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He slowly walked towards the Drakkaren, and Ixin looked up after a moment, grinning slightly as he peered at the reptile from the corner of his eye, saying cheerfully: "Lord Zerrex, hey, been a while! A long damn while, but then again, I only woke up... what? Ten, twenty thousand years ago? Lost track of the time... fucking Wentaku can't... take a... joke..."

Ixin broke off, staring stupidly as Zerrex held up his flute... and the Drakkaren then immediately began to bounce around in his prison, cackling gleefully. "Holy fuck! Holy shit on a stick, you did it! You son of a bitch, you really, really, really did it! Oh my living shit, you are like, my hero forever and ever... dude, open these fucking chains so I can give you a fucking hug!"

"Calm the hell down, and just promise me you won't kill me." Zerrex said mildly, and Ixin nodded stupidly, his head waving wildly up and down. The reaction of the Drakkaren mortal did at least assure the demonic reptile that Ixin probably wouldn't do anything too stupid upon being released, however... and so Zerrex heaved a long, theatrical sigh before dropping to a kneel in front of the large lock mechanism, tilting the flute towards the ‘keyhole' in the device before he inserted it firmly.

For a moment, nothing happened... and then something deep in the earth whirred and clicked, followed by several loud clanking sounds as Ixin's bonds snapped open, chains falling to the ground and manacles crashing loudly to the earth after them, leaving Ixin stupidly leaning on his hands and knees... and then he slowly got to his feet, gaping at his palms as he stood shakily, his legs trembling a bit under his own weight.

Zerrex looked at him pensively... and a moment later Ixin leapt towards him and seized him in a hug so tight it made the Drakkaren wheeze for breath, the mortal lizard laughing happily as drew back and seized the reptile's shoulders firmly, gazing into his eyes with a wide grin, his eyes twinkling merrily. "This is the best fuckinhg day ever! Thank you, truly and honestly, Zerrex... and let me say, my escape never would have been possible to engineer in a million mortal years had it not been for you, you fucking rascal you!"

Ixin slipped an arm around Zerrex's head in a friendly headlock, then he ground his other fist down through the Drakkaren's hair, the reptile squawking and flailing a bit before he tore free from the crazy mage's grasp with a glare. Ixin only laughed again, however, then hooked the toe of his boot on the end of the flute sticking out of the locking mechanism, kicking it up to his hands and catching it. He gazed lovingly over it, almost cradling it against his body, and Zerrex stared as with a single breath over the flute, the mortal's clothes regenerated to their former glory, becoming colorful, vibrant, and taunt once more instead of dusty and fragile. The flute too regained some brighter colors, scrawls of gold appearing down either side of it before Ixin smiled slightly as five Royal Guards portalled into the clearing, and one of them asked angrily: "You idiot, did you do this?"

"And once more it's time for the fun to begin..." Ixin said softly, and then he grinned sharkisly and turned around, his back to Zerrex as he asked in a cajoling voice, raising the flute to his mouth: "Now come on, fellas! Why you gotta be all up in arms like that? Let's just all smile and dance our problems away!"

One of the demons immediately dropped his weapon and grabbed his head to the shock of the others, shrieking: "Cover your ears, everyone, cover your fucking ears! It's the flute, don't listen to the music, it's a goddamn-"

"Now that's just a bad sentence." Ixin said teasingly, and then he blew several beautiful, flowing notes as Zerrex stepped towards his back... and the Drakkaren found himself entranced by the melody almost immediately, his body shivering. The soliders dropped their weapons and went limp at the same time, and something in Zerrex snarled and kicked into gear, knocking him out of the stupid daze as the mage murmured: "I'd like to present to you two short movements: the Happy Days of Spring moving into the Overzealous Summer."

He blew several flowing notes with the flute before his feet began to move in what Zerrex recognized as a river dance; his feet rose and fell, twisting and flicking out to either side, toes of his boots tapping the ground occasionally as his head bobbed from side-to-side... and then the Drakkaren realized with horror that the Royal Guards were all mimicking Ixin's movements in sloppy dances of their own to the sound of the instrument. Their arms were glued to their sides, and demons looked at each other with expressions of shock and misery... but none of them able to speak, no matter how hard they obviously tried to release anything apart from a croak.

