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That night found Zerrex and the others back at the mansion, all of them in the private quarters that had been set aside for them. When they'd gotten back, they'd been informed that Lord Hellabos had gone into a private session with some other nobles, and could not be disturbed. Then they'd been asked to please return to their quarters, and had gone from being treated as masters to slaves. Only the Iuratus twins seemed to have remained loyal, sitting in the room and talking with them, sharing stories and anecdotes, until the Blind Girl had stopped in the doorway and simply given her strange, cruel smile, and the two had nodded and quietly excused themselves, both gently kissing the Boss's cheek on the way out. Last Zerrex had seen them was when he'd taken a short walk around the mansion to stretch his legs, and they had been heading towards a pair of black maple doors in the northern area of the mansion, apparently to take the place of some other bodyguards in the meeting hall or something.

Now Zerrex was simply laying in bed with his hands behind his head, military boots and black, heavy pants on once more, and the revolver strapped to his leg... and he sighed, eyes closing as he wondered idly what the hell was going on. Cherry was polishing guns in her room, and Cindy was already asleep... and everything seemed just so...

Tap. Tap. Tap. Zerrex frowned, wondering if it was raining outside... and as the tapping continued, he realized it was the sound of something on wood... and then that they were in a stone, soundproofed room. He blinked, looking to the side, and then jumping up as he realized the door was wide open when he'd closed it... before slowly turning his head towards the sound.

The Blind Girl stood in the doorway leading into the hall that bridged off into the other quarters, smiling her strange, sly smile at him and gently tapping one finger on the frame, dressed in plain jeans and white, shoulderless blouse, and that goddamn long cloth blindfold around her face... and as Zerrex stared, she suddenly vanished through the door, and the Drakkaren let out a loud, furious yell as rage suddenly hit like a dull hammer, and he leapt forwards, skidding into the doorway and then staring...

...Into an empty hallway. She was gone... and Zerrex's first instinct was to run down the hall as Cherry blinked and stuck her head out her doorway, staring as the Boss threw open the door at the back and flicked on the light to check on his daughter, who groaned and flailed sleepily in the bed, mumbling nonsense words.

"What is it, Zerrex?" Cherry asked, walking quickly over and looking up with concern... but the Drakkaren's gaze was locked on something else, his muzzle twitched in a snarl. And she followed his eyes to find her own settle on another open doorway across from her own, and then the Blind Girl walked from it and into her room, and the two Drakkai charged immediately after her and burst inside. "Hey, bitch! What the fuck are you-"

And Cherry was left gaping as she stared blankly around at the empty room, Zerrex looking disbelievingly back and forth before he leaned out the doorway... and watched as the Blind Girl smiled at him from the room next door, then walked across and into his daughter's room, and he felt fear striking him now as well as fury, like the waves of the sea smashing into a rocky reef. "Get the fuck away from my daughter!"

Zerrex charged forwards again, watching as the door slowly closed, and he dropped his shoulder and slammed hard into the dark iron-like wood, smashing the door into two pieces that ripped off their hinges and flew into the room, Cindy awakening with a start and a shriek, clutching the covers up to her breasts as she stared as her father and Cherry ran into the room, both of them staring around. "What the hell! What is it?" she yelled, eyes round and her lower jaw trembling with terror.

"I don't know what's scarier... how much this is pissing me off, or how fuckin' badass this bitch is for bein' able to pull a stunt like this on us." Cherry snarled, then she jerked her head to Cindy as she stood up. "Come on, girl, we got a whore to hunt down."

Cindy blinked, but nodded and jumped out of bed, sliding on her sandals and following the two out into the hall... and then almost running into their muscular bodies before she stared over Cherry's head, letting out a soft gasp as she saw the Blind Girl standing in the doorway leading to Zerrex's room, her body shaking with silent laughter from behind one hand. Then she tilted her head towards them almost tauntingly and gave a playful, short curtsy before turning and walking away.

Zerrex, Cherry, and Cindy all charged after her, the Boss snarling angrily and drawing his revolver as in one swift movement as he leaned forwards, then straightening and slamming back the hammer with the palm of his hand, Cherry looking equally-infuriated, and Cindy wincing slightly as she chased after the two with her sandals clopping loudly against the floor. But every room they entered, the Blind Girl seemed to always somehow manage to remain a room ahead, until they reached the northern hallway with the double doors leading into the meeting room, and the three halted as they looked around.

Then Cherry snorted and walked towards the heavy black oak doors, muttering irritably. "Bitch thinks she can hide in there while the fuckers are talking... I'll show her. Fucking fuckbitch fuckhead."

"Cherry!" Zerrex winced, calming down now himself, and quickly handing the revolver over to Cindy, who bit her tongue as she followed her father with the weapon carefully held in both hands and aimed at the ground, fingers outside the trigger of the massive gun, and then she sighed as Cherry slammed both palms into the door and shoved it wide open. Then she opened her muzzle, took in a deep breath... and the muscular female apparently forgot to let it out as she froze, eyes wide in shock and an expression of horror on her features.

Zerrex immediately ran up behind her, looking concerned... then he grit his teeth at the sight that met his eyes upon entering the room. Cindy almost let out a scream, but instead clutched Cherry and fell to her knees, pushing her head against her and closing her eyes tightly, and Cherry took the revolver from her with a shaking hand and muttered: "Oh shit... this... this is our level of work..."

The Patriarch, Lord Victor Hellabos, lay dead, his eyes open in horror, a puddle of congealing blood spilled over the top half of a polished, black-wood table. His clothes were shredded, and his body had... deep gouges in it, bloody, violent tears that had spilled out most of his intestines and insides in ripped and shredded bundles onto the floor and his lap. His expression was one of intense agony, and his muzzle looked like they had been forcefully twisted open and broken apart, and there were more than a few teeth missing... either tortured, or something forced inside his mouth. And as Zerrex stepped closer, he shook his head slowly as he realized it had to be the latter... Those marks... those tears are from the inside-out... like he was forced to swallow some kind of low-grade shrapnel explosive...

He sighed softly, then turned with grim features to the other victims inside the room: slumped against a wall, with one arm over the back of a chair, was Brute... the deep marks of his own chains ripped through the scales over his arms and neck, blood covering most of his body, and with what looked like a kwaibar stabbed through his crotch, and three narrow spears through the stomach... but from his bowed head, he'd died sometime later, from a skull that looked as though it had been struck by a sledgehammer, bits of his brain on the wall behind him and splattered down his face... a brain that had contained so much wisdom no one had recognized him for. "Rest in peace, warrior." Zerrex murmured quietly.

