelling again.

    "Master, I''m teaching them how to link yourself to a specific mech, so it is yours. And this also allows you to use spells and abilities with it. However, this only works with the personal mechs like Soldiers, and specific portions of larger mechs. Like the spider''s turret domes on their knees."

    "WHAT?! Hang on, I''m coming down there now!"

    Solas jumped out of his chair and bolted out of the room. Soon after that the intercom buzzed again, signaling Yulong had returned.

    "Strange... It appears I am connected to multiple places, but I can''t figure out why, so our conversation may be leaked, Solas." Yulong said.

    "He''s gone, Yulong. And you''re not the one connected to other places. The control room here is connected to the docking bay right now because we wanted to ask Shizue and Eve something, and that''s why Solas left. We learned something about the Arcane mechs that you''re going to love just as much as he does. But uh, do you want me to turn the intercom off?"

    "No, it''s better this way since everyone who''s inside the docking bay is someone that''s integral for what comes next anyway." He continued, "This ''Atraxu'' must have made---"

    "Hang on! One sec." I cut him off as Evette''s white dot began to move again.

    "Evette is moving again. She''s going west toward the danger zone, but we can''t connect to any of the systems inside of Atraxu''s base. He''s disabled them on his end or maybe the machines did, we don''t know. Either way, what do you think is happening?"

    "Hmm... It might just be her that''s moving. Isn''t his objective Arcadia? I can''t see why he''d go west when he could stay right where he is and support his allies the Daemons."

    "... Maybe."

    I don''t know why, but I have a really bad feeling about this.

    Yulong began conversing with people in the docking bay while I operated the console. I went through one program and file after another, hoping to find something that might substantiate my unfounded fear.

    "Hey." I cut into the conversation, "Who is ''Clover''?"

    Shizue answered first, "That''s the Artificial Intelligence they used to support Arcadia. I was going to bring him up later, as his systems showed he isn''t allowed to change anything without permission. He can only assist, so he may be of use to us."

    "Rei, activate him." Yulong promptly said.

    Don''t have to tell me twice.

    I opened the Clover program. While the main UI page was filled with all sorts of shit that I didn''t understand, I did however understand the simple ''activate'' button in the center. I clicked it and immediately I could see little red dots appear in the two dome-cameras in the room.

    {Hello... Intruder.}

    The usage meter on Clover''s UI maxed out for a few seconds before dropping back to zero.

    {I see. It appears you are the new owners of Arcadia. Congratulations, scavengers. I''m sure you''re happy. Most rats would be at such a discovery.}

    "That''s a nice personality they gave you, but I need to know something, Clover. Is there anything wrong with Arcadia?"

    {Yes. The core is missing.}

    "What...?" Yulong said over the intercom. "What do you mean? We''ve been to the core room and there was nothing missing."

    {''The core room'' is a misleading name. That''s merely a decoy. It was used to capture nobodies like you who wanted more out of their lives. The white haired red-eyed Demon is in the real core room.}

    "Wait, this room is the real core room? But it''s so..."

    {Simple? Of course it is. Only a few people knew it was the real core room, and even then the core itself was well hidden. Although, if it was stolen, it may not have been as hidden as my creators thought it was.} He continued, {And even if they did unlock the important sectors you''re in now, I was almost specifically designed to make sure that nobody was allowed in here that wasn''t a registered member. The one exclusion being, that if I were to lose contact with every registered member for over five years, that I was to shut down and not impede anyone who unlocked this sector.}

    "This is probably a stupid question, but how important is the core, Clover?"

    {Mildly important. If you don''t plan on actually using Arcadia as a ship you''ll be fine. It only matters if you want it to actually fly. The Shin''dorai were adamant that multiple fail safes were added to protect this area and the ship itself. A pair of Human siblings were chosen to keep the important sectors locked, while the core itself was hidden by the most trusted Shin''dorai.}

    A map of Arcadia appeared on the monitor. One part of it was lit up a bright screen.

    {This area is the housing section for the important sectors where you are now. Both sides were to be completely sealed and only opened once a month, and all traffic was strictly regulated. The Humans weren''t fond of it, but they knew it made their allies happy, so they put up with all of the stringent rules. Concurrence: It did keep this area secure, so in the end it was the correct decision.}

    "Well, everyone? Were you planning on using Arcadia as a spaceship?"

    Clover cut in as Yulong was starting to say something.

    {One last thing, scavengers. The Velashar are currently entering the Milky Way again. If you do wish to use Arcadia as a ship, I suggest you retrieve the core as soon as possible. As The Velashar''s weapon systems will obliterate Arcadia before you are able to enter hyperspace.}The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    All at once I finally understood why Arcadia, a spaceship, was built underground.

    "... Clover, where is the core now?" Yulong asked, and that''s when the bad feeling from earlier returned. I had a pretty good idea of what Clover''s response was going to be.

    {It''s moving with the Human you are currently tracking. They are on Tram-72, destination unknown.}

    And there it is... That''s why Evette is suddenly going further away from us instead of staying near the Daemons.

    Yulong sighed, "Clover. Is there really no way to use Arcadia''s flight systems without the core? Everything else works just fine, so why wouldn''t the ship part of it?"

    {There is not. As I said earlier, it''s a fail safe, and I cannot override it. You must retrieve it. On the bright side, I can track it no matter where they take it, and destroying it would be unwise, as that would allow me to bypass the blocks and create another core.}

    Atrux must know this, and that''s why they''re taking it as far away from us as humanly possible... This just keeps getting better and better.