Ixin's feet began to move faster, and Zerrex anchored himself, closing his eyes and wincing as the now-sharper notes began to twist and blur together here and there: the effect created a sense of madness, but the reptile was already wondering if Ixin was truly insane... or if he was just a far-more-sly creature than he appeared to be. And I wonder if he tricked me... they... "Ixin..."

His shout came out in a whisper that the notes easily drowned out, and Ixin paid him no heed, his feet now almost a blur beneath him as he spun every now and then and danced in a circle around the Royal Guards, who had all stagger-danced their way into a circular formation and were rotating slowly themselves as they danced. One of them was gargling stupidly, and another was jerking back and forth... and Zerrex could feel his own heartbeat racing, thudding in his chest. A moment later, he looked up in shock as he realized what Ixin was doing... and then the flute picked up in speed yet again for another slew of notes before coming to a sudden halt.

Ixin landed gracefully on one foot, the other leg bent beneath him and his boot resting against his knee, one hand raised and the other held out with the flute grasped in it. He grinned widely as Royal Guards vomited blood and fell over, grasped and their chest and screamed in agony... and one-by-one, they slowly shriveled into corpses, some staring stupidly at the sky in their last few moments, and only one managing the strength to try and push himself to his feet before he fell limp against the earth.

The mage and the remaining demon looked at each other, Drakkaren-to-Drakkaren... and Ixin spun his flute over his fingers with that vicious grin still on his face, looking across at Zerrex and asking softly: "Do you like to dance?"

"What the hell are you doing?" The reptile asked coldly, raising his hands and doing his best to prepare himself, despite the chill running down his spine. What can I do against that... he literally made them dance until their hearts blew up in their chests... "Ixin, I just set you free, and these people-"

"Would have caused trouble for us both." Ixin replied eloquently, and then he slowly lowered himself to a more-natural stance, smiling slightly as he continued to spin the flute through his fingers, his other hand rising towards Zerrex. "Now tell me... do you like to dance or not?"

"Not like that or with you." Zerrex retorted, and Ixin feigned a look of deep hurt, grasping at his chest with his free hand. "What do you want? Exactly what are you planning to do now that you're freed?"

Ixin shrugged, smiling cheerfully as he brought the flute up to his mouth, and then he said gently: "Now, now, let's not get ahead of ourselves. First, I think it's time to test all the things you've learned over the years, Lord Zerrex..." A pause as his eyes glinted, and he asked in a venomous, dangerous voice: "Still think you can beat me?"

"Magic tricks don't scare me!" Zerrex snarled, clenching his hands into fists... and then he grunted and winced, his body twisting slightly to the side as his tattoo writhed on his arm... but he forced himself to calm down and remain in control for the moment, his eyes locking with Ixin's. "Don't make me kill you."

Ixin snorted, then spun his flute once before replying coldly: "I'll do what I must." A long pause, then he opened his mouth as if to speak... before blowing a quick series of notes on it, and Zerrex's body froze up, leaving the reptile completely unable to move as the mortal Drakkaren said teasingly: "Gosh, but you drop your guard so easily..."

He paused, then took a deep breath and straightened, smiling teasingly over to Zerrex before blowing two long, gentle notes... and the demon's body relaxed, Zerrex fighting as hard as he could now to tense himself, drag himself into another position. Before he could, Ixin blew two shrill, sharp notes... and the reptile snapped into an upright salute, one hand glued to his chest and the other against his side as the mage grinned widely, saying playfully: "Now see, this will be fun!"

"Fuck you!" Zerrex snapped, and he finally managed to tear his body out of its paralysis as Ixin cackled. He immediately charged forwards, but Ixin leapt backwards and blew a quick series of deep notes, and some invisible force seized Zerrex's foot and tripped him. He pinwheeled his arms for balance, looking stupefied for a moment before shoving both down into the ground, twisting his body into a handspring and landing neatly where Ixin had been only a moment before.

