by SlyOkami
“Yeah, sorry about that mate, you’re still alive though so hey. Look at the bright side, you got some real training in.” Kyllix offered with an awkward chuckle.
Nerick and Ivara looked at the god with murderous eyes.
“Ah, right, kid you wanted to get started training huh?” Kyllix changed the subject as he turned to Shizuka, “Let’s do that, you can join up with your party before they leave alright?”
Shizuka raised a brow as she glanced at Nerick, crouching next to him. “Which…where you fighting this entire time? The Golem? The Spectres or the Basilisk?” she whispered in question.
Nerick’s wild eyes met hers, as did Ivara’s. “All the of the above?” he said in an exhausted voice, before reality spun around her.
Kyllix stretched out his arms, “Alright kid, let’s get started then.” He said as they appeared in another hall.
Shizuka was still processing through the shock of what Nerick had just told her.
“First, let’s take that sealing charm off you.” Kyllix said, and Shizuka felt a mild warmth over her wrist, snapping her out of her daze.
She looked down at her hand, “W-wait a minute!” she said as she saw the runes disappear.
“Nobody’s waiting kid,” Kyllix said with a wicked chuckle as she stood up and turned to face him, he was taking off his cloak and then shirt, revealing more muscles than she had ever seen on a person of his size. “Alright, let’s see how many times you pass out today. Well…Not that I’ll be counting!” he warned.
“E-Ehh!?” Shizuka shook her head as she stepped away, sensing the murderous vibes oozing out of him.
“Let’s start it slow, try to stay alive, and possibly awake too.” Kyllix told her, as he took a stance, stomping his right foot down and causing the ground to quake.
Suddenly the ground beneath them rose, shattering as pillars of stone grew upwards. Two in total, one of each of them. Shizuka had to try very hard not to fall off as she quickly rose with the pillar, peaking her eyes open when it stopped to find herself a mere foot away from hitting her head on the hall’s ceiling.
She dared a glance down, regretting that choice and immediately looking back up as her vision blurred from the chilling sight. She watched as Kyllix sat down over the little space they had around them, the pillars were very thin with barely any standing ground.
“Take care now,” His voice reverberated through her mind, as the pillars they stood upon suddenly parted away from one another, moving away from each other until they were several meters apart.
Shizuka had to grasp the pillar’s edges as to not fall off.
“Lesson one,” Kyllix said, as the pillars beneath them suddenly changed.
The bottom grew thicker, creating a hill beneath them, but the top where they stood on shrunk until she could barely fit both feet.
“I will not catch you if you fall, you will roll down all~ the way to the bottom, then you’ll have to climb back up.” He warned, as he stood on his right leg and with his left bent before him. His arms were crossed and his eyes closed, yet he stood perfectly in balance.
(“Not too hard,”) Shizuka thought, balancing herself over one leg and with her arms open wide.
“You must think this easy, yet why do you presume I’m making myself as small a surface as possible while you lay open wide and ready to be blown away?” Kyllix chuckled as he opened his eyes, the silver in them now glowing a bright white.
Shizuka watched as ethereal white energy burst out of his body, forming the upper half of a massive white fox with two tails all around him, yet its bottom was made up of dozens of thick tendrils that coiled around the hill beneath him.
“Balance yourself not with your body, but with your Spirit.” Kyllix said, as a strong breeze suddenly blew through them.
Shizuka felt it rush through her, as her entire expression paled white. She felt herself be blown off the hilltop, feeling her foot sliding off the stone, until finally finding herself tumbling down.
She fell, feeling the stone bruise her skin with every time she bounced off it, feeling it knocking consciousness out of her as she proceeded to roll down the rest of it.
All the way down to the bottom.
And when she regained consciousness, Shizuka was unsure how much time had passed.
A moment?
A minute?
An hour?
Maybe a day?
She was too dizzy and in too much pain to figure it out. But there was another question that popped into her mind.
“Is he trying to kill me?…I might not survive this…” She groaned while trying to sit up, then seeing her vision swirl, she decided to remain lying down for just a bit longer.
