Quiet Magics 7

A Grizzly Night's Work

Some things there were no words for, Rei decided as she dove out of the way of the devil's latest attack. This thing's arms were a perfect example. They weren't really arms at all. Dozens of disjointed bones and malformed muscle tissue seized and twitched in a way that gave the grotesque appendages a more tentacle like motion. But even that wasn't a proper word for what they were.

The diseased not-arm swept past the Senshi of fire in a wide arc before centrifugal force tore through rotting flesh, turning the limb into a disgusting projectile that flung gore across the narrow confines of the drainage canal. The creature didn't even seem to care. A new twisted appendage was already pouring from the wound to replace the one just lost.

Rei lunged forward, capitalizing on the devil's momentary one armed state. An ofuda materialized between her fingers mid-charge, the thin strip of paper already whipping itself ridged in the presence of the abomination she was closing on. Rei's hand shot up as she finished her prayer. The spirit ward flew forward, tagging the beast in the center of its deformed skull.

The reaction was not one that the young miko expected. The various yoma and oni she'd tagged before had simply frozen in place, making them easy prey for her friends. This creature didn't freeze. It exploded.

Hundreds of limbs erupted simultaneously from the horror in every direction. More than one found its way past Rei's guard as she sprung back from the unexpected onslaught, turning her evasion into a tumble across the gravel. The miko recovered on her third rotation, sliding into a low crouch and turning to get a better look at her handy work.

The creature remained, though gratifyingly it seemed to be in a considerable amount of pain as dozens of its new limbs tore at its skull in an effort to dislodge the offending ward. No, explode had unfortunately not been the right word. Some things there really were just no words for.

The disturbing multiplication of limbs ended suddenly in a shower of vile bits as the paper seal spent the last of its energy and crumbled to ash. What remained was slightly diminished in size, and, for just a moment, Rei glimpsed pale skin and emerald green folds quickly hidden as churning bile filled in the creature's latest wounds.

Just as the creature was about to begin advancing again, Beams of yellow light annihilated the filth encrusted ground in front of it from on high. Venus continued her bombardment from the top of the bridge, buying Rei a moment's breathing room to pull back towards Mercury.

The fire Senshi turned to her blue skirted companion, who had been studying the thing through her visor since it shambled from under the canal bridge just seconds ago. "What about Jupiter? Is she still alive in there?"

"I... I don't know. I had something for a second, maybe." Rei could hear the notes of panic in her friend's voice as the girl continued to frantically make adjustments to the sapphire gem at her ear which controlled her visor.

With a short cleansing breath, the Miko pulled out another pair of ofuda and began the prayer chants that would imbue them with spiritual energy. Since one of their own was trapped inside the monster, the usual modus operandi of judiciously applying overwhelming firepower wasn't going to be an option, and time was running out for Makoto. Even with the mantle of the Senshi upon her, she still needed to breath.

Once the spiritual weapons were ready, the Senshi of Mars gave a quick nod to Venus who unleashed another storm of brilliant energy into the space that separated the young priestess and the demon, this time screening Rei's approach as she prepared to once more engage the monster at point blank range.

Rei was closing fast when she felt an unearthly shift in the wind and noticed that her hair was standing on end and dancing with St. Elmo's fire. It was all the warning she got before the rapidly forming clouds above her suddenly disgorged their full fury into the nearby beast.

Mars flew back from the point of impact in a graceless tangle of limbs, skipping across the surface of the canal and rolling to a stop on the far gravel shore. The moist impact of scorched and putrid flesh that followed not only drenched her, but also painted the canal walls in an unholy wave of rusty red. Painfully, Mars lifted her head towards the point of impact.

The creature remained. The thing was only half formed, but still standing, it's previously vaguely humanoid shape utterly ruined. What remained was a wildly flailing mass of grotesque limbs sprouting from the periphery of a great charred hole which was formerly its torso.

At the center of the ghoulish abomination was Jupiter. It was hard to recognize her through the caked on layers of blood and filth that were once part of the demon, but amidst the flashes electricity still dancing in her hands, the profile of the Senshi of Storms could be picked out from the mess of her opponent. The girl was still embedded knee deep in the monster, but the creature seemed unwilling to consume her again while she held her lightning.