The others in the room, covered in blood and short slashes, were the twins... and Zerrex walked over to who he thought was Shine, fallen near Brute. She was soaked from head to toeclaws in her own blood, from what looked like thousands of narrow slashes likely made by a kwaibar... and with her cleaver sword still held tight in one hand. He kneeled down, touching her face gently, and then the Drakkaren let out a sigh of relief as he looked over at Cherry and Cindy, shouting: "Check the other girl, she's still alive!"

"Blind Girl..." Shine murmured weakly, then she coughed several times, spitting out blood and gore as she trembled violently on the ground, but Zerrex gently pushed her back down onto her stomach, holding her still. "She... tortured us..."

"Lie still..." Zerrex tried to be as soothing as possible, trying to keep her steady... and then he started and looked up and over at Cherry, asking plainly: "Where's Lone?"

The wolf-in-question, however, was resting peacefully in the upstairs harem, smiling as he half-slept peacefully in the bed he'd been sharing with Kraven, then he yawned and straightened, stretching out and looking back and forth curiously as he realized the dark-furred wolf wasn't there. But he shrugged, then stood and stretched out, deciding that he needed to go get a drink.

He stood up from the mattress, and turned towards the doorway... and then stared in horror as he saw the Blind Girl there, smiling, with a large, burlap sack in one hand. His ears flattened back, and then he turned and attempted to run, even if just to hide in the corner of the room, but she was too fast, and next he knew, he was in the bag and screaming as he struggled to break free or out of her grip.

The Blind Girl walked easily with the wolf held over one shoulder, hefting him like he was nothing more than a bag of feathers and walking quickly but silently across the manse and towards the stairs leading into the empty basement barracks. But then, as she stood in front of the stairs, she suddenly ducked and turned, putting her arms out and letting the wolf roll off her back as her expression tightened, and Blackheart ripped through the air where her body had been a moment before as she squatted low, before the sword smashed into the wall, the blade digging halfway through the stone.

Before she could react or rise, however, a booted foot snapped out, and she released a silent cry as she sailed down the stairs, body thudding heavily once off them and then landing on the stone floor below with a loud crunch, her body laying prone on the ground as Zerrex looked down at her coldly, one leg still extended and a hand resting on the pommel of his giant sword. Cherry stood nearby with an assault rifle in her hands, snarling, and Cindy had already torn the burlap sack open and released the wolf from his captivity, Lone whining and trembling as he looked around in terror.

Then she passed him a handgun, still holding her father's revolver as Zerrex tore his sword out of the wall and straightened, glancing down at the wolf and saying coldly: "We have a job to do, Lone. If you can give us some backup fire, come with... if you can't, go find the meeting room in the north hall, where the twin Iuratus, Shine and Mist are. They're still alive, but they've lost a lot of blood and Mist is still... a bit off from being tortured."

Lone looked up at him meekly, flattening his ears back, but then he swallowed and shook his head, standing up and cocking his handgun, glancing up at the reptile with quiet resolve and a faint smile. "I... I'd probably just upset her more. Let me come with you... I'll stay back, watch the rear."

Zerrex smiled a bit at this, but before he could respond, Cherry whistled from her position on the stairs, rifle up and resting on her shoulder as she called mildly: "Hey, Boss? Hate to break up the emotional hugging moment, but the bitch is gone."

"What? I kicked her hard enough to kill a house." Zerrex frowned, walking quickly over, then he snorted quietly as he clipped the massive sword into the magnetic holster on his back, seeing not even a spot of blood on the concrete floor and glancing over at Cindy, ordering quickly: "Cherry goes first, I'll go behind her, then you and Lone stay five feet back, Lone keeping his attention in the opposite direction. If Cherry or I shout an order, don't hesitate: obey."

"Got it." Cindy replied softly, nodding firmly and looking up at her father with complete respect and trust, and Lone swallowed but managed to nod himself before the group proceeded down and into the barracks, Cherry stopping at the corner to peek around it before nodding and moving into the hallway, slightly-crouched and with the huge assault rifle at the ready, finger on the trigger. Then she snorted quietly and relaxed slightly, nudging Zerrex as he motioned for the other two to quickly follow down.

"Gee. Wonder where she went? This ain't a trap or anything." Cherry said drolly, nodding towards the open vault door down the hall. Zerrex frowned, walking forwards and glancing over the steel doors beyond, which looked like they belonged to some kind of special transport elevator, and then he glanced up as a light above flicked from red to yellow, and some mechanical engine whirred in the distance. Then Cherry walked up beside him, followed closely by the others, and she glanced up at him with a bit of a grin. "Time to play?"

The Boss nodded with a slight smile, stepping forwards towards the double doors of the elevator and laughing quietly. "Time to play." He paused for a few moments as the whirring grew louder, and then the yellow light above the elevator flicked to green, and the doors smoothly rolled open to reveal a massive, sterile steel interior. "Come on. End of the road."

The others nodded, following the lizard into the elevator, and then Zerrex pressed the only button on the metal panel inside, causing the doors to slide shut and the elevator to descend once more. He stood with Cindy and Cherry on either side, both females standing ready with their guns, and Lone meekly behind in his slave outfit and with the handgun raised by his muzzle, peering past Zerrex as the Boss reached up to rest one hand on his sword... and then they hit bottom, and the elevator doors rolled slowly open.

He stepped out with the others into a huge open room: it was like an empty warehouse, lit by massive floodlights from above, the walls tinted blue steel and the floor the same color. A few hooks hung from the ceiling, but otherwise, it was nothing special... and there were only a few other figures in the room, and the only ways leading in and out through several shutters. And then Zerrex suddenly faltered, his breath catching in his throat and eyes widening as he shook his head slowly, feeling a strange numbness roll through his body as suddenly, he was just a little kid again, looking at the huge Dragokkaren who was standing with his hands behind his back with the Blind Girl at one side, not caring about the strange monstrosities on the other.

He stumbled suddenly backwards, but the doors had already slid shut and automated machinery sent the elevator ascending, and Cherry looked in horror at Zerrex's face, her usual insulting remarks dying in her throat, and both Cindy and Lone quickly stepping out of the way as Zerrex took another slow step backwards, his eyes almost terrified, before he finally whispered: "You're dead."

And the Dragokkaren merely looked up with a cold grin, eyes that were as crimson and dark as the fires of Hell flashing, his massive, sharklike fangs glinting in the light, the red scales that covered his body almost seeming to glow as he tilted his head... and then Ifret Ark Narrius said in an eloquent, carefree voice: "But Raves... aren't you happy to see your dear... old... dad?"