The reptile looked back and forth in shock, wondering where Ixin had gone... and then an eye twitched as he heard a whistle from behind him. The lizard slowly turned around to see Ixin sitting on the locking mechanism, his hands primly folded in his lap as he said condescendingly: "Now, so far, you're getting a failing grade. I mean, come on, all this brute force and violence, and-"

Zerrex shoved a hand out towards Ixin, the runes for the basic ‘Force' spell seeming to glow in his mind, and Ixin was knocked flying, skidding over the ground on his back with a loud curse as his flute flew out of his hands, and the demonic Drakkaren lashed a hand out, a thin tentacle snapping out of his wrist and wrapping quickly around the flute in midair. He grinned widely... and then shouted a string of profanities as the entire tentacle burst into flames before falling into ash, the flute dropping neatly into Ixin's hand as he pointed at Zerrex, his eyes narrowed. "Naughty boy."

The Drakkaren's entire body burst into scouring flames, and Zerrex fell backwards, immediately rolling back and forth to put out the fire covering his form. Instinct screamed at him the moment he did, however, and Zerrex shoved himself off the ground as he rolled to the side, the flames whiffing out as spikes of earth shot up where he had been a moment before. The reptile threw himself backwards as Ixin threw a blade of golden, almost-solid electricity at him, and the demonic Drakkaren's eyes narrowed as he pushed out a hand towards it, absorbing the attack before snapping his other arm out to hurl a sphere sparking with golden electricity back at the mage.

Ixin slapped it away before it could contact with his body, a green aura glowing around his hand and the flute clenched tightly in the other... and then his eyes widened as Zerrex created a sphere of blue energy in either hand and threw both of these not at him, but at the ground in front of him. He immediately leapt away, wincing at the explosions and muttering a protective incantation under his breath, a semitransparent shield encircling his body as he landed on his feet and looked back and forth. He's adapating as he fights... impressive.

"Come on, Zerrex, ambushes are for losers!" Ixin whined, before he grinned and rose the flute to his muzzle, saying playfully: "But then again... I can always make the most of a bad situation and just make you dance-dance-dance like a kitty on crack on out of your hidey-hole..."

The dust settled... and Ixin's eyes narrowed as he saw Zerrex nowhere in the field. He wondered for a moment if the demon had fled... and then something clicked in his head before he looked up in horror.

Zerrex was falling out of the sky like a stone, and Ixin barely managed to stagger backwards out of the way as the Drakkaren crashed down into the earth, slamming his fist out in a narrow miss that sent up a burst of dead grass and earth, and the reptile cursed angrily before leaping forwards and tackling Ixin to the ground. Immediately, Ixin punched him twice in the face with surprising strength, bloodying the reptile's muzzle, but Zerrex drove an elbow into the other male's gut and knocked the wind from him before he swung his fist upwards in an uppercut so hard in knocked Ixin flying bonelessly through the air to crash heavily on his back several feet away.

Despite everything, Ixin was still a mage at heart, and he rolled over onto his stomach with a moan of agony, clutching at his damaged jaw before forcing the flute up to his muzzle, blowing a quick, staggered melody... and as Zerrex stood up, the corpses of the Royal Guards Ixin had killed half-floated in front of the mage, their feet dragging over the earth. Several of them had already decomposed to skeletons, leaving only one or two serviceable corpses... and Ixin slowly stood, clutching the broken side of his jaw as he slurred: "I'll tear your arms off for that, you son of a bitch!"

"Bring it on, Ixin." Zerrex said coldly, raising a hand and beckoning... and then the corpses charged him as Ixin blew a single shrill, whistling note on the flute. The Drakkaren leapt backwards as Ixin staggered to the edge of the field to heal himself, before staring in horror as Zerrex simply rammed through one of the skeletons and it turned to dust, his hand snapping out to shatter through the spine of another and knock it in half.

The actual corpse leapt at Zerrex, sprouting claws of bone that it slashed at the reptile's face with... and Zerrex created a large, circular shield of energy, catching the corpse on it before swinging his arm out to not only send the corpse flying, but shatter the shield into shards that tore through the dead body, severing one of its arms and knocking it flat to the ground. The other skeleton leapt at him, and the reptile punched its head off, grinning widely... and then the headless skeleton kicked him hard in the crotch, and Zerrex groaned in pain, staggering backwards before the corpse seized his shoulders and shoved him down to his knees.