Mars pulled herself to her feet, wiping the muck from her face. Across the man-made river her teammate pummeled the beast they had been fighting with lightening charged fists, savagely trying to wrench herself free of the creature's bulk but clearly not having much luck. With each passing moment the creature was re-forming itself, sacrificing newly formed limbs to keep the storm Senshi off balance, only to replace those limbs nearly as quickly as they were immolated in lightening.

Looking around the battlefield, Rei found that the tactical situation hadn't changed much. Venus, still perched atop a nearby streetlamp, continued to hold a waiting beam at the tip of her outstretched index finger, hoping for a clear shot at their enemy. Mercury, who had recently vacated the canyon in favor of the railing of the nearby bridge, continued to scan the monster, though the girl did look much relieved.

Rei summoned up another ward but didn't commit the energy to charge it. "Mercury, how do we kill it?"

"I'm not sure. It's not like anything I've seen before. It's being held together by some sort of energy, but it's not life force." The blue haired Senshi didn't take her eyes off the creature. "Keep using the wards. They seemed to unbalance whatever power is holding it together."

Rei prepared to once more whisper her prayer, but another shift in the arcane winds stilled the words on her lips. As if by some unspoken sign, all the combatants turned as one to the peak of a low building above the canal.

Standing beside one another, silhouetted by the full moon, Uranus and Neptune stared down at the unfolding battle, each wrapped in their own aloof power and overwhelming mystique. Waves of invisible force swirled around them, rippling hair and cloth in unspoken fury. If the impressive display moved their opponent at all, it's flesh wrapped skull gave no indication.


Haruka could feel the corner of her lips turning up ever so slightly. That creature and its kind had hurt someone dear to her. Payback was going to be a bitch. "I'll pull Jupiter out. Get ready to crush it."

Out of the corner of her eye, the Senshi of Uranus saw the slight nod of her partner as the girl began calling upon the forces of the deep. With that Haruka flung herself towards the battlefield below like a comet. In the seconds spent hurtling through the air, the very sky itself shifted between her fingers, taking physical form. Starlight twisted in shimmering waves, becoming the wicked edge of a bejeweled scimitar.

The Senshi of the sky loosed her battle cry as she met the creature that was still trying to subdue Jupiter. Her talisman sung through the air, severing monstrous flesh and bone alike. As the Space Sword cleaved, its wielder collided violently with her entangled teammate, throwing both clear of the horror still reeling from the combined might of divine lightning and unearthly steel.

Haruka abandoned her blade to the ether from which it had come and wrapped her arms around the brunette she had pulled from the creature, rolling with the girl to pull her away from the demon even as a combined salvo from Neptune and Venus tore into the beast from on high.

The wash of overpressure carried bits of gravel, debris, and blood over the two girls, leaving an eerie silence with its passing. In the quiet Uranus lifted her head to look back at their foe. It's destruction had not been as tidy as the dustings to which Haruka was accustomed.

The creature remained, though now scattered across a deep crater in the gravel floor. Limbs and entrails decorated the whole of the battlefield, refusing to dematerialize as their previous otherworldly opponents had done, leaving a sea of blood and grizzly detritus. Haruka could feel bile rising at the back of her throat in response but it was the girl beneath her who actually chose to break the silence with her retching.

The Sky Senshi pulled herself to one knee, helping Jupiter lift herself enough to empty her stomach. Haruka awkwardly rubbed her friend's back in what she hoped was a soothing gesture, but couldn't bring herself to continue watching. The glimpse she had of the pool forming between the other Senshi's hands didn't look at all like food...

The other girls abandoned their various perches to land nearby. "Jupiter, are you..." Ami's voice sounded weak as she approached. Her progress slowed as she got closer, eventually evaporating a couple yards away, where the girl simply watched in growing discomfort as Makoto tried to spit the last vestiges of filth from her mouth.

"Well, that was sure disgusting" Venus supplied, trying to lighten the mood with an uneasy smile. "At least now we know what the shampoo is for."

The other girls groaned, but Makoto, despite her condition, couldn't help but laughing at the weak joke. Haruka spared a smile for her friend and offered the girl a hand getting back to her feet. With the taboo broken, the others quickly closed the distance to offer their own well-wishes to the poor, ichor covered warrior.

In moments all six girls were smiling and laughing at a hard won victory. Haruka backed from the circle, seeking out her lover. From the edge of the gathering, the two joined hands and watched as the younger, but more experienced warriors began to wipe themselves clean.

"It's strange" her lover said, "I somehow thought this would have been more difficult. Maybe this new enemy isn't as dangerous as we..."