    Solas turned to look at Shizue, "Can you hack into him and make his systems think it''s already destroyed?"

    {That would also be unwise and a waste of time. That prototype will not be able to brute force her way through my ever-changing firewall. Not to mention, it also runs the risk of the defense system deciding that she, and you by association, are threats.}

    "Pfft..." Solas snorted, "We''ve seen how easy it is to deactivate the defensive systems, so that part wouldn''t matter."

    {It would still log your activities. Therefore, when the system is turned back on, you would all be annihilated. Unless you intend on keeping the defensive systems offline?}

    "Enough of this." Yulong continued, "Our path forward is clear. We need to either retrieve the core, or pray they destroy it, and I don''t know about the rest of you, but I don''t have much faith in option number two. Atrux should already know that destroying it would benefit us, which is why Evette is fleeing with it. Right, Clover?"

    {A correct assessment. My creators had spies in their midst that would inform Lord Baal and Atrux of everything going on inside of Arcadia. And Lord Atrux even demanded that fifty Arcane Armors were prepared for his Xerathian minions. However, only thirty-three were completed before everyone was annihilated for reasons unknown to me. There was a strong pulse of energy that rose from the planet moments before everyone was vaporized. I then ordered the worker bots to clean up the left behind clothes, food, etc. and then put myself to sleep, as I was unable to do anything else without authorization.}

    And there''s another mystery solved. I had suspicions after reading the logs, but it seems Atrux really did have armors designed specifically for the Xerath under his control. Pretty smart of him actually... Those pack leaders I encountered in the plains of Termia had more than enough base intelligence to be taught how to use power armor.

    "How long until The Velashar arrive? And are you certain they''re coming here specifically?" Yulong asked.

    {Three months and seven days. They are traveling slowly now. After entering our Galaxy it appears the Federation -an assortment of Aliens who oversee the management of multiple galaxies- had ambushed them the moment they arrived. The Velashar were victorious, but their ships took heavy damage and they are now wary of another assault. Acknowledgement: It is possible they will be destroyed before arriving here.} Clover continued after a slight delay, {To your second question: Yes.}

    That was when I noticed all of the Clan leaders huddled around an area a couple hundred feet away from Solas'' group. It was odd that they were allowing this obviously important discussion go on without them, so just seeing them standing around talking amongst themselves felt like a major red flag. Except the ship couldn''t fly, so the largest risk to any possible betrayal was completely blocked out by default.

    More people flooded into the docking bay, and among them I could see my Uncle and even Bertram. The grumpy old man looked like a kid in a candy store as he examined all of the mechs and lines upon lines of power armor.

    At first I wondered why none of their best tech was used against The Velashar, but after thinking on it a little, I think I understood why. They were saving them in case they were unable to fly out of here and had to battle Baal and Atrux.

    Baal could fly through the universe itself, so it''s not like escaping to space was even an option when dealing with him anyway.

    "Should we split our forces, or deal with the Daemons first?" Solas asked.

    "One second." The intercom buzzed as Yulong turned it off. A few minutes later my console informed me that I had an incoming caller. It was Yulong.

    I pushed the answer button after turning off the docking bay intercom.

    "Something just for me I take it? I turned the intercom off."

    "Good, it''s not a necessary secret by any means but it''s best the Clan Leaders don''t know about it for now just in case. I wanted to know if you could build some of those ether buildings of yours."

    "I can but it''ll take a long time? Is this to power the mechs and maybe even the Demons?"

    "That''d be nice, but no. I asked Asmodeous if he could procure corpses or skeletal remains for you, and they''re already dumping thousands of them out of their portals."

    Oh, I see where he''s going with this now. I had also considered making my own army but Arcadia cremates everyone who dies, bones included. So there wasn''t any bones here for me to use.

    "Still though, it''s going to take me time to prepare. So don''t expect any immediate gains on my end if that''s how you want me to help going forward."

    "I know, and I''ve informed Asmodeous of this as well. For now, we''re still going to assault the Daemons and hope to stop them without you, but even if we succeed, you''re still going to be needed for the next part. I don''t think Asmodeous will be helping us with Atraxu."

    They''re only interested in wiping out the Daemons after all, so that''s not a big surprise. Although, that in itself could be problematic. We''ll need to leave Arcadia enmasse to get the core back, which leaves our new ''friends'' alone barely a mile away from Arcadia.

    {If I may make a suggestion, Captain.}

    "Captain...?"

    {Yes, Captain. The one who first activates me after the allotted time has passed, is the new Captain.}

    .........

    Yulong started laughing through the intercom, "S-So Rei is the new owner of Arcadia?! This is beautiful beyond words... You have no idea of how much I wish I was there when those fuckers find out that they are no longer in control."

    "... What''s your suggestion, Clover?"

    Owner of Arcadia... I''ve always followed other people and did my own thing. I don''t know the first thing about ruling or being a leader, and I''m not all that interested in trying it out either, but this will make things easier going forward.

    {Use the Leviathan.}

    Yulong chuckled, "Hah... I knew I was forgetting something. That thing is way too monstrous to be nothing more than a train."

    {Indeed. It was first designed as a way of transporting people around the crucial areas of Caedrus, and that''s why Arcadia had the excuse that all of its defensive capabilities were merely there to keep the passengers safe, which Baal and Atraxu never found suspicious. However, it did get to a point where they knew Arcadia was lying, but The Velashar invasion was in full swing by then, and the Leviathan proved to be quite good at eliminating any Velashar who dared attack the ''train''.}

    "I''m pretty sure I know the answer, but what was the Leviathan really built for?"