"Shit no..." Cherry breathed, then she dropped to one knee, took aim, and snapped the rifle onto full automatic, aiming at him and yelling angrily: "Don't you fuck with the Boss, asshole! I'll blow a hole right through you, playing cowardly stunts like that!"

But Narrius only laughed as Zerrex shook his head, the reptile's hands still trembling, his features pale... but he forced himself to step forwards and speak quietly: "No... I... his voice, and my nickname from him..."

"I told you one day I would conquer even death, didn't I, my son?" Narrius asked idly, looking down at one hand and checking his claws as if bored: and finally Zerrex's mind let himself begin to process what he was seeing. His father, sixteen feet tall and with strong muscles over his entire body that were more lithe than bulky: narrower than Requiem, but his features were infinitely crueler, somehow so much more animal, despite being so much more handsome. He was wearing what looked almost like a breastplate, a plain fiberglass armor that covered his chest and stomach, then locked tight into a leather belt with a silver clasp... and he had on a pair of thick military pants as well, tucked neatly into his heavy combat boots. He had no weapons on him, but there was a strange band of what looked like metal around his palm, locking in place just above the thumb joint, and with a thick black cable that stretched from the back to the wrist, then seemed to lock into his scales as it twisted round-and-round up his arm, then went straight up his shoulder and vanished under his armor.

He smiled, and it was positively charming... but there was an indisputable aura of malevolence from the huge Dragokkaren as he stepped slowly forwards towards them, continuing to speak in that idle, just-passing-the-time voice: "Well, as it was, you did kill me all those years ago... nasty thing to do, killing your father while he lays dying of Symma... nasty infection I picked up because I used to get all my food imported from the Cradle of Life's jungle farms to the north of here, actually attacks the immune system, then moves on to eat the brain and brainstem. I'll never order wolf again." A pause as he glanced at Lone, then another vicious grin that almost caused the wolf to faint as he fell to his knees, trembling violently in horror. "You pelts are worthless even as food.

"But thanks to Lord Hellabos - or Victor, as I should say, it's foolish of me to try and stay on polite terms with him after I spent the whole day torturing him - and his genetic experimentation, I was brought back to life." And then the Dragokkaren stopped in front of Zerrex, looking down at him almost benevolently as he held his arms out, before reaching the hand up with the black metal band that Zerrex could now see had been ingrained into the red scale... and then the Drakkaren twitched back as his hand sparked, blue electricity sizzling over the metal for a few moments. "Bigger and badder, as the saying goes.

"Along with a few other illegal little toys he created too," Narrius added dismissively, turning and walking slowly back towards his original position with a gesture towards both the Blind Girl and the other strange creatures at the back of the room. "The Unseen, we call the creations like our Blind Girl here - and yes, there's about a dozen of them, but she is the alpha, the superior version - and the Empty Ones there, mass-produced freaks. But I'll get to them in a few moments... I suppose you want to know how I ended up coming back to life, yes?"

Zerrex was too dumbfounded to respond, only able to stare still at this point, fighting to even stay sensible instead of just falling into hysterics as his supposed-to-be-dead father paused and turned around, putting his hands behind his back again. Cindy, Cherry, and Lone also had their eyes locked on him, Cindy not even knowing what to feel and Cherry only snarling in cold hatred... and no one noticing the other blind Drakkaren slowly descending from the ceiling behind them on long steel ropes, all of them dressed in black uniforms, all of them with long black cloths around their faces and armed with kwaibars sheathed behind their backs. Several of them had already touched down and now simply stood silently, awaiting command, as Narrius shrugged before beginning to speak again, calm and easy.

"The Narrius Bloodline has been revered as one of power in Hez'Ranna, especially after myself and my little brother destroyed those arrogant fools all those years ago... we were recognized after that in many circles as the 'fourth and mightiest royal bloodline,' but by then this little bit of dirt had ceased to hold my attention. If I'd known that over the next few decades they would have evolved their technology so much, perhaps I would have stayed... and never would I have guessed it would hold the key to a much larger kingdom to dominate.

"Hellabos, of course, is... or was, rather... the weakest of the royal families. The fewest children, his siblings dead. Almost on the brink of extinction... but he wanted to leave a mark on society, and he knew his best chance of doing that would be through science. And so he disinterred my body and got the best genetic samples he could find, and decided to attempting a cloning program so many years ago, figuring that from me, he could create a suitable heir, or at least a bodyguard who would make sure that the rest of his family would be protected and remain just as important as the others, even if through force."

Narrius laughed softly at this, shaking his head and smiling like it was an anecdote he was relating at a polite get-together, like an expensive cocktail party. "The fool. And as he worked on cloning my body, and recreating me for the purpose of combat and to help reinstall his name as the strongest of the Hez'Ranna monarchs, he also did quite an appreciable bit of research on the so-called 'powers' that have cropped up more and more often in years past. Precognition, telekinesis, unnatural super-strength and endurance... and on the soul itself. What it is... and if it is something tangible, or captured in any way." A pause, and a gesture at the Empty Ones. "For the latter, that is the result of his effort... and they are quite impressive creatures, although they may not look like much."

And the Dragokkaren was right, they didn't look like they were anything more than pitiable genetic freaks, the failures that came out of the wrong end of a test tube. Their skin was dark blue, mottled and wrinkled in some areas as if loose along the body, but shiny, like it was too tight at the joints... yet the ribs still showed clearly through the breast. And they had twisted, damaged faces, with eyes and eternally-sad mouths sewn shut with black string and no muzzles... fingernails instead of claws that were chipped and broken... large feet that ended in ugly, stumpy toes... and no tail, but a strange bulge just above the buttocks like a small hump. They were emaciated, cruelly-twisted, and ugly, sexless things... and Narrius grinned slightly, like they were the punchline of some great joke, and at this, Cindy felt hate and disgust rise in her body as she pressed against her father's back.

It gave Zerrex strength, and he found himself able to grit his teeth and force his calmness to return, even as Narrius continued to speak and those crimson, ruby eyes bored forwards into the Boss's emerald: "They are able to suck the soul from a person... and take upon their personality, countenance, expressions, all that perfectly, except that I've done some reprogramming with the last batch. They will only obey me as Master... and they will also add a bit of Dragokkaren DNA into the mix, so even the miserable pelts they eat the souls of will be given a bit of a gift of the gods."