Neptune's words were cut off when a massive wall of sinew and bone collided into her from behind, sending her stumbling into the dark flows of the canal. Haruka stared from the site of the splashdown to the space previously occupied by the Senshi of Neptune. A hideously misshapen face, devoid of features save oozing wounds, met her gaze before gurgling up a roar of challenge. It's monstrous hands were already descending on Uranus in a vicious double-fisted blow.


Late into the night, Usagi raced across the rooftops of Tokyo, carrying an odd wrapped bundle on her back. It was a bit embarrassing really, racing into battle with a impromptu beach towel sack slung over her shoulder like she was Santa or something. Most likely, though, her friends hadn't taken Pluto's dire warning seriously, and they'd be glad to have these supplies when she got there.

Of course, it was shocking that she was racing into the night at all right now, she thought as she soared over another intersection. When the first call had come in, Ami had said that the fight was over and that she just needed some help trying to track down the fleeing baddie.

Usagi would have helped, really she would have, but it was game night at the Tsukino house and her dad always got really upset anytime she tried to skip out. Besides, they were playing Monopoly and she already had Boardwalk and Park Place. That never happened. Sure, her mom won again anyway, but that didn't mater so long as she destroyed Shingo before she went down.

The second call had apparently been a bit more... urgent. Luna had to take it since Usagi was too busy building a vast financial empire of hotel chains to notice her communicator chirping in the bedroom. The moon cat eventually had to bite Usagi's ankle hard enough to draw blood in order to get her attention. It had hurt, of course, but Usagi did have to concede, at least to herself, that it had probably been necessary. Once she'd gotten Ami's message, she, of course, was off like a shot to help her friends.

Okay, well actually first she had run to the linen closet and gotten a great big fluffy beach towel to help her carry every bottle of soap, shampoo, conditioner, and deodorant she could loot from the bathroom. She had even grabbed her toothbrush and a tube of crest, just in case. Setsuna had not been very specific about what kind of toiletries they'd need to defeat this particular evil villain so Usagi tried to be thorough. Yeah, sure it sounded completely stupid, but Usagi trusted the Time Senshi, and if Setsuna said to bring this stuff, then bring it she would.

Usagi's flight ended on a rooftop overlooking one of the canal bridges at the edge of the ward. From the canal she could make out the flashes and thundering roar of magical battle, but that wasn't what immediately caught her attention.

Surrounding the canal on both sides of the street, people crowded to get a look at the battle below. Had she really taken this long to get here? Even the police and news crews were already set up, the former to barricade the combat zone and get the population to a safe distance, and the later to completely ignore those barricades in favor of getting a good video clip for tomorrow's news shows.

Firming up her resolve, the young super heroine leapt over the crowd to stand atop a streetlight at the edge of the canal, cutting a striking pose as she did so.

"This canal is meant to protect our streets from storms and rain, not to serve as a breeding ground for evil! I won't let you..." Usagi's speech ground to a halt as she finally took in the carnage below her. "Holy shit..."

The blonde's heroic posture wilted. Below, her friends were engaged in battle with a horrible corpselike abomination that seemed more that willing to sacrifice its own body parts to score a couple of hits. The battleground itself looked like something from a World War II move. There were craters and body parts everywhere. The entire scene, her friends included, was sprayed with blood. It was an absolute unholy mess.

A few flashes from the sidelines snapped Usagi back into action. Below her, on the bridge, Ami was using her ice attacks to herd the creature closer to Rei, who was waiting with a charged ward. The blonde jumped down to land beside her blue haired friend. "...So, I got your message. How's it going?"

Ami turned. "Sailor Moon, thank heavens! What took you so long?"

Usagi had the presence of mind to blush. "Eh, sorry about that. I'll explain later. So, what's the deal with the monster?"

"It's being held together by some type of energy I can't identify," Mercury dutifully reported. "Our attacks slow it down, but it just keeps re-forming. The only thing that seems to be having a lasting effect are Rei's spirit wards, but they aren't doing enough damage."

Usagi nodded, watching the battlefield like a hawk. This thing needed to be stopped, before one of her friends got hurt. "Right, so what's the plan?"

Ami fired off another blast of razor sharp ice, halting the thing's progress towards Makoto, who was working on charging up another Thunder Dragon. The following lightning blast reduced the creature to nothing more than a pair of legs. For a second Usagi thought that would be it, but almost instantly more guts oozed out of the two stumps that remained, restoring the creature to its former stature.

