44. The Dust Taketh Away

Meetra's attention turned fully to the injured Dashi as she held her newly refilled urn over his body. No further word or thought was spared for the second boy whose bones had filled said urn, as if his death had been nothing more than a small detour—a simple supply run before getting back on the main road. And only as the Maidens made to resume their treatment of Dashi did the Wayfarers—both at the same time—spring into action.

Zacko moved swiftly to Meetra's side, grabbing her by the wrist to stop her from pouring out the urn's contents. Serac jumped to her feet and unholstered REVOLVER, to be aimed at Sundara's kindly smile.

The four adults held their new tableau for several tense seconds, while the children all around finally moved of their own volition—backing away in droves, as if they'd sensed the violence that was ready to explode. It was the strangest thing. They'd been so calm and docile as Meetra cut down one of their number in cold blood. Yet, now, as the Wayfarers drew their weapons to confront the murderer, the children withdrew in fear. It was strange—or it was just another part of a 'greater plan'.

"What is the meaning of this?" Sundara was the first to break the silence, with nary a change to her manners. "I was given to understand that you were as invested in this boy's recovery as we are. Do you not wish for us to proceed?"

"After seeing what you did to the other child?" Zacko spoke up for the first time in an age, voice low yet simmering with barely controlled rage. "No thanks. I think I'd rather Dashi take his chances on his own."

"Fool!" Meetra snarled, not bothering to control her rage. "Do you presume to know better than our Lord? It's only by the grace of his dust that all within his dominion may aspire to be more than what we are."

"We don't presume anything," Serac answered, her own voice tremulous with an anger that matched Zacko's, "because we don't know anything about your Lord or what he stands for. Other than that, apparently, he's okay with killing an innocent child!"

"Only so another may live," Sundara said calmly, with all the air of a teacher explaining fractions to a restless student. "Dashanan is the Bone Lord's chosen vessel: his eyes, ears, and mouth, so he may spread his good word to all the downtrodden souls that need to hear it. That is why all the children gathered here would gladly give themselves, in service of the best among them. Now, would you stand down and let us proceed—or would you rather trample on this child's sacrifice?"

Meetra let out a hiss of pain. For Zacko's grip on the Maiden's wrist had tightened another notch.

"Well, you've just convinced me you're full of shit," the Manusya growled, "because you clearly have no idea what you're talking about. Sacrifice isn't something you impose on another. It's something every soul has to choose for himself."

Serac gasped, recognizing in her companion's speech a sentiment she herself had expressed not long ago. Yet she also sensed that she herself hadn't been its inspiration. This came from Zacko himself—a truth that, for whatever reason, was near and dear to his heart.

"Believe what you want," came the retort from Meetra, dripping with venom that hid her pain. "If you oppose us, then you oppose our Lord. And do not think us so meek that we would let that stand."

"Oh yeah?" Zacko said, his lips curling into a mirthless smile. "And just how do you plan on punishing us? Shouldn't need to remind you that we're Wayfarers, and we've dealt with our fair share of angry souls who tried and failed to put us in our place. If you know what's good for you, you'll leave Dashi and the children alone. Leave this place, right now, and never come back."

Meetra made no reply, but both her and Zacko's interlocked arms began to shake. A power struggle brewed beneath their barbed words, and it was only a matter of time before something had to give.

"Be careful, Wayfarer." A third opinion made itself heard, taking Serac by surprise. "Do not forget what I said about your options for ascension. Whatever choice you make, in this very moment, may well burn bridges that could never be rebuilt."

Serac readily understood Trippy's meaning. To cross the Maidens here would be tantamount to declaring war on the Bone Lord. No more working with him to obtain a 'Mandate'—a hall pass to let the Wayfarers through to the next Realm up. Instead, they'd be committing themselves to the alternative path to ascension, that of smiting the Realm Immortal himself.

And yet… was it even a choice?

Serac didn't have parents (that she knew of), but if she did, what would they think about all this? She knew the answer, of course. No child of Serac Edin's parents would turn a blind eye to the murder of innocent children just to make her own life easier. Somehow, she also knew the same could be said for Zacarias Borges-Juventus.

"Our Lord would want us to avoid unnecessary bloodshed," Sundara was saying now, with a touch of annoyance finally creeping into her even keel, "so we'll give you a final warning, Wayfarers. You have five seconds to stand down and put away your weapons—to find your way back to the correct Path. Five, four—"

"There's no need for a countdown," Serac cut in coldly, with REVOLVER still pointed squarely in the older woman's face. "Our minds are made up. But if we're gonna do this, let's take it outside, yeah? Don't want any more innocent souls getting caught in the crossfire."

Sundara stared back at her, past the barrel of REVOLVER. After a beat, she let out a reluctant sigh.

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"Very well," she said simply… then sprang into action.

Before either Wayfarer could react, Sundara whipped out one of her daggers and ran it through the urn in Meetra's hand. The urn broke apart with a sharp crack, spilling its contents into the air.

