The haptics in my suit thrust against my lower back and side as I turned and tried to run. My HUD burst a brilliant crimson hue as I took a massive amount of damage.

  Looking down I saw that I was impaled by three spears up against the wall of a long destroyed manor. My health was nearly bottomed out and my Regeneration was not activating with the spears still impaled through my body. Panting I growled and tried to wrench one of the weapons out of my body but my avatar’s fingers slipped in my own blood, gaining no purchase.The Priest of Pain let out its multi-voiced wail, shuddering and expelling a final gout of blackened viscous blood onto the street as it collapsed into a heap.

  Below me the street had devolved into even further chaos. Valerie was facing off against three cultists while Protag and the Foixs seemed to be meeting another patrol, with a strangely familiar female figure sending explosive orbs of fire flying toward us. In the distance I saw a second Priest of Pain round the street corner and advance at a lumbering pace.

  Theodora appeared before me with a look of surprising concern. She tore the three spears away with ease and caught me as I fell forward. She stared intently into my eyes as the next battle started to rage around us and said softly, “If you end up back in your world…”

  My injuries were healing rapidly and I managed to stand as she continued pushing something into my hand, “Keep that with you.”

  Starting to reassure her that I would be fine, she glared and silenced me. Surprised at the concern on her face I just nodded.

  With significant gravity she said, “Put on the ring.”

  Activating the plain platinum ring it appeared on one of my fingers. She put a clawed hand on my chest and pushed for emphasis, “Don’t forget us.”

  I shook my head, confused, but she was already gone tearing into the soldiers who seemed on the cusp of besting Valerie.

  As my wounds continued to close I shook my head and wondered what the hell was going on with her. Putting the thoughts away I drew my blades as I charged the patrol attacking my allies.

  The cultists screamed out praises to their goddess as I carved my way through them. A massive translucent hand grabbed one who was swinging a flail in my direction and threw them like a doll into the razorwire atop a nearby wall. I finally reached their commander, her face twisted into a rictus of pale hate as she summoned a roiling shield of fire.

  Fending off a spear from another soldier I kicked him away as I glared at the woman with a cold smile, “Are we not meeting for a drink?”

  Her silver hair twisted around her head as she snarled and started to manifest a spell, “I am not interested in your kind of drink!”

  Jumping into the air I avoided a fan of flame that burst outward from her outstretched hands. I tossed one of the Sanguine Sisters through the flaming shield in midair. She recoiled and stumbled as it sliced through her shoulder and vanished back into my hand.

  The shield faltered and I charged through, meeting her eyes and exerting my charm with a healthy chunk of stamina. Our eyes connected and her own considerable charm clashed with mine. Her defenses wavered and fell. As she was about to fall I caught her and looked down into eyes filled with love and tears.

  As I pulled her up and intimately close to my body she stammered as she slid her arms around me, “I miss you so much.”

  Leaning down I sank my fangs into her neck, draining her blood as I felt the charm falter while I heard the charmed woman whisper, “Why won’t you answer… the… phone”

  Shocked out of the feeding I let her fall to the stones. The woman looked up at me with barely restrained hate tempered by exhaustion and passed out.

  The moment of confusion was thrown onto the backburner to simmer with Valerie’s surprise kiss and Theodora’s weird ring as the second of the towering E-Tier Priest’s of Pain arrived. This creature varied considerably from the first. It had the same spear defenses from its towering body but a curvy feminine form ensconced in black leather and steel. Like the first, the spikes in its eyes and face were also burning golden hot but instead of a pair of half-moon polearms it carried a pair of thin flexible swords.

  Theodora rushed past me toward the creature and I followed immediately activating Surge of Blood to bound over the white hot slashing blades of the giant agile Priest. With the aid of the blood I was able to get in close and slice into her inner thigh, rolling past a pair of thrusting spears to continue my attacks.

  Explosions rocked the giant Priest as Protag struck her upper body with a bomb that shredded her with silver shards. Beside them Mattieu and Celeste raised their staves. Celeste sent a pair of gauntleted fists of force to crash into the mutant’s stomach and chest. Mattieu’s crow storm writhed over her body like a consuming swarm, tearing flesh away and emitting croaking caws as they flowed toward her head. Individually the attacks did very little but the combined force threw the giant creature off balance. While the spears still thrust out of her body to try and impale me I was more adept at dodging hers than her counterparts.

  Mystal’s guards maintained a perimeter and each of them ended up in exchanges with several guards. As I watched Gregor charged and impaled an archer, narrowly avoiding a flaming arrow. Mystal herself was dueling a young female officer and to my shock looked to be holding her own quite well.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  Out in the open I watched a far too brave Valerie charge, rolling around a thrust of the slender white hot blade of the giant. She struck out at its wrist as I flipped and rolled through the continuing onslaught of spears. Everytime I struck I activated Slice until my Blooded buff popped again and I went in hard focusing all of my slashes on what passed for the monster's ankle.

  To my surprise the monster’s leg burst apart spraying me with gore and blood and revealed that beneath it was just another massive blade. Without pause it spun like a dancer and sliced out at me, cutting into me and sending my avatar flying down the street. The world blurred by once again and I collided with the ground rolling like a ragdoll.

  From my point on the ground, Health and Essence critically low, I saw the monster land closeby. I cringed and growled through my teeth as I saw it land on top of a familiar figure, using its bladed leg to impale Protag. That single attack was enough to destroy the unfortunate alchemist.

