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Book II: The Brightest Skies of Heaven

Two days later, and Marina was still drawing her father over and over and over again, as if she could bring him back. Mahihko wouldn't stop crying, and Cindy was doing her best to bear the brunt of being the mother and leader of the group now... but thankfully Cherry helped her out as much as she could manage, although she seemed faded and lost now, no longer eating and walking around wearing Zerrex's old clothes.

They couldn't find his body anywhere, and Cherry explained that he had gone through a teleport device that combined demonic magic with mortal technology, and that she had failed to follow him through in time or warn him, even though she'd recognized what it was, right away. But Marina didn't lash out at her, upon learning this: either because she was in her own world right now, or because she knew that Cherry wanted pain.

The little bright side they had wasn't very bright, either. Although they'd escaped the Sanctuary and Ire's forces, Cherry carrying Marina on her back and following the river all the way out to a small farming valley instead of returning to a likely locked-down Liberation, no one would confirm the deaths of all members of the Council of the Republic or print the story. And as expected, twenty minutes after Cindy made the call, a shifted Cherry watched as about fifty soldiers descended on the payphone, tore it apart, and ran away with the receiver as soldiers began patrolling up and down the farming town.

Cherry's only thought was a miserable: ‘Zerrex would know what to do,' but it didn't help the situation very much with the fact that... Don't. Don't cry, Cindy. You can do that later, not right now.

She closed her eyes as she finished packing up the truck they'd stolen, then she sighed quietly. They were heading for a safehouse that Albatross had set up for them, and he had sent along an entire cadre of gigantic Dragokkaren Enforcers to stay with them and guard them, refusing to take no for an answer while he got them air clearance to leave for Hez'Ranna as refugees. Other nations had also begun clamoring for proof that the Council of the Republic was still installed, with the growing demonic threat... and even in Ire, some former pro-government groups had turned on the hand that had fed them for so long as they realized that the demonic army in the north wasn't simply a rumor.

A few minutes later, she went back to the small cabin they had stayed at the night before to see Cherry sitting naked in a circle on the floor, candles put out over several points and a bloody knife stabbed into the floor in front of her... and Cindy remained quiet as Cherry murmured softly: "Okay... okay. So... can you send someone? Alright, thank you. I'm looking forwards to meeting him."

She relaxed, then stood up and flicked her wrist, the candles around her puffing out as she murmured to Cindy: "I'm going to find out what happened to Zerrex from someone who says he was there, a mole in the Warlord's army. Where's Marina and Mahihko?"

"Marina's sketching out behind the house on one of the swings, and Mahihko was in the bedroom, sleeping between crying fits, last I checked." Cindy responded quietly, before helping to clean up as Cherry nodded and made a face, rubbing at one of her horns slowly. "Do... do you think they'll be okay?"

"I don't think even I'm going to be okay." Cherry said quietly, looking away and walking over to the counter, then she laughed a bit as she looked over her shoulder, murmuring softly: "Knowing there's a thereafter... doesn't really help, does it?"

"It doesn't seem that way, no." Cindy said softly, then she glanced up at a polite knock on the door, and Cherry strode quickly over to answer it.

A rat glanced over her curiously, then he tapped his temple, his eyes turning completely black as he mumbled: "I want you to keep in mind I'm just a messenger, and had nothing to do with this, alright? It's... it's not good." A pause as he looked over to Cindy, saying quietly: "Miss, maybe you should leave the room. You especially may be hurt by what I have to relate."

"I want to know everything." Cindy shook her head, striding over to the ugly wooden table that took up the little kitchen, and the Possessed nodded after a moment as Cherry let him inside, sitting down himself as Cherry closed the door before leaning against it. "So... you were there?"

The rat laughed shortly, looking down and saying quietly: "Fuck, it seemed like half of Hell was there. Whatever else, A... the General was scared." He paused, carefully avoiding the name and looking at each of the sisters meaningfully. "Something about how he didn't want him to escape, no matter what the cost... and that we should harm him seriously but to avoid killing him at all costs, at least until the General was down in Hell. He wanted to ‘catch' Lord Zerrex's soul himself to make sure that the Princess or Heaven didn't get a hold of it first.

"See, when souls leave their bodies, they float around for a short period of time: it's only seconds up here, but in Hell or Heaven its weeks. Archangels and archdevils and royal demons constantly fight over who gets certain souls... sometimes to the point where an angel will actually enter Hell to steal a particularly-powerful spirit if he committed some infractions he could redeem himself for in holy service, but in the same breath, devils and demons may lay an assault on the gates of Heaven itself, which are not as sturdy as you may have been led to believe.

"Zerrex's soul was fought over for two weeks. Heaven got it, the Prince's cohorts got it, etcetera. Finally, of all people, Death snagged his soul and hauled ass to the Princess. Zerrex is there now... he died... I can't lie. I'm sorry. He was tortured to death after a terrible battle."

Cherry nodded, looking down and grasping her forehead... and then Cindy said in a surprisingly-cold voice: "I want to know every detail. Tell me right now."

The rat looked over at her with surprise... and then he nodded slowly after a moment, biting his tongue before looking down at the table and lacing his fingers together tightly. "The plan was to lure you all into the facility, since he learned you were heading to Liberation to find the location of the Republic Council. He figured it was a perfect time to do away with everyone at once: he would betray the council and while the senate lays in chaos, have us possess as many of them as we could. Then they'd ‘elect' a new leader, one of the General's lackeys in disguise... and Ire would successfully be taken without a fight.

"He recognized that your father was threat to him, however... so he decided to lay in wait himself and lure Lord Zerrex into a trap, while leaving the Countess of the Seven and Majesty behind, one of his concubines, to kill you and the others, along with a brigade of assorted demon soldiers run by minotaur officers and commanded by a Gigataur." A pause as he shook his head slowly, the rat murmuring quietly: "But his focus on Lord Zerrex was intense...

"In the end, he called in most of his reserve soldiers to form a massive army... over eight thousand demons massed together in what he called the Row of Skulls, along with a full Gigataur Attack Team and Rakshasa warrior mages trained in binding and curse spells." The rat rubbed slowly at his head, murmuring: "He stood no chance... not even the strongest demons in Hell would have stood a chance of escape."

He stopped, looking back and forth, then lowered his head and said quietly: "And then... then a great and powerful angel came to his rescue..." A pause, and then the rat shuddered and went silent as there was a soft hiss in the air, and Cindy looked slowly over shoulder to see Francis standing by the back wall, the mouse's features quiet and solemn.

"The Captain of the 21st Vanguard Legion, Requiem Narrius." Francis said softly, looking away as the angel murmured: "You have my deepest condolences for the loss of both of them, daughters of Lord Zerrex. Requiem joined in the battle..."

"And his power was incredible, like nothing I've witnessed." The rat added quietly, continuing to look at Francis for a few moments before he turned his eyes back to Cindy, calming a bit as he shook his head slowly. "More than a thousand wounded and double that number injured... but despite how hard they fought, they were wounded and beaten down, even with the extraordinary power they showed..."

Francis nodded, then he rubbed a hand over his head as he murmured: "We felt the vibrations all the way up to Heaven when they combined their powers for that last attack..."

The rat gave a faint smile, looking back and forth as tears flowed down Cindy's cheeks and Cherry continued to simply look stony. "And we felt it all the way down in Hell, too. But then the Gigataurs came forwards... and they killed Requiem with their hammers and broke Zerrex's back so he couldn't fight."

The Possessed look down, and Francis finished with disgust. "And then they tried to torture him back at their new fortress here on earth, a corrupted castle ruin near the Row of Skulls... but the Warlord's idiot dungeon master, Brisco killed him instead." The mouse withheld the details, and the rat simply nodded in consent, the Possessed heaving a quiet sigh.

Cherry turned away and put her hands against the wall, leaning forwards... and then she asked in a snarl: "And why the hell are you here, Francis? To tell us ‘I told you so?'"

"Cherry... I'm sorry. I failed you the moment I judged you... I failed Zerrex the moment I judged him." Francis murmured quietly, and then he reached out and touched the demoness's shoulder as Cindy dropped her face in her arms, crying quietly as Cherry clenched her eyes shut and fought back her own sadness. "So, against the advice of Heaven, I'm going to teach you how to open a Black Hole to Hell, and then how to refine that into a true portal."

Cherry started, then wheeled around and stared in shock, shrugging his arm off and grabbing him by the shoulders, Francis wincing in pain as she asked stupidly: "You... you can really do that? This isn't a trick?"

"I can... but you'll only be able to visit a place you know well, and you know that Hell is an enormous place..." Francis grunted, before making a face as he added mildly: "And I will need my arms back, thank you."

The demoness let him go with a wince, before trading looks with Cindy, who was holding hands with the rat as her tears continued to flow, whispering: "Hey, see, it'll be okay... you hear that, little sister? It might not be good at all, but it does make things better... we... I can visit Zerrex in Hell. Maybe he can write letters or some dumb shit like that, and it'll be like he's in prison." Cherry laughed a bit, and her tone was slightly hysterical before she controlled herself, returning her eyes to the angel as she asked coldly: "How fast can you do this?"

"Ten weeks, give or take, to learn how to open a vortex... but unfortunately many more to learn how to control it enough to create a feasible portal you can go anywhere with and safely bring people with you." Francis said quietly, then he smiled a bit and added at Cherry's disheartened look: "But that's in the dimensions of Heaven and Hell... and we're both well aware the difference in the flow of time between there and here, and how much harder it is to learn and improve in either dimension."

"Oh thank shit." Cherry looked a bit relieved at this, then grabbed Francis's hand and jerked him past Cindy and the demon, throwing the door open and charging outside as she called: "Training time! Be back for dinner!"

Cindy sighed a bit, wiping at her eyes with one hand as she held the demon's with the other, and then she took a deep breath before asking: "Does... this mean that Requiem is... gone?"

"He... yes." The Possessed looked down quietly, rubbing the back of her hand slowly before he murmured: "The GATs use weapons soaked in the blood of angels and charmed with unholy runes that are specifically designed to banish an angel's spirit... he... he has gone to the next place on the path, which few of us know the name of. They call it the Unworld... but I don't know what's there... it's a closely-guarded secret."

