The Brotherhood of the Abyss

CHAPTER IX – THE SECRET WORLD

The creature revealed by the smoke is both impressive, and repulsive. This Xafris is a far outcry from the ape-like monster guarding the Worldly Wanderers. In fact, it doesn’t even look like a Xafris at all. This one, a female seeing on the body shape is like a creature halfway between a Sphinx and a Harpy. She is of a normal human height, had pale skin and a slender frame. She had beautiful face, too beautiful in fact. For arms she got bird’s wings where clawed hands stick out on both ends. Her long flowing hair cascades to the ground like dark ink. To complete the ominous image, she had a tail of a lioness and a poisonous sting.

     “She is a different breed,” Boniface whispered at Duncan, seeing she doesn’t have the usual Xafris characteristics.

     The Xafris had a subduing effect on the surroundings. Duncan wonders if the creature’s repulsive appearance is to be blamed. The already gloomy atmosphere had turned morbid as if things around had darkened to a shade of grey.

     “So this is your true form,” the Grandmaster grunted lazily.

     “Few people had seen me in this state, one of them is my master,” the Xafris smiled malevolently, oblivious to the fact that her display of intimidation had no effect.

     “Who is this master you are speaking,” Kane asked sharply.

     “You don’t have the right to know, I sworn to keep my master’s identity a secret,” she hissed, showing a pair of poisonous canines.

     Duncan almost hurls a magical curse when the Xafris stands up from the mock tomb.

     “I’m not here to fight,” the Xafris said, “unless you insist on doing so. I have seen enough bloodshed to haunt me for centuries.”

     To show she meant her words, the Xafris folds her wings around her body, the same way a bat does when hanging upside down from a branch.

     “We took a different path to salvation,” the Xafris continued, “Unlike Worldly Wanderers we hold faith and loyalty above anything else. A contract between master and servant is an unbreakable bond. Treachery is punishable by death. This is the least we could do for turning our backs from the Creator.”

     “Why are you saying this to us?” Kane asked.

     “To give you the chance to turn back, violence was never the answer. Insist on forcing your way to my concealed place and expect a grim fate.”

     “So the secret you are guarding is a secretive location,” Velruthiel said.

     “Correct My Lady,” the Xafris glared.

     All eyes are fixed at the menacing form of the Xafris. The Grandmaster never dares to blink and Duncan is forcibly reminded of an old professor scrutinizing a book.

    “Your mind now speaks of something,” the Grandmaster grunted under his hood, “Yet it was devoid of useful memories a while ago.”

     The fearsome eyes of the Xafris glowed like molten irons.

     “You could read minds! What kind of evil are you?” She shrieked the feathers of her wings ruffling.

     “And your mind tells a story. Your master is a clever one. He used spells to clear your mind so no one can decode your secrets,” Melchari said to the Xafris.

     “It’s upon my request. What if one day I’m confronted by people like you? Whenever I assume the form of the effigy, my mind is cleared of memories. In this way no one will infiltrate my thoughts during my sleep,” the Xafris growled.

     “This explains why she seems so inanimate when she disguised herself,” Duncan said to himself.

     “And you also don’t have the memory of your master,” Velruthiel asked the Xafris.

     “Again it’s upon my request. I will only remember my master and the place I’m guarding when he is near. This is to protect his identity,” the Xafris said proudly.

     “You are serving a master you don’t remember and guarding a place you never knew,” Velruthiel said at the creature half amazed and half surprised.

     “This is the way of the Xafris that mortal men won’t understand. It’s all about undying faith. We will carry out our Master’s will without question,” the Xafris said impressively which left Boniface in shock.

     “So you preferred death over betrayal,” Boniface grunted.

     “But my master do instructed me to open my secret to anyone satisfying my conditions,” the Xafris sneered.

     “The Poem,” Duncan thought after decoding the Xafris’ thought.

     And Melchari stepped forward to recite the Poem aloud, making the Xafris suspicious.

     “Don’t know where you’re getting your information, to be truthful you’re a band of shady characters,” the Xafris glared.

     “Indeed we are, and I see you let two girls enter your concealed place,” Duncan said coldly.

     Through their skills of gazing inside thoughts, they could see faint images inside the Xafris memories; an unmistakable profile of a young woman walking through an illuminated entrance behind the Memorial. The scene vanishes and reforms and another young woman is being ushered to the same illuminated entrance behind the Xafris. This happens in a span of days. The images are grainy, the after-effect of protective enchantments.