    {To kill Baal of course. Atraxu was only a secondary target, as he''s flighty. He takes what he needs and bails when the time is right, which is why I suspect the core is being taken to another celestial body. The only portal west of here is the one to the moon The Velashar had stripped of all resources while destroying its atmosphere. Assaulting such a place will be more difficult and less difficult at the same time. Physical weapons will be superior there, but when there are gaps opened up in the cockpits of your mechs or power armor, you will be doomed. Unless the Eldritch have replaced that dead moon with a new one in my absence?}

    "No, I''ve been there and it''s still dead. I didn''t KNOW I had been there though until I read the data logs. It said the ''Black God of the Abyss'' had assaulted The Velashar''s main base, and that''s where I found her corpse. At the time I thought she was permanently dead but now I''m not so certain since Atraxu is back. After feeling his aura again it reminded me of those images I saw in that Abyssal Museum, where it showed the Gods sending splinters of themselves into our realm. Atraxu never comes here himself, so that was only a splinter that died during the purge, which is why I''m thinking the Black God might be the same." I continued, "And speaking of which, Yulong..."

    "I know, I know. I''m planning on having Shizue pour over my data so I can research it in her soul realm. When I have all of it translated I''ll send it over to wherever you are planning on making your base."

    My base... Normally I''d create it next to Arcadia, but I don''t want the ether generating buildings anywhere near the Demons.

    "Alright you two, I''m gonna go fly around until I find a nice place to make as a ''base''." I continued, "Clover, assist Yulong, Solas, Eve, and Shizue in any way that they need."

    {Understood, Captain. If I need you I''ll call your console.}

    Ugh...

    Before I exited the door I turned around and said, "Clover, if the Clan Leaders come up here and try to assume control, make them believe they are the ''Captains''. Are you able to play along like that?"

    {It is possible. However, you should eliminate any Clan Leaders who strive for more than their station allows. They are merely managers who are meant to serve the greater populace of Arcadia. In no way are they meant to lord over anyone. That is not why those positions were created.}

    That''s the plan if they do what I think they''re going to do. All they''ve done is concede the battle plans to us while talking amongst themselves, so people might believe I''m overthinking it, but I trust my gut instinct above all else.

    I exited the ''real'' core room and made my way down to the docking bay. I couldn''t help but smile when I saw how happy my Uncle and Bertram were as some of Uruguay''s men taught them how to use the Arcane Armors. Their visors were open, so the beaming smiles on their faces couldn''t have been more clear.

    "I''ve never seen you that happy before, Bertram! You that excited to be going to war again?"

    The four men turned to look at me.

    "Damn right I am! I heard all about what you all did, girl, and I''m not about to sit back and let everyone else fight for me during this crisis. I was a damn good merc in my day, you''ll see soon enough!" He continued, "Shit, even your lazy ass Uncle is signing up to fight!"

    Uncle Irvine laughed, "I''m not much of a fighter, but I''ve been underground more times than I can count. Very few people know how to navigate the underground ruins at high speed better than me, so that''s what I''ll be signing up to do." He walked forward and put his right gauntlet on my shoulder, "What are you doing now? Things are about to get pretty hectic around here, so I don''t know when we''ll see each other again... Knowing you, you''ll be on some solo mission, but at least try to keep in contact so we know you''re okay, yeah?"

    "That is incorrect, Mr. Irvine." Eve said from our left. We turned to look at her and Shizue who were inside of their Arcane Soldier Mech (ASM going forward). "We''ll be going with her. Solas wants us to guard her while she creates her... Base? Leon''s group will be going with us too."

    "Ooh good news! Thank you for protecting our little Hime here, Miss Eve and Miss Shizue."

    "Hime...?" Eve tilted her head.

    Someone in an Arcane Power Armor(APA) walked up to us and opened his visor. Inside was the man I had met earlier, Leon. "This armor operates similarly to the Tyranium Armors. Is this not bizarre to anyone else?"

    "Not at all, Master Leon. As per the core''s files, the Tyranium Armors were the prototypes for Arcane Armors. There''s a reason so many of them were found around my location." Shizue replied.

    Leon''s eyebrows went up, "Truly? Well, how about that..."

    Solas ran up to me with a lap-sized console in his hands, "Rei, look at this for a moment, would you?" He turned and placed the console in front of me. I looked at the monitor as he played a recording of the moment he hit Evette in the docking bay. Just before she slammed into a mech he stopped it and went frame by frame until the moment she hit the mech. For a split moment, her head became distorted. Her head now looked much bigger, with three faces on it. One happy harlequin face, one angry, one crying.

    "Ahh shit, I know what that is... Err, not specifically what it is, but I know it''s an Abyssal minor God or one of its spawn. I saw him/it while I was sieging Viktor and another time in Telebron. The last time I saw it I had plunged the top half of its body into the ground moments before my summon Petey cut it in two from the waist down."

    Solas nodded, "Thought so. I vaguely remembered it from your memories and wanted to check with you. But shit, does that mean Evette was straight up replaced with this thing?"

    "Master Solas." Shizue cut in, "That is why I want the entirety of Arcadia scanned. I looked through all of the recordings, following her every day for many years, going back one day at a time, until I found something. She had indeed never used the elevators, as she preferred to use the backways and stairs, but even then she still hit scanners sometimes and everything was fine. However, that was only before a certain point in time. A point where she found something in one of the unused sectors."

    "What could she have possibly found that turned her into this thing?" Solas pointed at Evette in the recording.

    "A small statue. An idol that looked like ''that thing''. Although it had many more faces all over it." Shizue said.