Cindy felt a chill run down her spine at the name, and then she shook her head slowly before murmuring quietly: "Alright, thank you... thank you for being honest, and coming here to tell us all this."

"It's alright. I have to return this body to its workplace before he's missed too much, if you don't mind me taking my leave." The rat said quietly, and Cindy nodded before they both stood and shook their hands, and the Possessed left quickly out the front door. A few moments later, Marina came inside, looking dull and listless, a thick notebook in one hand.

She threw it down on the table, and Cindy opened it to see sketches of Zerrex... then of Requiem... and then of the fight, and at first she smiled... before trembling as they grew more violent, tinged with red here and there from a paint Cindy guessed Marina had made with her own blood... and then she moaned and drew back at the final few pictures of Zerrex's death before slamming the notebook, and Marina said to her quietly, the first time she'd spoken since her rage had driven her into madness: "Daddy is dead. I want Daddy back, and I will get Daddy back... and I will kill Az'Iriel and anyone else who gets in my way. If he dies, the war ends."

"We... we don't know where he is." Cindy said helplessly, knowing Marina would only grow angrier if she pointed out they likely couldn't kill the Demon Prince... and Marina slumped a bit before straightening again.

"You're babysitting until Daddy gets home. You and Cherry. That's all." Marina said coldly, then she strode around and sat on Cindy's lap, the female grunting in surprise before she flipped her sketchbook open to an untarnished page and said coldly: "Think of a memory with Daddy in it."

Cindy trembled even as she wrapped her arms around her daughter and sister's waist... and then she closed her eyes and remembered their first meeting as tears rolled down her cheeks, and Marina's pencil immediately began to move as she felt the female grasp her mind and take hold of the memory like an expensive painting. And as she drew, tears rolled down Marina's cheeks too... until finally, as she finished, her pencil scraped a tear through the page and she burst into tears, clinging to Cherry and crying: "I want my Daddy! I want my Daddy!"

In the other room, Mahihko trembled on the bed, and then he curled up in a little ball with a torn shirt that still smelled faintly like Zerrex, tears rolling down his cheeks as he listened to Marina's sobs and whispered: "I want my Daddy, too..."

In all honesty, the wolf couldn't think of a worse thing that could have happened: Zerrex was dead, the demons were invading, and here they were in a little cabin guarded by a half-dozen massive Dragokkaren sentries that were patrolling the hillside and staying a short distance at all times, with only one of them checking in every so often. Mahihko had half-expected to hear Cherry's screams of pleasure echoing the first night... but instead, all he'd heard was quiet crying behind the house that could have been anyone.

What made it worse was the idea... the fact... that Zerrex had died and gone to Hell. Sure, even the little, loving wolf couldn't deny that Zerrex had done some things in life that were not particularly good, but the Drakkaren had been through so much, and done so much: from protecting Baskin's Grove, to killing his own father to save his family, friends, Hez'Ranna, and the world... and his life had brought him nothing but pain. Somehow, that was the worst part: there was not even the comfort that Zerrex had gone out fighting anymore... just the knowledge that he'd fought as long and hard as he could, only to be tortured to death and accidently killed by an idiot underling of the Warlord.

Could he be proud of the male he now called Father? Always. Did he resent what the demons had done? More than anyone could have believed the little girlyboi could. Inside the wolf, some part of him was screaming and raving... and despite the fact that on the surface and the outside, he was a little, meek, tattoo-covered super-fag... inside all he could feel was hate, pain, and that darkness he'd heard Zerrex mention ever so often, but never truly understood until now.

He didn't want to go on with life, as he shoved his face into the shirt and rocked slowly on his back, beginning to cry quietly again... but he would. He would because Zerrex had always told him how important it was that he take care of himself, and he would because the other girls were here for him and he could still help them fight and kill the demons... and a shudder went through the wolf as he sat up, sobbing and hugging himself as he asked the air miserably: "But why? Why did it have to be like this? Zerrex... oh Zer..."

Back in the kitchen, Cindy held a quaking Marina, shushing her quietly and holding her close, her eyes closed as she rocked slowly and murmured soft nothings to her. Marina didn't seem to take too much comfort in her actions... but she did calm down bit-by-bit, laying curled against her body, her tears flowing down onto Cindy's bosom. The mother, the middle sister clenched her teeth as she squeezed Marina compulsively to her body, looking up at the sky and hating how much everyone was suffering... from Mahihko to Cherry, none of them deserved this, not for anything they'd done, and certainly not for anything Zerrex had ever done. Daddy went to Hell... I can still barely believe it. I know he and Cherry aren't your average good people but there was good in his heart... there was good down to his very soul, and yet... they threw him in the pit, anyway. And... and...

Marina finished for her, hugging her tightly around the neck as she murmured: "And I don't care what Daddy did in the past... he didn't deserve to go to Hell. I... I almost wish we'd never gotten involved in all this... that I had grown up with Daddy, to be more like Daddy... that there was more darkness inside me..." The female halted, and then looked up at Cindy, whispering: "No, Cindy... you made Daddy happy because you were so bright... and I could only shape myself to try and make him happy... I've never hated any of you, only envied all of you, including Mahihko, for the time you got to spend with him..."

"Marina, he loved you as much as the rest of us, if not more than all of us..." Cindy murmured quietly, looking down into her daughter's eyes and holding her tightly, and then she closed her own, taking a hitching breath as she fought back her tears before whispering: "We... we're going to have to move out soon. It'll take us all night to drive out to the safehouse Albatross set up here with his contacts... and I'm sure the Dragokkaren soldiers want to get moving themselves."

"Yeah..." Marina said quietly, then she slowly slipped off Cindy's lap, picking up her notebook and walking over to the bedroom door, opening it to look quietly at Mahihko, who was sniffling and holding Zerrex's shirt over his muzzle, before she silently held out a hand. "Come on, little brother. We're going to go."

"Okay." Mahihko said quietly, and he took her hand silently, not even caring about what she'd just called him, that she may have accepted him for the first time in years. He'd give anything to have Zerrex back... and that included his friendship with Marina. Or maybe I'd just give up myself if it meant I could trade places with Zerrex... I'd go to Hell for him and he could come up here...

Cindy looked up at the two as they stepped back into the room, at how they were holding hands and looked so small and broken despite the fact Marina's fit almost brushed the ceiling and that Mahihko was half her size, the wolf currently clutching Zerrex's torn shirt like a security blanket against his chest in his free hand and Marina her art notebook. And Cherry's been dressing like him and wearing his .52s everywhere... "I... are you two ready?"

"Yes, mommy." Marina said quietly, and a moment later Mahihko glanced at her before echoing the words, and it was so empty as Cindy stood up and walked over to them, looking at them both quietly and cupping the cheek of either one in her hand. They seemed so broken, so lost, so disjointed... and even when they spoke to her, she knew she was just a temporary, bad replacement for Zerrex. I can't even hear a capital in my name like when they say Father or Daddy... but in a way I'm glad for that... Marina's always been her father's daughter...

She nodded to them both after a moment, then led them quietly out to the truck, and they crawled into the back of the pickup to curl up under one of the dusty blankets together, Mahihko pushing his head against Marina's chest as she held him close, the scent of their father's shirt between them, almost lost among the hay and dust that coated the back of the pickup. Cindy, meanwhile, slowly drove down towards the small pond down the dirt road that led back to the highway, where Cherry was talking quietly with Francis still and looking perplexed, a small, clear stone in one hand and an empty, small cloth bag in the other. Cindy merely waited, however, until Cherry finally nodded and Francis stepped back before vanishing, and a few moments later the demoness entered the car, looking curiously down at the little, quartz-looking stone.

Cindy didn't bother to ask as they drove in silence, until half-an-hour later, Cherry murmured: "This is some kind of... of Hollow Stone thing that will absorb minor Black Holes, the sort I'll be creating. Francis explained to me in detail what I have to do, and he left me a locket with the instructions inside and a few recorded responses... it's a magical artifact I thought was only... down in Hell." Cherry stopped for a moment, glancing down and then murmuring: "But nope, they make and sell them in Heaven, too... little magic recording devices."

Cindy nodded a bit, and Cherry sighed quietly as she held a hand up in front of her, palm to the roof of the car, and only a few sparks of dark energy appeared, twisting around one another and then vanishing. "But shit, is this stuff hard to do... even if I've been wracking my brains like crazy... remembering how to perform a séance is a far cry from creating portals. It's beyond even teleportation, and Francis told me I should work my way up... but the other issue is that he told me not to go through any Black Holes I create."

"Why?" Cindy asked quietly, frowning a bit as she glanced over to Cherry, and hating that the first thing she thought was: Don't you want to see Daddy as much as the rest of us do?

Some of the guilt must have leaked onto her face, because Cherry only grunted in return, and for a while there was silence... but just as Cindy was about to apologize, she said quietly: "Because rifts aren't like portals... there's no control, there's no guarantee you'll end up where you're supposed to. I mean, I never wanted to be like this, Cindy... I never wanted to be no fucking cheap-ass magician, I always wanted to be on the front lines beside the Boss and... aw, fuck..."

She trembled and lowered her head, snarling even as a few tears leaked from her eyes, before she pounded on the dash childishly with a loud, consternated yell a moment before her airbag shot out and knocked her backwards, Cindy staring with surprise before it popped against one of Cherry's long antler-horns... and a moment later the two were laughing as Cindy pulled over the side of the road, and then crying in one another's arms.

Whatever else, it helped at least a little, though... and then they were rolling back down the highway ten minutes later, after Cindy checked on Marina and Mahihko and found them sleeping quietly together. It wasn't anything she'd ever expected to see in her lifetime... and it hurt her inside to imagine how happy Zerrex would have been, to see this.

Night fell, and military cars began passing more frequently... but they weren't pulled over, and Cherry switched out with Cindy at a rest stop on a small ridge as the Dragokkaren soldiers sent to guard them pulled up behind them in a large extended van, one of them hopping out of the back to check if they were alright.

Cindy nodded, and when Mahihko and Marina both hopped out of the back and made slowly for the small rest station, she lapsed into polite conversation. A few minutes later, the two came back with a small box of snacks and beverages, and Cindy climbed back into the truck as the guard confirmed they'd stay at three miles back for the rest of the trip, until they reached the safehouse.

