by Jason Herc
Ryder laughed. "The great hunter. Found at last. I knew you looked familiar." He didn't bother to look my way.
I pointed my sword at Vessa. She smiled and waved back. My infernal Flame begged to be let free. Fuck it.
My body burst into black Flames of fury.
Ryder finally looked over. "What's that?" He laughed again. "Fool. Did you teach him that, Yaeger?"
"Where is she?" I roared. Black tendrils of Flame wrapped around my sword.
"She's already dead," Yaeger said softly. "Her Flame is gone."
Vessa pouted. "Spoilsport." Her hands twitched and something hurtled toward us.
The round object covered in a tangled mass of purple hair rolled toward us. I didn't need to see the face to know who that was.
I was going to charge forward like a madman as my rage burned hotter and hotter.
Yaeger laid a hand on my shoulder. "Not yet."
I whirled on him, ready to attack anyone or anybody. "You would let him get away with this?"
Yaeger's purple face darkened. "Vengeance that fails is no vengeance. Wait. They come."
Ryder hadn't heard us. He cocked his head sideways. "Are you surrendering? You know the Emperor will have your head as well. I had hoped to witness your famed skill."
"Hold," Yaeger said quietly. "Hold."
I quelled my infernal Flames enough to quiet the bloodlust in my ears. I heard a low rumble. The others heard it, too.
A kaleidoscope of colors burst from the street behind me as sect members of all shades arrived. At their head was Crowley.
Ryder frowned. "What's this? You think you can intimidate me? I represent the will of the Obsidian Emperor."
Crowley hobbled forward. "Intimidate? No. If my guess is correct, this man here aims to kill you." He pointed at Yaeger. Crowley gave me a slight nod as well.
I looked back at the sect members. Why were they here? How had Crowley roped them into coming?
Crowley turned to the sects behind him. He raised the beggar's cup that he always carried.
"As the bearer of the Dire Grail, I summon thee. Rise up for the Abyss." Crowley spoke in a formal, ceremonial voice.
"What? No—" Ryder's voice was drowned out by the roar of the sect members responding to Crowley.
A staff appeared in Crowley's other hand. He aimed its tip at Ryder. "You could have been content enslaving demons and isolated Seekers. Instead, you chose to snatch members from the sects themselves."
The sect members behind him murmured angrily.
"Why would Ryder even bother to do that?" I whispered to Allura and Ember.
"For power," Allura replied. "All in the Abyss hunger for power. He wanted an army."
I glanced at the mass of demons and Seekers behind Ryder. "But he's an Imperial agent. Doesn't the Blood Army fight for him?"
Yaeger heard us whispering. "The Blood Army despises Imperial agents. They think them to be slinking cowards. Which they are. No reputable Seeker would stoop so low as to enslave other Seekers, not even a Blood Army soldier."
There were agitated shouts from both sides. Seekers appeared on the rooftops of the buildings surrounding us, as if summoned by Yaeger's words. They wore red bands on their right upper arms. The Blood Army.
Ryder glanced up at them and scowled. "Stand down!" he yelled at them. "This is none of your business."
A Blood Army soldier in a black cloak, who stood on the steeple of a church-like structure, laughed. "Of course not. These dregs are beneath us. We are simply observing for our entertainment. Please, dance for us, little demons."
I looked up at the Blood Army. None of them had drawn their weapons, and they stood motionless. Their sight was unnerving, but at least they had indicated they wouldn't interfere.
Crowley ignored the Blood Army and Ryder. He turned to the sect members. "I asked you to come here to bear witness to the truth. The seed of Myrddin stands before you, ready to fulfill the prophecy."
Ryder cried out. "What is that old fool blabbering about?"
Shit. I had an idea of what Crowley might have done to round up the sect members on short notice.
Crowley turned to me. "Show them."
Damn. He was dumping this all on me last minute without any notice. Just like a regular asshole boss.
"Show them what—" I began to ask, but Crowley spoke over me.
"He who draws the souls from the stone shall be the true heir to the Abyss."
