As the shadows engulfed them, she attempted to summon a barrier. It shouldn't have worked but if she could just block the teleportation sequence from dragging them through for even a split second, Eodyne could–the mana grabbed hold and pulled them into the shadowplane.

Celenae wasn't Isaac or Cyrus, she couldn't feel the realm like they could, so their trip felt like a whirlwind inside a storm of endless black. However, in one heartbeat to the next they were pushed through the abyss and out, in some remote part of the garden.

"Celenae, status?" Eodyne shouted.

"I'm alright. The others?" she responded.

She accepted the hand from her friend and rose to her feet, staff digging into red-tinged earth as she leaned on the enchanted wood as a crutch. A trip through shadows was always tumultuous and she had long studied first hand from Isaac's experiments the effects of shadow mana on the body.

Circulating her mana, she pushed the foreign energy out, and regained warmth in her limbs. The process wasn't a miracle, her mana felt sluggish and her fingers were still cold.

Eodyne's tilted her head, staring at the spirit wrapped around her shoulder.

Sturmrorex shook his head, and wilted. "No response. The fiend has created a block in our communications."

"That's not good. But if that master of theirs is strong enough to bind the king, it makes sense."

Celenae had seen Sturmrorex in many forms. Usually he was haughty, and prideful. Even with Cyrus reining in his nature, the dragon has always looked proud. But now? It was almost blasphemous seeing him so wilted. Lightning faintly popped around his scales, joining the maelstrom of Eodyne's own but they lacked.

"Something's wrong. Master is agitated. There's interference. We had to go back!" Sturmrorex pleaded.

Right, the others. Teddy was with Cyrus. She believed in them both, and Arturous, but as she remembered the withered form of the king desperately fighting to protect his children, she couldn't help but shiver.

Teddy…

He had to make it through. He would, he always did. But…

"Celenae, focus," Eodyne said, shaking her.

"I-I.." Celenae slapped her cheeks and collected herself. "Sorry, I'm ready. Do you recognize where we are?"

Eodyne looked around and spotted a golden statue stuck in the garden wall. "Yes. We're near the south west exit. Near the inn district, second ring."

She tapped the ground and focused on her inner world, feeling for the kinks in her channels. Thankfully, since becoming tier two, the adverse effects of shadow delving were lessened. In a few minutes she could flush out the majority of the shadow mana.

Minutes that she didn't have.

Eodyne swept her off her feat and leapt backwards. Sturmrorex reared up and released a bolt of lightning behind them. The air screeched fierce enough her vision trembled. Thankfully, Eodyne helped create a small bubble of wind against her ears, cutting off the disorientating roar.

When they landed she summoned three barriers, just in time. One wall cracked, spiderwebs spreading throughout the crystal while another held. The gigantic red limb that smashed against her third barrier found itself split in twain as she held the sharpened edge.

Eodyne was already unleashing bolts, battling the monstrosity of flesh and blood in the shape of a demented arachnid. While lightning flowed and the dragon helped boost Eodyne through the weave of limbs and blades, Celenae's thoughts honed to a point.

All her fears and worries were pushed back, for survival was now the priority. But still, one thought remained that firmed in her mind as she created defensive walls to protect her sister, her friend.

I'll tell him the truth when we're done. No more hiding, no more waiting. Just wait for me, for us. We'll be there soon!

***

Igas swung his sword upward, cleaving through the offending limb, and stomped. Ice pillars hammered into an engorged fist, pinning the palm to the ceiling. The creature started to pull free, already overpowering Igas' mana but he only needed to buy a moment.

The orucan appeared in a warrior's charge. Flames scorched the ceiling black as he rocketed into the central mass. Three pairs of eyes slapped together, creating a multi-pupiled shield that radiated a dangerous light. Even to Igas' poor senses, the amount of mana radiating above the eyes burned like a beacon in the night.

Too bad for it, Zog's fist wasn't to be stopped. Whatever skill the brute screamed, it distorted the air and created a static between Igas' ears. He hated whatever it was that the orucan used, but it proved effective to an absurd degree.

A colorful nova of flames erupted from the point of impact. The brief halo of light warped the surrounding flesh into a ring of ash while the flames latched onto the pseudo-flesh with a ravenous hunger.

Meat collapsed and lost cohesion. Blood bubbled and hissed as it turned into oily smoke made of several shades of the rainbow. The gigantic form wavered, but Zog landed on a chunk of a limb and activated another skill, turning into a spinning wheel of death.