The headless skeleton clawed at his eyes, and Zerrex threw himself backwards, landing between the corpse's legs with a grunt as he swung one foot up to smash into its gut. The corpse staggered, leaning forwards automatically... and Zerrex now shoved hard upwards with his foot, knocking the dead body to the side as the reptile spun and smashed his foot into the ribcage of the skeleton in a final blow. The undead puppet was sent flying backwards, both arms falling off its body before it collapsed to the ground, and Zerrex rolled up to his feet, facing the corpse.

It loomed slowly back up to full height... and then the dead body and the armor it was wearing vanished into ashes as Ixin waved a hand and walked back into the battleground, looking coldly over Zerrex. The Drakkaren glared back at him... and Ixin said softly: "I guess it's time for me to get serious, huh?"

The very atmosphere seemed to change and darken as Ixin rose his flute to his mouth, and Zerrex grinned widely, a thrill of excitement running through him despite how hard he tried to repress it... but he was a demon of Wrath and Lust, after all, and just as when he'd fought the Terror so many years ago... now he felt a spark inside his body at this challenge he was facing. He was seeing the true face of Ixin, the one buried under all the silliness, guile, and cunning... and it was a stony, cold, and solemn face that had seen too many deaths and experienced too much war... and he was obviously ready to use all that to his advantage.

Zerrex charged towards the mage, and Ixin blew a quick melody on the flute, his eyes cold and locked on the Drakkaren. The reptile leapt backwards as four pillars of earth shot up around Ixin, made out of dark mud that turned to white rock as it hit the air... and a moment later red runes encircled the twenty foot tall pillars, glowing on it as a field of purple lightning and static began to bounce between the huge columns of ivory stone.

A moment later, Ixin began another charming, lovely melody... and Zerrex felt his body weakening and relaxing, a strange smile coming to his face as memories of his family, his loved ones, his home flooded his mind... and slowly, he began to walk towards Ixin, ignoring the field of energy even as it cracked with terrible power. He thought of Cherry... Cindy... Marina... Mahihko... and... what the hell, Ravenlight?

You moron, snap out of it! Ravenlight shouted, clearly visible in his head and shaking his hands angrily... and Zerrex blinked a few times before cursing and forcing his feet to stumble backwards, feeling the terrible energy emanating off the energy field. Ixin cursed irritably under his breath, the melody halting and the memories and images fading in his head to be replaced by rage as Zerrex felt his right arm twitching violently, the reptile snarling: "Leave my family out of this, Ixin!"

The Darkkaren's arm twitched again, and then he snarled as the vines of stone exploded down it, layers of metallic rock ripping out of his arm as it turned a glowing, flesh-red... and Ixin stared in shock as Zerrex clutched his own limb before leaping forwards with a roar, his stony hand turning into an enormous, curved axe head. He cut cleanly through one of the stone pillars with it, chunks of rock flying in every direction as the energy shield fizzled out, and several spikes twisted out of the demon's shoulder as his bull horns pushed out of his head, the reptile grinning cruelly as the axe head slowly twisted back into a claw hand, red light pulsing through the cracks in his arm as Ixin immediately dropped to a kneel and shoved a hand down to the ground, muttering an incantation.

A dome of white energy formed around him, then turned into solid black stone... but Zerrex leapt forwards and punched hard into it with his armored arm, and white cracks spread through the shield. The demon paused, his senses returning through the anger as his instincts shouted at him to back off, and he quickly leapt backwards as the cracked area of the stone began to strangely pull inwards.

Zerrex covered his face with a curse as the dome suddenly imploded, revealing not Ixin but instead a rip in the very fabric of reality itself, a terrible darkness visible through the claw mark in space and time that the demon's brain could barely process. At the edge of the clearing, Ixin cursed as the tree he had been hiding on bent and dumped him out onto the ground from the force of the pull, and then he let out a loud yell of shock as his flute was torn out of his hand, quickly yelling an incantation that sealed the rip closed.

His flute pattered to the ground, then suddenly spun towards Ixin and back into his hand, the mage making a disgusted face before staring as Zerrex charged towards him, his oversized, warped arm raised... and the mage waved a hand, creating a thirty foot high wall of white flames halfway between him and the lizard. He grinned... and then stared in shock as Zerrex trampled through the fires anyway, a sideways dome of blue energy in front of his body and the flames seeming to retreat from that terrible arm. Ixin cursed, then muttered another incantation and teleported from one side of the field to the other.