And something clicked inside Zerrex's head at this, and he stepped forwards, reaching up to rest a hand on his sword as he said softly: "You're the one who kidnapped Marina."

Narrius looked almost entertained, smiling slightly at Zerrex as if he were a foolish child. "You fucking idiot. Of course it was me. She is the key to everything..."

"And what exactly is everything?" Cindy snarled, raising the revolver. Narrius looked at her mildly, then snorted quietly and shook his head slowly, looking almost disappointed before he turned his attention back to Zerrex.

"I see you've raised her just as well as your mother raised you. I should have figured as much, though... a daughter and your fucktoy, isn't that right? Just like I'm sure your little girl would grow up to be, a slut with a gun who can't wait to put Daddy's cock in her mouth at the end of the day-" Narrius began in a mild, taunting voice, then his eyes flashed and his grin spread wider as Zerrex let out a snarl and charged forwards, pulling Blackheart off his back and then leaping forwards, slashing Blackheart down in a vicious dropping slash with a roar of fury.

Then the blade stopped, and Zerrex snarled furiously in a mix of shock, hate, and raw anger as Narrius made a disgusted face, his arm raised, the huge blade of the sword biting into his thick forearm... but not even cutting half an inch through the thick scale and muscle, and the Dragokkaren said in a disgusted, contemptible voice: "You're no different than when you were a child."

And before Zerrex could draw back, he felt a huge fist slam into him and knock him sliding across the concrete ground on his back with a grunt of agony, ribs snapping like toothpicks as his huge sword went flying straight up into the air, spiraling in the light before it began to fall... and Narrius simply drew his arm in front of him as he turned to face Zerrex, then casually swung it hard outwards as the giant sword began to fall past him and he walked towards his son.

The huge weapon shattered into several massive chunks of metal that flew in all directions as if it were made of glass, glinting like a broken diamond in the light as Narrius strode easily towards the Drakkaren that was sprawled on his back and barely able to lever his head off his ground, clutching at his chest and staring in disbelief as his thought-indestructible, undefeatable sword fell in a shattered hail of metal to the floor. And Narrius was only idly wiping at his arm, which was bleeding slightly, but looked more like a long, nasty paper-cut than anything else, the Dragokkaren's expression still contemptible and perhaps a slight bit-annoyed.

Cherry swore angrily, as she took aim with the assault rifle, but then a foot collided hard with the gun and knocked it flying into the air, before the muscular female blocked a second hard kicked aimed at her head, snarling as the Blind Girl looked down at her with that horrible, patronizing smile. She took a hard swing at her, but the lither female shoved herself backwards and easily slid a good ten feet away, and Cherry snarled, tensing herself... before she heard a strangled shout, and Lone threw his handgun to her.

She grinned viciously, then reached up and caught the gun as the Blind Girl tilted her head, then Cherry pointed and fired... but somehow, at the last moment, the Blind Girl twisted out of the way, that terrible smile still on her muzzle. The muscular female snarled angrily, then shouted furiously: "Don't fuck with me!"

She fired shot after shot, trying to focus and even put her precognition into play, but bullet after bullet missed, the blind Drakkaren somehow easily shifting out of the way of each shot - a leg slide here, a simple twitch of the head here, a sidestep there. Then she began to advance, and Cherry felt something alien rising in her, something like panic as she heard the thundering booms of the magnum join in the chorus aimed at something else, and Lone yelling, screaming...

The last bullet just nicked the blindfold the Blind Girl was wearing, but, as it fell, the female's smile turned into a grin... even as the burned, scaleless flesh around her sightless eyes were revealed. Eyes the milky white of cataracts, dead eye surrounded by dead, scarred flesh, and Cherry felt something give in her mind before she staggered backwards with a cry of pain as the Blind Girl punched her across the face with horrible ease, and the female - who had never felt so completely outgunned and so thoroughly defeated - staggered backwards with a cry of pain, blood spraying from her muzzle as she realized with despair that she was being toyed with.

Cindy, meanwhile, had blasted off three shoots at the other Unseen that she had just noticed advancing on them... but she hadn't landed a single shot, and then a hand lashed out and grabbed her wrist, and a kwaibar dropped down beside it. The daughter of Zerrex had snarled despite the clear threat... but then two more Unseen had all but appeared from thin air at her side, one kneeling beside her and with his sword held against her stomach, threatening to spill her guts on the floor, and the other standing beside her, a hand on her shoulder, and a sword at her neck. And she had trembled before beginning to cry silently, the giant revolver dropping from her grip and falling to the ground below.

Lone was curled up on the ground, crying quietly, the other Unseen standing over him with their swords pointed at him, his hands over his head, shaking violently and unable to do anything but cry and spasm uselessly. He berated himself, hated himself for his weakness, for his failure, even as one of the other Unseen slammed the handle of their sword suddenly into the back of Cindy's head and knocked her down in a crumpled, broken heap.

And Zerrex found himself hefted into the air by his father, his hands uselessly grasping his wrist as the Dragokkaren gestured with the other hand, smiling almost serenely as he said softly: "As you can see... your resistance was expected, and utterly futile." A pause, then he glanced over to where Cherry was struggling with the Blind Girl, but her last few swings were easily avoided before the blind female slammed her foot into Cherry's stomach, causing her to fall on her knees and vomit blood and wine, and then a swift elbow to her spine sent her collapsing into darkness, sprawled out as blood and puke leaked from her jaws and nose. "Well, now has been reduced to utter futility."

"Bastard..." Zerrex whispered, and Narrius narrowed his eyes slightly before his fingers twitched, and the Drakkaren let out a cry of agony as electricity ripped through his body, the metal bar burning against the scales of his neck and feeling every muscle in his body spasming, his bladder letting go as his hair and body smoking slightly as he slumped forwards, the world out of focus and color before Narrius shook him briskly, then threw him down to the ground in a broken heap.

"Idiot child." He muttered, then stepped forwards and kicked Zerrex hard in the stomach, causing him to cough blood and curl up, hugging his abdomen tightly, but looking up at his father with defiance and hate. Narrius looked back down, but only smiled slightly, glancing over at the terrible eyes of the Blind Girl as she walked back to his side. "I'm glad I have your attention once more. Now, if you'll let me explain the last few pieces of information I was going to bestow upon you before you so rudely interrupted me.

"Technology, as all people think, is ten years ahead of the markets, of the consumers. Few things are truly state-of-the-art: businesses have other projects in development or already created that they have planned to release at strategic dates. By using this method, not only do they make the biggest profit... the military industry, among other businesses, also avoids revealing all its trump cards unless it absolutely has to.