Not to be outdone, Igas propelled himself forward with a barrier and spun. Usually, he wouldn't have been so concerned, his armor provided decent protection. But the damnable curse locked up that skill so instead he controlled his swing. Up and down, but keeping his center tight, his blade effortlessly detached several tentacles in his path.

When he reached the core, he funneled mana into Avalanche. Mana rushed into his boot and he felt a surge of stamina leave his reserves. As his foot made contact, the monster expanded, ballooning twice it's size. The steeled soles of his foot touched flesh and ripped through, popping the monster like a ripe berry.

Lines of pink mana extended into the darkness before snapping, leaving behind glowing trails.

Zog landed next to Igas, and wiped viscera off his face.

Igas spat, and scanned the cloud of bloody mist. "The bastard got away."

Zog nodded, expelling some flames from his mouth to burn off the blood on his hands. Useful skill that.

He raised his finger and pointed it to the right of the cloud. "There, thirteen paces."

Igas grunted.

For all the annoyance the orucan brought to Cyrus' life, he was certainly useful. Better that way. If he was a nuisance and useless? Well it didn't matter now. That strange perk of his allowed him to track the bastard. Igas couldn't be happier.

"I'm going to take your arm next, Toogen! Just wait before I shove it up your ass!" Igas shouted into the darkness.

The bloody pool inside the auction house was eerily still, but he knew Toogen was there, watching waiting.

"He's moving, circling east," Zog whispered.

Igas breathed in, bathing in the metallic smell of destruction around him. He rolled his shoulders and hoisted his blade up, letting the ice along the edge freeze some of the liquid into jagged spikes along the back of the metal.

"Take lead, but leave him for me," Igas spat.

Zogrul, Zog nodded and activated his movement skill. Igas appreciated that. An obsessed freak who liked Cyrus too much, but he knew his priorities. No hesitation, just battle.

Igas snorted.

He worried for the others, especially Isaac. But they'd take care of themselves. Eodyne and Celenae were more than capable than most adventurers he ever met. Isaac was wily, abrasive but smart underneath his prickly exterior.

As for Cyrus, Arturous and Teddy? He snorted again. Cyrus made the insane possible, and Teddy was Teddy. Nothing would ever beat their team leader.

Just wait. I'll bring this traitor's head as celebratory decoration.

Empowering his voice, he yelled into the darkness and smiled. "Better run while you can, Toogen!"

He waited for Zog's signal and shot into the darkness to join the fray. It was only a matter of time before he ripped the man's head off. And he was pissed off enough to make sure it happened very, very, soon.

***

"Lady Sereza, watch out!" Vincent shouted.

Sereza dematerialized as she activated Noxform. Lolthis' blade swiped through the cloud. Normally a thin cut like that wouldn't affect her much while she was in her gaseous state, but the deranged bastard expanded a piece of bone into a thick plate, the tore a chunk in it's passing.

Her mana recoiled, and she already knew she'd suffer some internal bleeding for the injury.

Vincent slammed his shield against the blade, deflecting it to the side while he raised his sword. Lolthis cackled and released a blast of bone shards into the air, forcing the man to retreat.

When Sereza deactivated her skill, she ducked into a roll and flung her spectral blades. Two of the green daggers landed, embedding into the beastkin's thigh. Another was blocked by a casual swing of Lolthis' sword, while the final one was caught between his teeth. The bastard spat the fragments of poison mana in a disgusted snarl.

"Ooooh Sereeeezaaaaa! Stop running away!" he yelled.

"Fuck off!" she retorted. Her tail slapped against his foot and released the acid charge she built up. "Why are you even here? What's a failed hound doing with a princess?"

Lolthis' mania stilled, giving time for Vincent to push him back with a shield bash. He jumped back and raised his sword, ready for a retaliatory strike.

The beastkin scratched his chin, the chipped claw drawing a line along his cheek as he absently drew blood. "I'm not really sure. After my failure I was told to report to that creature. Why am I here?"

Oh course he's insane. The bastards probably scooped his memories.

Sereza groaned and quickly dipped her blades into one of the smaller vials. She reserved those for the more expensive and more dangerous toxins, and now wasn't the time to hold back. Now more than ever she was so damn happy that Cyrus accepted Khrem into to team. Alchemists adventurers were a poisoner's dream.