He stumbled forwards, leaning against a tree and breathing hard as the fire wall dissipated, Zerrex spinning around and spotting the mage... and he immediately waved an arm out, the dome in front of him shattering into sharp shards of energy that he sent flying at Ixin with a hard shoving motion. Ixin winced and cursed, shoving a hand out and dispelling the shards with a counterspell before he rose the flute to his mouth and quickly began another soft, ensnaring song.

Zerrex slowed to a halt, looking back and forth in shock as his body ceased to listen... and Ixin began a jaunty river dance that didn't match the cruel concentration on his features. Zerrex's legs mimicked it, and he felt his heart rate already increasing as he snarled in fury and a sharp terror... and then a gentle voice spoke in his head: You can be a victim of it... or you can let it flow through you until the chance comes to break free or strike.

Requiem's voice... Requiem's teachings. The lizard felt fury controlling him for a moment longer... but then he took a deep breath and forced it away, emptying his mind and doing his best to meditate and concentrate as Ixin began to pick up the beat and the movements. He felt his body move... and although he couldn't halt the movements or tear free from Ixin's terrible control, he forced himself to breathe slow, no matter how much it hurt or how hard it was.

His heart pounded and thudded in his chest as Ixin began to pick up the pace further, and he felt his legs spasming, barely able to keep pace with the blur that Ixin's talented feet moved at... but he stayed in control and calm. It went on for almost five minutes, steadily increasing... and then Zerrex's eyes opened as Ixin staggered and the Drakkaren stumbled with him before anchoring himself... and Ixin fell to his knees, dropping his flute and breathing hard, the spell broken.

Zerrex narrowed his eyes... and then Ixin began to laugh, falling on all fours and panting heavily as he looked at the ground, sweat rolling down his heaving, masculine body as he said in a ragged but cheerful voice: "No one... no one has ever outdanced or outlasted me before... enough, Zerrex, enough! You've beaten me fair and square... after so many years, I... I must be rusty..."

He forced himself to sit up on his knees, breathing hard as he looked over Zerrex and wincing a bit as the Drakkaren slowly approached... then he gulped and leaned away, twiddling his fingers a bit as Zerrex reached down and seized his shoulder with his twisted, ugly arm, the mortal reptile saying mildly: "You know, if you kill me, I die permanently. And hey, uh... since I owe you already a shitload, um... you know, I could... um... help you get out of Hell, even! I mean, at least... help you find help to... help you out of... please don't hurt me."

Ixin shrank away... and Zerrex sighed before straightening with a frown from looming over the other lizard, rubbing at his monstrous, stony arm as he asked slowly: "What the hell do you mean, help me get out of Hell? I thought you were permanently mortal... I guess technically you're an Immortal, right?"

"Right! But hey, if you haven't noticed, I can do some wacky spell shit." Ixin grinned slightly as he clapped his hands together, and when he drew them apart, a dove appeared between them. He tossed this into the air, and a moment later it exploded... and Zerrex merely continued to look at Ixin sourly as a rain of blood and bird-guts spilled over him. The mage stared in horror at this, then he winced and rubbed the back of his head, mumbling: "That spell didn't work out right... but... seriously!"

He paused for a few long moments as Zerrex continued to glare at him, and then he turned a bit more solemn, looking back and forth before leaning up and whispering quietly: "I can tell you how to beat the Scholar's lock system... and not only portal you straight into the Northern Palace grounds... but tell you where one of the last remaining Black Holes are, one that the demons have been using purely for shipping purposes."

"What?" Zerrex stared in shock, and Ixin grinned before yelping as Zerrex grabbed his shoulders and shoved him backwards, barking: "And why the hell didn't you tell me this earlier?"

"I didn't have any reason to! I knew you're the only one who was both dumb enough and smart enough to get away with stealing my flute and setting me free!" Ixin whined, flapping his arms stupidly as he stared in horror up at Zerrex, who looked murderous. "Come on, I'll be a huge help to you, seriously, I just um... I got a little bit excited back there about fighting again and being free, and I thought you'd make a great workout... I wasn't ever seriously going to kill you, and I can reattach cut-off limbs and-"

"Sin!" Zerrex shouted, and a moment later a portal opened and Sin stepped through, the female frowning a bit at the sight of Ixin as the mage went pale. "Thanks for showing up so promptly... now, if you wouldn't mind, do you think we could go over that exercise for sending people to the Marquee Sur Noir again?"