Ch 41 - Interlude; The Night Hunter
Druvia
The Capital
Selene Mansion
The next night
The sound of footsteps echoed through her dreams. She felt awake, yet she knew she was asleep.
She heard them coming closer as all she saw was darkness before her.
Until the footsteps sounded as if they were right beside her ear. Two bright pink eyes opened before her, and as they did she suddenly felt an unnatural hunger.
She felt those eyes see through her very being, as if invisible hands were caressing every part of her body and mind. She felt naked before them, as they defiled her every part, her every thought.
Kayle felt fear like never before, a fear that lingered even after she woke. Finding herself drenched in cold sweat and catching up on her breathing, as if she hadn’t taken a single breathe since the dream began.
She trembled, terrified of something, but couldn’t seem to remember what she had been dreaming about.
“Curious, is it not? You humans naturally sense our very presence, through fear no less. As if over the ages, your blood denies you from forgetting what we’ve done to your ancestors” Said a melodic voice, intoxicating Kayle’s mind and suddenly paralyzing her body.
As those demonic pink eyes appeared before her once again, as she remembered the dream she thought she had just forgotten.
Lust lay on all fours before her, slowly creeping over Kayle’s bed and towards her. Her glowing eyes captivating Kayle’s, until she was mere inches away from her.
Lust giggled in amusement, “As if, you’ve tried to evolve in a way that would allow you to sense us, yet it is more like you’ve devolved to naturally freeze up from our presence. Making you such…” She grabbed a bunch of Kayle’s hair, pulling it up to her nose before deeply breathing in her scent. “Such easy prey~”
The demon’s eyes warped, filling with pitch black veins as they locked staring into Kayle’s. “Ahh…If only mistress didn’t need you…It is too bad, I haven’t had my fill yet~” it giggled, forcing Kayle to glance to the side with her left hand as she caressed her chin.
Allowing Kayle to see the puddle of blood and gore that lay at her door, Dreadblade and Crimson Guard corpses laying torn to shreds, only recognisable by the xilfir’s distinct white hair and the crimson guard’s insignias lying about.
Kayle choked up as her eyes widened in further terror, seemingly forgetting to breathe all over again from the fear.
She wanted to cry, she wanted to scream.
But her mind had forgotten how.
“Ahaha~ Mistress should’ve sent me from the get go, although I might have had a bit too much fun on my way here!~” The demon chuckled, as she turned Kayle’s head to face her again. “Oh, here I am before a Lady, yet I forget to introduce myself! Hehe~” Lust neared in closer, licking Kayle’s left cheek with her serpentine black tongue, “Please forgive my manners…I haven’t been allowed out of my cage in sooo long~”
The demoness suddenly pushed Kayle down, now lying over her as her tongue slithered around Kayle’s ear. “My friends call me Lust, but it’s a shame that I actually like my full name unlike the rest of them…I am a Succubus Princess after all! Oh, my mother would disown me if I don’t introduce myself properly…”
&n
bsp; Lust leaned away slightly, giving Kayle full view of her naked crimson red body, yet the demon’s long tongue remained coiled around Kayle’s right ear. “I am Risera of the Isiroth legion, it’s a pleasure to meet you…Food-Oh, I mean, Thea Selene’s younger sister, Kayle~”
Risera giggled enthusiastically, as her eyes scanned Kayle’s paralysed body. Quivering as her tongue slither over to Kayle’s lips, barely able to hold herself back.
“I really should be taking you back to mistress but…While we’re still here…On a readily available bed…Hehe~” Risera leaned in closer while receding her tongue back into her mouth, “There’s also plenty of usable parts lying about…How about we have some fun?~”
Those words reminded Kayle’s body how to shed tears, and seemingly how to move, as she suddenly felt able to.
Kayle pushed the demoness off, rushing off the bed as she tried to escape.
She dashed towards her door, trying her best to ignore the sight and smell…Which proved to be a challenge in of itself, struggling not to bend over and puke.