     “There is something behind you,” Melchari said shrewdly.

     “Go ahead then, let’s see if you will find any. You must have my consent to open the passageway. As what your Poem suggests, you must satisfy my conditions first, as what those girls had accomplished. And don’t bother reading my mind; I don’t remember how they did it either. And now enough of your questions, it’s my turn. Who are you and what do you want!” The Xafris growled with an air of a lady shooing away a bunch of meddling kids.

     The Grandmaster growled back: “You don’t have the right to know either.”

     They had a brief staring game with the Xafris maintaining a determined face. This is nothing however on how the Grandmaster glared. In the shadow of his hood unseen by the Xafris a terrible aura is emanating; a murderous energy spewing like venom.

     “You are a desperate one are you; then heed your Poem. Satisfy the clues. Kill me if you like and it will be an honour. A Xafris aspires to die protecting the master’s secrets. It’s by then we are able to behold the Creator without conviction,” the Xafris laughed.

     Duncan didn’t really like the idea of decoding a riddle in the middle of the woods while facing a suicidal fiendish apparition. But they are left with no other choice. Duncan recalls the Poem; the second stanza is about how the revelation will be shown only to the strongest, the true Champion of the Lord. With their blood tainted with the shade of darkness, are they worthy enough to be called the Lord’s Champion? And there is this sacrifice to be made, a non-material offering their hearts also desire.

     “This is a tough one, for I don’t have a heart,” Duncan smiled grimly under his hood.

     They were told many times to never let the demonic sides consume them. Having no heart is a form of weakness. And being weak should come in handy by now, for the last clue the Poem speaks is about this power granted to the weak.

     Duncan fumbles absentmindedly in his pocket, his usual mannerism when confronted with a mentally challenging scenario. He felt something hard, shapeless and beady. Duncan is still carrying those poorly crafted necklaces they got from the twins. He pulls it out blankly. 

     “Where did you get those?” The Xafris snarled.

     “We never stole it or anything, a friend gave this to us,” Duncan retorted.

     “What’s so special about the necklaces,” Melchari said.

     “The stones comprising the necklaces are nowhere to be found in the World of Men. Now look closely,” the Xafris pointed a clawed finger.

     And what looks like lumps of pebbles are actually uncut crystals.

     “Those can only be found in the place I’m guarding,” the Xafris continued, “It seems whenever I see a part of it, bits of its memory came back to me. And I know by the first glance it came to the place.”

     “Then you must have seen this girl,” the Grandmaster said, Camilla’s portrait in one hand.

     “Wait, it’s her! The bloody and dirty girl who came to me for a place to stay, how did you…”

     “This girl happens to be the owner of the necklaces and now she is missing, taken by a malevolent force who once wandered this forest. And now we’re here to find her,” Kane growled.

     The expression on the Xafris’ face is a mix of confusion and awe.

     “The girl is missing, and you’re here to find her,” she muttered meekly.

     Something on her forehead flairs; masked by the flash of light is a bloody red crystal the size of a coin.

     “You have succeeded in your venture. You now have the rights to enter my concealed location,” the Xafris declared in an almost trans-like state. This sudden turn of fortune left everyone in shock.

     “What do you mean?” Duncan demanded.

     Something is shining behind the Xafris; a line of trees leading deep into the woods with lighted leaves.

     “Follow the illuminated trees and you will find what you’re looking for,” the Xafris said after she recovered her consciousness.

     “You’re joking,” Melchari shouted.

     “I don’t joke! Read my mind then.”

     “But we haven’t worked out the clues yet,” Melchari said then.

     “You did. You said you’re here to find a missing girl, does that made you the Lord’s Champion? And the sacrifice you must give, the non-material offering your hearts aspire is simply happiness. One of your ranks here had given up his or her personal happiness to pursue a chosen path.”

     Kane and Duncan both give their Grandmaster a curious glance.

     “Finally,” the Xafris moved on, “the power granted to the weak are the traits making one more human. Remember, ordinary humans are physically weak yet these virtues made them strong, and making them more human all the same. Resourcefulness, humility, loyalty, courage are some of these. I’m not sure what trait exemplifies you; this differs among individuals, but you are resourceful enough to see through my disguise.”

     Duncan is still staring transfixed at the necklace when the voice of their Grandmaster booms.