"Here, however, is the secret: we are not merely ten years ahead of our time in terms of technologies available, we are almost a thousand years ahead of our time in many places around the world. Things we think could never exist, do; technologies that many scientists of this very day say are impossible, have already been proven, made, and then made obsolete by something bigger and better." Narrius spread his arms, smiling slightly. "Look at me, for example. Revived, and perhaps a bit improved... and projects like the Blind Girl, as well. Not only genetic cloning and reproduction, but genetic creation and recreation and even immortalization. Genetics that... you probably wouldn't understand, because you've never really stood out in the intelligence field, Raves. But you get the point of what I'm saying.

"Now, imagine what would happen if someone took all those technologies and used them for say, war?" Narrius put his hands behind his back as Zerrex spasmed and tried to get up, but then the Dragokkaren glanced at the Blind Girl, and she stepped forwards and slammed a foot into the base of his spine, causing Zerrex to release a snarl of agony and clench his eyes shut. "Now, now, Raves, pay attention. You'll get a chance to walk around later, but for now it's learning time, and I don't want to have my subordinate crack a vertebrae to keep you still." He paused again, then smiled as Zerrex breathed harshly and glared at him, but ceased to attempt getting to his feet. "Good.

"Of course, they'd have an advantage for a while... but then all the other countries would reveal their own technologies. And all of a sudden, we'd end up fighting battles that are the stuff of bad science fiction movies, and the world would likely end up gone and destroyed within the week. But fortunately, my friends here, the Unseen... have a certain ability." Narrius laughed softly as the other Unseen walked up from behind him; two of the Unseen had an unconscious Drakkaren slung over their shoulder, and another pair of blind reptiles were restraining a sobbing Lone between them.

The Dragokkaren glanced over his shoulder for a moment at the wolf, then he shook his head slowly and looked back at Zerrex mildly. "Disgusting wolf, isn't he? I can't see what you were doing with him. But as I was saying... it would be pointless. However, with the help of say... shapeshifting, doppelganging soulless creatures under my command, and a special unit of soldiers who have the miraculous ability to see through different types of metals and into secret bunkers and facilities, and to detect certain heat signatures... well, then we could, oh, travel around the world on our secret little aircraft, performing raids on various high-danger facilities... and what would the governments of these countries be able to say these raids were? 'Attack performed on installation carrying new nuclear bomb prototype?'" Narrius threw back his head and laughed loudly at this.

"Of course not! Instead, they'd have to say... top secret military facility, or terrorism attack on veteran's hospital, or something. And they wouldn't say anything at the International Council because of all the laws prohibiting various nasty experiments like they'd have to do to build technologies like the ones that I have here." Narrius smiled again, glancing down at his son and then tapping his own temple lightly. "And because Hez'Ranna is outside those International Council borders... there can be no investigation, no one can follow our aircraft back, and no one can interlope into here without our strict permission... my strict permission, I should say, since I've slaughtered all those idiot royalists." He snorted and shook his head. "Hellabos tried to resist at the last second... so I took care of him too. I'm glad his children were the first people on my list of killings... it got me his cooperation for a while, by saying I'd reveal that he created me. Perhaps in the next life, he won't bring someone back as a servant without making sure their mind is clear of former memories, first... like I would have any reason to help him out of sheer good will. On the bright side, he did help of his own free will for all those first long years... I think he listened too long to his conscience in the end, though."

Then the Dragokkaren stretched slowly, and he shook his head, laughing softly. "But I have gone on for a while, haven't I? I do apologize, Raves, but it's just been so long since I've been able to talk to you, and since I've been able to stretch out and do anything at all. So I wanted to let you know what I had planned..." A pause, and then he rose a hand and slapped it against his skull, laughing a bit again and smiling almost benevolently, but his eyes flashed with cruelty. "And yet I haven't even gotten to the point yet, have I?

"Tomorrow, Hez'Ranna will declare war on the entire world, and I will lead our soldiers to victory, and this whole idiot-filled place will belong to me... and it will be my own empire, where my own laws will rule supreme. It has taken many years, but my small, secret units of the Unseen have already blown apart countless stockpiles of weapons, taken many scientists hostage, and stolen enough blueprints and computer files, that I'm surprised all the nations can still function properly. And when I die, my successor will take my place, my son..." A pause, and then Narrius reached down and touched Zerrex's face, and their eyes met for a few moments, before the Dragokkaren added softly in an almost kind voice: "Not you."

And then Zerrex screamed in agony as blue electricity sizzled over his face, set his white hair aflame, and charred his scales to a crisp, twitching and spasming in agony as Narrius laughed, before the Drakkaren forced his other eye open and reached up with his other hand, snagging Narrius's metal armor, and the Dragokkaren let out a grunt of surprised pain, their bodies forming a circuit and causing the pain in Zerrex's skull to intensify for a few moments before the crimson-scaled reptile was blown backwards onto his ass, the cord that had been built into his arm sparking and his hand on fire.

Zerrex, meanwhile, rolled onto his face, screaming in pain, but at the same time laughing hysterically, despite the fact his heart seemed to be beating faster than a hummingbird's and his body was spasming and twitching, his eyes rolling in his head, the left one crying tears of blood over burned scales as flames licked his face and rolled along his white hair. Then a strong hand gripped his head, extinguishing the flames but then tossing him across the room as Narrius snarled furiously: "You are no match for me, Raves! I gave you a chance, and you fucked up, like you always do!"

The reptile crashed to the ground a good ten meters away, rolling bonelessly for a few feet and spasming on the cement, then he wretched and vomited blood before looking up at Narrius, who was flexing his damaged hand. He panted harshly, then finally whispered: "So kill me, then, dear father... and hey, are you still a flightless... wingless piece of shit?"

Narrius's face twitched, and then a twisted, cruel grin scrawled slowly down his muzzle as his teeth clenched, claws digging into his palms deep enough to draw blood as his hands clutched into tight fists. Then he let out a long, hissing breath before laughing harshly and shaking his head slowly, saying in a soft but carrying voice: "Oh, Raves... I'm not going to kill you. You see, all of you and your family has a value... even that wolf there, is going to be turned into something worthy. Your youngest girl... I'm going to fuck her, and she'll give me a son with our bloodline and genetic superiority so concentrated he'd be able to blow you out like a candle. Your other daughter and the fucktoy there?" He paused, then turned to the Unseen and said clearly: "Take them to the experiment labs. And Blind Girl, get Drake and bring him to the cell we have set out for my son." A pause, then he turned as Zerrex clawed weakly at the ground, calling coldly over his shoulder. "One of you, get over here!"

