by Jason Herc
She was right. We had wasted all this time trying to recover Ember, and I still had the upcoming tournament to figure out.
"Bring me the elixir," I said to Shekel.
His eyes widened. He looked back at the other men.
"See!" the elder snapped. "They will take everything we have worked for!"
I had put up with the fool long enough. I slid my sword through the elder's throat. He gurgled up blood from his mouth, then rolled over and fell silent. A rush of orange Flame swept out of the corpse and into my chest. Or rather, into the memento on my chest. What the hell? The stone had been acting strange ever since I came to the Gravelands.
The others, including Shekel, were now cowering. Some of them were kneeling and bowing to the ground.
"Stop that," I said. "How much of the elixir do you have?"
When no one answered, I pointed at Shekel. "You. Shekel. How much elixir do you have?"
He stammered. "Only one vial. We collect enough for several full vials a week, but Mammon demands his share, and he…" Shekel glanced at the dead body. "He would take the rest, giving us only sips as a reward for following his orders."
"How much do you need? To keep your sanity, as you said."
"I…I don't know," Shekel said.
Another Fallen One, a bald one with ash-colored robes and pale yellow skin looked up from his groveling. "When old Wroten fell sick, half a vial was enough to cure him for a time." His face darkened. "Before the elder depleted our stocks. Then, Mammon arrived."
"Would regularly taking in elixir prevent the Spirit Plague in the first place?"
The bald Fallen One nodded. "Likely, although we can't be sure by how much."
"Fine. Bring me the vial you have. The rest is yours to do as you see fit. I think that's fair. Any objections?"
The Fallen Ones whispered among themselves. After a while, it became clear that they were waiting for Shekel to reply.
Shekel came to his feet again. He bowed. "Yes, that would be fair. Thank you, Seeker."
"You're thanking me?" I chuckled, shaking my head. I supposed I had rid them of Mammon and the elder.
Shekel stood taller now. "Go, bring him the elixir," he commanded the others.
When someone immediately left to fetch the vial, I smiled. The village had a new leader.
A minute later, the Fallen One returned and handed something to Shekel. Shekel held out his hand to me. In it was a crystal vial about the size of beer bottle.
I took the vial and held it up in the dim cavern light. The liquid inside had a slight yellow shimmer, but was otherwise clear.
Helix stared at it. "My father traded Flame elixirs before. They looked similar."
I raised an eyebrow. "You've heard of these before?"
"Seekers use them to gain strength," Helix said.
I thought back to my session with Allura, regretting the timing. I wished I had an elixir back then, so I could try to open her second Node. I would have to wait until we got back to Duskfall.
I deposited the elixir into my spatial band.
"You're not taking it now?" Shekel asked.
"No, I have other plans in mind." I looked at Allura, then Ember. Actually, I still had to decide whose Node to open. Decisions, decisions.
"Can you take us back up?" I asked Shekel.
He nodded. "Will you return here?"
The second part of his question was left unsaid. Would I be back for more elixir?
I would have to see how much of a difference it made but having access to a boost like elixirs could really speed up my progression. Maybe I could even open a fourth Node. Then again, I had less than a week before the tournament. It wouldn't make a difference before then, anyways.
No, if I forced them to give me their elixir, I would be no better than that Mammon and that asshole elder. It sounded like I couldn't just waltz in here and make new elixirs. Someone would have to be hunting for them.
The other Fallen Ones held their breaths, waiting for my reply.
I had to move forward. Scraping elixirs from a dying village didn't seem like a path that would lead to godhood.
If I aspired to grow in strength, I would need to seek challenges that pushed me and my Flame further. There were aids to help me on my journey, but there would be no true shortcuts.
True progress had a true cost.
Was that why Crowley had suggested a trip through the Abyss? Well, I hadn't gone searching for one, but it had found me in the end.
The reward of demon cores would have been useful, like the elixir, but wasn't it more important to learn more about the Abyss and its broken cycle? To gain experience in real combat, to learn what drove the Fallen Ones. Was this what it meant to be a Seeker?