     “We have no choice but to believe her. We should get moving,” he pointed at the line of illuminated trees, “Duncan, Boniface, do the honour. You could go with them if you wished Melchari. I, Velruthiel and Kane will be staying here to have a word with the Xafris.”

     “Me?” Duncan whispered in awe, “but why?”

     There is such finality in how the Grandmaster speaks that Duncan did not dare to ask questions.

***

The Xafris referred to the place she is guarding as the Seeker’s Sanctuary. When her memory goes functional again, she briefly explains to everyone how the place will provide one a refuge in cases he or she is in need.

     “And stop asking questions, that’s all I remember!” She shrieked.

     Feeling the Xafris is not telling them everything, Duncan, Boniface and Melchari proceeds. As what the Xafris told them, all they have to do is to follow the line of glowing trees. The surrounding looks normal enough when they entered, but step-by-step everything begins to change. After a few minutes of walking, bushes bearing strange bird-shaped flower began to appear. And from crevices between boulders, strange creatures crawl out. These had huge resemblance to monitor lizards lurking in the normal forest around Saint Jude. Duncan saw one making a stop on a boulder to bask, unfurling a brightly coloured sail on its back.

     “They are yet to evolve,” Duncan said to himself. More of these reptilian creatures popped out, each a variant of another. A large male crosses their path on its hind legs, frightening the squeamish Melchari. Another one glides overhead using a set of leathery wings.

     “Look, there are birds here,” Boniface pointed at a flock of flightless, bipedal creatures stalking a gliding lizard. Probably the ugliest bird there is, the thing is the size of a turkey, ash coloured and sports clawed hands for wings. It’s less ugly cousins hover around like coloured jewels to feed on poisonous berries from serpentines vines.

     The deeper they went, the more exotic the view gets. Seemingly they had entered a primordial world where things still breaths magic. The plants here now had eyes on their leaves and branches made to withdrew when touched. Pixie lights make a daring welcome to the three unknown visitors. Melchari approached one, only to leap back to avoid threading on an enormous two headed toad. Finally they pass the last of the glowing trees, and they find themselves facing a peculiar looking wilderness. Everything had an unworldly air as if a part of another world was trapped in the midst of the World of Men.

     “Let’s see what’s in store for us here,” Duncan said to everyone. They can’t help noticing how the vegetation of this enchanted forest is wilder and misshapen. The trees are shrivelled, towering and moss covered where most of the pixies and small animals dwell. Boniface swears the bushes sings.

     “This place is a mix of many worlds,” Melchari said dreamily while staring at a winged deer with massive antlers.

     “It sure is,” Duncan pointed at the Floating Mountains above them.

     “Floating Mountains in the World of Men,” Boniface said in awe, “how could they have gone unnoticed?”

     “The Xafris’ master deserves a credit for these. He had created a World within a World,” Duncan uttered dreamily.

     And Melchari spotted a strange shape looming above the trees; a rock formation with spiky top. Much of it is obscured by a veil of mist.

     “What do you think?” Melchari pointed at the mysterious structure.

     “That is not a natural formation, it’s a fortress!” Boniface exclaimed.

     “A castle to be exact,” Duncan added.

     “How did you… Oh yeah, right,” Melchari said. Members like Boniface and Duncan had great powers of sight. They could view objects at a distance and the mist is no hindrance at all.

     “Do you think it’s inhabited,” Melchari asked.

     “The structure is poorly maintained and there are no movements. But to be sure…”

     “Yes Boniface, let’s give the place a visit,” Duncan said as he gaze at the castle.

     “Well, I think we just found the Castle of Urduja and the Secret World.”

     Duncan wheeled around at Melchari.

     “Yes, you’re right,” Duncan said.

     Floods of thoughts rushed within Duncan, bringing back the day when the False Spectres terrorized the skies of Saint Jude. It flew westwards, towards this direction.

     “Let’s call the Grandmaster, the enemy must be hiding there,” Duncan said fiercely. But his impulsive call for a raid is quashed by meaningful stares from Melchari and Boniface.

     “I know I’m overreacting,” Duncan said, “I know we couldn’t pick up demonic presence there. But we should be more vigilant at these times.”

     “Forgive me Duncan but you’re not being vigilant, you’re being rash,” Melchari said as she eyes him like a bomb in danger of going off

     “I’m sorry, you two.”

     “You have a point though Duncan; then how about alerting the Grandmaster now while we search the castle, just to check if someone’s in there,” Boniface suggested.

     Duncan gave Boniface this great idea sort of expression. Melchari quickly writes an encoded message. 