Zerrex looked up with a shudder as one of the Empty Ones looked up, then shambled slowly over, too-long arms swaying from side-to-side as it gave a rasping sound of affirmation to its master, and Narrius grinned as he then looked at the Unseen supporting Lone, who was staring back and forth in horror. "Drop him."

They did so, stepping back... and Zerrex knew what was coming. He tried to crawl forwards, tried to stop it somehow, rasping a no as he saw blind Drakkaren carrying Cherry and Cindy away to some horrible labs and several other Unseen simply standing and watching as the horrible, mutilated creature came towards Lone as Narrius gave another simple command, and Lone tried to scramble away, screaming, shaking his head in denial... and then the blue-fleshed monster fell on top of him, and the wolf shrieked in horror and terror as the thing planted its twisted jaws on his own, forced its maw down onto the wolf's, and kissed him.

The sound that rose up was a horrible, sludgy crush that turned into a whining keen, as Lone's limbs spasmed against the ground and his skin went pale beneath his fur, his eyes bulging open before they too began to turn white, breath rasping in and out from the sides of his mouth before he simply collapsed as the Empty One rose up, breaking the kiss with a gasp, and the strings around its mouth snapped off and open as it twisted back and forth with inhuman shrieks. It spasmed, rocking on its feet, and then the skin slowly began to turn a different color and fur pushed out as its form warped and became almost waxlike, melting and shifting, a muzzle birthing from the flat face and ears shoving up from where there had been none before... and then it arched its back and howled, arms throwing out as it finally completed its transformation.

The not-Lone straightened, grinning and shaking his head as he wiped at himself, and then he laughed a bit and looked over at Narrius with a loud whistle. "Shit, but that was a fuck of a ride!" Then he laughed again and glanced down at himself, and Zerrex could only stare at horror at it; it wasn't a perfect clone, no... the expressions subtly crueler, the body a bit larger and a bit more muscular, the fur perhaps somewhat longer and those eyes sparkling... and then he glanced down at the body on the floor and clapped his hands together as he noted the pocketwatch, and he reached down and snagged it, tearing it off Lone's neck and examining it closely. "Sweet, I think I'll keep this. Piercings I'll get back later."

"Good. And keep quiet about the other little surprise I added in, because we have company in the room and he's not one of us." Narrius said eloquently, and not-Lone nodded as Zerrex simply stared at the corpse of the wolf. Of his nemesis for so long, and who had for so many years caused so much trouble... even this morning, had almost gotten the crap beaten out of all of them or military chasing them through the town... and he felt a sudden surge of self-hate as he wondered why, just why the fuck he hadn't forced Lone to go and get the twins out of here... hating himself because this was all his fault, and he, or just he and Cherry, should have gone alone...

He didn't even bother to resist when Narrius ordered the Unseen to go and pick him up, slumping in their arms, dragged along by the soldiers, and not even feeling the occasional slash of a kwaibar, but only responding by turning in whatever direction they wanted him to or going up or down a set of stairs. He stared blankly, broken, as Narrius followed behind the six Unseen with a cruel grin on his features, until finally they went through a heavy vault door and into a heavy stone room, and Zerrex only looked around at the blood-stained walls of the torture cell with absent eyes, then he closed them when the Unseen drew their kwaibars and began in on their slashing and cutting. It didn't matter anymore; and the pain of losing his family... and knowing that he could do nothing to stop anyone, that his father, the monster that he was, was behind all this... consumed everything.

Finally, he collapsed onto his face, panting harshly, bleeding from everywhere as they wrapped a heavy chain around his feet and then locked it there and hauled him up by the ankles, leaving his arms dangling freely. And the Unseen left except for the Blind Girl, and Narrius stood nearby, looking up at him with soft disappointment as he said idly: "So, Raves. Either you've learned your place, or you've decided to try the silent treatment and see if you can break free later. But I don't care if your spirit or body is broken, now or permanently... you've only proven how pathetic and weak you are for not resisting." A pause as he glanced down, then Narrius looked back up with a cold smile. "Or perhaps I'm just disappointed because it means my soldiers didn't get to have as much fun. No matter. I'll let them all play with your older daughter as they like."

Zerrex felt a faint light of anger in the back of his mind, but it was like a match lit in a dark, cathedral-sized cave: there, and then gone. Instead, he only slumped and closed his eyes, and Narrius shook his head before glancing at the Blind Girl, who was carrying a heavy metal briefcase with her. "I'll introduce you to one last little toy that Hellabos designed... called the Nephilim. You know what they are, right? Impure angels... some say demons, some say half-mortal, half-angel... some say things akin to elementals. Originally, our friend Drake was designed to kill...but he has another function, too, and it's one that I plan to use to keep you subdued so we can run some experiments on your body. After all, we've mapped most of the genetic code, but not all of it... and I'd like to see what latent powers you too, possess, that I might yet tap out and give to my soldiers of the future."

He paused, then nodded to the Blind Girl, who gently took the case in one hand and turned towards Narrius, opening it and revealing a padded inside, with a glass sphere sitting inside, filled with some strange dark liquid. Narrius gently removed this, then pulled the lid off, before holding it up and under Zerrex's muzzle, and the Drakkaren sighed, not bothering to resist, only slumping and closing his eyes as his father said softly: "You can't say that I've done nothing for you, Zerrex. I've given you this one last gift... a painless path to sleep, and one you'll never awaken from. You can apologize to your family in the next life."

No... only Cherry, and maybe Lone. Cindy and Marina... I know they'll go to a much better place. Zerrex thought quietly, as he opened his eyes to see his father's burning crimson irises looking up at him with entertainment, and he could feel his muzzle slowly being forced open as some strange, rippling, smoke-like thing moved across his vision. It filled his mouth, his nose, his eyes...

And then there was just darkness, and nothing more.

It took Narrius the grand total of two hours to take full control of Hez'Ranna. Military transports filled with soldiers and Empty Ones flooded the streets, as radios broadcasted the tragic death of Hellabos from a heart attack, and the sinking of the royal ship the other monarchs had been on for their hunting trip on the cruise back from one of the islands. And anyone who would have enough power to resist or to be a possible candidate to temporarily take the place of the Kings were quickly replaced with Empty Ones, their shells sucked dry of souls, their dead and lifeless bodies burned or thrown into the sea. And all of them motioned to appoint a legendary Dragokkaren who had been found by the Blind Girl, Ifret Ark Narrius, who already had the full support of the entire Hez'Ranna General and Private Family Military at his disposal.