"It's range is limited," Mercury continued. "We have it penned in, but I think we need to saturate it with massive amounts of spiritual energy to finish it off. About the only thing I can think of is your healing magic."

Usagi gave a curt nod and set down the bundle she had been carrying. Ami had given her a quizzical look at that, but Sailor Moon chose to ignore the unasked question in favor of summoning the wand necessary to perform one of her earliest spells. "I'm ready. Everyone, keep it from jumping out of the way!"

The several girls nearest her gave a nod and began summoning up their own elemental energies. Several blast of arcane power crossed the canal, temporarily cutting off any means the creature had of escape. As the blasts flew, Usagi arced her wand in a wide circle around her body. "Moon Healing Escalation!"

The blast of pure healing energy washed over the battlefield towards the trapped monster, obscuring it from view for a moment with brilliant white light. When the flash cleared, the various disjointed organs and bones which comprised the creature simply fell away from one another, leaving yet another pile of gore on the ground below.

The warriors below didn't immediately drop their guard, instead wearily watching the pile of utter grossness for any signs of movement. Seconds passed and nobody moved. Usagi turned back to Ami. "Is that it? Did I get it?"

The blue haired girl blinked behind her visor. "Um... yes. I... I think that did it." Under her breath Usagi swore she heard her friend mutter something about hours of fighting and one attack.

Usagi smiled. "Good. Hey, good work girls," she called out over the railing of the bridge. The others didn't seem all that pleased with the sudden cassation of hostilities. Maybe she really should have gotten here sooner. She turned back to Ami, who was holding herself up against the railing, seemingly exhausted. "Hey, I guess I didn't need all this, then," she said, picking up the toothbrush and toothpaste from her makeshift sack.

The other girls made their way to the bridge, a noticeable lack of spring in their steps. Most just grumbled at Usagi as they gathered around her. The blonde took in the filthy state of her companions and her heart sank a little. "...on second thought, maybe it's a good thing that I did. Um, help yourself?" she offered weakly, shrugging at the pile of scented soaps at her feet.

Uranus was the first one to take her up on the offer, glaring at Usagi as she bent down to retrieve a bottle of shampoo. Behind her Neptune had summoned another sphere of water, in which Minako was already scrubbing her face.

"I... um, I'm really sorry I'm so late," the blonde apologized, scratching the base of one of her twin ponytails in embarrassment with the hand that wasn't awkwardly holding up her toothbrush.

Her apology was met with a splatter of gunk that Rei flicked at her in irritation. Looking down at the decidedly meaty chunk of nastiness oozing down the front of her armor, Usagi promptly screeched in disgust.

"Ewwww. Get it off! Get it off!" Usagi hopped around and shook the top of her uniform with one hand trying to dislodge the offending bit of monster. Her struggles were ended abruptly when a fuming Jupiter stood and stared down at her through layers of caked on blood and grime. The look in the Storm Senshi's eyes was about as hostile as she'd ever seen from her normally cocky friend, certainly the most hostile look the girl had ever directed at Usagi anyway.

Usagi stood pinned under her friend's frustrated gaze as Jupiter swiped at her, neatly relieving her of the toothpaste and brush that she was still holding. Without breaking eye contact, the filthy brunette squeezed nearly half the contents of the tube onto the bristles of the brush, and then jammed the thing into her mouth, scrubbing harshly until a frothy pink foam formed at the woman's lips.

Wordlessly Jupiter spit the spent toothpaste from her mouth. Usagi looked down and flinched at the flecks of dark red in the bloody pink foam as the Storm Senshi handed her back the brush.

The blonde laughed weakly and tried to protest receiving the now forever tainted implement, but when she met Makoto's fierce gaze again she promptly decided that discretion was indeed the better part of valor and uneasily thanked her scary friend for returning the toothbrush.

The tension held for a few moments longer but eventually Jupiter turned to get in line where several of the other girls had already queued up to take advantage of Neptune's improvised shower.

"We should probably all have an official team meeting," Ami offered. "Tomorrow afternoon, maybe? At the usual place?"

Several tired nods of assent made their way around the assembled girls. "Good," the blue haired Senshi continued. "Then I suggest we leave before the police decide to come over here and make us clean this mess up."

The thought of mopping up what remained in that canal was so terrifying that Usagi immediately found the wisdom in her friend's observation and excused herself.