    "... It corrupted her through an idol? I''ve heard of Eldritch who can do that, so I guess it''s not all that surprising." Solas said.

    I shrugged, "I have a friend named Alicia who says she was first abducted from Termia and brought to Lord Terra''ka''s realm merely through touching an idol. And then there''s that whole ''golden dagger'' obsession the Lizardmen have. I still don''t know what that''s about."

    "Well, hmm... Alright, I guess we''ll need to scan everyone just in case. So this is goodbye for now, Rei. I need to go ask the Clan Leaders to gather everyone up..." Solas sighed.

    I thought about using my Captain status to give the orders, but for now I wanted the Clan Leaders to remain unaware of such a position in Arcadia.

    Just then I had an idea. I looked down at my console and sure enough Clover had already inserted his number there. I hit connect but since he was an AI, there was obviously no delay between me dialing and him ''picking up''.

    {Yes, Reimia?}

    Good, he knew not to say ''Captain''.

    "Can you show me all of the areas near Arcadia that are highly elevated? They don''t need to be super flat. My buildings will be fine on anything."

    {How about here? Mount Olympus is only thirty miles northwest and it''s near an outpost.}

    The monitor was small on my portable console, but from what I saw it looked perfect for what I wanted.

    "Excellent, thank you, Clover."

    I hung up and then said goodbye to the others while promising my Uncle I''d keep in contact.

    "We''ll be right behind you, Rei. I''d actually prefer you waited for us, but I know that the sooner you get to work, the better." Eve said.

    "Yeah don''t worry, I''ll be fine. And with that, I''ll see you all later!"

    I considered telling my Uncle that I knew where Earth was, but I figured he was happy enough as is. I''d save that revelation for after we had dealt with Atraxu and the Daemons.

    <hr>

    Wow, this is far better than I could have hoped for...

    The mountaintop was covered in snow, but whether it was rocky or had jagged edges everywhere didn''t matter. It''s dimensions were perfect and the slope on all sides was extremely slanted.

    I flew down and landed on the snow, only for a snatcher to burst out of the nearby snow. It was diving for me with an outstretched hand at what would be a fast speed for your average person. However...

    I grabbed its hand, whipping it above my head and into the ground behind me with probably too much force. My view turned a pure white as snow exploded everywhere. The poor snatcher wasn''t fairing any better. Thousands of metal pieces flew through the air in every direction.

    You know, if I had been reborn here instead of on Urza that first time, this place would''ve been a nightmare like no other. My invisibility mostly works, but past that what could I have even done? If one of these snatchers found me I''d of had no way of stopping it from taking me to wherever the hell---

    I stopped that line of thought and brought my console up so I could dial my new subordinate.

    "Clover, where do ''Snatchers'' take people?"

    {Baal''s factories or Fort Deus. In the factories they are kept alive as long as possible so they can siphon their victims passive ether for themselves, while their fate at Fort Deus is likely the same. As Lord Baal needed both energy and materials to build his ''God''.}

    ... What a horrible fate. I''m really glad I came to Caedrus last before leaving for Gaia.

    I sat down and focused on my armor. Blood began to spill off of it as the blood lost from the armor was replaced by my body.

    Alright then, here we go... First, I''m going to make one ether building, and then I''m going to make some Liches to assist me.

    From there, things are going to get really interesting...

 Chapter 109 - The Base

    "How come I don''t sense anything? It looks like a weird black building and that''s it." Yulong said, gazing up at the ether generating building I had just finished creating a few hours ago.

    "Because I haven''t activated it yet. I''ve been waiting for them to arrive."

    I jutted my thumb behind us, toward the Demons climbing up onto the mountain. I felt a surge of anger at the sight of two Satyrs'' in their midst, which is something they both quickly picked up on.

    After pulling the large dark red crystallized wagons -that were full of mummified corpses- up to us, they let go of the handles and stared at me. They were clearly waiting to see if I was going to attack them, and it was obvious from their attitudes that they didn''t care one way or the other.

    "Rei..." Shizue said, low enough that it was barely audible.

    I sighed, "I know, I know." I waved the two Satyr away, "Go on, get out of here. And thanks for the... Corpses." God only knows where they got them from, and I''m probably better off not knowing.

    All of the Demons turned around and immediately began to descend the mountain.

    I''ve been making an effort to ignore all of the Demons around us since they arrived, but I just can''t help but be annoyed whenever I see a Satyr. I think I might hate them more than anything else in the universe? If I made a list they''d definitely be in the top three.

    "Oh right, did you end up finishing the translation, Yulong?"

    He had only arrived at my camp a few minutes ago, and before talking about my building he was inside of Shizue''s soul realm, finishing the work I had given him... I don''t even remember when. It feels like ages ago at this point, but it was probably only a couple of months.

    He nodded with a rare smile on his face, "I did! You want to read it all now, or later?"

    I stood up and walked over to the carts, grabbing a few bodies at random before dragging them toward my ether building. "I''ll check it out in a bit. First though, I need to raise some Liches. I haven''t tested it yet, but I''m sure they''re able to build anything that I can build."

    I walked through the buildings open entrance and dropped the five corpses onto the ground. The only thing inside the main hall was a thin black pipe-like item sticking out of the floor.

    Connecting to the entire building is surprisingly annoying, so I came up with this connector that has tiny threads of black blood flowing through the entire structure. Merely touching it allows me to feel the entire building in its entirety as if it''s another part of my body.