The next step had been when Narrius had taken residence in the Great Palace: he'd requested them set up a telecommunications center in the conference room, and to set up an open satellite link with the International World Council for an emergency discussion regarding Hez'Ranna's standing and national affairs of the country, and that he would come by in the morning to deliver a speech to the people of the country and world at large. He also requested them replace the current Hez'Ranna flag with a different coat of arms: a dark, blood-red flag with two Dragokkaren illustrated in black profile, muscular bodies posed and arms forming a C as they faced towards one another from either side of the plain rectangle, jaws open in cruel snarls. He called it the Flag of Supremacy: the world would come to know it as Hez'Ranna's Genocide Flag or the Black Double Standard.

That night, Narrius prepared his troops and went over the plans he'd long had laying dormant in his dark underground kingdom: for almost a decade now, he'd had his underground sanctum, wandering the laboratories, dungeons, and dark underworld of Uroboros and even out to the other nearby cities of Hez'Ranna like a prowling demon lord, biding his time before an attack on Heaven... and now the time to launch his full out assault was here, and he had made long sure - sometimes forcing Hellabos's hand with threats and blackmail, and other times the old Patriarch just enjoying the ride, however his conscience had reprimanded him - that he would be ready to initiate his forces and all of his facilities.

Thought-abandoned stone buildings lit up with power, generators began to all across the continental island, and secret factories came alive like monsters being born and opening their eyes for the first time to the world, greeting it with a whisper that grew to a roar. Military bases and barracks across Hez'Ranna received new orders, food supplements and training schedules, and new uniforms replaced the old: thick black pants and shirts that had a thick band of red around the right bicep and the two facing-off Dragokkaren on it, and black cloth jackets with the same band on them and four pockets on the front for storing ammunition and other supplies.

The Dragokkaren also began the fortification and readying of all military bases and defenses in the country, as well as installing a curfew over the citizens of the entire nation and doubling the military patrols and granting special powers to all on-duty soldiers, from on-the-spot executions for anyone they may dub 'too dangerous' to freedom from paying taxes. Things that would attract people into the military... and finally, dispatching recruiters to all prison and penitentiary facilities across Hez'Ranna and offering a free pass and a royal pardon for any crime to all who were willing to join the General Military.

When morning came, Narrius walked through the doors of the conference room and sat down at the desk in front of the camera in a comfortable, black leather chair. He was clad in crisp dress suit: black suit pants, black suit jacket, a pair of comfortable leather shoes, dark leather dress gloves, a pressed white silk shirt that clung tight to his strong chest, and a plain black tie. He wore no extra adornments or jewelry, and he didn't allow himself to be prettied up by the dress crew for the camera. Then he cleared his throat and faced the camera with his usual calm, charming smile, his crimson eyes cold as he rolled his shoulders once, then nodded and said clearly: "Start rolling."

The Drakkai behind the camera gave a three, two, one hand count, then a thumbs-up, and Narrius smiled into the camera, saying clearly: "To everyone who is watching this, allow me to introduce myself as the new High Patriarch and King of Hez'Ranna, Ifret Narrius. Late last night we suffered the loss of the royal families... but I have been appointed to rule in their stead, and I would like to take this time to share a vision of the future of Hez'Ranna with you all. You out there who are watching from around the world, on video or hijacked satellite broadcasts, may be wondering why I've had my technical team broadcast this to all nations when it should only concern my own, outside the boundaries of your 'civilized world,' but the reason for this will soon become apparent.

"My vision, after all, encompasses this entire planet... where we may all work together in harmony and peace, in united culture. And I do not speak to the scum of the earth at this point; I do not talk to the dogs, or cats, or horses, or bears. I do not speak to the lower species, or the belly-crawling half-blood reptiles, but to the Drakkai. To the Dragokkaren, and we who are of a superior species." With this, Narrius smiled, sharp fangs flashing charmingly as he clenched a fist in front of himself and laughed quietly. "I have a vision, of expanding the beliefs, and the powers, of Hez'Ranna over the entire planet. Of taking back the world that has so obviously been made for us to rule, out from under the feet of the maggots and filth who have stolen it from us with their technology and lies and pipe-dreams of equality. And this is a dream that I have already begun to act out."

Narrius paused, then nodded to the soldier standing just out of view of the camera, who gave a crisp salute in return and quickly left to pass on the activation order to the commander standing ready to receive in the tactical planning room across the hall. Then the Dragokkaren turned back to the camera, lacing his fingers together with a pleasant smile. "Apologies for that interruption. But in any case, I know that watching this, among others, are the so-called 'world leaders.' The politicians who are elected far too often by slinging mud at one another and through a parade of lies, money-laundering, and bribery... whereas I have come to power by proving my strength and intelligence through trials far different to those used by supposedly-superior democracies.

"I would like them to know something... and it is that they can take this speech as a declaration of war upon the entire world, upon their way of life, and their rule. For too long have we, the true patriots of Hez'Ranna, been oppressed by the rest of the world, crushed down and treated as unworthy even though we are superior in every way to the pelts and scum that currently dominate this world. So I ask all true and like-minded Drakkai to join me in what I see as not a foolish crusade or ignoble vision, but a final, true display of the power we possess and why we have the right to rule this world and all those in it." He reached forwards as he spoke, his crimson eyes burning with darkness that many would mistake for conviction... and only a chosen few would recognize as simple cruel laughter; the laughter of a puppetmaster playing his best manipulations for the joy of a crowd of idiot children. "And to the pelts I will offer positions as slaves or servants, among the low class of society and military, if they join me... and all who refuse will be shown no mercy, and no quarter, and will be slaughtered, raped, and enslaved by force or killed in prison camps and made examples of.

"Perhaps, though, you laugh at me for my plan. How can Hez'Ranna take upon the world, you may ask? And the answer is very simple... because almost every major country possesses enough bombs, weapons, and soldiers to obliterate the world themselves if they truly wish to. And I shall inform you of a small secret: a nation's true military and destructive power is always kept secret from its peoples until the last moment that it must be utilized, to maintain the element of surprise and secrecy needed for any large tactical force to operate properly." He paused, then added mildly: "And because you may still yet wish for proof, I shall gladly give you this.