What happened next took both Wayfarers by complete surprise.

First, the newly released bone dust exploded. It pushed Serac and Zacko away from the epicenter while spreading itself into yet another dome, one that nearly matched the whole [Sanctuary] in size and shape.

[Wayfarer Status Effect: OSSIFY]

[TRIBULATION active (x2): current buff at 10%]

Along with the reappearance of that dreaded build-up gauge, the Bone Maidens also transformed. Gone were the kindly Sundara and conventionally beautiful Meetra, and in their place rose…

"What the hell is that?"

Serac's first thought was that the Rakshasa women had somehow grown new sets of horns—and lots of them. But that couldn't be right, because she didn't know of any horns that were so long, slender, and sharp—horns that jutted from a Rakshasa's chest, back, and seemingly every joint on their person.

Then she realized that the countless onyx blades that had torn the Maidens' bodies asunder were extensions of their bones. Rib cages flared out from their open chests. Spines spiked from their backs like the deformed ridges on a reptilian beast. Shoulders, elbows, hips, and knees made way for sword-like projections that enlarged and serrated the women's silhouettes.

Even their faces had taken on a gaunt, almost skeletal appearance—lit by bulging, whiteless eyes and containing none of their kindness nor beauty. The Rakshasa women were no more, and left in their place were soldiers made only to do the Bone Lord's bidding.

And Pathsight, too, finally recognized them for what they were:

[Designation: SUNDARA—Avatar of the Bone Lord]

[Designation: MEETRA—Avatar of the Bone Lord]

[Aberrant Race: Bone Maiden]

[Aberrant Class: Dungeon Boss]

Yet, even as these fearsome creatures bore down on her, Serac first stole a glance at the center of the mound. Dashi still lay there, motionless and undisturbed within his own pocket of protection. The Bone Maidens clearly meant what they said about wanting to preserve him, which also meant the Wayfarers could fight back with impunity. Starting with…

Serac re-trained REVOLVER's sights on Sundara (though it was now difficult to tell the two Maidens apart) and fired off three unimbued bullets in quick succession. To her shock and dismay, none of them elicited the impact and damage she'd expected. Instead, they all bounced harmlessly against an onyx shield that had sprung up in front of the Maiden—collected and solidified from the bone dust that floated all around.

What? That's cheating! Serac inwardly protested, even as she raised her own PULVERIZER shield to meet her opponent's response. Sundara countered by slashing the air with her twin daggers. It was an impressive flurry of moves (six of them, to be exact), but enough distance separated the two combatants for Serac to be safe from—

[25!], [73!], [77!], [81!], [85!], [89!] -> [430!]

[Wayfarer Status Effect: BLEED]

[TRIBULATION active (x3): current buff at 15%]

Serac fell to her knees, Poise-broken.

And her Poise hadn't been the only thing to break. Her mind did, too, trying to understand just what in hell had happened.

Sundara had let fly her six-hit combo from a fair distance away, with the stunted blades of daggers, no less. Yet, each of the six slashes had hit Serac from distance—with only the first one mitigated by PULVERIZER, while the rest found their target in Rakshasa flesh. It'd happened so fast that Serac had failed to catch sight of it. But she saw the aftermath now, plainly enough, in the wavy distortions of bone dust that separated her from the Maiden.

"Sundara's blades sent out projections through the air." Trippy confirmed what Serac was starting to understand. "This is not good, Wayfarer. As long as you remain within this dome of bone dust, you'll face the full power of the Bone Maiden's magic."

Knowing about the 'not good' didn't help Serac one bit. For even as she willed herself out of her Poise-break and rose to her feet, her opponent had already unleashed another flurry of Bone-projected daggers. And this time, Serac failed to block even one slash.

[69!], [73!], [77!], [81!], [85!], [89!] -> [474!]

By mending her Poise in time, Serac had managed to avoid the critical multiplier. In this case, however, it mattered very little, as the combined damage had been enough to shave off the last of her HP.

"Fuck."

That swear hadn't been uttered by Serac (even though she did agree with it whole-heartedly). Instead, it was the NINEFOLD master, who himself knelt upon the mound, Poise-broken and impaled through the chest by an onyx shortsword. Meetra stood over him in her full, Bone-riven glory, with her characteristic glare made all the more menacing by her skeletal features.

Fuck, Serac swore into the Interstitium even as her flesh turned to Souldust.

For all their big talk, both Wayfarers had succumbed to the Bone Maidens—and rather easily at that. Now, while they waited to be reconstituted, the children—and Dashi—would be at the Bone Maidens' mercy.

Just before Serac's consciousness faded completely, she heard one of the Maidens speak. The voice was so rough, so distorted, and so un-Rakshasa-like that it was impossible to tell if it'd issued from Sundara or Meetra. In the end, however, it mattered very little.

"You've made your choice, Wayfarers, and have strayed far from the Path. You've forever denied yourselves our Lord's favor, and for that, you must suffer the consequences."

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