  The giant Priest charged toward me on bladed legs digging into the street, hoping to finish her work. Her concentration was broken as Theodora appeared and tore into her throat from the side before vanishing. Celeste summoned another massive gnarled ghostly hand to grab the giant monster by the arm and yank it backward.

  Struggling back to my feet I charged back in trying to provide as much support as I could. Valerie was nearby rushing one of its bladed legs as it spun at me like a ballerina. Rolling between its bladed legs I had to jump aside as one of its burning rapiers drove into the ground where I had been standing.

  Slashing upward at its wrist I got a significant hot spray of blood for my troubles. As my health rapidly increased a blade burst from the monster’s chest and Valerie drove her own blade upward into the monster’s calf, before being forced to dodge a swing of the monster’s bladed leg for her trouble.

  When I noticed its body beginning to shake I started to cry out, but my attempt was cut short as Celeste’s massive ghostly hand snapped around the screaming Priest’s neck and wrenched it with a sickening snap that sounded more like a falling tree. With its sudden death its final attack was disrupted and the massive corpse slumped to the earth.

  Dropping to my knees I let out a sharp breath of exhaustion as Theodora appeared before me. She looked as injured as I was. She looked first toward the distant sound of something tearing its way through the district and then toward the manor house that presumably housed the Descent. Had we really come that far in our mad dash battle?

  She pulled me to my feet and said, “We need to get down to the next world. We can’t fight the third one.”

  Celeste and Mattieu stepped up, the former smiling slyly and the latter giving me a flat look. Celeste added, “We want to go with you.”

  Mattieu added, “Indeed. This place holds little for our continued presence.”

  Theodora shrugged and gave me a questioning look.

  Shrugging, I started to answer but Valerie interrupted me, “Me too.”

  Studying the young noble woman, my emotions were conflicted. The look she gave me was resolute and dared me to contradict her choice. I started to speak, but spotted the onrushing monster behind her. Cursing I pointed in the direction of our exit, “Let’s fucking go then.”

  As the third Priest charged through the buildings behind us we ran toward the manor that served as the Cult’s headquarters. The Priest loomed over the few buildings between us and I could see that this one was male, like the first, but seemed to be carrying a massive white hot hammer.

  What few guards that had been protecting the entrance to the manor had rushed to join our battle and had already been dispatched. The grounds of this manor were just as expansive as the Lafontaine mansion but long neglect had left the gardens devoid of grass and flowers. The few trees were twisted and blackened husks. Rushing across the barren grounds of the decaying manor house the double doors before us were grabbed and torn open by Celeste’s force hand. When all of us had rushed through the entrance the mage slammed them shut behind us with a casual wave of her hand. Any concerns I had about finding the Descent were immediately banished by the massive downward staircase before us.

  While the structure was made of recent stone and lumber, the stairs were of some kind of ancient stone that seemed to have been shaped directly from its source. At the bottom there was an inky black portal under an arch of cerulean crystal.

  Standing at the top of the stairs awaiting us was Alphonse Cardienne. He had a greatsword in his hands and was clearly shaking in terror. He was wild eyed and licking at his lips.. He was still the terrified young man I had seen in the Necropolis more than a week ago. He was wearing golden hued armor covered in etchings of leering devil-like faces with a full helm and a silver symbol of the Lady of Flame around his neck.

  Behind him, Sevrin stood with a defiant smirk on his face. Outside it sounded like the Priest of Pain was tearing apart the walls. It roared and thrashed about. It seemed that branding didn’t do a lot to increase a creature's critical thinking. The monster could not find us.

  Alphonse rolled his shoulders and stuttered, “Valerie, st… stop being foolish. We are to be bonded and… and I’m to be your consort. The only way for L’Chasse to survive is to bow to the Lady of Flame! The Remnants are tearing our world apart!”

  Theodora growled and said, “Oh shut up,” and the young noble wavered and nearly toppled as a broad smile covered his face. His sword dipped and she clearly had control of him.

  That was when the boy arched his back letting out a cry of pain as a hissing sound filled the area. Sevrin winked at me as Alphonse fell forward revealing that the priest held a long white hot branding iron with the symbol of the Lady of Flame at its head in his hand.

  Before our eyes Alphonse’s body twisted and started to burst outward. His muscles engorged and tore his armor apart. As it did so his forearms split in half, spraying blood around the young man and forming into four separate clawed arms quickly healing around the new limbs with vicious black claws where his fingertips had been. The boy looked up at us and his jaw elongated and filled with rows of blackening teeth.

  Behind him, Sevrin ran down the stairs. I activated Surging Blood and rushed after the fleeing priest but the still mutating Cardienne followed my movements with ease striking out and throwing me into the wall with a crunch. There was an audible snapping sound as Alphonse’s legs snapped backward at the knee and bulged. Claws tore through his armored boots and the four armed monstrosity charged at my comrades.

  Celeste’s magical fists pummeled the beast and it raised its arms to forestall the attacks. Mattieu’s birds joined them, enraging the beast and prompting it to charge at Valerie in lieu of its original targets. It was met by Gregor and his guard squads brandishing spears and catching the beast on them. The spears burst into mist with such force that several of the guards themselves were destroyed.

  As I watched, the monster advanced on Mystal, the claws on its four hands and monstrous feet started to glow white hot.

  We locked eyes and she called out to me, “Mal?”