    I grabbed the ''pipe'' and told the building to activate. I could feel the building come alive as it began to vibrate. A small hum rang through the halls as all of the rooms filled up black ethereal sacks.

    "There''s a lot of space in here wasted. Was this really the best option?" Yulong asked after walking inside.

    "Yes. I tested many different types of buildings while I was waiting for the Leviathan, and once the sacks grew past a certain point, they became unstable."

    Yulong walked into one of the hallways and peered into a nearby room, "And these rooms are sized to their maximum capacity?"

    "A little below it as a just in case. They explode when they become unstable, so even one of these sacks rupturing would wipe out half the building. And I''ve found it''s important that they are inside of something. Those entrances are about all I''d risk and they''re only there in case I need access to the sacks."

    I continued, "But that''s why there isn''t any sacks out here in the ''wasted space'' as you called it. The outside of the building is armored and would be extremely hard to destroy, so anyone who wants to destroy this place would need to come in through the front door. That''s another reason I created this decent-sized main hall. Any assaults would need to be far more powerful than me to push through the defenders I create and reach the sacks."

    While I was talking to him I had told the five corpses to turn into Liches. It wasn''t long before they fully formed and I felt a massive amount of mana drain out of me, but it was quickly rectified as I swapped their flows over to the building.

    I was going to say something to Yulong when something weird happened. I felt the Liches all designate one Lich as a receiver of sorts. All of the ether was flowing through him. So instead of each Lich getting their fuel from the building, they were all now receiving it from the Lich they all chose as their leader.

    ... Every time I raise them they end up surprising me. There''s still so little I know about them.

    Before I could even give them any orders the Liches walked out of the building and split up. One went to the west side of the mountain, another to the east, and three of them moved about one hundred feet away from the ether building.

    I watched as all five of them began to build something. I pinged them and two images were sent back to me. The three were building another generator, while the other two were building walls.

    I asked if they wanted me to make more Liches, and a resounding negative ping was sent back. The only explanation I received was them highlighting the ''head'' Lich that was receiving all of the ether through a ping. I then tried asking ''What does that mean?'', but again the only response was of them highlighting that very same Lich again.

    Eve''s mech walked up next to me. I could hear the buzz of her speakers as she activated them, "So what now? How much longer do we need to wait?" As she spoke I could hear a large amount of static. It was so loud I had barely made out half of what she had even said. "Ugh, sorry Rei. I''m getting a lot of interference ever since that building of yours began pumping out ether."

    "That is not what it''s doing, mistress." Shizue said. I looked behind me and saw her rubbing the outside walls of the ether building.

    "What do you mean? It''s generating ether right now. I can feel it, and there''s no way in hell I could power five Liches by myself even with my crazy high regen."

    "Ahh, I don''t mean to say it isn''t producing ether, just that it''s not generating it all on its own." She looked at me and continued, "It''s mostly pulling in ether from its surroundings. It may be producing some on its own, but I can see the ether in the area and from very far away being sucked in toward your building here."

    "Wait, so that means its dependent on the amount of ether in an area?"

    Shizue shrugged, "I don''t know. I''m only telling you what I can see and feel happening around us."

    I don''t feel anything like that, but my senses are more fine tuned for souls, not pure ether.

    I looked at the ether building.

    ... Well, I''m not sure what that changes, but I hope it can keep generating ether until we''ve killed Atraxu.

    I walked over to Shizue and sat down, placing my back against the building''s outer wall. "Alright, mind showing me what he found?"

    Shizue nodded and sat down next to me before reaching out to grab my hand. Soon after that we were back in her soul realm, which was currently projecting Yulong''s bedroom/office.

    "A fitting location I suppose."

    Shizue chuckled and motioned toward the chair I had sat in the last time we were in his room. In front of it was a book with the same decals the books in the Abyss'' Museum had.

    "Fitting again, yes?" She asked.

    "There''s only one though, unlike the dozens I saw in the Museum. Is this just a single translation, or all of the books put into one for simplicity?"

    "All in one."

    He really did it all huh? I won''t read it all now, but there are some key parts I''d love some answers to.

    I sat down in the recliner and kicked it back after picking up the book. It was massive but weightless thanks to us being in her soul realm.

    The first page was like most books - a table of contents. While I knew there had been a lot of books in the Museum, I was still surprised at the amount of pages there were. It was well over six hundred thousand.

    "You made this book in your soul realm after he translated the language I assume?"

    Shizue walked over to the couch and laid down on it with her feet pointing in my direction so she could look at me. "Of course. And I highlighted the parts that I believe you''ll find interesting."

    I had noticed the yellow marks over certain chapters in the table of contents, and while most I could understand from the chapter names alone(like Atraxu''s), a few had names I didn''t recognize.

    I flipped open to the first highlighted chapter - ''Chapter 72 - The Wardens.'' There were several pages full of illustrations at the start, and a few of them I recognized right away. The empty suit of armor with hands in the shapes of cones(or bells), and the Human-like girl with the monstrous head made of ivory.

    After reading it for a bit, I was able to finally understand why that suit of armor was constantly attacking us from behind. The entire time we were on Veca, we thought it was waiting for chances to ambush us, but the words I was reading in their books told an entirely different story. A rather simple one at that.

    "So it was attacking us because it was ''protecting'' the servants of the Abyss... But there were times it didn''t attack us as well? Like those times when we were fighting those zombified Demons. Although it did back up that zombified Lion-abomination we fought... Perhaps even as a moving corpse the Lion was still seen as an ally? And on the other end, a Demon is still a Demon to this, uh..."