When they pulled up to the safehouse two hours later, Cindy still hadn't finished the glass bottle of juice: lately, she hadn't been eating much, and her usual health-nut diet had spiraled down into candy bars, chips, and chocolate... but it was better than Cherry, who hadn't been eating anything at all and drinking only the occasional bottle of water.

The safehouse itself was a broken-down home in the slums, with an overgrown yard, rusted gate, and a wing that had entirely collapsed under the weight of age and stress of weather... but inside they found two Dragokkaren soldiers already posted, both of them saluting to the family as they strode inside, then extending their condolences. Whatever it looked like outside, inside it was spotless and shining, the windows carefully sealed with layers of black paper to avoid letting any undue light out or attracting any unwanted attention whatsoever.

A third Dragokkaren met them, not a clone soldier like most of the others but instead a shorter, black-and-white scaled Hez'Ranna-born officer, shipped overseas to Ire as part of the ‘military trading program' and then promptly kicked out of the school he was supposed to be attending for special training for insubordination. "I got up confused the first morning, and I didn't have a uniform from Ire or even know what I was supposed to wear... so I put on my old Hez'Ranna uniform. They court-marshaled me the moment I walked in the door and revoked everything they could, then refused to spring for the ride back home or let me on board the transport once the others finished their classes." Salkin Larond said, his features amused at his own misery as he adjusted the beggar's rags he was wearing while absently dousing himself in a mixture of crumbs and booze from a wine bottle labeled ironically ‘Seasoning.' "On the bright side, I learned to speak the native language and how things work here... on the not-so-bright side, as you can see, my job isn't exactly the most glamorous one. His Honor Albatross tried to keep me on the payroll, but they had to let me go... now I mostly live in the shelters for displaced Hez'Rannan soldiers and only get called in to do special operations like this. I'll be sitting outside the door for the next while, guarding it and being smelly."

"Fuckers." Cherry grunted, then she put her hands in the pockets of her black pants, glancing over him for a few moments before turning away and heading off without much comment towards the eastern wing to explore the soldier's quarters. Marina and Mahihko had already wandered upstairs and found their private room on the second floor... and when Cindy finally tired of exploring the beautiful little safehouse and all its eccentricities â€" like a kitchen that prepared almost-exclusively Hez'Rannan food â€" the female found the two curled up together on the same bed, asleep and clutching one-another close.

In the morning, Cherry and Cindy wandered downstairs after a soldier politely woke them up, Cherry still wearing the same clothes she had for the last few days as Cindy only bothered to put on a new shirt, and then both of them were surprised to see Albatross standing at the foot of the stairs, looking up at them miserably. They started down, and he immediately dropped to all fours, his eye shut tight and his hands clenched into fists as he said weakly: "Cherry, Cindy... I'm so sorry to all of you for doing this to you... I never should have asked Lord Zerrex to take on this operation when I knew how many things were wrong with him-"

"It was the cost of doing business... now get up, you're embarrassing me." Cherry said in a strained voice, looking down and clasping her hands together... and Cindy only looked away silently as Albatross shakily got to his feet, slowly straightening his suit as she added weakly: "So... so are we getting out of here, then?"

"I'll take you to Hez'Ranna tonight in my private plane, yes." Albatross murmured, glancing down and adding quietly: "You'll be treated to anything you like there, and you'll stay in the central palace with High King Churchill... we'll accommodate your every need and want through this period of mourning, Miss Cindy and Miss Cherry."

Albatross lived up to his word beyond what Cindy had expected: when they left for the private jet that evening, they went in a guarded convoy that included Salkin at the gentle wish of Cindy... and it made her happy for a brief moment to see him so exhilarated at the thought of returning home.

The entire trip, Marina and Mahihko held hands and curled up together on one of the large, plush benches... and Cherry and Cindy played poker as Albatross sat quietly near the front seat with his hands in his lap, talking quietly with Salkin in his native tongue: probably the first time in years he'd had a conversation in Hez'Rannan, with the way people in Ire reacted when you spoke it. Cindy didn't mean to listen in, but it happened anyway.

"They lost their father... Lord Zerrex, technically the Lost King of Hez'Ranna, after he killed his father, Patriarch Narrius. He saved the whole world from damnation... and do you know how I found out? I awoke with a headache and a... an urge to run out of my own home, and I did... and I discovered the statue we'd erected of the Lord and his family in shambles, Zerrex himself cracked apart and bleeding."

"That's amazing... in... in the most respectful way possible, I mean." Salkins stammered after a moment, at the look that flickered over Albatross's usually-calm features. He mumbled a short prayer in Hez'Rannan that Cindy didn't catch, then continue in the same tongue: "What sort of force could cause that?"

"Well... I have no idea." Albatross admitted honestly after a moment, before murmuring quietly: "We tested the blood, though, and it was a perfect match for Lord Zerrex's. I've never seen such a terrible omen... and I'm scared that without him to guide us, we'll collapse under the growing demonic threat. We already have word that a massive army has been marching on several major cities in Ire, and that more have appeared throughout the northern empires and blocked many trade and access routes... but worst of all, Lailland is falling quickly to repeated demonic attacks, and the senate in Ire is moving to elect its first War Leader, who will have total power over the military and police forces. It's a dictator, but of course a dictator who's supposed to give up his powers..."

"Which never happens, not even in our culture." Salkin muttered, shaking his head slowly and adding quietly: "Ire was bad enough to begin with, but if what you're saying it true, then they'll probably elect a demon and surrender in an attempt to get more power."

Albatross laughed shortly, murmuring quietly: "The information that Miss Cherry managed to get points to exactly that, unfortunately... possession of the different senate members to elect a shapeshifting demon. They informed me of this only today, which is part of the reason I'm returning so promptly to Hez'Ranna. I need to tell High King Churchill of what's happened here and advise him to push for temporary suspension of Ire's senate while they produce evidence of the continued existence of the Republic Council... and if they fail, to have Ire taken over as a global territory for the time being, so the World Council can make decisions regarding..."

"Your move, Cindy." Cherry grunted, and Cindy blinked before looking at her cards and sighing as she dropped them, and Cherry made a face, muttering at the sight of the full house: "You're the only person who can be sad about winning. Fuck, if only I could see things clearer with my precog, then I'd be able to actually beat you."

Cindy shook her head a bit, murmuring quietly: "You tend to forget that low cards can beat high cards, if you have enough of them. Big numbers aren't everything, Cherry."

"But they do help." Cherry responded quietly, dropping her own pair of Queens on the table, and then she hugged herself tightly and closed her eyes, mumbling: "Fuck... it's so hard to focus right now, though... and I just want to be working on my abilities and shit, learning more and seeing what else I can remember..."

Cherry sighed, looking down at the floor, then she murmured a short incantation and flicked her fingers at the ground, and an unevolved snake twisted into existence from coils of fire that rapidly solidified into flesh and red-orange scale. It blinked its blue eyes, then glanced up at Cherry and flicked its tongue at her before sliding up into her lap, the ten-foot snake twisting its way around her neck as she stroked its body idly, then glared at Cindy's look. "Fuck off, it makes me feel better."

"Whatever works for you." Cindy said quietly, then she held out her hand and Cherry stared as the snake immediately made its way across the table, twisting around her arm and then gently settling on her shoulders, closing its eyes and looking peaceful as she added quietly: "The trick is to be calm... and extend that calm outwards. And any beast will come to you and be at peace with you."

It was a lesson from Zerrex or Requiem... and either way, Cindy lowered her head and felt a few more tears drip down her face. Gods, the pain will never stop...

Cherry, on the other hand, nodded slowly and grit her teeth before holding her hands out in front of herself, elbows resting on the table and palms roughly a foot apart as she breathed deeply... and slowly, the air between her hands seemed to crystallize, before dark energy began to bounce back and forth inside the orb that formed. It was a meditation exercise she had been taught in Hell that looked flashy but she didn't think did a whole lot... and she could remember a discussion on that subject with Zerrex she'd had, before she'd died, and her mind honed in on this.

Meditation is stupid... she'd muttered to him, half glaring and dressed up in a leather bra and leather pants. Now come on, we're going to the fucking road show. Do you know how hard it was to get a bra that actually fits my boobs made of leather? And furthermore, how expensive it was?

Meditation is an art. Zerrex had replied, looking stonily up at her for a moment before he took a deep breath, relaxing his body and resting his hands on his knees, his legs crossed as he sat his bed and went back to concentrating. Mediation is all about focusing your mind and your chi, your body's energy... it's about tuning in with the soul, and training yourself and your body by training your mind without touching a book or lifting a weight. It's about-

Looking stupid. Cherry laughed and grinned widely, and then she'd clapped her hands together and declared: You're a fuckin' new-age hippie now, Boss.

Zerrex had looked at her sourly... but now she thought she was beginning to understand what he had meant. She had to fight to keep her concentration on the one thing, on holding the sphere together as darkness slowly filled it up, bolts of it striking harder against the edges as she grunted and flexed against the magical sphere she was creating without even understanding fully what she was doing.

And she realized as she delved into her mind, as she fought to concentrate harder.... that despite everything had had happened over the years, how much she had changed... she still hated herself. She hated her cravings and lusts, she hated her body, she hated her bad sense of humor, she hated the way she could never get her words to come out right. Zerrex had made that hate go away... but he wasn't here anymore. And then the sphere of glassy energy cracked, and the darkness inside turned into black lighting that coursed over her body, the demoness cursing loudly as she was slammed backwards into the bench hard enough to awaken both Marina and Mahihko, the two staring in shock as Cherry straightened, wincing as the snake vanished from around Cindy's shoulders into embers and ash.

Cindy coughed a few times into her hand, closing her eyes and wincing as she dusted herself off... and then she looked across at Cherry with concern, asking quietly: "Are you okay?"

Albatross had run over, too, probably already well on the way to apologizing... but Cherry managed a stupid laugh as she waved a hand, lying dumbly: "Sorry, I was... I was doing a spell I just remembered, to try and see where... Zerrex is in Hell..." she stopped and glanced down, rubbing the back of her head as Albatross nodded quickly and left, looking embarrassed that he'd interrupted.

Cindy looked across at Cherry for a few moments, then said quietly: "You don't need to lie about it, Cherry... not to any of us. I think even Albatross would understand whatever it is that got you so riled up if you gave him a chance. He's helped us a lot over the years."