Yes. Release me. The infernal voice whispered, now of all times. It was quiet, though, not angry. In control.
I looked at Crowley, who simply watched me expectantly. I could feel hundreds of other eyes resting on me from all three group.
What was I supposed to do?
Let me out.
The stone around my neck grew warm. My infernal Flame, which was already surrounding my body, surged outward, then drew back. It tried to worm its way into my memento, but I held it back. Why?
No, there was no reason to hold back now. This wasn't the time to be in control. I stared at Helix's head on the ground.
This was the time to let go.
With a roar, I let the black Flames have their way. They eager reached for the stone at my chest. The Soulstone.
The Soulstone grew hotter and hotter. My infernal Flame battered against it, as if trying to open something. It reminded me of opening my succubi's Nodes, but this was with my infernal Flame.
Suddenly, the resistance snapped open. But instead of my Flame pouring into the Soulstone, Flame was pouring out of it.
A sheath of dark Flames, darker than the blackest midnight, poured out of the Soulstone and washed over me. It must have been visible to the others as well, because I heard shouts.
The flood of infernal Flame pouring out of the Soulstone was accompanies by a chorus of ghostly screams. A vortex of blackness swirled around me, and for a moment, I couldn't see anything. When the infernal energies settled down, I was covered from head to toe in a living armor of black Flame.
"Behold!" Crowley cried. "The true heir of the Abyss. Aidan Aurelius, from the line of Ambrosius Aurelius himself."
My true name, the one I'd sworn my dying parents to never reveal. Had Crowley known all along? So much for masking my identity.
The sect members roared in unison, shaking their fists and weapons at Ryder and his small army.
I turned to face Ryder as well. His face had turned pale. "No. Impossible." He took two steps backwards. Vessa inched behind him as well.
Yaeger spoke softly, barely a whisper. "Now. Now is the time to unleash your rage."
Yaeger crouched, ready to lunge forward. Crowley readied his staff. I could hear the stampeding sound of the sect members screaming war cries as they ran forward as well. The Blood Army watched, still motionless, from their rooftops, despite Crowley's treasonous proclamation.
The rage of a million souls poured out of the Soulstone and into me.
I nearly exploded with the initial flood of infernal Flame before I remembered to send it circulating through Allura and Ember's Nodes.
They both cried out in pain as their bodies transformed. Ember's body turned a pale, sickly white color, but her eyes and claws were black. Her wings lengthened and grew barbed edges. Her Bloodstained tail developed a cluster of dark red spikes. Orange Flame, intermingled with black specks, swirled around her body.
A vicious set of claws grew out of Allura's feet, and her mouth elongated and transformed into a beak-like structure. Her whole body turned black, in contrast to Ember's coloring. The feathers of her wings turned into a dark, crystalline substance. She shrieked a horrid sound as she beat her wings, which clattered noisily. A mixture of orange and black Flame swirled around her as well.
I could see the sinews of power dancing about their limbs with my Swordsight even though they were barely moving.
"Master," they both said. "We are ready to serve."
The battle had already erupted around us, sect members clashed with Ryder's forces. I searched the chao
s for something to kill.
There.
I spotted Vessa's long hair streaming behind her as she dodged under a sect member in bright yellow clothing. As she passed under him, the sect members body broke apart into large chunks as if suddenly cut with a dozen sword cuts.
I ran straight at her.
A Seeker leaped at me, his foot raised in a flying kick. I spotted the black collar around his neck confirming that he was with Ryder.
Not that it would have mattered if he wasn't. I was already drawing upon the strength of my Soulstone-infused infernal Flame.
I stepped into the air, summoning a burst of infernal Flame under one foot, then the other, as I walked up the air itself to meet him.
I slashed at the incoming attacker. There was no special technique, just brute force and speed. My Flame-coated sword swept through the Seeker, splitting him from his groin to his neck.
I dove through his body as it split, each half going to either side of me.
"Vessa!" I screamed as I landed back on the ground in front of her.