When suddenly something entangled itself around her left leg, pulling it back and causing her to fall. Kayle splashed into the still fresh blood, groaning as she wiped it off her eyes, getting an eye-full of one disembodied head.
The man’s face although dead, was one of unbound pleasure.
“Haha~ I love it when they struggle~” Risera giggled, as she pulled Kayle back with her tail, thin and leather-black as it coiled around her leg.
Kayle kicked against it, trying to free her leg as she turned herself over, suddenly finding the demon’s long tongue slithering its way into her mouth. Risera now lay over her, and as their eyes met, Kayle once again felt paralysed.
Unable to pull away, as Risera’s puffy pink lips descending upon hers. Their mouths met, and Kayle felt herself being drained. She could feel her mana being sucked dry as the succubus’s tongue had its way with every part of her mouth, filling it entirely before slithering down her throat.
She felt her mind suddenly tiring, but her body was moving in the opposite direction.
And by the time the succubus had released her lips, Kayle thought she was going to go insane from her sudden aching lust.
“Oh, no need to rush, we have a few hours before I’d be late…” Risera chuckled wickedly as she watched Kayle’s expression of fear crumble into one of insane passion. “You’re only the starter though hun,” she licked her lips as her eyes suddenly widened, gleaming madness within them.
“Makaela, will be my maincourse~” The succubus giggled hysterically.
Ch 42 - The Resolved, the Fallen, and the Vile
Sin’Roz
Sin’Beni, Lahihr Desert Plains
Three Days Later
The convoy of six Dagen-pulled caravans swam across the ocean of sand, the large creatures easily dashing over the dunes as they pulled the massive land-ships. The sun was still setting behind them, giving them some light.
There was little wind, barely a breeze.
Yet ahead, a storm of sand raged.
Sandy razor winds twirled and swirled in a thick cone of death. Yet within them, barely visible, lay a sole figure.
Makaela gazed off at the incoming convoy, as it turned to avoid her hurricane.
She chuckled, a gleam in her eyes as they widened. “You think you can avoid me?” she hissed, her voice echoing forth and reaching the convoy’s inhabitants.
Ever since three days ago, she had been in a bad mood.
Raising her right hand before her, golden spiritual energy formed out of it, “Soul School; Spirit Form; Aether Rifle.” taking the shape of a rifle. A dwarven made weapon who’s diagrams and make she had studied profusely. Holding the weapon with her right hand, she took aim at the lead Dagen.
“Soul School; Soul Mark.” She chanted, as an ethereal golden blaze appeared at her barrel’s end. She moved onto targeting the next Dagen, as the blaze seemed to follow the first, circling around her as the creature moved.
“Second Mark” She chanted once again, a second blaze appearing towards the being she aimed at.
“Third Mark” She marked each beast, creating a total of six blazed before her.
Taking a step back, Makaela took aim at the front Dagen once again before clenching her weapon tightly with both hands.
“Behold fear, behold terror. Take a look, within the deepest recesses of the abyss. Receive a glimpse of what lurks, slithers, crawls and prowls in the darkness of the afterworld.” Makaela chanted, as her eyes glowed a fierce light. “Soul School; Nightmare!”
She fired her weapon, then moving over to the next target, firing once again before moving onto the third. She shot at every blaze, activating every mark.
Duplicating the spell, and making sure none of them missed. Each of the golden blazes suddenly burst forth as a grey flame, soaring onto their mark, their course changing as the Dagen moved.
And each hit, exploding into the Dagen’s faces. But the creatures seemed undisturbed by the flames, no damage seemed to have been done either.
Confusing the convoy’s riders for a moment.
That is, until each Dagen collapsed unconscious.
Slamming forward into the sand, seemingly immediately entering a nightmare as they began to growl, snarl and struggle in their sleep.
Following the confusion, panic filled the convoy in a wave. As guards rushed about the top decks, arming cannons and ballistae, taking aim towards Makaela on their south.
None of them noticing, not until it was too late.
That to their west, where the sun was still setting, a small army was heading their way.