Even when Crowley was absent, he was still pushing me with his training, somehow.
I had learned a new technique, too, hadn't I? The spinning move. I'd call it…something. Ember would help with naming it later.
"The secret of the elixir is yours," I finally said. "If I'm desperate, I may swing by to ask for help, but I don't plan on coming back."
The villagers heaved a collective sigh of relief.
Shekel soon led us back the way we had come. A winding tunnel led us to another sand pit in a dark cavern.
"Jump in there. It'll spit you out back on the surface," Shekel said.
"That goes back up?" I pointed above. "I'm not sure how that works."
Shekel grinned. "It's the way of the Gravelands."
"A kind of portal?" Ember asked. She moved to jump through into the sand pit first. I stopped her.
"You stay with Helix. Allura and I will go together."
I figured Allura could use her wings in case a magic sand portal dumped us a mile above ground. I didn't think Shekel would harm us after what we had done for him, but it never hurt to be cautious.
I linked arms with Allura and jumped into the sand pit. I held my breath as we sank into the ground, the sand piling on top of our heads to block our vision.
The sand rushed past us in darkness, then my feet came free and I shot through empty air for several feet before landing on the ground.
My arms were still linked with Allura, who immediately stood and whirled free to shake the sand off her.
A few seconds later, Helix and Ember shot out of the sandy ground underneath us. They rolled free and began cleaning themselves off.
"Well, that was fun. Which way to Duskfall?" I asked.
Allura paused, using her inner demon compass, before pointing to our left. "That way."
We began trudging through the sand.
***
"You what?" Yaeger smashed his fist into his palm. He had returned from his trip by the time we reached Duskfall. The succubi and I were waiting outside the pottery shop while Helix spoke with her father.
"No more trips. Ever!" Yaeger shouted. "I knew I shouldn't have let you—"
He had bitten through the pipe in his mouth. He spat the broken pieces out into the ground with a last puff of smoke.
"I'm not staying cooped up in this stupid shop forever—"
"The shop's not stupid. And yes you will, if I say so—"
"Make me—"
I rolled my eyes. "We all good, Yaeger?"
Yaeger looked past his daughter, his eyes blazing.
"You didn't touch her, did you?" he snarled.
Helix laughed. For a moment, I thought she would doom us, but she kept quiet, shaking her head as she laughed.
I exchanged a glance with Ember, who was trying not to smirk.
"Of course not," I said.
Yaeger's eyes narrowed. "I'll be watching you closely. Helix…"
But Helix had run over to me. She jumped onto me with her legs spread. I caught her, or rather, she caught me and kissed me hard.
"You'll come back, right?" she asked as she broke the kiss.
"Helix!" Yaeger screamed.
A sword materialized in his hand, different from the one he had used to spar with me. The golden
blade itself must have been over six feet tall and a foot in width.
"Helix! Come back here!" Yaeger screamed again.
"Should I be worried?" I asked Helix, but she just giggled and crawled off me.
She ran back to Yaeger. "Dad, stop that! They're my friends! You can't kill them!" She looked back at me and winked.
I shook my head and waved. "See you Helix. Yaeger."
The two succubi and I turned and started walk away. Yaeger shouted at us, but I ignored him. I had debated explaining everything that had happened to Yaeger, but I changed my mind when I heard his ranting. I would need to find Crowley soon, though.
Allura cocked her head to listen. "He's challenging you to a death duel, I think."
We turned the corner and were soon out of sight, although I could still make out angry shouting behind us.
"You think he'll get over it?" I asked.
Ember giggled. "He probably likes you. He did give you his Bloodstain, remember?" She held up her tail. "And I have this."
I sighed. "Next time, keep your tail to yourself unless you ask me first."
We headed back in the direction of our underground base. I had five days left until the tournament started. The first thing to do was to open another Node, then train together with our new strength until the tournament itself.