"It's not that... it's... I just don't want to talk about it right now." Cherry muttered, then dropped her head on her arms and was quiet the rest of the trip, as Cindy sighed softly and nodded slowly, closing her own eyes.

They touched down in an airfield in Tek'Kanna, the new capital city of Hez'Ranna: at first, Churchill had wanted to stay in Uroboros, and had promised to move the capital back to the mighty city once it was fully reconstructed... but they were still repairing the damages that Paradise and Narrius's troops had done to their own shining city of golden stone, and removing all the excess technology, almost every Hez'Rannan wanting to return to their traditional way of life as soon as possible while retaining only the few technological advances that didn't interfere with their lives or were useful for science. Science, not military aspects... Hez'Ranna had seen far too much of that during its existence as a country, from settlers to destroyers to the Great War.

Tek'Kanna wasn't as large or beautiful as Uroboros, but it was on the edge of the lush jungle that had started to grow back after the terrible fires that had ravaged it for years after the Great War, from the fall of Paradise and the resulting nuclear blast. The city itself was still being repaired from the extensive damages done to it by bombing runs before and after the war, but the central square was still perfectly intact and protected by a harmless barrier of magnetic energy strong enough to repel anything that touched it, forming an octagon over the central palace and the beautiful gardens below and generated from eight different towers on top of the surrounding buildings.

Cindy was holding one of Marina's hands and one of Mahihko's â€" the youngest female looked like she'd revived a bit of her old self for the moment as she gazed back and forth at the beautiful plants and friendly Drakkai they passed, but Mahihko, on the other hand, had regressed. Now he was sucking his thumb and toddling along like a baby, and Cindy feared soon he'd shut down entirely... out of them all, she thought that Mahihko might have always been like a humble, intelligent pet to Zerrex... but all the same, the two had loved each other.

Mahihko had never stood out much from the group: Marina overshadowed him in art, Cindy could throw him around like a toy even when he increased his size to the maximum, Cherry was a better driver and a far-superior shot. And Zerrex, of course, had simply been the wolf's master... and Mahihko glad to be a pet. Some days, the wolf would literally curl up on Zerrex's lap when the reptile was in the mood, and he'd purr like a kitten at having his back rubbed or his head stroked, much to the amusement of the Drakkaren.

And ever since he'd become Mahihko from Lone, the wolf had been childlike in nature: he liked to dance around like an idiot, singing to songs he enjoyed and not caring what anyone thought, and he liked to play dress-up and play with dolls and color in children's books and play video games. Not too hard games, of course, but ones with plenty of action and fun, often meant more for children than adolescent-acting adults... and since Cindy had often shared a room with the wolf, she knew more about him than anyone else in the family, excluding the master he had so adored and was pining for now.

Mahihko was as gay as it got... but a few times he had come to Cindy, looking at her curiously, and a few times she had gone to him. She still remembered how hesitant he had been, how embarrassed, how she'd guided one of his hands to her breast to feel it through her clothes and telling him softly it was okay, explaining to him how it felt when he fondled it. It was because many, many years ago now, he'd raped her when he was still selfish, puling, ugly Lone... but she had forgiven him years and years ago for that. After all, in a way, it had been responsible for sending her to Zerrex, and discovering how he was her father... but if she ever made even the most lighthearted of jokes about such a thing, Mahihko immediately started trembling and babbling apologies.

She remembered having sex with him that first time: she had kissed him gently, romantically, as they'd lain together naked, feeling his penis pushing slowly out of his sheath and rubbing slowly along her stomach until it stood at its full foot-long length, covered in piercings, studs, and a twisting, black flame tattoo... and she'd spread her legs and guided him ever-so-carefully forwards until the tip pressed against her lips, and she'd nodded at his hesitant look before he'd pushed slowly in, and she could still remember the exotic feeling of his metal studs rubbing slowly along the inside of her passage as he slipped inside her body...

It had been quick: two minutes, give or take ten seconds, and he had released and pulled out, and she'd held him close as he'd curled up against her meekly, whimpering apologies... but she had quieted him with a finger to his lip and said gently he could make up for it later. Half an hour later, despite his absolute terror of vaginas, he had given her oral sex until she'd had her own moment of release... and she thought he'd done quite a good job at making it up to her.

Mahihko had loved to cook... loved to wear dresses and skirts and dance around in them... loved to please people and make everyone else happy before he thought of himself... but now he was silent and lost, sucking on his thumb and not even noticing the others bowing to High King Churchill as they stood in front of his throne.

The Dragokkaren had formerly served as General of the Rebel movement, but he'd had little actual battle experience, his knowledge instead comprised of history drawn from textbooks and expensive Academy courses, which his father â€" a high-ranking officer in the old Hez'Ranna army, who had earned his position through countless years of duty â€" had gotten him into straight out of private school. It had led to many clashes with Zerrex, including a pointless duel where the Drakkaren had humiliated the General repeatedly before kicking him off the leadership council the rebels had guiding them.

But in the end, Churchill had figured out something: despite his training and his heritage, he wasn't meant for war. It was too bloody, too scary, too dangerous and too unpredictable: so instead, he switched battlefields and became a political figurehead. Hez'Ranna accepted him almost immediately as High King when Albatross, made legend by his many battles through the war and his successful leadership, backed Churchill by declaring him one of the best leaders he'd ever had the honor of serving under. Zerrex, too, had grudgingly added his own support, and that had finished the debates and installed Churchill as the new leader of Hez'Ranna after the deaths of all their former monarchs, including Patriarch Narrius.

Admittedly, the stern-looking Dragokkaren was doing a fair job, even if he was a bit wishy-washy at times and constantly looked to Albatross for advice. It was a job he was suited to do, as he stood up and bowed back, glancing over them all in his ceremonial robes before murmuring softly. "I was... I'm so sorry to hear about Lord Zerrex's death. You have my deepest condolences, from myself and all of Hez'Ranna."

"We'd like to hold a funeral service, if you don't mind." Albatross added quietly after a moment, and Cindy and Cherry exchanged a look before Cindy smiled faintly and nodded with a murmur of thanks. "The honor is all ours... I'll make the arrangements to have it tomorrow, then. I'm sure the High King will prepare a fine eulogy."

Churchill looked a bit queasy at this, but he nodded after a moment, then sat back down in his throne with a sigh, dropping his head in one hand and mumbling: "I really wish he was here with us still... I could use his help and advice. He always knew what to do, even if sometimes he acted so damned rash..."

"And yet it worked." Cherry said softly, then she bowed her head a bit and added respectfully: "If you don't mind, I'd like to retire... and I'm sure the others are tired, too. It's been a long few days coming here after experiencing the loss of our... our father, Zerrex." Cherry glanced down, murmuring quietly: "We'd like to sleep for now."

"Of course." Churchill motioned with one hand to two Dragokkaren servants standing at the side, and they came forwards, both bowing and clad only in loincloths and a wrap of cloth around the breasts of the female. "Please tend to our guests as if they were your masters and answer whatever whims they have."

"Yes, milord." The spoke in unison, then both motioned for the group to follow. Cherry bowed once more, and then led the group, Cindy still holding the hands of the two youngest members of the family and walking with them to either side of her.

But it was all just sounds and colors to her by now... she was still trying to process and understand what happened as much as any of them, and all she knew is that she ended up in a beautiful yellow stone room on a one of two enormous plush beds. Even one could easily accommodate all of them... and that didn't count the large, C-shaped couch outside that half-wrapped around a circular table, or the comfy-looking, bed-sized chairs.

Cindy took one of the beds herself, though, and closed the door, wanting a bit of private time as Marina and Mahihko walked out to stand on the balcony, staring out at the sky aimlessly, not caring or recognizing whether it was night or day but listening to the sounds of this jungle city and ignoring anyone who came to speak to them. Cherry, last of all, lay on the couch, her head back and eyes closed, wishing for Zerrex... and out of spite, wishing the world into darkness and hoping that the demon invasion couldn't be stopped, just because if Hell filled the world... maybe she could find Zerrex somewhere in the tides.

The funeral was one of the best and worst things Cindy had ever experienced.

There was no funeral party, and there was no body to put in a casket, and it wasn't like any funeral Cindy had ever attended â€" and she had attended a few, including an impromptu one for her poor godfather Elliot, who had been killed by the Blind Girl, one of Narrius's higher-ranking officers. But this one was a mix of both the Irenic and Hez'Ranna custom... and the mishmash was jagged but she thought her father would have liked that.

It took place in the center square, in front of the statue of their family that they had finished repairs on... and yet as the funeral drew on, people murmured and stared as the eyes slowly dripped blood... and Cindy noticed that it was because Marina was crying herself. The statue seemed to respond to her... and Cindy soothed her gently as she gripped her shoulders, leaning over her from where they sat in the front row of chairs that had been set up.

Four rows of seats surrounded the central statue, in front of which a large pyre had been set up... and a few moments later, the coffin was brought out, held up by Albatross, Cherry, and two former members of the special forces team that they had hastily assembled to aid in their final attack on Paradise. Brute and Little Sin: a massive Dragokkaren, and a lithe, beautiful Drakkaren, two of the ‘Children' of Cherry... but that was a story for another day.

They strode slowly up the aisle, people murmuring as the black coffin passed by them up the wide aisle. Military and civilian alike were clustered into the square in ‘civilian viewing' areas: at first, Albatross had offered to make it a closed funeral proceeding, but Cindy had shook her head slowly, saying quietly they deserved to see what her father had stood for.

The black coffin was laid down upon the pyre, the symbol of Hez'Ranna inscribed upon it in red... and then the four pallbearers took their places at the sides of it as Churchill walked around to stand in front of the coffin, raising his arms and saying clearly: "A life has been lost: a life that was a treasure to this nation. Lord Zerrex, the greatest warrior I have ever seen, died from the treachery of the demonic army. Their leader, the mightiest Prince of the Demons, feared him, and so he lured him into a trap and sent his entire army surging down upon him.