     “We will just update the Grandmaster on our findings,” Melchari added. Her letter took the form of a white swallow and flew away.

     It’s agreed upon they will enter the castle by stealth. But first they must take the map of the whole vicinity.

     “I’ll send the eagles and the hounds as advance party. We could obtain the aerial view from the birds of prey,” Boniface suggested.

     “You’re forgetting you have an Angel’s Apprentice with you,” Melchari smiled, “you two had done enough. It’s time to do my part.”

     Melchari conjures a blank piece of rectangular glass plate.

     “Show us what the sun sees from above,” said Melchari to the object. She tapped the glass plate, and a projected model of the Earth bounced out.

     “Hmm, let’s see. I think we’re here,” Melchari touched a small spot on the projected globe. That portion enlarges to show a cloud covered patch of land.

     “Concealed by magic huh, but since the Xafris let us in…”

     Melchari taps the glass again. The cloudy images transforms into a full bird’s-eye view of the entire vicinity.

     “Amazing,” Duncan said, his eyes beaming.

     “This is the Celestial Eye. It uses the heavenly bodies to get the view on what’s on the ground. It had shortcomings though. Places protected by magic will escape its detection, unless the user had infiltrated the said location,” Melchari smiled.

     “That’s advanced skills you got there, you should join the Demon Chasers,” Boniface said.

     “I don’t have the courage. I rather stick to my desk jobs. Anyway, according to our map the best route should be straight in the forest if we’re planning to go there unseen without magic,” Melchari said as she points at the map.

     “Let’s see, the concealments are good. Let’s go then,” Boniface said.

     And they’re off to their destination swiftly, yet silently. The skim through corners of trees and bushes like sweeping ghosts; their mastery of stealth is beyond natural. Even Melchari is proving to be as capable as the two Demon Chasers. When the castle is near, they leapt behind a collapsed tree.

     “The castle looks different up close.” Duncan said as they hunker down on the ground.

     The castle do shows signs of neglect. The wall is still solid but the corners are infested with moss and vines. Most of the stones are weathered and the ornaments are chipped. Obviously no human had visited this lonely structure for a while.

     “Everyone, can you hear it?” Duncan said to the others.

    “We could also sense it,” Melchari added.

     There is a faint sound of a singing voice coming from the castle.

     “Someone’s inside,” Boniface whispered.

     The three splits up to enter the castle at different locations. To help them navigate the potentially confusing networks of corridors, each will resort to a favoured spell. Melchari will stick to her Celestial Eye which also had the power to see through roofs and floor. Boniface and Duncan won’t be relying on magical devices. They are trained in the use of the Foresight; an enchantment for seeing what’s ahead.

     “We just entered a labyrinth,” Boniface noted while viewing a projected map on his hand. The Foresight enchantment can also provide maps.

     The inside of the castle is equally dilapidated. Every room, passageways, halls and corridors shows as much wear. It gave this impression of going inside the bowels of a cave. There are no furniture around but remnants of shelves, tables, beds and chairs. Only the gleaming suits of armours stood the ravages of neglect. As a measure the three chose to avoid the hallways where these things stood guard. These steel sentries maybe more than just scrap metal.

     “We’re near,” Duncan said to the others using thoughts. The song becomes clearer; a sweet melody sung by the loveliest, yet saddest of voices. At last they are only a few rooms away from the source.

     “Good, we had it surrounded,” Melchari said to the rest while referring to her Celestial Eye; it shows three hooded figure surrounding a room where an unknown entity paces.

     “Duncan is the nearest, he should lead the way,” Boniface suggested.

     “It will be my pleasure,” Duncan muttered coldly, though his voice quivers a bit.

     “Just do nothing rash, fight only when you have to, we’re not here to stage a raid,” Melchari reminded firmly. She wants to make this clear to Duncan; he must never start a fight. She heard from Kane how Duncan could be so touchy when his beloved home Saint Jude is involved.

     “Don’t worry, Duncan can be trusted,” Boniface whispered to Melchari despite seeing how Duncan once set the goshawks at Cirinian.

     Only a door separates Duncan from the source of the voice. Behind the cold and focused face concealed by the hood, an intense savagery is brewing. To enter, brute force was never necessary. Through magic he melts into a shadow and dissolves in the air. In this form he effortlessly enters the gaps and crevices of the door.

     Duncan is now inside.