Riding much smaller version of the convoy’s caravan, where the rebelling xilfir and bestia. With the goblins manning their own boat, although it didn’t stay very much on course as they haphazardly swerved back and forth.
But instead of creatures like the Dagen pulling them, the rebels where casting wind magic into their sails to move forward, going faster than the Dagen ever could.
And quickly catching up to the now-stalled convoy.
When they finally noticed the incoming ships, the convoy began realigning their siege weaponry and moving troops around.
But it was too late, the rebels were already upon them. The rebel ships surrounding the convoy as riflemen aboard them fired dwarven launchers at the convoy, shooting thick capsules that trailed smoke behind them as they flew. The capsules exploded on contact, spreading smoke alongside the dozens of others, and creating a massive cloud all around the convoy.
Blinding the guards from seeing the hundreds of hooks that gripped onto the caravans’ railing, and giving the rebels cover as they climbed up beyond the cannon holes that now lay open on either side of the ship-shaped caravans.
* * *
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5hvy-Uyq8E
* * *
And as the smoke began to clear, the agile and deadly xilfir, along with the hulking and powerful bestia, all appeared out of it. The guards faltered at the sight, where they expected barely geared rebels, they were met with killers in the making.
The cold bloodlust in the xilfir’s eyes, the furious hunger in the bestia’s snarls.
Each of those made the human and dwarven Sinbeni hesitate.
Something the rebels did the exact opposite of.
They charged the Sinbeni guard, bellowing in challenge as they mercilessly felled any in their way. Their sudden and relentless charge stunning the guards briefly, causing chaos to befall their chain of command as for several moments the officers were awe-struck by the rebel’s fearsome behaviour.
Several moments through which dozens lost their lives.
As arrows soared up from rebel ships, raining down upon the ship’s centre and causing further confusion.
As dreadblades appeared out of nowhere, their whips of lightning killing or at least injuring several, before disappearing from sight. Bestia warriors bashing their massive weapons through the guard’s front lines, while xilfi
r rogues stepped through, slicing and dicing like blades on a meat grinder.
Followed by the crazed goblin troop, as they climbed up one caravan last, having somehow thrashed their boat into it. The green skinned rebels wielded mighty iron shovels, hammers, pickaxes and…a bright one among them even held a frying pan, whilst also having mistaken a bucket for his helmet.
But their shabby equipment mattered not, as their bestial screams confused many just as much. The goblins leapt from side to side, running amok among the guard’s feet and knocking them over. While some climbed up the ropes. Swinging by a fight, panning the guard unconscious, and chuckling maniacally all the while.
The roar of battle reverberated through the convoy, as orders finally began to move across the guards. The officers trying to coordinate through the chaos and confusion, while they themselves fought off the insurgents.
But the guards were overwhelmed, and not just by the comically fearless goblins, but throughout each caravan. They were completely outnumbered.
Until, the rebels where suddenly outmatched.
As the decks quaked, the Sin Wyrms landing roughly in between the two sides, dividing the rebels from the guard. Wearing a sandy-brown cloak, hiding the entirety of their equipment, and most of their appearance.
One, in particular, stepped forth from the third caravan’s Wyrms, “You’re assaulting a council vessel. Back off now, or we shall show no quarter.” The grizzly man warned, his reptilian black gauntlets too large to hide.
“You should’ve opened with that,” Said Pyra as she appeared before the hulking man, her already small frame making her seem smaller before him than she actually was. “But we won’t mind keeping you boys busy, while the children continue their squabble.” She said with a chuckle, “Xilfir, Drakon!” then exclaiming in elven, and at her order the Dragon Knights appeared through bursts of shadowy smoke, facing off against the Sin Wyrms.
The Sin Wyrm scoffed in amusement, as he unzipped his cloak, pulling it off right after and revealing a full set of black Slayer armour beneath alongside the massive gauntlets he wore. The rest of the Wyrms did the same, each of them revealing that they also wore Slayer sets. “Murderers, we’ll have your heads for felling our Druvian brothers and sisters.” The large man warned.