I was hedging towards opening Allura's Node next. While she was a bit weaker in a direct fight, her range and needles complemented me better and gave more versatility.
"Master." Ember spread a wing to stop me.
I had been lost in thought.
A figure draped in a white robe with black embroidery blocked our path.
Ryder. His wolfish grin told me all I needed to know about the situation.
"Didn't Crowley tell you to fuck off?" I asked.
"Crowley's not here. I know that for a fact." Ryder drew his sword. Its white blade gleamed as he pointed it at me.
"Shall we dance?" he asked. Then, he charged.
CHAPTER 28
Allura and Ember flew upward in opposite directions as I unleashed a quick Sheet Cut to interfere with Ryder's attack.
Ryder didn't bother pausing in front of the vertical lines of Flame. He simply jabbed his sword between them, his sword a white blur.
I unleashed a Whirlwind, the name Ember had given to Mammon's cyclone technique, to serve as a catch-all for Ryder's blazing fast attack, as I was unsure if I could block him directly.
Ember whirled as well, the edges of her wings glowing with the signs of Flame. She wielded her scythe as a third wing, turning herself into a bladed rotor.
Ryder deflected Ember's attack with his sword, and for a moment, I worried whether Ryder's blade would cut through her Flame. I hadn't trained against her with my Bloodstained sword for that very reason.
But Ember's Flame-coated wings met Ryder's sword like steel on steel.
I delivered a quick Crossblade, four cuts in one, at the same time that Allura sent a handful of needles.
Ryder delivered another slash that stopped Ember's whirling attack and sent her crashing to the ground.
He stabbed my Crossblade's center with the tip of his sword to block it, then fenced away all five of Allura's needles.
Ryder laughed. "I still don't understand. Are you a demon? Or an Outsider? You can't be human."
He was toying with us. I didn't know what he actually wanted. Was he going to kill us? Was he testing us?
I lowered my sword slightly. "What's the point of this, then?"
Ryder shrugged. "Just putting the old beggar in his place." He wound up his sword, then cut the empty air in front of him.
"What—" I had been about to ask what he was doing, but an arc of Flame shot out from his sword toward me.
I sliced across it reflexively, and the arc of Flame split in half, each half dissipating harmlessly to my sides. I didn't think anything of it, but Ryder cocked his head.
"You cut my Flamestrike?"
I shrugged. "Why? What's so great about it?"
My Swordsight had already absorbed the sword technique. I drew my sword back and let my Flame accumulate within it before unleashing a large swooping strike.
An arc of Flame, not quite as fast or solid as Ryder's, swept out of my blade and hurtled towards Ryder.
I had thought Ryder would have blocked it with a simple parry, but he stopped it with another Flamestrike of his own.
"Now you mirrored my technique?" he growled. He shifted his grip on his blade, his eyes narrowing. "You're full of surprises, aren't you?"
His aura flared, and the sudden pressure on my shoulders nearly drove me to my knees.
Almost. I had opened another Node since last encountering him. I forced myself to a ready stance to meet his attack.
Allura and Ember landed on either side of me, Allura holding more needles between her fingers, Ember brandishing her scythe.
I breathed deeply, letting my Flame flow between the three of us. I relaxed my body, ready to meet Ryder.
I blinked and Ryder crossed the distance between us. Something brilliant exploded, and I had to shield my eyes while rolling away.
When I opened my eyes, someone purple was standing in front of me.
"Yaeger?" I asked.
He glanced over his shoulder with a scowl. "You seem to have a nose for trouble."
Yaeger stood empty handed, but Ryder was about twenty yards away in a defensive stance.
"Who are you?" Ryder snarled.
Yaeger held out his empty hands. "Merely keeping an eye on a customer."
Ryder spat on the ground. "This is Imperial business. Stay out of it."
"I'm sorry I can't do that."
Ryder opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again. He stared at Yaeger, then looked past him to me.