"Okay, whoa, time-out, no need for threats!" Ixin babbled, and this time Zerrex didn't think the mage was faking his terror, as Sin stepped forwards a bit. He looked back and forth with a wince, then finally sulked and mumbled: "You win, no more games. A Reaper is capable of sneaking into the Scholar's Tree and still has the ability to remove a name from a scroll... the Scholars only care that things go in order and wouldn't notice one missing name, even one with an important tag like yours. As long as that name is removed from the Judgment Scrolls, you'll become a Free Demon... and if you snap on one of those fancy artifact things that keep you invisible to the All-Seeing Eyes of the Scribes and Scholars, even if they write down your name, you'll be free to do whatever you want in Hell without them or even the Monarchs able to exert any influence over you, and you'll still be free of their powers and reign.

"The biggest problem is getting a Reaper of considerable power to steal that name for you off the scroll..." A pause and a glance over at Sin as he added slyly: "But I heard there was another Naganatine who serves now as a Reaper in Hell, and he should have more than enough strength to remove that name from the scroll..."

Zerrex smiled slightly, and he looked over at Sin as a full plan ran through him... but a chill did at the same time. He knew he was taking a huge risk... and a lot of people he cared about would be put in danger as well. But it's my only choice... and I have to act now, before anyone high-up figures out that I've freed Ixin. "Sin, will you please go and find Amiglion and tell him I need to talk to him? And Ixin, we should head back to the Ravenlight Estate... they'll likely want to search it several times over, but the charms on it should keep you safe from the eyes of the Princess and anyone else who might be looking for you."

"Good call!" Ixin said relievedly, and then he glanced over at Sin as she made a face, looking back and forth indecisively. "Hey babe, don't be worrying about Zerrex here... I'll take good care of him, I promise! And um... you know, we'll make sure he gets to talk to everyone before he goes, and-"

"And as much as I don't want to... I'll come back after I kill the Warlord." Zerrex said quietly, and both Ixin and Sin looked at him with shock, the Drakkaren looking down at his own hand and clenching it tight into a fist. He half turned away, closing his eyes and slumping a bit as he whispered: "Even if I do escape Hell... they'll send assassins and retrievers after me, and I'll have to stay on the run with my family... the only way I'll ever truly be free is... if I fulfill my promise to Lily, to Selena... and to you, Sin."

He glanced over at her, and Sin bowed to him, looking down to the ground with a faint smile as her eyes closed, and she whispered: "I'll be waiting for you, Lord Zerrex... waiting, praying, and missing you... but... I'll go and tell the others to wait at the Ravenlight Estate for you. I'm sure by now the Princess wants to see you, too, and your best chance to... to..."

The reptile only nodded, and Sin bowed again before quickly stepping through a portal as Ixin looked up at the Drakkaren with confusion, asking curiously: "Why... why wouldn't you just abandon everything? Close the other Black Holes to limit the things they could do, clear out earth and live happily ever after with your family, just... forgetting about Hell for now? I mean... you could always come back, there's a few thousand ways to get down here apart from getting your ass handed to you, and..."

He broke off, continuing to look curiously at Zerrex... and the Drakkaren simply smiled faintly before shrugging a bit, saying quietly: "Because I have a responsibility not only to myself... but to my daughters, to my family, to... to the friends I've made in Hell. To the people who look up to me... and to the people who look down at me." Zerrex lowered his head, murmuring softly: "I've come to realize something... that even though Az'Iriel killed me, he's not the real enemy. He's fled Hell for eons now... and he and the Princess aren't fighting a real war, but they're just playing a game to see who's the dominant one. She's the real nemesis, because she's puppeting Gods know how much of this whole massacre behind the scenes... and it has to stop. Even if I have to die to kill her, I'll kill the bitch... but for now I have to play her games and... go and see her."