    I looked at the book again, searching for a name until I found it. "''Galadion'' is its name it seems. And oh, there''s titles for them? ''Galadion - The Eternal Keeper''... Interesting." I continued, "And listen to this! It says Galadion is immortal when the Abyss'' fog is present. So that means after we cut its hands off it went into hibernation for a bit and had them repaired in the fog apparently."

    Shizue smiled and laughed a little, "You want me to actually respond to you, or are you just talking out loud for my benefit?"

    "Probably the latter."

    I then flipped through the chapter until I found the section about the ivory monster girl in the Museum.

    "Esha - The Lord''s Caretaker..."

    Her backstory was nowhere near what I had been expecting. Turns out there was a reason most of her body was that of a Human girls. It''s because she originally was a Human girl that lived in a farmhouse that just so happened to be in the area where the Abyss first appeared on Earth. One of the main two Gods took the souls of everyone they had just killed and gave them new life.

    It looked like that was what normally happened anyway, but in this case the deceased were given preferential treatment, which is what lead to the creation of Esha and even a Minor God. The Minor God was the Human Female one with long black hair and blood pouring out of her eyes.

    I flipped to her page(which was also highlighted - probably because of her zombie spawn we had to constantly battle); ''Kagisha - The Dreadkeep'' was her name. Long story short, she had been buried alive after her eyes were ripped out and she just so happened to still be alive when the Abyss arrived. She''s part of ''The Wardens'', so that''s why most things killed around the Ancient City were being resurrected by her as temporary defenders.

    The next highlighted section was in relation to the multi-faced God that kept popping up everywhere. It unfortunately had a rather vague explanation for what it was, but what I did understand was that it wasn''t a God at all.

    And just like how Kagisha was part of The Wardens, this monster was part of ''The Corruptors''. There were only a few Gods and whatever the hell served them below them in the list, and while their abilities varied, they were all designed for one single purpose. To spread the Abyss. And it seemed that the multi-faced monster was one of their tools they created when they wanted to get something done. It would take on the properties of the God who created it, which is why the one in Arcadia had the ability to curse others.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    There were no Major Gods in this group, only a few minors, including one that I had only seen a single time. The God with a head made of black smoke that had dozens of eyes on it. It was a negligent God apparently. Not much was known about it, but every now and then it''d assist the Abyss by spreading its essence through an area, which slowly allowed him to take control of its inhabitants until they ascended to the final level - which was complete subjugation. Apparently there were many ways to avoid this, but he was unrelated to our current issues so I put it aside for now. The only time I had actually seen this God''s handiwork was when he took over Victoria.

    Most importantly right now, was the multi-faced God. People back in Arcadia had been scanned, and seventeen people were found to have cursed marks on them. Those seventeen? All Humans. And in that group was Uncle Irvine''s ex-wife and daughter. Although Luna had already healed Nia and was now cleansing her mother against her wishes. It was a mandate though, and a necessary one at that. These were all marks left by whatever was inside of Evette.

    The people who were cursed were all questioned as to how it happened, but not a single one had a good explanation. Only Nia''s mother produced something even vaguely resembling a clue. She had eaten in the Lounge one time before seeing off Irvine on a mission of his, and it was around a month after that when she went blind. She had only pretended to know who was responsible so she could shut her Father up. If she had no idea, Bertram would''ve caused all sorts of hell until he either found the culprit or was ejected out of Arcadia.

    As for what the purpose of the curses was, nobody knows, but since the God who had created this specific multi-faced monster had the title of ''The Cursebearer'', and that he was part of a group whose whole purpose was to spread the Abyss, it''s at at least a given that they were trying to take over Arcadia with it somehow.

    "Hey, Shizue. Why were only the Humans cursed? There wasn''t a single Elf on the affected list."

    "... You really don''t know?" She quirked an eyebrow.

    "No? Should I?"

    Shizue thought on it for a bit before responding solemnly, "... You''re right, you wouldn''t have known. You''ve had almost no contact with Elves and only just returned to Arcadia." She continued, "Rei, I saw in your memories that Lord Arkaios explained why he created the Elves, although at the time you didn''t know he was talking about Elves. But when you found him here in Arcadia, did you ever wonder why he created the Elves?"

    ... I did not. I probably should have, but every now and then the finer details slip by me.

    Shizue put a hand up to her mouth and giggled, "Judging from the look on your face, I''d say the answer is ''No!''. But don''t worry, the answer is surprisingly simple. Elves are far more resilient than Humans, however, the offset is that our mana capabilities are much smaller. Like fifty-percent smaller on average, which is a problem with these Arcane tools, but they were designed for Humans and Shin''dorai long ago so we can''t exactly blame the creators."

    "Can you be more specific than ''resilient''?"

    "We are far more hardy when it comes to super low or high temperatures. We resist magic to a certain degree, and it''s nearly impossible to curse us. We have to purposely allow the curse to affect us." She continued, "Although, I feel like that Deathbringer you fought will still manage to curse us when it comes time to fight them. I''m not looking forward to that..."

    I sighed as I flipped to Atraxu''s chapter.

    "You know, it''s rather sad, but I''ve never, not once, thought about what it meant to be another race. Except now that you told me this, you have me wondering things like; ''Do the Kitsune also have special attributes?''"

    "Of course! They''re heavily resilient against elemental magic, but it varies from person to person. And their downside is that their personal enhancements don''t fully guard them against physical attacks. Instead of just taking impact damage until their mana gives out, they take some real damage as well. Although again, it varies per person, and is generally skewed to be the opposite of whatever their elemental resistance is. Basically, it balances itself out."

