Before the sun peeked over the horizon, James watched Zenaria leave. She lightly kissed his cheek, making him smile before running into the distance. He knew she still desired him and wanted more, but he also didn't want to ruin what they had. She was the only one that brought him books, hoping to learn from him. She never pushed herself on him, unlike a certain nekorian.

Luna stepped up to his side, rubbing her eyes in the early morning. "How much will you miss her?"

"More than I care to admit." Just saying that was admitting enough for the Fenrir. It did't anger her in any way, but she was more than ready to spend some time with him. A certain quality time.

"Ready to start our day?"

Turning back to the nest, he nodded. He needed to inspect the center of the city and see what exactly he was working with. If it was a Forsaken, he would think it would have a soul. Instead, it had an odd energy that was familiar, yet distant.

"What are the others going to do?" he asked.

"Well." Pointing out the sides of the city, she added, "the Forsaken aren't spawning fast enough for the nest to keep up with us. We'll start circling around the city, clearing it out more thoroughly. Once Grace is here, we'll push to the center, clearing out everything we can to reach the nest."

"You're in charge." Crossing his arms, he caught her nod out of the corner of his eye.

"You'll check the nest today?"

"Yes."

Running a hand through her hair, she pulled at a few knots from sleep before yawning one last time. "They'll spread out once they are ready. Kiss me and then get going."

Pulling her into his arms, he kissed her tenderly before asking, "still you and I versus the world?"

"If you'll have me. I still won't regret what I did, so don't try and change my mind."

Letting go, he started walking without looking back. He needed time to think and to process everything she had admitted. The cracks were filling in, and he was cognizant enough to know that he had changed with them. He felt blunter and numb to many things. He still felt joy around Zenaria, but a lesser joy around Luna and Amber. He also knew that if he forgave them completely, that would change.

Grace would have at least a few days of fighting before they finished the nest. That gave him that much time to warm back up to Luna and Amber. There wasn't enough space left to change him into a killer and the voices were growing distant each time he dreamed.

Cracking his neck, he stretched out his arms before kicking into a light jog. He had a mission to do and forgetting the ladies for a few hours and being away from them was what he needed.

He jogged slow enough that the sun began to rise and the warm winds cooled. The feathers on his armor stopped fluttering as much and the cracked pavement started to brighten as slivers of sunlight filtered through broken buildings and through breaks in the city.

The scent of death was all around, mixed with rot and corruption. Nearby buildings started to stir as red eyes and black bodies watched him. None of them dared to attack him as he pushed back with his gold soul, keeping them at bay. Many of the smarter Forsaken shivered in fear before retreating quickly.

Slowing to a walk, he was nearly at the center of the city. Scanning the streets, he didn't find any sort of guardians nearby and that worried him. He thought that maybe there would be some tough Forsaken that he would have to kill, but the nest likely had never been challenged before.

Following the signature of energy, he found the nest after another block. A mass of black flesh rose above the one story buildings. Having crushed a city block, the nest sprawled with tentacles that reached into the earth, breaking up the street while writhing with a pulse. Each beat felt like a heart pumping blood through whatever he was looking at. The very air felt heavy as he drew near, physically slowing him to the point he nearly couldn't push through.

Am I not strong enough?

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For the first time since entering the city, he was nervous and slightly scared. It had been a long time since he ran into something that was vastly stronger than him.

Pushing forward, he made it within ten feet of the nest before he was forced to stop. Looking down at his arms, he could see gold veins spreading over his flesh as nearly all of his energy was used to approach the Forsaken. If that was what it was.

No wonder no one had destroyed one. If a nest is this strong, how strong is a rent? Can they even be closed?

Giving up, he retreated a city block and watched the writhing flesh that didn't have a soul. There was nothing for him to pull on in order to weaken it. There was nothing he could do but grow stronger, and that meant spending more time there than he expected.

***

Venice left the shelter of the home they were staying in, all seven of her men back on their feet. Activating her seeker skill, she found that the Valiant hadn't moved in nearly a week. Preparing to run, she was immediately stopped when a soul slammed down nearby, shattering the ground and kicking a cloud of dust the blocked the sun.