"But we know that Zerrex fought and killed a hundred times that which any normal person may have been able to kill. We know that he stood against the raging horde, and he stood tall until the moment of his death. We know that he remained true to the legend in Hez'Ranna of the warrior with the great blade who slew the mighty Patriarch and brought down his entire Paradise to the ground... and we will revere him from this day forth as King of Hez'Ranna, as a savior to our people, and as an idol we can all look too and respect!" Churchill said clearly, his voice echoing through the silent square before he laced his hands together and bowed his head forwards, taking a slow breath. "I was not worthy to stand before him...

"Lord Zerrex inspired me and taught me more than I deserved to learn. Lord Zerrex was misjudged, pushed around, trampled upon by his own people... and yet still he protected and saved all of us. When he was given the chance to take the place of the Patriarch, he refused... even during the Great War he remained humble, and a teacher. He fought, and his interest was in fighting until the time came when there didn't need to be any more fighting done." Churchill stopped, and then he turned around and nodded to the pallbearers, and they turned, lifting up four large, black buckets and holding them steady in front of themselves.

Churchill reached into one and pulled out a single black rose, then he tossed it quietly onto the pyre as he said quietly: "We pay our respects to you, Lord Zerrex..." A pause, and he turned around, nodding to Cindy and adding gently: "All those who wish to come forwards may now do so."

Cindy stood with the rest of the family and several other officers: survivors of the Great War and members of the team that had served under Zerrex, as well as others Cindy didn't know. Churchill shook her hand, then that of Marina's when they came close... before he looked down at Mahihko and quietly touched his forehead at the sight of the poor, small wolf that refused to take off Zerrex's shirt, now wearing it like a tunic. He suckled his thumb quietly as he looked up at the Dragokkaren, his other hand tightly clutching a badly-made drawing.

Cindy felt tears rolling down her face for the hundredth time in the last few days as she threw a bouquet of white roses onto the pyre, and Marina sobbed quietly as she took Mahihko's drawing and added it to her notebook, before those were added as well into the garden. Several officers threw in photos, uniforms, flowers... and then there was sudden half-panic through the crowd, many people shifting and curling away as Churchill looked up in shock... but Cherry murmured after a moment: "No. Let them come."

A pair of minotaurs slowly walked down the aisle, both of them with weapons resting on their backs and clad only in badly-made loincloths... and they walked wordlessly past Churchill as Cindy stood with the rest of her family on one side, clutching Marina's hand as she worried for a moment that she was going to lash out... but she only watched as they both knelt in front of the pyre for a moment, then added scraps of dirty black cloth from what was undoubtedly some part of Zerrex's clothing.

They left quietly as three more lizard demons came forwards, and one of them placed a bloody, thin sword into the garden as the other two added flowers... and then they stepped to the side, nodding to the family as Cherry gazed at them with tears rolling down her face before a mumble of amazement went through the crowd as Francis Delacroix strode quietly forwards with a little girl who was crying her eyes out, a book bag over her shoulder and a teddy bear in her hand as she wiped uselessly at her muzzle.

They stopped in front of the coffin, and then Francis fell to his knees and lowered his head before he slowly pulled out a pair of dog tags from beneath his vest, and he tore them off, tossing them into the pyre as he murmured a quiet apology, and the little girl angel gently set her teddy bear down into the garden before stepping backwards, her voice hitching as she began to pray. "God, take care of this spirit, this lost s-soul... d-d-divine mercy be showered upon him and... guide him well and t-true into e-e-e-e-e..." she broke off into another sob, then she and Francis hugged tightly before they turned and slowly left.

Little Arcy paused a moment, however, and looked over her shoulder at the family, whispering: "Don't you dare give up on yourselves now... the world needs you guys. Stick together and we'll... we'll save Mr. Zerrex."

With that, she turned and allowed Francis to lead her off... before they slowly stepped to the side with quiet breaths of what could be surprise or perhaps amazement as the four Sisters of the Judgment Cross came forwards, all four quadruplets with heads bowed, long cloaks floating quietly around their naked bodies, all four of them solemn and sorrowful as they approached the grave and slowly placed down small orbs filled with different glowing colors... and then Water glanced over to Churchill as he stared, slack-jawed as they were followed by at least fifty more demons that slowly filled the square â€" from mighty minotaurs in full armor with their helms removed, to hooded figures that stood with skeletal hands together and heads bowed forwards. "We'll finish the service, your highness..."

"As... as you wish." Churchill slowly stepped aside, before he glanced at the pallbearers and murmured: "Just... in a moment, though."

Cherry cleared her throat, getting the attention of the other three pallbearers... and then she turned and they immediately fell in step, before all of them splashed the contents of their buckets out over the coffin, emptying it completely as Fire gently touched Cindy's shoulder, looking at her with deep compassion. Cindy nodded a bit, then returned to her seat with the others, several demons shifting politely out of the way without her bothering to ask so they could sit down, before all the demons kneeled as the contents of the buckets were fully emptied and put aside, the pallbears moving to their own seats... except for Cherry, who stood with the sisters as Churchill wandered over to sit with Albatross at the side of the square, looking stunned still.

"People of Hez'Ranna..." Earth began, in a clear, strong voice as she spread her arms, looking out over them all with a mix of sorrow and strength. "What has happened is a tragedy... but it is not without its joys. Lord Zerrex has for the moment, halted the attacks of the Warlord... even in death, he has struck the first severe blow. And as you honor him, you must remember what he always willed, what he always wished for: not paradise, nor purgatory, for anyone anywhere... but serenity, understanding, and compassion. Despite his looks and ways, he was calm and stronger than anyone I have ever seen, with both strange morals and great bravery creating a powerful sense of right and wrong in him... and he would not want you all to cry, and fear, and be in pain."

"Lord Zerrex wishes for you all to be happy... to be well, and strong, and brave in the face of the danger you face now. Look to your left and right: no matter how alone you may feel, none of you are without friends." Water continued firmly, nodding and hugging herself quietly. "A funeral should not be a terrible, tragic announcement of loss... but a celebration of the life he lived, and all that he had, and should honor the battles he fought without insulting the memory of those who lost their lives in the same great wars. Look to his family, look to this monument, look to the sky and earth that still exists for you to see because of what he went through and endured, and be glad."

Fire paused for a moment as she looked around at them, then spoke next, saying softly: "There is terror and hatred in your hearts right now for all demonkind, and we understand... but we are not all enemies. We are tasked with punishing the wicked, but we are also simply creatures that want to live our own lives in our own worlds... we are not all like the Warlord, and we are not here to mock or betray Lord Zerrex's memory any further, but to honor him and ally ourselves with you, and help you build a better future. Lord Zerrex was a creature watched by both Heaven and Hell because of his heritage and his actions during the great battle with Paradise... and we swear that even in Hell, we will honor him, no matter what."

"You love him... and we all love him." Air said softly, looking down at the ground, then holding out her arms and adding clearly: "And now it is time to show that love to him... now it is time to love each other, and celebrate what he has done, tying all our kind together like this. I ask you all to join in with us, and pray... pray for Lord Zerrex's soul, and remember him as the warrior... the father... the lover... and the person he was."

She clasped her hands together and lowered her head... and then all four turned slowly towards the pyre as demons and mortals alike all lowered their heads... and Cherry stepped forwards, holding a hand out and sending up a burst of flame over the pyre as she began to sing in a quavering voice that slowly grew stronger: "From the depths of darkness I call to you... into the brightest lights I'll fly to you..."

The other sisters took up the song, forming a harmony that grew steadily louder as a gentle breeze began to blow, grey clouds slowly rolling over the sky: "Without you life is meaningless... so I pray, and I sing... and I call to you... how I wish to hear your voice again..." A soft rain began to fall as the pyre burned high, turning into a great inferno in the garden that completely surrounded the statues as blood began to flow once more from the eyes of the statues. "How I wish to see you one more time... how I've wished so long to stand by you in the bright sunshine... together our souls will forever be entwined..."

The earth seemed to tremble beneath their feet as demons around the square joined in, the language turning into their sibilant, strange tongue... but it was still beautiful, and Cindy cried quietly again as the fires burned and the demons sang their praises to the Drakkaren who had joined them now in Hell.

Afterwards, the Sisters of the Cross sat with Albatross, Churchill, Cherry, and Cindy around a large table: Marina and Mahihko were coloring quietly... and Mahihko had finally changed out of the shirt, although he was still carrying it around with him. It was a good sign though... and on the other hand, the Sisters brought their own tidings of both joy and despair with them.

They had been given permission to attend the funeral and participate with a cadre of soldiers... but their actual job was to discuss a peace treaty and alliance with High King Churchill and any other groups in the world who would listen. Lunis had also signed the treaty, and afterwards the Sisters would be visiting the northern empires... but they had already discounted Ire.

"The Warlord has already set up several bases there and has countless backup plans for what he'll do if he's overrun by mortals... they've converted one Black Hole into a portal that can bring enormous amounts of soldiers through at once as needed every hour or less." Fire said quietly, shaking her head slowly. "Plus there's the issue of the Possessed and the shapeshifting demons like yourself, Cherry, that may already have infiltrated the senate and other important government offices."

"Besides, if Ire already made a pact with the Warlord, I doubt they'll turn their back on it just because some already-disliked leaders were slaughtered, when Ire is already little more than a military zone." Earth added, shaking her head slowly and sighing as she leaned morbidly forwards in her chair. "We also have the issue of what you mortals call Lailland to discuss... if that nation and Ire are both lost, the Warlord will be able to begin moving his major armies forwards into this world, and then holding him off will become even more difficult."

Churchill looked desperately at Albatross, who laced his hands together on the table and asked quietly: "So you've brought us around sixty soldiers as a sort of... peace offering. A gesture that you do honestly wish to work with us... and in return, you wish for us to sign a peace treaty and permit you to build a portal into Hell somewhere in Hez'Ranna and move your troops back and forth as you wish?"

"We're only messengers..." Water murmured, shaking her head a bit and then glancing over at Cherry with a faint smile, who looked back with a mixture of queasiness and happiness. "The Princess is the one who wishes it, the Warlord's nemesis in Hell. As we speak, they're waging war on one another, and they've divided Hell almost completely in half... the Warlord wishes to escape Hell and expand his powers into the physical world, perhaps so he can begin staging attacks on Heaven from all sides, so-to-speak... but the Princess wishes to peacefully coexist with mortals and only continue the traditional duties of punishing the wicked and those who challenge Hell's authority."