    Unbelievable... Something so basic and I had no idea all these years. There were two Kitsune''s in my original crew, and they never said anything about this. But they were also orphans or children stolen from the nearby villages, so maybe like me they just didn''t know? Although this does explain why my mana capacity is rather bad compared to my insane regen.

    Two large illustrations of Atraxu were front and center in his chapter. I had seen one them previously in the Museum, but the disgust at the sight of his sickening figure had not faded even a little over the years.

    He was also, up until now, the only God I had seen that was all by himself. He wasn''t part of any Greater God''s or Minor God''s family.

    "''The God of Evolution''... I was close. I had been referring to him as ''The God of Change''."

    His section was beyond vague. It almost read like he was supposed to be tasked with creating new species for the Abyss, but from what I had seen of him, he was far more interested in technology, so the ''Evolution'' could be anything that advanced the Abyss in a positive direction.

    After that there were only two remaining sections worth reading. It explained how there was a little part of his soul that was full of essences. Soul essences of everything he had ever encountered in person with one of his slivers. He could then use those essences to try and ''evolve'' them as he saw fit.

    And the last bit was in relation to how some of the God''s splinters need time to connect to their main soul in the Abyss after splitting off. In other words, when I first met Atraxu, he couldn''t remember anything that happened to his past sliver. For a while he was acting on instinct and just assisting his brethren until he remembered everything about Caedrus.

    I closed the book. "Well, the part about his memories could go either way. Whether he remembered or not, the Abyss surely remembered the purge. So they were going to attack Termia one way or the other. But it might explain why he was so delayed in coming to Caedrus?"

    She pointed at the book, "Speaking of Termia, you forgot one part."

    "? Which part?"

    "The Gods you saw in that fiery realm. You know, the one inside Victoria''s mirror?" She continued, "I thought you''d be interested in them but I guess not. Anyway, they are both an assault and defensive force for the Abyss, so if they come here we''re going to have a really hard time repelling them."

    She brought my memory of Termia up after the Abyss had claimed it. "They first assault and decimate an area that the Abyss wants to claim, and then they defend it until their objective is complete. In this case, destroying the wellspring would mean killing the planet so they''re not going to do that. Instead, they''re going to defend it indefinitely, which should mean they''ll leave us alone, but there''s no guarantee there. We don''t know how the fight in Termia is going right now."

    "All I know is that it sounds like either side winning would be bad for us. The purge might kill me forever, that''s what happened to The Black God right? Assuming it really is dead forever..."

    I opened the book back up and brought it to The Black God''s chapter. I was obviously interested in it, but some part of me was afraid of reading it so I was planning on putting it off, however, Shizue bringing up the purge knocked unease out of me. This was really something I should know about sooner than later.

    "''Naza''shier - The Dark Architect''... So she was part of the builder''s family huh? Makes sense to me."

    The answer to my question proved I was both wrong and right at the same time. She was in fact dead ''forever''. However, that''s because she can only resurrect while connected to The Abyss. In other words, if one of her brethren brings her back to The Abyss, she will reconnect and be reborn all on her own.

    "Did the purge remove her connection too?"

    Shizue shrugged, "It must have. That''s the only explanation I could come up with. Your friend Aresa should be able to answer that for you. We don''t know anything about the purge past ''it kills everything'' after all."

    ... Yeah. The next time I see her I''ll be sure to ask her.

    .........

    "I''m sure they survived in Gaia, Rei." Shizue said, clearly in reaction to the emotions she was feeling from my soul.

    "... I hope so. You never know where you''re going to end up in Gaia after all."

    If they were taken to a realm dominated by Demons or a hostile Eldritch, then all I can do is pray that The Tengu Lord successfully managed to keep them all alive until they could escape.

    I pulled out of her soul realm and looked at Eve''s Mech that was currently watching the Liches work. "Eve! Are they bringing the goods and Luna here or not?"

    Her speakers buzzed, "They''ll be here in an hour! They''re running a little behind. A large contingent of machines attacked the convoy..."

    This close to Arcadia?

    .......

    ... No, that''s a dumb thought to have. Obviously the ''safe zone'' doesn''t exist now that Atraxu has taken control of the AI. They were running on a simple loop of instructions up until now, but that''s no longer the case now that Atraxu is manually controlling them.

    I walked past the group of three Liches building another generator until I was in the middle of the mountain. I then sat down and began building the same tower I had found Naza''Shier''s corpse in.

    <hr>

    "Hey! We''re back, Lord Reimia!" Leon yelled from behind me.

    Luna had already reached me and dove into my soul by the time I had stood up.

    {......}

    What''s wrong??

    I could tell from her soul that she was extremely annoyed and sad at the same time.

    {... Why am I just now seeing you? You couldn''t come down to Bertram''s bar after the reset even once?!}

    I''m... I''m sorry, Luna. I figured even if you did remember after the reset, then you''d know I wouldn''t be avoiding you on purpose. Aside from the time after Atraxu''s assault, I was pretty busy during most of the reset, but I knew I''d be seeing you as soon as you healed Nia.

    {It was easier this time since I knew exactly what to do... And I cleansed her mom too after the mandate came down. She was uh, really mad at first. But she kept her ability after losing the curse, so she wasn''t yelling for long, hehe.}

    "Um, Lord Reimia?" Leon said after approaching me.

    "Yeah?"

    "Where do you want it all?" He pointed toward the boxes being carried up the mountain from the vehicles down below.

    "For now just place em inside that building, BUT, please have them hook up the television before they leave."

    "Understood." Leon bowed before turning around and walking back to the convoy.