Finding themselves horrified at the prospect as well, the remainder of the assembled warriors of Love and Justice also bolted off into the night, leaving the ruined battlefield to someone more qualified to deal with these sorts of things; preferably someone with hazmat suits.


The buzzing of her alarm clock tugged at Hotaru's awareness, forcing her to abandon the embarrassingly pleasant dream she'd been indulging. Grudgingly she reached across her pillow, grasping blindly for the offending source of noise.

The pleasant haze of semi-conscious eroded suddenly when, through no volition of her own, the insistent buzzing violently ceased. That wasn't what the snooze bar sounded like... and her hand was nowhere near the clock.

Hotaru's awareness came further into focus when she noticed that the rhythmic rise and fall beneath her was not a pillow-like feature. Uncertainly she opened her eyes.

The field of bright red silk she was nestled in was less distressing that she thought it should be given that it was very much not the color of her bedding. Slowly she craned her neck up towards the horizon of her now quite clearly living pillow, only to freeze completely when she realized she was staring into the face of the very man she had so recently been dreaming about.

Holding her breath, Hotaru delicately disentangled herself from the man who had been sleeping next to, er... rather underneath her. For a few uncertain seconds Hotaru struggled with how much of the previous night was a dream and how much was reality.

In a quick panic, she looked down at herself, only to let out a sigh of relief when she discovered that she was still in the night close she had changed into early last evening. Clearly some parts had just been a dream. Ranma was very much a man, though, and that definitely contradicted her hazy memories of the previous night.

Vaguely she recalled the boy carrying her bridal style into the bedroom. In her dream, she had actually been in a wedding dress at the time. She seemed to recall being thrown to the bed... had they been kissing or was that just the fantasy?

As Hotaru looked around the room, she found herself vaguely disappointed that she didn't discover the ravaged remains of a flowing white gown. Her comforter was piled up in the corner though, and several of her dresser drawers were still open... the result, she recalled with a blush, of a rapid hunt for appropriate clothing.

Her blush deepened when she turned back to the bed to see the still sleeping martial artist sprawled uncomfortably across half the double matress. Even if the better parts of her dream hadn't happened, she had still given the boy a hell of a peek.

Trying to put that thought out of mind was going to be the challenge of the day. The girl shuffled over to her closet to fetch her school uniform. Once in hand she glanced back at her sleeping rescuer, contemplating changing right there in front of him. The thought brought the blush back full force.

Best not to... What if he woke up? She doubted she could withstand the embarrassment of giving him another free show, and he probably thought she was being too forward as it was. Her behavior in the guest room last night had been outright scandalous.

Maybe she should wake him up and say goodbye though? Hotaru fidgeted with her night shirt, uncertain what the polite course of action was when waking up in bed with a cute boy. He looked peaceful, though, and if the shattered remains of her alarm clock were any indication, then he probably didn't like being woken up before he was ready. It was probably best to let him sleep.

Gathering the rest of her bathing supplies, Hotaru made her way out into the hall. She was just turning around to close the door when her adopted guardians appeared stumbling around the corner from downstairs. Quickly, and with perhaps a bit more force than she intended, Hotaru shut the bedroom door and pressed her back to it as the two older women approached.

"Good morning Hotaru-chan," Michiru bleared sleepily. She was dripping wet and only standing with the help of her equally drenched and bedraggled partner.

"Wass'up?" Haruka continued, rolling her head to look crookedly at the younger girl.

"Nothing!" Hotaru squeaked. Sure, that sounded perfectly innocent. "Um... shower...school." she mumbled, hoping that her parents were too exhausted to probe further. Thankfully the two women just shrugged at one another and continued their unsteady trek down the hall.

Hotaru was tempted to ask them about their hunt. Clearly it had been hard if they were just getting in now, but starting a conversation might lead them to asking questions about Ranma, which in turn might lead to questions about why he was sleeping in the wrong bed right now. Hotaru would really need to get some answers to that particular question herself soon.

Once her guardians disappeared into their room, Hotaru released the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding and quickly made her way to the bathroom. School was going to seem intolerably long today.


A burst of blue flame lit the otherwise dim room, casting a web of shadows along the rough brick walls for a brief instant. The flash couldn't have been that bright, but Yuki had been crying in this terrible hole for what seemed like a lifetime now. She struggled against the chains that held her, turning to try and make out whatever new horror the brief light heralded.