The reptile made a face and created a portal, and Ixin snorted, looking strangely upset as he crossed his arms and glared off in another direction for a few moments, before turning his eyes back to the lizard and saying dryly: "She's a mind reader, you know... not just any small-potatoes psychic fair kind, either. She sees everything, she knows everything, and-"

"She doesn't understand mortal music... you think you'd be the one who figures that out." Zerrex said with a slight smile, and Ixin frowned before the demonic Drakkaren shrugged a bit and created a second portal in front of the mage, saying mildly: "Make yourself at home but don't mess with my stuff. I'll see you in a little while."

With that, Zerrex stepped through his own portal and out onto the Southern Balcony, and he rubbed at his arm slowly, making a bit of a face as he noted an extra guard of Amazons standing near the doors. They parted ways for him, but he still felt nervous as he self-consciously shrank down his stony arm as much as he could... but it was still a bit too large for his body as he stepped through the massive, slightly-open double doors and into the Throne Room to see the Princess surrounded by her concubines, sitting in her throne and saying in a mild voice: "Lord Zerrex... isn't this a pleasure?" A pause, and then she added with an undertone of dry irritation: "But it's good that you've arrived... my... High Priestesses were getting worried they'd never meet you, despite the... involvement they've confessed to having with you on the mortal realm."

Zerrex looked up in surprise as four demons stood and walked towards him... and the four Sisters of the Judgment Cross bowed deeply to him, and Zerrex knelt and bowed back before one of them laughed and said in a loving, tender voice: "Please, Lord Zerrex... not to us. We are your humble servants, you are the master here."

"I... it's good to see you all." Zerrex said stupidly, standing up and walking forwards... and then he closed his eyes, breathing quietly as the four sisters encircled him, Earth ducking down to grasp his leg, Water rubbing slowly over his stony arm and Air his other normal limb... and Fire last of all sliding her arms around his neck, grinding gently into him from behind. He swallowed hard, their naked bodies that bore only their different objects as he murmured: "I... I mean... I'm honored and..."

"Princess... may we take Lord Zerrex from your care for the moment and bring him to a private room? We wish to counsel him and speak with him..." Fire asked gently over the Drakkaren's shoulder, looking at her mildly... and Zerrex could sense the Princess's rage before she slowly nodded and grunted, standing and waving at them almost irritably.

"I'll send him to you four after I have a word with him. Take him where you wish... please wait on the balcony outside." A pause, and then she half-slashed at her concubines, the succubi and Dius scattering as she added in a growl: "You all get lost as well! I wish to speak to him alone!"

They scattered towards the doors of the circular room as Zerrex frowned a bit and rubbed slowly at his monstrous arm, watching the room empty quickly. The Princess looked over him in disgust, first eyeing his arm before attempting to pry into his mind... and when Zerrex managed to reject her, she said softly: "Don't think that just because the Goddesses have such an interest in you, you'll be protected or safe from me and my demands. In Hell, High Monarch outranks Goddess... and I'm the only acting Monarch left in Hell, since Prince Memnon has done nothing but run back and forth in indecision."

"I'm not scared of you." Zerrex replied quietly... and he was amazed to find out it wasn't a lie anymore, as he stood and looked defiantly at her... and the Princess's eyes narrowed at him, turning a burning, terrible emerald before a blast of raw psychic force slammed into him... but the Drakkaren held his ground even as he skidded backwards, leaning against the telekinetic blast before physically shoving back against it and throwing the attack off to the side, and the Princess's head twitched before he added coldly: "You can't intimidate me with brute force."

"There are plenty of other ways to hurt you, though... and believe me, hurt you I will if you disobey." The Princess retorted, holding out a hand... and a pair of statuettes appeared in them, of Lily and Selena. She bounced them in her hand for a few moments, then Zerrex winced as she caught them and crushed them both into rubble, whispering: "Keep fucking with me, and I'll launch a full-out offensive against your lovely wife... and just for kicks, I'll pit your other whore against her, just to see which one of them is stronger."