My eyes burned, and I had trouble concentrating with all of the sight lines around me. They were stronger, unlike the usual flickers I experienced.
Vessa twitched her fingers, and I realized that they were all hers, threads of her Flame crisscrossing across the area in front of me. A sect member stepped backward toward her while fighting someone else, and the threads sliced his foot off at the ankle.
"You think you can handle me?" Vessa snarled, all traces of her former light-hearted nature gone. Despite her words, I sensed fear in her aura.
I replied with a Flamestrike. A black arc of Flame shot out from my blade, stronger than before, sweeping aside Vessa's lethal netting
Vessa dodged to the side while weaving more threads with her fingers.
Allura descended from above Vessa. Allura hand turned into a storm of needles, and a hurricane-like Swarm surrounded her, destroying everything near her.
Ember barreled forward, her entire body glowing with infernal-streaked bright orange Flame, like some demonic tiger. She hurtled through the threads Vessa threw at her, snapping them easily without being cut.
Vessa's eyes widened in fright. Allura was preparing to dive into her, but I raised my hand.
"No. She's mine."
I flew forward, propelled by the force of my Flame. My sword slashed through thread after thread.
Vessa threw up a final desperate defense. A web of threads appeared in front of me, but Allura swooped through it, the storm of needles around her shredding the web.
I lunged through the opening, slicing Vessa's right hand off.
She screamed and grabbed the bleeding stump with her left.
I slashed three more times in quick succession.
Vessa's flopped on her back, both her hands and feet now gone.
My infernal Flame hungered for more. A tongue of Flame, a third dark hand, reached for Vessa. I yanked it back to me.
I would do this with my own hands.
I stepped forward until I was standing over Vessa. I crouched.
She was screaming, but I couldn't make out what she was saying. I didn't care. I plunged my hand into her chest. Cartilage and bone snapped as I held her still beating heart in my hand.
My infernal Flame spoke. Lower. Go lower.
At first I didn't understand, but tendrils of my Flame coursed through Vessa's body toward her gut. There it was. Her Core.
As a more experienced Seeker, Vessa had managed to compress her Flame into a dense enough cycle that it formed a Core. My infernal Flame whispered to me.
Take it. Somehow, I knew that ripping her Core out of her still living body would cause her more pain than if I simply crushed her heart.
I slid my hand down her torso, ripping skin, muscle, and sinews as I peeled her abdomen open. Just below her stomach was a golden orb.
I grabbed it. Vessa, somehow, was still conscious. She screamed even louder.
My infernal Flame greedily began sucking the Flame from Vessa's core, absorbing her strength.
Vessa's screaming abruptly ended as her flesh withered, then turned to a gray ash that blew away. I was left holding little more than a few drops of blood.
The Flame I had taken from Vessa coursed through me and my two succubi, filling us with new strength. I would have opened Ember's second Node, right there and then in the middle of the battle, but something else caught my eye.
Ryder.
Ryder had pointed at Yaeger while running away. A horde of demons and Seekers swarmed onto Yaeger. His golden blade flashed, cutting down foe after foe, but more kept coming.
Meanwhile, Ryder slinked away to the edges of battle.
I paused, some semblance of my rational mind returning, now that my infernal Flame was partially sated from consuming Vessa.
Should I help Yaeger?
Yaeger roared, trying to take another step toward Ryder's direction. More Seekers moved to block his path.
I knew what Yaeger would want. Vengeance. I turned and ran after Ryder.
A Seeker in a simple loin cloth stepped in front of me. He clapped his hands, and an explosion of sound threw me backwards.
My infernal Flames had already coated my body again before I hit the ground. I rolled to my feet. He clapped his hands again, but this time, I could trace the contours of his technique with my Swordsight.
I slashed through the sonic attack and launched a Single Point Strike, my body turning into a black flaming spear. My attack gritted to a stop as the soldier raised his hands and sent the aura of his Flame back at me.
Shit. I didn't have time for this.
Allura. You and Ember take care of him.