     Compared to the dingy corridors they passed, the room Duncan entered is well maintained. It doesn’t have the grandeur of the Order’s Headquarters but the place is descent enough to live in. There is a bed and a table where a curious lamp sits. It emits a many coloured flame shaped like a dancing girl. And kneeling on the floor before the magical lamp is the owner of the singing voice, the entity Duncan is so keen to see.

     The singing suddenly stops, plunging the castle in a horrid silence.

     “Duncan had it,” Boniface said to the worried Melchari, “Don’t worry the entity is unharmed.”

     Unharmed in a sense that Duncan is yet to kill it.

     “Be still,” Duncan said in a cold and dangerous voice after materializing into full human form. His right hand points a dagger at the back of the kneeling figure. The entity doesn’t give off demonic magic, just an unexplained power with potentials to kill thousands. This is a dangerous being that had gone into hiding in the World of Men.

     “Are you the one they sent to kill me?” a meek voice of a girl came from the kneeling figure.

     Gently the entity rises. Long, straight hair black as jet cascades like miniature waterfall. She gives off an air of courage and serenity, yet her hand twitches a bit.

     “At last,” she spoke again in a calm voice, “Death had come to claim me. I will endanger innocent lives no more.”

     “Tell me who you are and what are you doing in the World of Men,” Duncan demanded firmly.

     “So this is the World of Men. Such a lovely place, no magic to harm one another,” she replied dreamily.

     Oblivious to the half-foot blade on her lower back, the entity turn around to face her captor. It seems the room brightens a bit when her full form is revealed. She is an art piece, a flower in the midst of a ruined castle. Framed by black hair is a simple yet pretty face. Her gleaming jewel eyes are misty and her lips are bloody red. She is draped in a stunning white tunic which greatly contrasted her black hair.

     “Do what you must Mister,” the girl ominously spoke, “do what you must for the sake of many.”

     And without warning, her hands went gently to his hand gripping the dagger. Duncan could feel warm, feminine touch that brings this unexplained mix of emotions. There are only a few instances when Duncan experienced such unnatural sensation; those moments when he is with Claire. Then Duncan’s stomach gave a nasty jolt when the girl pulls his bladed hand on to her heart.

     “Do what you must,” she muttered again as the tip of Duncan’s dagger digs into her flesh, “end my life now for the sake of many.”

     “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” Duncan snarled behind his hood. Duncan had enough strength to pull his hand away from the girls’ grips with mere nudge, but somehow he chose not to.

     “End my life now Mister, free me of my guilt. My hands are soaked with the blood of the innocents, death is the fitting punishment,” she said while tugging at Duncan’s hand.

     “TELL ME WHO YOU ARE AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE,” Duncan demanded.

     “I should never exist! I don’t deserve to walk among mortals. Do the rightful thing Mister and end my life now!”

      The girl is showing no emotions but trickles of tears now rolls down her cheeks. She is resigned for the worst.

     “End my life now and redeem my soul,” she cried, and in one quick motion Duncan had sent the girl skidding towards her bed where she landed unharmed.

     “You’re a neurotic girl are you,” Duncan said in a pitiful, but disgusted voice. The girl could only stare at the ghostly form of Duncan, eyes wide in shock and mouth hanging open. For a while there is an uneasy silence between them, broken only by the sound of Duncan’s dagger sliding down its sheath.

     “If you’re so keen to die, try jumping out of the window. Death should be quick this way. And the wilderness outside is home to many dangerous creatures, though I cannot assure a painless death by animal attack,” snarled Duncan.

     The girl looked away in a plain display of disappointment over Duncan’s refusal to kill her.

     “And why are you so keen to die? All deaths are inevitable but it will come only when it will come. No one had the right to rush death.”

      “You didn’t understand Mister, death is the only way for me,” the girl finally spoke.

     “But in life there are other ways,” Duncan answered.

     “I’m only a danger to others! I have caused too much death.”

     “And do you think dying will solve anything? You’re not the only one who caused death here!”

     There is a look of disbelief in the girl’s face.

     “I’m as much of a monster as you, or even worst,” Duncan muttered, “I’m trained to kill and many had died in my hands. The power death is enticing, and one day…”

     Duncan cannot continue as the ghost of his first assignment looms large in the back of his mind.

     “I killed her,” Duncan said ambiguously, “Now think; rather than kill yourself and damn your soul in the underworld, you should be looking for ways to redeem yourself.”    

     The girl bowed her head and spoke in meek voice, “If I lived, people will die.”