Albatross nodded, then glanced over at Cherry, who rubbed at her head slowly, asking her quietly: "Do you trust them?"

Cherry looked almost surprised at the question, straightening and saying dumbly: "Fuck yes. They saved my life... and... and Zerrex trusted them." A glance down at the table as she rubbed the back of her head, mumbling: "Just don't let their Inquisitor friend near you."

"That was an honest mistake." Air said immediately, but she winced at the same time, looking embarrassed as the other sisters shifted awkwardly. "We didn't think she'd be so rough with you... and we did pull her off. Besides, you'll be glad to know that most of the Inquisitors are on the side of the Princess."

"Yeah, ‘cause... well... actually, that's weird. But it is good to hear." Cherry said mildly, then she paused and frowned a bit. "Wait, what about the Scribes and the Scholars? How is the Warlord moving so many troops up here with them not halting what he's doing? And for that matter, what the hell are you four doing up here?"

"In a three-to-one vote, the Warlord and the Princes have dismissed the abilities of the Scribes to overrule the orders of the ruling monarchs of Hell. So they can grant us permission to leave whenever we want without waiting for the Scribes to busy themselves with restructuring the laws or anything like that." Fire said disgustedly, shaking her head slowly as Albatross simply listened... but the sharp Dragokkaren seemed to be getting the gist of the confusing conversation anyway. "So in order to keep the Warlord's troops in Hell, we've had to engage him on all fronts with most of our troops."

"It's a losing battle, though... the Warlord recognizes he has enough talented troops to hold back our lines if we attack, so he's been training the damned and converting them into demons as fast as possible before sending them through a portal somewhere. Not to mention the fact we know he's been digging up mortal cemeteries to raise the dead and send them into battle." Water added after a moment, rubbing at her muzzle slowly. "So we're trying to move as fast as possible. Even Angels have been aiding us in this battle, but Heaven's rules are strange to us and they often aren't very effective in close-range combat."

"So I've seen." Cherry muttered, and then she straightened and glanced over at Albatross, saying mildly: "I'd sign the treaty."

"I figured, after you mentioned Lord Zerrex." Albatross nodded slowly, then he glanced over at Churchill, adding gently: "This sounds like it's our best course of action for now. We could use all the help we can get... but tell me, what's happening in Lailland?"

Fire shook her head, snorting. "A slaughter, that's what. A massive Black Hole formed there, and there have been enormous amounts of troop movement through it. He's sending Plasmids, minotaurs, Craven, anything he can get his hands on through the portal... and apparently its being led by one of his higher-up commanding officers, but we're unsure of just who, yet. There's also rumors that Az'Iriel himself is currently in charge of an operation taking place there, which is why his army hasn't spread throughout Ire yet but appears to be staying back near the Row of Skulls and rebuilding the castle they took over while corrupting the land."

"Then that's where we have to go." Cindy said quietly, and everyone stared at her as she sat back and crossed her arms, closing her eyes. "Not now... but we'd better get prepared, then. I'm not letting Daddy's death be in vain... and now that we know what we're up against better, we'll stand a chance at striking a blow to his army.

"Either way, we don't have a choice. If Lailland falls, we'll suffer a huge loss..." Cindy added softly, shaking her head slowly and looking around the room grimly. "Either way, a country is a country, right? And Lailland is near Banff and Enmora, two of the major powers on that side of the world. If they fall or see that the rest of the world sat around discussing what they should do instead of helping..."

Cherry sighed and dropped her head in her hand with a groan. "We get it, then we're really screwed." A pause, and a glare over at Cindy. "But fuck me if you don't sound like you just want to get Az'Iriel's head on a platter."

"I do." Cindy said quietly, and Cherry felt a chill at the cold expression on the female's face and wondered for a moment whether or not this was really her innocent sister.

Pain and darkness...

And then just darkness.

A moment later, Zerrex groaned and coughed hard before his eyes flickered open, and at first everything was just a dark blur... but slowly, colors faded in, and he made out a red cavern wall... and the fact he was laying with one cheek against the cold stone of a tiled floor. He was near the corner of the floor... platform... whatever it was, and there was a very pretty marble pillar that he found his eyes staring at for a little while... and gods, did his head hurt.

You're dead, you fucking moron, an irritable voice said in his head... and Zerrex groaned and rolled onto his back, closing his eyes tightly and mumbling: "Go away, Ravenlight. I have a headache and I just watched my genitals get cut off. I don't even care."

"It's just the jet lag." said a soft, teasing voice, and Zerrex immediately sat up in shock before blinking as he saw the back of a large golden throne, then he slowly climbed to his feet and carefully tested both legs, noting that he was thankfully clad in a pair of pants... and then he blinked as he felt no pain. "You seem surprised, Lord Zerrex. It's only natural: you still have most of your scars... but you are dead, and this isn't the physical plane, and nor is that your body. It is a manifestation of how you see yourself in the ethereal... but I prefer to talk face-to-face."

"I do too." Zerrex said, and he walked â€" walked, I'm walking, there's no pain and this is freaking awesome â€" around to the front of the throne, noting that he was on a square platform atop what seemed like a high mountain plateau... and then he paused as he looked slowly over the figure seated in the golden throne. "You must be the Princess."

She laughed a bit... but he couldn't tell whether or not she was smiling, from the large, golden mask she wore over her face, completely covering her muzzle and with etchings all along the golden helm it attached into down the sides. Only a pair of green eyes could be seen, looking over him contemplatively... but he could see her neck, and her arms were bare, although the rest of her body was covered by a tight white dress and a long shawl made of white roses half-wrapped over her shoulders, and these were covered in purple scales. Drakkai? "Correct." Telepathic, too. Oh joy. "You should be used to it by now, Lord Zerrex."

Her voice was playful, but he still didn't feel at ease with her, even as she bowed her head and then said softly: "I am called simply the Princess of the Southern Throne... and I would like to welcome you to Hell, Lord Zerrex. You spent a very long time regenerating your soul after that terrible battle above with Prince Az'Iriel's minions... oh, the rage I feel coming off you, yes... you'll enjoy the next section, then."

"What the hell..." A pause as he made a face, reaching up and rubbing a hand through his hair and both hating and loving how young and light he felt. "Bad choice of words. What are you talking about?"

"Look." The Princess pointed beside her, and Zerrex gazed down the mountain as the strange, formless sky above turned from black to red... and unhealthy light shone down through an enormous, vast valley that led to some structure in the distance he could barely make out. On either side of the valley were deep pits of bubbling tar... and Zerrex could see some sort of archway at the bottom of a set of natural stone steps that led down the mountain, apparently the entrance to the long path. "That is what you refer to as the ‘Highway to Hell.' Right now, we are in... neither purgatory or limbo, but a terrible place between Hell and the world. A space between dimensions, if you will... but no, no, don't worry, upon entering Hell you won't suffer a million lashes with a whip every time you move or such nonsense."

The Princess laughed quietly, then stood: she was far taller than Zerrex had thought, at least fifteen feet... but she was also terribly thin and gaunt, as if she'd been stretched out over the course of time. "At the end of this Path of Lost Souls is a gated doorway leading into the next test... but to reach there..." The Princess leaned down at this point, speaking playfully beside his head as her golden mask almost touched him, her green eyes twinkling with entertainment. "You have to get through a long, dangerous gauntlet filled with the angry spirits of everyone you've ever had a hand in killing, Lord Zerrex. And for you, that means that path down there may look empty... but is very full indeed."

Zerrex nodded slowly... and then before he could even ask the question, the Princess straightened and nodded in return, saying in a cold, serious voice: "Die? Of course you can still die... but these spirits will not kill you. They will maim you and rip you to shreds, and yet you'll still be alive and forced to endure the agony of being torn to pieces and live through it, still able to feel every part of your body and all the pain they put you through... and then they'll drag your remains to what you call the tar pits on either side of the valley and you'll be pulled down into a little pocket dimension reserved for those who fail this particular test, and there you'll float for all eternity, until you eventually destroy yourself.

"Now, Lord Zerrex â€" just Zerrex, then, if you prefer it so much â€" listen to me." The Princess gently clasped his face in her hands and he stared up at her in surprise as she said softly: "Don't underestimate what you can do in your current shape, but don't overestimate, either. You will not grow tired, nor do you need to eat or perform any of those filthy bodily functions... but at the same time, remember... that applies to them as well. I honestly do wish you all the best in this test... but at the same time, I cannot show favoritism, do you understand? So if you fail, I cannot save you... yet all the same I look forwards to watching you plow your way through this struggle." A pause, and then a smile as she patted his cheek gently. "Watch out for angry demons, as well. There aren't only lost souls, spirits, and the damned down there... but every other thing your nightmares can imagine as well."

She gently turned him around, then pushed him lightly towards the stairs, and Zerrex made a face as he wobbled a bit on the platform before stepping off onto the dusty mountain... and when he looked over his shoulder, the Princess and everything else was gone. He stared stupidly at this... then looked down at his hands before jumping a few times and letting out a loud, triumphant ‘Ha!' at the lack of pain.

Whatever else... whether he was playing some demon game or not, whether he was in Hell or not... he wasn't in pain for the first time in years, and he had his legs back. That was enough to let him trot happily enough down the stairs â€" he was half-tempted to run back up them, too, just for the hell of it â€" and then he halted in front of the archway, making a face as he looked down the long path before settling himself into a sprint position.

A pause, and then his head flicked to the side as another thought entered his brain... and he said stupidly: "I'm dead. I'm in Hell."

There was a long silence... and Zerrex waited patiently for the hysteria or something else to set in... and yet nothing came. He felt rage at Az'Iriel, and if he could, he'd slowly twist off every part of the demon's body before killing him for what he did... and he felt humiliation at being tricked so easily. There was sorrow for his daughters, and disappointment in himself... and yet, he was able to recognize that yes, he was in Hell... and all the same, it changed little to nothing for him.

He missed his family... from little shy Mahihko to big mean Cherry... but he also recognized it was futile to try and do anything about it. That lesson he had been forced to learn over and over in his life, except this time he knew Mengele wouldn't pop up out of nowhere with some magical solution to his problems at hand like a time-capsule... but at the same time, he thought maybe he was just in shock. After all, Hell was Hell... and he mumbled to himself, shaking his head quickly after a moment before focusing, narrowing his eyes at the path ahead of him. "I can deal with all that later... for now, I have to deal with this... path of crap."