"I'm going to find out who both of you really are," he snarled. "And offering sanctuary to unregistered Outsiders is an Imperial crime."
I met his eyes, walking past Yaeger as I sheathed my sword. "And I'll be ready when you do."
Ryder scowled at us once more before vanishing.
Yaeger sighed and turned to me. "Do try to stay alive. I didn't give you that so you can kill yourself a day later." He glanced down at the sword at my waist.
"You're risking a lot, coming here, aren't you?" I asked. I assumed that Yaeger wanted to stay off the radar of any Imperial agent. If they found out about his blood, or worse, Helix's… "You must really hate the—" I stopped myself. It wouldn't be too smart to go mouthing off about treason in the middle of the street. I shrugged. "You know."
Yaeger was quiet for a moment. "Her mother's dead because of him," he finally said softly.
I was about to say something, but Yaeger frowned as he stabbed me in the chest with a thick purple finger. "You better not mess this up." He shook his head and turned to walk away. He muttered to himself. "What does she see in you? With your unholy succubi, too. The Abyss save me."
I watched Yaeger's departing form.
"Hurry," Allura said. "We should leave before Ryder gets any ideas."
I shrugged. "He knows where we're staying. Unless Crowley left behind a way to keep him out."
"The tunnels are the Beggar Guild's sanctuary. Ryder wouldn't dare violate them again," Allura said.
I scanned the surroundings but didn't see any signs of the Imperial agent. The three of us took off at a brisk pace, eager to reach the safety of the tunnels.
I let a trickle of Flame circulate between the three of us as we continued. It wasn't much, but I needed every boost I could get.
Ryder was going to be a problem. I needed to get strong enough to deal with him the next time we clashed.
First things first, though. I needed to open that third Node as soon as possible.
I sent a burst of Flame into my limbs and began walking even faster.
***
We soon arrived at the underground aqueducts. We stopped by Crowley's larger room, but he wasn't back yet, as Ryder had mentioned. We headed instead
to our room.
Once inside, I activated my spatial band and reached for the vial of elixir.
Ember wrapped her wing around my waist and drew me closer to her.
"I'm ready if you need me," she breathed into my ear.
Allura wasn't wasting any time, either. She sat on my bed and spread her legs wide, exposing her naked womanhood beneath her dress.
"You know I have to choose one of you," I said.
Ember tail traced a snaking path up my inner thigh before reaching my groin. She stroked my balls with the end of her tail as she licked her lips.
"We know," Ember said.
Allura slipped the dress off her shoulders. Her round breasts fell free, the nipples already stiff and pointing slightly upward. She shimmied her shoulders, which had the added effect of sending a ripple through her breasts.
Allura smiled. "We talked about it. We'll do whatever you need, master."
I looked to Ember, who was still at my side. It didn't seem fair that I had just slept with Allura, but she had been injured and needed it. It should have been Ember's turn, but I wanted to strengthen Allura's ranged attacks.
"I'm going to have to go with Allura," I said.
Ember nodded and gave me a quick kiss. A hint of disappointment lingered in her eyes.
I held her face in my hand for a moment. "I think it gives us the best chance for the tournament."
"I know. I'm not a fool. The more power you gain, the more I'll have to share you."
I raised an eyebrow. "You plan on adding someone to our group?"
Allura laughed lightly. "She means Helix. We talked about her, too."
My succubi were planning on adding another woman behind my back. Well, that wasn't the worst thing they could be doing without my knowledge. In fact, I kind of liked it.
"I wouldn't object to that, but Helix is right. She can't cultivate. When we kissed, I tried to probe her, send a bit of my Flame into her."
This time Ember giggled. "Really? And we thought we'd have to convince you to take her on." She glanced over at Allura. "Master was ahead of us!"
Allura clapped her hands. "Ha. I'm not surprised. It's why he's our master."
Ember's eyes returned to mine. "You can't open Helix's Node?"
"I don't think so. I couldn't sense anything, no channels, nothing. It's like she was barren."