"If efforts to resist my takeover of the world are made, or after a period of twenty-four hours I have not been sent a declaration of surrender and submission to Hez'Ranna from each country, the offending country will be subject to a full-out tactical nuclear strike." Narrius said clearly, then he smiled coldly. "And just so we all know that I'm not playing any games or bluffs... I have just ordered a short demonstration of my power that should be taking place right about now. Please feel free to check any news broadcast within the hour for full coverage of this little example of my strength.

"For Hez'Ranna, I stand tall, and I will unite this world. And all who stand in my way shall be crushed like the insignificant weaklings they are. Tomorrow at sunrise, the world will begin moving towards a new era, and I know there will be costs and casualties, but without sacrifice, we, the most superior of races, will never reach our true position in this world and will always be trapped under the feet of the weakling pelts and filth of this world." Narrius finished, then he nodded and raised a hand with his charming smile back on his features. "Join me, and together, we will rise towards a new dawn, a new age, and we will return to paradise."

And then Narrius's broadcast - sent around the world by hacked satellite in thirty-two different languages - ended, and almost universally, every television flicked to live coverage of what appeared to be a mushroom cloud, screaming citizenry, and horrified yells and video tapes of a metal meteor falling from the sky. The news was simple: some unknown nuclear weapon had been dropped on the International Council Headquarters in Ire... and all the country representatives present had been wiped out, along with the building and most of New Tears City, in a burst of nuclear hellfire.

The bomb had been one of the hidden technologies Narrius had spoken of: an atomic fission bomb kept inside a sealed metal container that was undetectable by almost all types of conventional and special radar systems until too late, and even then appearing only as a strange, spherical and unknown object of unknown origin. The explosive device was launched from satellite by a simple piston system that used an advanced triangulation method that gathered data from all weather satellites and its own readings as it flew through space just above the atmosphere and free of the hard pull of gravity towards the ground. So the bomb was simply launched into the atmosphere, and gravity did the rest of the work, yanking the heat-shielded metal sphere down to the Earth below, until it collided with the solid ground, and then the pressure-sensors inside clicked, and the sphere cracked in half down the middle like an egg, revealing the inner skeleton and the huge explosive device that gave one final, keening beep before exploding and taking out everything in a ten-mile radius.

It was thus made clear how serious Narrius was, and sent the world powers into a panic: several smaller countries and all those around Hez'Ranna immediately agreed, as other superpowers attempted to figure out how they could respond to this attack, and finding with horror that their own satellites had already been either disabled, destroyed, or taken over by hostile Hez'Rannan forces... and all of them completely unaware that their countries had already long been breached. Cells and platoons of soldiers were already in place, clad in spook outfits with heavy facemasks and body armor, all waiting the command to scramble... and many people frowned at the way their friends, family members and superiors were acting, as well. It was almost like it was... too perfect, and somehow fake. But almost all of them were just written off as stressed... after all, these were the higher ups, the most loyal patriots, the people who had the most to lose if Hez'Ranna took over, and important government officials... no one who would wire plastic explosive into the weapons holds, or carry a briefcase with a nuclear bomb with them into work at the head office of the pharmaceutical factory where they worked, or set the cooling system of the nuclear reactors to shut down without proper authorization or before the main core was deactivated.

And Narrius simply relaxed back in his throne at the palace for this first day, smiling coldly down at the little nine-year-old girl who was chained by the neck to one of the pillars of the royal hall, naked and bloodied from being beaten and subjected to experiment after experiment. Then he glanced up as one of the head scientists entered the room, and calmly ordered: "Run a full genetic series on Zerrex, and extract anything important. Test his immune system as well, and see how it responds to viral diseases. Then you can try to remove his soul, and if that fails, just use his body for physical experimentation."

"You leave my Daddy alone!" Marina screamed, and she tried to charge at Narrius, but the chain choked her at the last moment and she fell over, gasping. The Dragokkaren looked at her mildly, then he sipped idly at the obsidian goblet in his hand before turning his attention back to the scientist, who was writing down the tests to perform on a clipboard that had been hanging at his belt.

"You can use the other daughter for gene splicing, and set the last one up, the muscular one, in the breeding program and break her." he added calmly, as if nothing had happened, then paused and glanced down at Marina as she began to cry. "And oh. Mark her down to undergo any other enhancement series you can find."

"At that age, sir?" the scientist asked, but his voice was curious instead of upset or angry. Narrius still glanced at him with a slight frown, but the head scientist merely smiled slightly in return and bowed his head. "My apologies for my impudence, sir, but as she's not an adult, we have no idea how she'll develop. Her strength could treble or more, among other things. I wouldn't want her to become too much of a handful for you."

The Dragokkaren snorted at this, then he grinned and tilted his head towards the Drakkaren in the lab coat. "You just don't want to have to build stronger restraints. Don't worry, my future wife will very soon cease to be of any problem."

The scientist bowed deeply, nodding, and then left; left Narrius to sit in his throne after so casually starting a war that would, in a single day, result in the destruction of ten countries and the absorption of a countless number of small and weaker ones - a few which Narrius would simply erase from the face of the world anyway, leaving only a barren wasteland - and what would be almost useless resistance from the other superpowers, as they were attacked within and without by well-armed and well-trained forces, beginning the conflict called by many the first true world war... and for others heralded only Armageddon and the end of all days, as they watched their children enslaved, mothers raped, fathers broken, and friends killed from behind the blood-rusted bars of a cage or slave camp. But agreed on one thing, and it was this: the babe that had been rocked for so long in the Cradle of Life had finally sprung up, and it was a demon out of Hell that came out of that accursed jungle crib.

But for Zerrex and his fallen, lost family, the beginning of the end for the world, was already the rock-bottom of their own downward spiral; and none could have fallen further than that demon who had climbed so long and for a time flown with the angels, than the Drakkaren that hung possessed by a living darkness and hanging comatose from his ankles in that deep basement dungeon, or that little girl who lay crying in the palace of her grandfather, wearing nothing but a cruel metal collar digging into her neck as soldiers stood guard nearby with fully automatic assault rifles under the new banner of Hez'Ranna, and who even now knew that her life ahead would be nothing but a cruel, breaking torture that would finally culminate in her being raped by a monster that should be long dead, and giving birth to a son who he would raise to be just as evil and violent as himself.

For them, this was the bottom of the downward spiral of destruction, and now they had to walk the bedrock of that dark pit and force themselves to find the way back up and regain the path leading out and towards the pit... or be lost forever in a darkness blacker than the soul of even the cruel Dragokkaren who had for now, triumphed over every god and devil, mortal and monster in the world.