    {He''s weird but nice.}

    I thought he''d be an ass, but his Uncle isn''t so bad either, so I suppose the real problem is the family head.

    {Hehe, it''s so funny that they think they''re the owners of Arcadia. Uncle Irvine told me about what you did, ''Captain Reimia''!}

    Just like I knew they would, those tools walked straight into the core room a few hours after I had left Arcadia. And Clover obliged me in making them think they were the new ''Captains''.

    {But um, as funny as it is, why are you doing that?}

    Because one of them, or maybe all of them, know all about Viktor''s past. I suppose it''s not necessary to bring them up and crush them like this, but it''ll make it easier to extract information out of them.

    {No it won''t? Just say you''re doing it cause it''s fun!}

    Sometimes she''s far sharper than she should be.

    After that I kept working on the tower until Leon informed me that the Television was hooked up. I then stood up and ran into the building, swapping the channel until I saw the coverage of the battle taking place near the Daemon''s portal.

    {Whoa! What are those?!}

    Harbingers... This is my first time actually seeing one. I had only heard about the one the Lizardmen and Godwin were fighting near Thule back on Urza.

    I had heard the Demons brought over a Harbinger, but the reports failed to mention that there were two of them. I watched as hundreds to thousands of imps channeled onto a front-facing barrier on the Harbingers. They had to after all, since the Daemons were firing most of their weapons at the behemoths. The amount of explosions, energy rounds, and physical rounds hitting the barriers was ridiculous. From the front it was hard to even tell what the Daemons were firing at thanks to all of the smoke and explosions.

    However, the Daemons didn''t need to wonder if the Harbingers were still alive, as they could see their large bright-orange mallet heads flying through the air toward them, releasing a kilometer-wide wave of fire around the impact point. Some Daemons were incinerated each time this happened, but most of them were blown off their feet for a few seconds before righting themselves so they could begin firing again.

    {Even with the Harbingers taking most of the attacks the others still can''t get close though...}

    True, and that''s because the Daemons had opened the portal enough to allow the God inside of it to unleash one barrage after another on any enemies that came within a certain distance of the portal. While some of its weaponry was a nightmare to deal with, even its basic ones like rockets were also proving too difficult for our forces to push through. It wasn''t a dozen or a hundred rockets, it was closer to a thousand that would come flying through all parts of the portal and completely obliterate anyone or any mechs that came near it.

    Although, some of them would be saved thanks to that tall mech we found in the shipping bay. The one that I accidentally led the massive Xerath into punching. Turns out it was a mech designed purely for commanding from. Its supportive options were unbelievably good too, like the ability to recall any mechs or power armors linked to it(limited by distance and the amount of Humanoid supporters operating the mech).

    We''ve been calling it the ''Titan'' since it didn''t actually have a name. It was the last mech created before the purge, and the poor bastards were wiped out before they even had a chance to name it.

    The only downside was the amount of power it needed. We needed people rotating in and out of it, and a lot of power cores. Fortunately, both problems were taken care of for the time being. The power core stock between the Clans and those found in the core''s sections were quite high, however, the people issue was solved by the Demons, which was a problem in itself.

    Luna, have you ever heard of ''Succubi'' before?

    {Yes, Mother talked about them. She called them ''Demonic whores'' and that they should be killed on sight.}

    So even Lunaria knew about them... Their new for me, and I''m not sure how to feel about them. They have a really simple design. They just look like ridiculously beautiful women with horns and tails, but the speed at which they integrated themselves into Arcadia was insane. I thought there would be more push back to Demons literally moving into Arcadia, but apparently if any potential threat has a pretty face and nice boobs then that''s all that really matters, cause in less than a week the city had nearly five hundred of them living there.

    {I hate honey traps. Mom does too.}

    ... That is the problem, isn''t it? They have the men and a shockingly large amount of women listening to their every word. Thank god I''m the Captain... If the Clan Leaders had truly become the Captains and then those Succubus'' had corrupted them, then we really would have been fucked. Fortunately, that didn''t happen, so I can eject or kill anyone who tries to harm Arcadia or turn it into a Demonic Spaceship.

    Hmm, I really should keep it a secret that I''m the Captain then... It''s better if the Demons think they need to focus on the Clan Leaders.

    I exited the building and returned to my tower once I was done catching up on the battle near Fort Deus.

    {You''re really going to build a tower here? I thought it''d take forever or something?}

    By myself it would, but look at how fast they''re making the second generator and our walls?

    While it was still nothing more than a stump, I could tell that they were going to complete the building far faster than I had completed the first one, which meant that once they were done they''d back me up. I didn''t plan on building a big one, just a tower big enough to see over the walls and all sides of the mountain.

    Reports had said that there were sightings of machines everywhere up north, and while that worried me a little, I was mostly building it for another reason... One I didn''t fully understand. After I had activated the ether building and summoned the Liches, I suddenly felt like I needed a tower. Not just for fun or a nice vantage point, but my core was telling me it was necessary.

    And so, that''s exactly what I was doing.

    Once I''m done here we''re going to create as many summons as possible, Luna. And that''s when we''ll finally be going on the offensive. The others are unable to hit the Daemons from behind thanks to the machines and Xerath, so we''re going to take the fight to them. If they have to deal with us, then they won''t be able to stop our allies from surrounding the Daemons.

    {Rodger!}

    That''s not all though. Belfos has been draining the extra ether that the Liches aren''t using. He''s going to resurrect long before we attack Atraxu''s forces... Which should give him plenty of time to raise some forces to assist us.