He took a deep breath... then bolted onto the path and immediately crashed into a group of semi-transparent soldiers and females that sent him into a roll, a shock of pain going through his body before he leapt up, staring back and forth in horror at the quickly-closing circle of soldiers, civilians, people young and old... and all of them reaching out towards him with their death wounds glaring out of their body, moaning questions and curses at him.

One of their hands brushed his body, and he winced away as it brought back memories of death and sent a shock through his mind, making him feel weak. He tensed himself and then leapt over the spirits in front of him as they lunged, lost souls colliding together and simply pushing through each other's bodies as Zerrex stared over his shoulder in shock before facing forwards again... and letting out a squeak of surprise as a minotaur leapt at him with a snarl, swinging a halberd down towards him.

Zerrex leapt forwards, catching the pole easily in his hands before spinning it around and spearing it through the minotaur... and immediately it turned semitransparent like the other specters, hissing at Zerrex, but the Drakkaren slammed a foot into it and knocked it down before continuing to duck and weave forwards through the mob, swinging the halberd at his sides in easy strokes and knocking other lost souls flat with the demonic polearm.

Two more demons, lizard-things this time, leapt out in front of him with loud hisses... and Zerrex plowed them both backwards as he spun the halberd rapidly back and forth in front of his body, sending them both crashing to the ground with grunts of pain before he continued to run forwards, ducking and twisting with a wince around a naked female Drakkaren who clawed at him, moaning and bleeding heavily from her slit throat and torn vagina. That makes even me feel a bit bad... I mean, who cuts their own throat?

A jump over a soldier who struck at him with a semitransparent sword, and then the Drakkaren went into a low spin with the pole, knocking over the zombie-like lost souls before bringing up the halberd as a minotaur charged at him and shoving the pole forwards between his horns, the reptile's feet skidding backwards before he twisted the pole hard and sent the bull-demon flipping through the air with a loud, upset mooing sound, of all things.

He crashed heavily on his back, but Zerrex was already gone, darting back and forth through the crowd of spirits before stopping with a grunt and staring at another blank stretch of road ahead beyond a thin, rune-covered black line the ground. The Drakkaren glanced over his shoulder, then winced at the amount of transparent souls and the angry-looking lizard things hopping towards him... before he stepped carefully past the line.

A wall of black energy shot up out of the ground, the reptile letting out a yelp and leaping forwards as it caught the end of his tail and set it briefly aflame... and then he stared as several very-visible, very-animated, very angry lost souls screamed at him and charged, more of them flickering into existence of all shapes and size... and Zerrex grunted, slashing one with the halberd before simply tossing the pole at the ones in front of him, tripping them up and leaping over them to charge forwards down the dirt path towards the massive set of doors at the end of the long valley.

Several of the angry zombie-things latched onto him as he ran, and then one of them bit his shoulder and he cursed, spinning around in a circle and kicking one of them in the head, then grabbing the one that had snagged onto his bicep by the back of the neck and tearing it off as the fox howled and screamed a moment before Zerrex threw it into another dead body, the two hitting with a sickening crunch as the Drakkaren winced at the sight of the gaping bloody hole in the fox's back. But more were charging in from all sides, and he could only remember some of Requiem's last words to him: Attention at all times.

"Right." Zerrex's eyes flicked back and forth, and at the last moment he ducked, a Dragokkaren and a tall horse clawing at each other's faces before the Drakkaren shoved his hands into the chests of both creatures, sending them crashing backwards. Immediately, he charged forwards again, slipping back and forth between the monsters and even ignoring the few demons he saw here and there... before he saw a figure leap down from a rocky cliff face nearby and instinct told him to leap.

The Drakkaren jumped forwards as it smashed into the ground, and a shockwave of darkness blasted out in all directions, narrowly missing the reptile's feet but washing over the creatures nearby and sending them crashing backwards as Zerrex landed easily, raising his fists gamely as the figure straightened and tore a long black spear from the ground before his eyes widened in shock.

Vampire grinned at him, the huge black wolf now larger then Zerrex remembered: he had to be at least nine feet tall now, big enough to look down at him. Along with his creepy black eyes and shadowy obsidian and grey fur, he now had two long red horns pushing out of his head just behind his ears that curled slightly downwards behind his skull... and he was adorned in golden armor that covered his shoulders and muscular breast, but left his chiseled abdominals visible to the world, and a final set of golden plates that covered his crotch and hips, the middle plate hanging past his knees and the others covering down just slightly along his thighs.

He stepped forwards, slamming the butt of the spear down against the dirt floor of the valley, his other hand at his side as he glanced idly over Zerrex... and then he said tauntingly: "Well, well, who do we have here? It's the Captain, down in Hell, and a lot uglier than I remembered, too." A pause as Vampire leered over him, leaning forwards as he grasped his spear with both hands, the zombies and lost souls milling nervously around before the wolf said thoughtfully: "I'd still bang you."

"I hate you." Zerrex said mildly... and then Vampire held out his fist, and Zerrex struck the top lightly with his own before punching them together, and finally slapping their palms together, both of them squeezing hard and huge biceps on either male flexing as the Drakkaren grinned widely: "What, you aren't going to try and kill me? Now there's a disappointment. I was looking forwards to chopping your head off again."

"Fuck off." Vampire brought the spear up, glowering at him and poking the Drakkaren irritably in the chest with his weapon, before the reptile snorted and shoved it away by the neck. "Yeah, for the first few million years, I did. But then I got settled in here... and look at me, now I'm the Captain!" Vampire added cheerfully, knocking a palm firmly against the golden armor he wore, a wide grin on his muzzle. "I mean, shit, most of the Legion is down here and I heard a rumor that Cherry's a demon too, like the rest of us... but of course Tinny ain't here, he's gone to a way better place."

"Yeah, now you have to have your homosexual attraction to him from afar." Zerrex said mildly, and then he made a face at the way Vampire leered at him. "I can still beat your face in, by the way."

"Shut up." Vampire muttered, and then he shrugged with a grin. "But what can I say? I like reaming asses and makin' people squeal. If you wanna fuck later, just gimme a shout, huh?" A wink and then he turned, taking his spear in both hands as his grin became sharkish, adding coldly: "You know, I came here the moment I heard, Zerrex, about you dying and coming to Hell. We all got invitations, all the lost souls, non-demons, and demons you fucked with over the years... and as you can guess, I'm the last. Honestly? I shouldn't be doing this. But you know what? I'd like to see you survive..."

Zerrex laughed, and he knew Vampire was speaking the truth, because of an old promise, an old pact, when the team had finally started to become an actual team. But memories were better saved for later, as the circle of furious, physical â€" are they? Am I? â€" lost souls began to move in closer and faster on them both. "Just like old times, right Vampire?"

"Fuckin' A." Vampire's eyes gleamed... and then the lost souls charged in, and the demon wolf spun around with the spear, letting out a howl of entertainment as Zerrex ducked under the wide swing before leaping forwards, grabbing the skull of a lost soul in mid-leap at Vampire's back and crushing its head down into the hard floor below.

Vampire stabbed rapidly forwards with his spear, covering their front as Zerrex backstepped and knocked away monsters that attacked their rear and sides, lost souls flying in all directions like toys before a group of wolves and felines with massive claws and dripping, feral mouths leapt out of seemingly-nowhere, charging in and howling, all of them dressed in the shreds of old military uniforms.

Zerrex grabbed the arm of the first to swing at him by the wrist and just behind the elbow, twisting it backwards to snap it out of place before smashing the creature across the face with a hard fist. Two more of the monstrous creatures immediately took its place, however, lashing out with thick, almost-foot-long claws at the reptile's face.

The Drakkaren ducked and shoved an open palm into both their chests... and then he snarled as three of them tackled him from either side, trying to pin him to the ground. Immediately, the reptile rolled over, despite the claws he felt ripping through his scales and flesh, and he kicked the one on the left in the head, knocking it senseless to the ground before Vampire stabbed the other two with his spear, the sharp point piercing through both skulls and leaving them hanging for a moment before the half-demons dissolved into dark mist.

Immediately, several of the wounded creatures backed off as Zerrex kicked up to his feet... before he simply grabbed Vampire and hauled him over his shoulder, the demon wolf squeaking as he felt Zerrex jump before hearing the Drakkaren's boots collide with something, and as they flew through the air, he stared as they soared over the heads of several minotaurs, two of them attempting to yank their polearms out of the third that was squealing in agony, Zerrex's footprints still visible on his chest.

The reptile landed and threw Vampire unceremoniously to the ground before snatching his spear and swinging it around in a wide helicopter spin, the lost souls trampling each other as they backed quickly off. The Drakkaren glanced back and forth as he slowly relaxed his body, hearing the demons fighting through the mob of lost souls that seemed to rise from the very ground, many of them with gaping, mortal wounds. But we're getting close...

The massive doors were only perhaps a dozen meters away... and then a massive hand tore out of the ground ahead of them, followed by another... and slowly, a Gigataur pulled itself out of the earth with a terrible roar, its eyes burning red, the hair that covered its body a listless grey that offset the shiny silver armor covering the rest of its form. A pause, and then another massive Gigataur hauled itself up out of the earth, the ground neatly sealing itself even as the creature ripped free, this one naked but the same color, with the same dead eyes.

"Fuck this." Vampire grunted as he picked himself up from the ground, then he snatched the spear from Zerrex's hands and cocked it back. He stepped forwards, then threw it hard at the head of the first, tearing through its skull, and the Gigataur let out a low, keening whine before falling backwards onto a crowd of lost souls as its body â€" and unfortunately, the spear â€" slowly vanished from sight in a mass of black smog. Vampire winced a bit, rubbing the back of his head as Zerrex glared at him, and then he muttered: "It seemed like the best time to use that trick. But yeah. My spear dissolved with it. Fuck you, I didn't see you coming up with any ideas!"

"Shut up. I hate you." Zerrex responded in a mutter, as lost souls simply fled around them instead of attacking them, thankfully creating a massive clog in the path behind them and barring the rest of the mob that was still interested in chasing them from pushing through. "I'll take this one, then."