She saw Sakura of course... wrapped in a tattered cloak and hanging all but motionless now, like a broken marionette, at the heart of a vast network of chain. It wasn't really her anymore, Yuki knew. That thing had killed her the first night... cut her open and hollowed her out while she screamed. After that, it hadn't been Sakura anymore. It was wearing her... using the chains to make her move... like a puppet.

Yuki would be next. Sakura told her so... Sometimes the Sakura puppet would talk to her. The thing inside of her would crush words out of the dead girl until nothing whispered out, and then somehow suck air back into her rotting lungs.

"My my, Kyton, what a wretched little nest you've built for yourself." The voice belonged to a girl. Yuki had never seen her before. She stood just past the Sakura puppet, from where the burst of light had shown. "The reek of human excrement suits you," the girl continued. "Honestly, why did you even bother to leave home if you were just going to re-make it here?"

The child couldn't have been older than twelve or thirteen, right at the start of becoming a woman. She was nude save for her own cloak, this one made of midnight black feathers that contrasted her ivory skin. The child was smiling, almost playfully. Given the surroundings, the expression was terrible.

"Erinyessss..." the Sakura puppet hissed as it was lowered before the girl by the dozen or so chains that vanished into its cloak. "Welcome. How is... your guest?"

The girl's smile dissolved into a scowl. "The old man is secure. My children are tending to him. We grow tired of guarding the old fossil though. Has the Baron completed his task?"

Silence reigned for a few seconds before the Sakura puppet sucked in a rasping breath of air. "I... do not... know. I have... lost... his presence... in the city... above."

"What?" The girl's voice had gone as cold and emotionless as Ice. "What do you mean you lost his presence?"

"He is... gone." Sakura's dead voice explained. "I sent... one of my... lemure... to investigate." The puppet craned it's broken neck upwards, snapping several vertebrae to mimic contemplation. "It was... also destroyed."

Yuki shivered in her bonds at the thought of that creature, thanking whatever gods might hear her that it was dead. The monster that wore Sakura had used the parts it had removed from her friend to make the horrid thing.

The young girl paced back and fourth in the darkness, her cloak ruffling at her back in her agitation as though it were a living thing itself. "This wasn't part of the Master's plan. The Baron was supposed to kill the boy and then see to the seals."

"Several are... in motion. The Master... has mortal agents... tending to them." The puppet lowered it's head again. "I will see... to those. You... must contact... the Master. He... will know... how to find... the others."

The girl, Erinyes, halted her pacing. "What of the old man? With the Baron gone we are no longer bound by his bargain. Can I kill the fool?"

For several seconds, the Sakura puppet didn't speak. The chains above rattled and slithered against one another as the creature contemplated its answer. "Not yet... I will investigate... the Baron's fate. If I do not... find answers... then we may need... to draw them... from your guest."

"Simple enough" the girl dismissed. "As powerful as he is, it seems he is not immune to the charms of my children." Then the girl turned her head to Yuki and smiled. "So, Kyton, do you intend to go to the boy's home yourself, or will you send another of your wretches?"

Yuki felt her heart begin to hammer faster in her chest as the chains that bound her tightened. The corpse of her friend swayed across the room to hang before her. Yuki was forced to meet the lifeless gaze of the Sakura puppet, its sunken eyes staring from pallid flesh without focusing. "I will send... another lemure." The face of her friend twisted into a grin, revealing the network of needles inside the dead girl's mouth which now controlled her facial expressions. "Anyway... I should change... into something... more terrified."

At that, Yuki felt a scream force its way from her throat. She would continue to scream for many hours to come, and when the screaming finally stopped she wouldn't be Yuki anymore.


Author's Notes:

Wow... It's been a long time. So, I'm not dead. That's the good news. I also still write on occasion, which is more good news.

The bad news is that I still don't get much time for this particular hobby, so there will be delays... very long delays. I'm not giving up, though, and I still love writing these characters and this story.

With luck the next installment will arrive faster than this one did.

Also, Some have speculated that the monsters I'm using look slightly familiar. After this chapter I can say without spoiling anything that yes, I am using the devils from D&D as the inspiration for my villains. I'm taking a lot of liberties with them, but they should be vaguely recognizable. Don't assume that I'm necessarily using the same power list you'd find in the bestiary though.

Finally, I haven't talked to my pre-readers in year, so this chapter has received only cursory proofreading. Expect errors. Feel free to send me a private message if you find any and I'll get them cleaned up when I can.

Thank you everyone for your support.