"Lady Sereza, he's telling the truth," Vincent whispered.

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"You have a skill like that and still attacked Cyrus? Really?"

Vincent winced, going so far as to actually blush. "I was caught up in the moment."

"Whatever. We need to take this psycho down and get back to the others."

Vincent raised his shield and activated the defensive skill, expanding the edge of pure mana. Lolthis was starting to break from his daze. Whatever actually happened to the beastkin, none of it mattered.

He was crazy, and fought like an idiot with no regard for his life.

Sereza stifled a chuckle as Cyrus flashed to mind. No, that'd be unfair to him. At least his madness came with cheat abilities and unfair perks.

"Sereza… Sereza… I…" Lolthis ripped a gash deep through the fur of his cheek and exposed a cracked, yellow tooth. "No! No! No! You'll pay! I'll bring your corpse back to the Master! He'll fix me!"

Mana built in the beastkin's chest and his fur started to leak bloody smoke.

"Be ready, he's doing something," she whispered.

Vincent responded by using a mana slash that bounced off a fresh diamond of grey bone. Suddenly, a loud ripping sound filled the air and she covered her ears. Lolthis's arm bulged as bones emerged from his elbow. Spikes long enough to be spears, curved and twisted at odd angles as more emerged from underneath.

The deep gash in Lolthis's cheek sprouted crimson tendrils that wiggled in the air and around his teeth.

Another messed up monstrosity grew before her very eyes.

Why do they all use tentacles!

She cleared her thoughts and pushed mana into her blades, feeling the mana adapt to the poison coating their edges.

Her breath came out as green wisps and she smirked. Just another weekday at this point. All she needed to do was finish this creep and find the others.

Lolthis howled to the moon and she launched into action. Her blades met bone and she would win, damnit!

***

"Die, bitch!" Isaac screamed.

His blades pierced into the woman's side with surprising ease. He hadn't expected the attack to actually land, the woman was too skilled for that.

When the shadows rose around them and surrounded his friends and teammates, he realized why. He attempted to wrestle control of the shadows, to disrupt her skill but her tier overpowered his. With frustration he sank into the shadowplane.

His arm retracted the blade and he plunged it back in, this time along her ribs. When he attempted a fourth hit–one closer to her neck–she slammed him down with a shadowed limb and pushed them deeper into the plane.

The situation was bad. This deep with the amount of mana she radiated, they were juicy meatbags practically advertising a 'come eat me,' sign.

He accepted the elbow to his sternum and slammed his Shade Appendages against her shoulder, knocking her dagger away.

Even with the damage to her stomach, and the crack that vibrated through his tendrils after smashing against her shoulder. The woman continued to stare at him with dead eyes. Not a word, only silence.

She extended her arm and Isaac's eyes widened. He flipped himself behind her, but the attack that was supposed to come never came. Instead, shadows solidified around his feet and they rose.

Spat out of the shadow realm and onto a patch of grass, Isaac rolled right, narrowly dodging the dagger to his back. He kicked her away, and jumped to his feet.

Observe, scan, orientate!

A giant ice sculpture impaled the ground only a couple of meters to his left.

That bitch carried us this far! Damnit!

He tried to sink into the shadows like she did, and to his surprise his foot sank through the portal. There was resistance, likely a remnant effect from the spatial lock. He wasn't Celenae, so the details didn't matter; only that he regained a part of his skills.

The woman flipped to her feet and raised her blade. Shadows spilled from her back, creating blobby wings that shifted in size every second.

"Answer me, bitch! Do you remember me? Huh?" he shouted.

The woman who was formerly the gatekeeper for the underground didn't respond. Looking at her, she retained the speed and flexibility from the tier three but more than a few things were off.

Even she had trouble ignoring direct taunts, not the one's someone like Isaac would give. However, there was no response, it was like she was a ghost.

Isaac's eyes narrowed.

The pale skin, lack of verbal sparring, and overall somewhat stiff body movements outside of combat, started to make sense.

"You're not even alive are you? Too fucking useless to stay dead!" Isaac growled. "I can't even get revenge on you! Fuck!"

He needed to get back! He had to. Even with Teddy and Arturous, Cyrus was a deadman. The others may have forgotten but that damn felkin attracted danger like an elemental to their element.