     Finding this to be intriguing, Duncan asked for the third time, “who are you anyway and what brings you here in the World of Men?”

     And Duncan’s eyes swam to a glint on her finger. She is wearing a golden signet bearing a familiar symbol; the Dragon rising from the sea.

     “The Empire,” Duncan thought. This girl is of a noble birth explaining the elaborate gown she wears. Now what could an Empire’s elite be doing in the World of Men. Duncan becomes suspicious. This girl must be a spy sent by the Empire!

     “If I live, people will die. Everyone, everyone who came close to me is bound for a bitter end,” the girl spoke again.

     The girl buried her face in her hands and starts crying. Her signet glints ominously on her tear soaked fingers. He felt a pang of shame for ever suspecting this girl to be a spy. Knowing how insensitive it will be to interrogate the pitiful lass in her state, Duncan is left with no other options but to resort to mind readings. He has to know who this girl is.

     Duncan fixes his stare at the girl, his sight boring through her head and straight into the series of thoughts crowding her mind. Wave upon wave of memories flashes, like the shifting images of a television screen when one changes channel; Duncan plans to scan the thoughts from the most recent, but a particularly disturbing memory caught his attention.

     Now he knew why the girl had turned suicidal.

     He could see her standing amidst a burning village accompanied by a towering figure in red tunic. She is a woman, as the profile suggests, with the same black hair as the girl. The woman wears the same elaborate gown as her younger companion but her hair is arranged in a tight bun. A jewelled crown sits atop her head. The woman seems faceless, but she is actually wearing a mask of some sort; a plain, glossy, silver mask without eyeholes or features. And all around them, more masked figures emerges from burning wreckages of homes, swords bare and bloody, slashing in a frenzy at every living souls they came across. Their victims are neither humans nor beasts. They are undefined magical creatures with grey skin covering a slender humanoid frame.

     “Please, what wrong did we committed!” one said pleading for his life as one of those masked figures hacks him to death. By the light of the fire, his mask is revealed to have demonic features, the signature equipment of the Pathfinders.  Then a barrage of magical curses was hurled by their victims as an act of self-defence. This is easily thwarted by the superior armours and conditioned bodies of the Pathfinders.

     “End this now My Dear,” the masked woman whispered at the girl, pointing at a rampaging mob of about three hundred grey skinned creatures charging at them.

     “VENGEANCE OVER THE s*******r OF OUR PEOPLE,” the mob growled.

     “Come on My Dear, show them your power,” the woman said softly. The girl’s face remains emotionless. She raises a hand to perform an undefined form of spell.

      “Morri en Menntis!” She cried.

     “Death’s Hand,” Duncan said, understanding the meanings of those horrid words.

     The flames consuming the burning villages are extinguished by the explosive force of the spell. Out from the air, a figure of the scythe wielding Death materializes. Its skull face leered at the approaching mob, drooling at the scores of lives it will claim. In a single swipe the mob is disseminated, their souls crying as Death fly with them in the afterlife.

     The girl walks across the sea of bodies where the only sound is the sickening jeers of the triumphant Pathfinders. The girl looks at the dead, and the dead looks back with their blank lifeless stare.

     “Rest well and pray for me. Pray for my reign of terror to end soon,” the girl murmured, careful not to be overheard by the masked woman.

     That’s all Duncan saw. His journey inside the girls head had to end for danger suddenly approaches.

     “What are they doing here?” Duncan growled. The girl looked up at him horror-struck due to his sudden change of mood.

     “Earth Demons are here,” Boniface warned.

     “But how did they enter a secured place?” Melchari asked.  

     “Enough of that, we have to move,” Duncan said urgently.

     “What’s happening?” the girl asked as Duncan grabs her hand.

     “I know you want to die, but you don’t want to fall prey to Earth Demons. A whole army of them was spotted here,” Duncan warned.

     “Them, in this non-magical world,” She said. The girl’s face turns sickly pale, she too knew what Earth Demons are.

     “You have to go with me then. If the situation calls for it, become a monster. Use your killing power to protect yourself. Yet that won’t be necessary for you got us to defend you.”

     “You are protecting me Mister?”

     “Yes, I will pro…”

     Duncan choked on those words. He will now protect a troubled girl. For two years he was fighting, he was killing. And now he had a new role. Duncan must ensure that no Earth Demons will harm this girl.

     “Let’s go,” Duncan spoke weakly. The girl’s hand is warm and holding it felt weird.