The Drakkaren narrowed his eyes as the Gigataur roared before charging forwards... and then he ran to meet it, sliding between its legs as it tried to stomp him before leaping up onto its back. The giant let out a loud snarl, shaking itself back and forth to try and rid itself of the reptile, but the Drakkaren moved with a grace he'd thought long forgotten, kicking off its body only when he needed to before landing on one of its horns.

He grasped the thick black horn with his hands, waiting as the creature reached up to try and grab him... then at the last moment, slid down and twisted his body around to slam both feet into the Gigataur's throat as hard as he could. It wheezed loudly in pain, leaning forwards as Zerrex dropped to the ground... and then it punched hard down at him, and Zerrex winced, shoving up at the same time with both hands.

Its fists smashed into his palms, and Zerrex skidded backwards, snarling and shoving as hard as he could against the massive strength of the beast... and then switching his grip and shoving down, performing a handspring off the top of the monster's own hand and landing on the creature's wrist as its fist slammed down into the ground.

It snarled as Zerrex ran up its arm, attempting to brush him off... and Zerrex leapt over its land before landing on the huge demon's muzzle, creating a sphere of energy in one hand before shoving it down into the beast's right eye as he leapt backwards.

The sphere and most of the Gigataur's head exploded, the giant staggering backwards with a loud groan of pain, clutching at its destroyed face as it slowly toppled over and crashed hard on its back, and Zerrex landed with a grunt beside Vampire, who nodded a bit and clapped slowly, making a face. "You know, you shouldn't abuse that energy ability of yours. All that sort of power is suppressed in Hell, so you're using two or three times the necessary effort on a good day."

"Thanks for the tip. But I think you're just jealous." Zerrex said mildly, as the Gigataur's corpse disappeared... and then the creatures behind them howled and they traded a look before running for the massive, red-paneled double doors as the horde of lost souls and demonic entities stampeded forwards behind them as the Drakkaren added with a snarl: "And here I was thinking they'd be scared of us after what we both just did!"

"They're scared of me, but they want to eat your kidneys badly enough that nothing's going to stand in their way." Vampire replied with a grunt, and then he leapt into the air, snagging a massive lever handle on the door halfway up the goliath forty foot structure, and it slowly lowered before a loud clunk sounded... and Zerrex barreled ineffectively into the doors, bouncing off them and landing sprawled on his back.

The demon-wolf dropped down with a cackle... and then a spear of energy shot from the crowd and tore through his guts, knocking him back into the doors and sending him down in a crumpled heap with an enormous hole in his stomach, as Zerrex snarled and jumped up to his feet with both hands raised. A moment later, however, the demon wolf crawled up to his paws as well, grasping his head and shaking it with a mumble. "I didn't deserve that."

The wound rapidly closed and healed, his intestines and guts visibly twisting back into place before flesh, muscle, skin and fur spread over the wound, closing and sealing it tightly as the demon-wolf rolled his shoulders, glancing back and forth over the crowd of lost souls as he added coldly: "Something's in there that you killed and has come back for revenge, Captain... my suggestion is that you figure out how to get through this door before even more blasts from the past come out here, because we killed some pretty heavy-duty shit."

"Wonderful." Zerrex began to turn... and then he straightened and rose his arms as a gigantic Dragokkaren leapt out of the crowd, landing on top of several lost souls and sending the other zombie-things fleeing with its snarling grin, before turning slowly towards the Drakkaren, wearing only a pair of ripped pants and covered in scars... including a set of terrible black burns around eyes that were glowing white, with deep, black pupils like a terrible maelstrom in the center of each. It could have been any Unseen... but the fact that one of its arms was a mixed of raw muscle, torn flesh, and sharp spines of bone that jutted out at every angle made him think of one in particular. "Ill."

"Yeah, it's gross, but don't puke." Vampire said disgustedly, then he cursed under his breath, baring the enormous canines that had given him his name before he looked over to Zerrex and said clearly as Ill began to stagger towards Zerrex with a demented grin: "Let me bite you- I mean, I need some of your blood!'

"Kinky." Zerrex said dryly, but he sidestepped quickly towards the black-furred demon-wolf before exposing his neck and muttering: "You know, I don't usually do this on my first date with demonic losers I killed a lifetime ago, but you have such a cute butt-"

"Lord Zerrex... I'm going to rip you limb-from-limb for what you did to me..." Ill hissed, and then he rose his flesh-arm, and several blades of bone shot out of the bottom of the limb with a splatter of blood over the creature's own body, followed by a long, fleshy tentacle that slowly twisted its way out of the wrist of the Dragokkaren. "And then I'll force my way out of this world and back onto the physical plane so I may take revenge on the tiger, next... and then I'll kill your family, one-by-one-by-one..."

Zerrex snarled, then he grunted as Vampire grabbed him from behind, his claws digging against his masculine breast as his teeth sank into the Drakkaren's neck, and Zerrex let out a surprised grunt before twisting and throwing the demon-wolf off, clutching at his bleeding neck and shouting raggedly: "Ask, you asshole!"

"I did! And besides, it hurts less this way." Vampire made a face, wiping at his own muzzle before looking disgusted. "Yeah, so your blood tastes like crap. Dear fuck, I've had better from..." Vampire paused, then he groaned and leaned forwards as his body suddenly rippled, and a moment later he arched his back and howled, his arms spreading out to the sides as his eyes glowed white with power, the armor he was wearing falling to the ground in useless pieces as his muscles bulged and his body doubled, then tripled in size.

Drool dripped from his jaws as he leaned forwards with a twisted grin, only a few patches of fur here and there over his body now, leaving the taunt pink skin beneath revealed as muscle flexed against it with every movement, and he glanced over at Zerrex before growling in a low baritone: "Nice. Lots of energy, lots of power. No matter what the taste."

"I hate you." Zerrex responded, tensing his body, but Vampire only lazily stuck out a long, forked tongue at him before the Drakkaren glanced back towards Ill, saying coldly: "I'll take him. You can hold back the crowd."

Vampire grinned and held out his hands, and his claws thickened and extended before he charged into the crowd, knocking lost souls flying as they shrieked and panicked, many of them once more turning to flee as Ill turned to watch the demon stride by... and then Zerrex's foot slammed into the back of his head, and the Unseen flew forwards with a roar of rage, catching himself with his actual arm... but Zerrex leapt quickly behind him and slammed both feet down into Ill's back, slamming the Dragokkaren flat into the ground.

Ill's flesh-arm cracked as it bent backwards, and the long tentacle snapped around Zerrex's ankle before pulling him hard to the side, the reptile's arms waving wildly before he was smashed into the ground with a loud grunt. He quickly rolled over as he felt the tentacle retract, before his eyes widened as he saw Ill dive towards him... and immediately he kicked both feet out and sent the Dragokkaren flying over his head instead.

Ill twisted in midair, however, landing easily on his feet before stomping down to try and crush in the Drakkaren's skull... but Zerrex had already rolled a short distance away and spun around in a crouch, his eyes narrowed at the Unseen. The creature grinned widely for a moment at him, then grasped his fleshy bicep and held out the thick, sickening arm, and Zerrex immediately ducked on instinct before the long tentacle snapped out over his head, accompanied by several jagged pieces of bone.

The spiked tentacle withdrew after a moment of flicking back and forth, and as it snapped back into place, Zerrex dived at Ill â€" the Unseen moved with terrible grace, however, raising an elbow to strike him in the stomach... and Zerrex seized it in midair before pushing off it and twisting his body into a rapid sideways spin as Ill lashed hard downwards at him with his flesh arm.

Zerrex landed in a crouch as Ill snarled, almost overbalancing as his other arm went out... and the Drakkaren immediately slid down onto his back and shoved his foot up as hard as he could, catching Ill under the jaw and knocking him onto his back with a howl of pain and indignation. The Dragokkaren immediately kicked back up to his feet, snarling... but Zerrex was already a good ten feet away, standing by the door and beckoning slowly to him. "Come on... I don't have any time left to waste playing with you."

Ill's eyes burned with fury... and then he roared and charged forwards, bringing his flesh arm back before swinging it viciously forwards... and Zerrex sidestepped, the thick, bone-spiked limb slamming into the door and burying into the wood, Ill letting out a squawk of surprise before Zerrex's hands settled on his muzzle and the back of his neck for a moment before twisting viciously, and the half-demon screamed, his body convulsing once before he slumped and faded into particles of dark energy.

"Yeah, hurry the fuck up!" Vampire shouted from behind him, and Zerrex winced as he glanced away from the door to the mob, where the gigantic demon had been swarmed by lost souls that were slowly pulling him to the ground, the wolf snarling as he batted them away like toys... but there's just too many of them surging forwards, and Gods know what else... "It's a puzzle door! There must be another switch or some shit!"

Zerrex glanced up over the door, snarling and looking back and forth desperately... and then his emerald eyes picked up on a strange outcropping high up the forty foot structure, before shouting: "Vampire, get your ass over here!"

The demon-wolf grunted something, then roared and spun, knocking the lost souls around him flying before barreling over to the Drakkaren... and Zerrex promptly leapt backwards, kicking one of the demon wolf's feet out from under him and sending him crashing headfirst into the door, the structure shaking before he grunted as Zerrex ran quickly up his body, the demon-wolf shouting as the Drakkaren leapt up onto his shoulder and splattering the lizard with saliva: "So you're too proud to ask for help or some shit?"

"No, it's just funny to watch you hurt yourself." The reptile wiped spittle from his face as he leapt up onto Vampire's head, and then he grunted and threw himself to the side, catching the narrow edge near the top of the door as the giant wolf turned around and returned to swatting away lost souls as they swarmed forwards, howling and raving.

Zerrex kicked at the doorframe before pulling himself upwards... and then he half-slid backwards as his hand pushed a small door open in the top corner of the door, clinging to the ledge with a wince as the door shook with the force of lost souls pounding into it behind him. A grunt, and he jerked himself upwards and into the now open door, before glancing over his shoulder and staring at the silent valley beyond, not a soul â€" metaphorical or literal â€" present.

"Vampire?" The reptile called hesitantly, and he leaned back towards the valley... but nothing happened. The lizard found himself half-tempted to jump down... but even I might have a bit of trouble with forty feet of height, and I really don't want to open my wings here in Hell. That might attract some rather nasty attention that I don't need right now.