"We're under attack!" one of her men yelled.

"Silence," she growled, her animal nature forcing the men to obey.

"Finally found you," a man said from amongst the dust. The sound of knuckles cracking was followed by a man with skin as dark as midnight stepping forward. His head was shaved smooth, and his eyes were just as black as his skin.

"Your soul is active," Venice stated. Drawing her spear, she pointed it at the man, followed by her men doing the same.

Cocking his head, the enemy regarded them for a moment. "I can't let you go after him. He's the last of my masters."

Smirking, Venice prepared to activate her skills. "And you think one lone lap dog is enough to stop us?"

"Not stop," the man stated. "Weaken."

"There's eight of us!" she growled. "Your soul will not protect you!"

Ears twitching, she barely reacted in time to drop to the ground. The hairs on the end of her ears were severed as she heard a gurling noise from her side.

Eyes wide, she glanced at her nearby charge and watched one of her men collapse to the ground, his head rolling from his body.

Who the fuck is this man?

Jumping up, she activated her defensive skill and coated herself and her allies in a powerful shield. Bulwark couldn't be broken by those with their souls active and it seemed her enemy recognized it.

Crossing his arms, the man spread his feet slightly. "Are you going to attack me as a group, or one at a time?"

Snarling, Venice laid her ears flat and stepped forward. "Together! Men, surround him!"

Her charges jumped into action and quickly circled around the man as she faced his front. Despite her anger, her hand was shaking slightly in anticipation. She had thought all of the Priests were dead, and yet one stood in front of her, uncaring that she was surrounding him.

Yawning, the man looked toward the heavens. "I hate waiting."

She knew she had to kill the man in the fewest moves possible. She had spent a weak charging skills that she couldn't waste on the fight. Her men on the other hand, she could spare.

"Unleash your strongest attacks," she ordered.

Her men didn't hesitate to activate their skills. Their weapons glowed brightly as they all thrust their spears into the man. The wind whipped into a frenzy as fire and lightning joined the mix. Ice spread across the ground, and Venice felt her ears pop as an explosion rocked the air.

That had to hurt him.

A cry of pain filled the air before the dust could settle. Venice activated her vision skill and looked through the dust. She was just in time to watch as the headless corpse of another of her men was thrown at her.

Spinning, she used her spear to guide the body away from her before roaring in rage. The Priest stepped back into the center of the ring, his skin burned and charred. Blood leaked from dozens of wounds, yet he didn't seem to care.

Slamming the butt of her spear into the ground, she activated one of her ultimate skills. Impaler.

A phantom spear of brilliant red light shot up from the ground, impaling the man and lifting him into the air. The tip of her weapon broke through his chest, bringing heart tissue with it.

"Did you kill him?" one of her men asked.

"Yes," she snarled. She started to retract her skill when the fur on the back of her neck stood on end.

Activating her ultimate dodge skill, the world slowed as she spun. Lifting her spear to protect her neck, she barely deflected the blade of soul energy that would have killed her.

Standing behind her was the man, back in pristine health, yet his soul felt drained to near empty.

"Damn," he muttered. "I thought I had you."

Teeth dripping with saliva and anger, she thrust her spear forward, adding a bust of wind to the tip. She was about to smile as his weakened state barely allowed him to move. At the last moment, she exploded the wind, changing her trajectory as she pierced his abdomen and through his soul, shattering it.

"Bastard," she murmured before ripping her spear out.

"I suppose that is enough playing."

The man's voice was shouted from hundreds of feet away.

"I believe James can handle you easily."

Eyes narrowing with her rage, she scanned the surrounding plains of the wasteland. The soul of the man grew distant and didn't seem fazed in the slightest that she had just destroyed two versions of him.

"Fucking Priests!"

"I thought they were all dead?" one of her men asked.

"Apparently not," she snarled. There was a silver lining however. "He's not attached to the Valiant. He won't be able to recharge his soul until he does. That means he won't keep fighting us."

Her five remaining men lowered their spears.

Glancing at the two dead men, she pressed her lips into thin lines. They had died helping her defeat an enemy from the war. Even though he ran away, she took that as a win. She would keep her eyes open as she started walking toward the Valiant.

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