The sooner he ended the fight, the quicker he could save their sorry asses. Now if only the potentially undead ex-gatekeeper would fucking comply!

Isaac prepared to dodge another straightforward charge, but he released an involuntary yelp as a titanic foot crushed the ice sculpture. A beam of light pushed through the monster's foot and speared the ground. Dirt and rock kicked into the air and he was forced to batter them away with his tendrils.

As the foot started to rise, the hairs of the back of his neck rose.

Shit!

He tilted forward, allowing his legs to sink into the ground. The woman's blade curved cleanly through the air leaving behind an inky trail. He hammered his fist into her gut, bowing her over. Rocketing out of the portal, his knee smashed into her nose and he pushed her away.

He heard screaming from above, too distant to make out. The light flashed constantly as Teddy's parents waged war with the titan.

He growled.

It never stopped, even as he gained some distance, another titanic appendage crashed beside him, sending him tumbling.

Rolling to his feet, he raised his arms and blocked the punch from the gatekeeper. Two tendrils exploded outright, but he survived with only a bruised sternum.

Isaac cursed internally. He wasn't like that cheating felkin. His skills were bound including his last resort. Blow after blow, he barely held on. He dodged what he could but the dagger found its way through his defenses. Blood started to drip and the scratches started to accumulate.

I have to finish this now! Aaagh, fuck it!

He braced.

Isaac twisted his blade and allowed the dagger to skitter off his own. When it stabbed into his shoulder he gripped the woman's arm and pushed her down. He wasn't strong like Igas or Eodyne. He didn't have to empowerment to his body like Teddy's aura. All he needed to do was restrict her long enough to secure his victory.

Tier three or not, most people didn't have competent regeneration skills, and slitting someone's throat would do the job. Throat muscles were always easy targets.

Except the woman didn't sink. Instead her arm snapped, the bone crunching sound reverberating between his ears.

He was out of position. His mana rushed across his back, and he prepared to defend against another blow. When he whipped around, ready to defend his fury flickered.

The woman's hand was no more. In it's place a shadespawn grew from her palm Teeth lined her forearm while a dozen black tongues sprouted from below the shoulder. It was like a mutated flesh abomination. Those monstrosities still gave him nightmares.

He tried to dodge, but the shadows once more wrapped around his legs. When he commanded them to move, to release him, they half-heartedly flexed.

It wasn't enough!

Isaac tracked the incoming fist adorned with sharpened spines and readied every skill left in his arsenal. They wouldn't be good enough. Even with a dozen more tendrils, there was no way he'd make it out unscathed.

The rasping maw on her hand dislodged its jaw and the back of its throat started to flash.

Oh fuck, oh fuck! Oh–

A sword swung through the woman's arm and separated it at the elbow.

Wet meat splashed onto the forest floor but she kept going. Responding to the new threat, before he could even turn and see who did it, she activated a skill. Black lines coated her hand and she pierced through something hard,

With a wet flick, the body of the person she impaled dropped wordlessly.

Now!

While she was distracted, he slapped his tendrils into one and slapped her away. He turned and went to grab the person who saved him, to bring him to safety but paused.

What?

Isaac's father desperately tried to cover the gaping hole in his stomach, to stifle the blood from spilling out. Once pristine clones and immaculate hair were stained red and streaked with mud. His father looked pathetic in a way he had never witnessed.

"Why? Why would you save me?" he blurted out

It came out as a gurgle, a weak gasp of air as his father gripped his shoulder.

"Useless. Unfilial, disowned, worthless ch-child," he croaked.

Isaac's fury grew, and he grabbed two spare daggers from his belt to pin the down the woman's arms. Turning back to his father he grabbed one of the health potions hidden in his belt and uncapped the vial.

Isaac's father grabbed his wrist and squeezed. "N-no! Focus!"

His tendrils intercepted an attack and he was blasted away.

Slowly, he raised his gaze and found the pale woman standing over his father. One of her tendrils was already tearing through his leg, carving into the bone.

Roars and screeches filled the night, while Teddy's parents created a lightshow in the building's radiant sheen. He could think of the others, of his friends and even Cyrus's mopey self. But only one thing came to mind, and it burned inside like an inferno.

"Come bitch, I'm going to kill you," Isaac declared.

Their next exchange destroyed the field, but Isaac sped up, gaining advantage.

Just you fucking wait, Cyrus! I'm going too beat your ass when this is done!

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