To my surprise, Ember joined Allura in a mental reply. Yes, master. It seemed that our heightened powers from the Soulstone affected my bond with my succubi.
A tornado of needles from the sky consumed the soldier. Ember leaped into the middle of the tornado. I didn't have time to see what happened.
I dodged around them and continued towards Ryder. He was on the edges of the battle, still running.
"Ryder!" I screamed. "Face me, you coward!" I let the infernal Flames subside a bit, saving my strength.
Ryder glanced over his shoulder. When he saw me, he slowed to a stop.
"You?" He nervously looked past me into the thick battle behind us. A slow smile spread across his face. "No pets? No old men to babysit?" He drew his white sword. "All isn't lost, yet."
I approached slowly. "I killed Vessa, and I'm going to kill you now."
Ryder frowned at the mention of Vessa, but he shrugged. "If she couldn't even beat you, she wasn't worth keeping around."
My body burst into black flames again.
Ryder snarled, "You little shit. You're nothing."
Let me out. There it was again, my infernal Flame's voice.
I released a portion of my infernal Flame. A dark shadow stepped out of me. It was my mirror. It even held a dark shimmering blade of nothingness.
My Shadowform. Yaeger had warned me about it.
My body still burned with black Flame, fueled by the power of the Soulstone, as I continued feeding the Shadowform.
Ryder did a slight double-take at my Shadowform. Then, he screamed and sent his Flamestrikes.
I dodged to the left and rushed Ryder, while my Shadowform went to the right.
I lunged forward with a Single Point Strike, while my Shadowform copied me.
Ryder whirled his white blade, blocking my attack, then my Shadowform's. He grunted as he stepped backward from the force of our blows.
I switched to a Crossblade, increasing the strength of the blows. First a double Crossblade. Then, four blades, then eight. I pushed further then I had ever gone before. Sixteen. Thirty-two.
My Shadowform pressed Ryder from the opposite side. Ryder cursed and spun in a circle, his blade sweeping a wide path.
Our Crossblades clattered against Ryder's spinning vortex. He somehow snuck his blade in between a
ttacks, scratching my left arm on a shoulder. I felt an echo of pain and knew that my Shadowform had also suffered a minor injury.
I stepped backward. He was still too fast and too skilled to overcome through a split tactic.
I summoned my Shadowform back to me. I would need all of my strength.
Allura! Ember! To me!
Coming. One moment.
My Shadowform melded back into my body the moment I sent up a Sheet Cut to block a series of slashing attacks from Ryder.
A wall of black Flame rose from my Sheet Cut, then exploded outward.
Ryder covered his head with his arms and sword while he braced against the explosion. I pushed forward, fencing in the Second Stance, probing him first with my Living Lines, then launching into another Single Point Strike.
Each technique was faster, stronger, more potent with the backing of my infernal Flame. I managed to cut Ryder once on his side, but it was a shallow wound.
He was still too damn fast.
A black shape blurred past me. Ember. She was a spinning cannonball with a scythe whirling about her.
Ryder swung frantically at her, but her Flame armor didn't break. She dropped her scythe and grabbed Ryder with both arms around his torso.
A storm of needles descended upon the two of them.
Don't worry, Allura said in my mind. My needles will only find Ryder.
I took that as invitation to step into the cloud of needles. I could barely see with the angry buzz of needles all around, but miraculously, none struck me, just as Allura had promised.
I tried to slice Ryder's throat, but even with Ember holding him, he managed to twist around, putting Ember in the path of my blade. I drew my attack back, and tried to stab an open leg, but Ryder again swiveled to put Ember's own leg in the way. I stopped my attack short again, frustrated.
Ryder and Ember tumbled to the ground, wrestling. Allura's needles had been stabbing Ryder, and he was covered in tiny wounds, but the Imperial agent had barely slowed.
I couldn't get a clean strike, not while Ember was wrapped up with him. Without her, I wasn't fast enough to land a clean strike, either, though.
Do it, master. Like before, with the Shadowling. Ember locked eyes with me for an instant as she grappled with Ryder.