Zerrex snarled, his stony arm beginning to pulse as it thickened and lengthened, the claws growing cruel and gnarled... and the Princess tilted her head back, looking down at him patronizingly as she asked in a darkly-entertained voice: "What's wrong, Lord Zerrex? Have your feelings for others gotten in the way of your plans, of standing up to me? You're worthless... and you have so many weaknesses I can exploit to ensure you do as I say. I started off being perfectly kind to you, but you were the one who set us both on this path... and I will kill you if I'm forced to, Lord Zerrex, after I make you watch the torture of everyone from that worthless little shit Mahihko to Sin... and yes, I know about him." She paused, then strode forwards, walking towards Zerrex and producing a small metal coin. A moment later, however, it began to glow... and Mahihko appeared on it, the wolf crying as he was vicious lashed by Slavers in what Zerrex recognized as the Hell of Lust. "I can make his punishments better or worse for him, and you know it.

"So here's the deal. You start treating me with proper respect and lighten your attitude... and I'll ensure that Mahihko doesn't die in his first year in Hell." The Princess grinned cruelly. "Yes, I'm a bitch, so stop thinking that. But I've got your promise now, so go on and play with the Goddesses... but don't go crying to them for help, either."

The Princess strode back towards her throne, and Zerrex turned away, heading towards the doors to the Southern Balcony with a snarl before the Princess called him back. He looked over his shoulder as she sat down in her chair, a large wineglass in one hand filled with some indiscernable liquid as she added mildly: "By the way... I notice you absorbed the Heartstone of Mephistopheles. I suggest you start harnessing that and your full, true demonic form that has been unsealed... you may need it soon in the future."

She laughed and pushed her mask up just enough to take a sip of her wine, and Zerrex cursed under his breath as he turned away and walked quickly out of the Throne Room of the Central Spire, stepping onto the balcony and lowering his head with a deep breath as the Sisters looked at him with a mix of curiosity and concern, before Earth asked quietly: "Lord Zerrex... what's happened? The Princess has been blocking us from seeing you, but none of us thought she would be causing such serious problems for you..."

The Drakkaren only shook his head slowly for the moment, however, and Water said quietly: "Let's move to a private room then... perhaps in the Monastery, where we can talk freely." She paused, then created a white portal, looking thoughtfully over the Drakkaren. "So strange that only now we see you, after so many years have passed..."

She quieted, then stepped through the large white portal, and the others followed suit, Zerrex lowering his head a bit before feeling a strange calm roll through his body as he stepped into a beautiful hardwood room, looking back and forth at the shelves full of books and the clean, enormous bed, and circular table set with six chairs, three to either side. As the reptile got his bearings, he was dragged towards the bed... and then he was laying upon it, Earth and Fire curling close against his sides and Water gently massaging through his hair, crouched in front of him with his head resting on her legs... and below him, Air had taken off his boots and was slowly massaging his feet as the Drakkaren's arm glowed a quiet blue.

A moment later, Fire stroked down his stony arm, and it slowly receded back into normal flesh, Zerrex looking surprised as she smiled gently up at him, murmuring quietly: "Passion and control of passion... destruction and purification. Your unholy arm here contains incredible power... and you may have the strength to fully control the abilities of Mephistopheles that have melded together with you."

Earth nodded, glancing up from his other side before kissing his chest and whispering: "The Naganatine had no alignment in many cases, and Mephistopheles was known for abilities that were passed on to White and his second child... but there are many other powers that you may inherit, especially through the abilities you already have and the energy and changes provided from the spirits you've absorbed..."

"You've played a very dangerous game with those souls you have taken into your body... weight of soul against weight of soul. Every spirit you take in, after all, has a chance of taking over your body and dissolving or biting into your own spiritual essence." Air added quietly, looking up from where she was soothingly rubbing along his feet and ankles. Zerrex made a bit of a face, and she smiled tenderly at him. "It's alright. You're fine and healthy... and you've gained strength and enhanced your own magical abilities."

"Yes... and your energy abilities have grown to incredible levels... although it absorbs some of your own essence, you have so much and regenerate so fast, you're capable of wonderful and terrible things with such powers..." Water said softly, rubbing quietly along his temples before pushing her hands gently through his hair, then rubbing back down as she smiled down at him softly, Zerrex gazing invertedly up at her curiously. "And over time, your body has become more energy than anything else, bound so firmly together that your form is all but armored with it..."

She halted, and the four sisters looked at each other before Zerrex finished quietly: "It's why I can shapeshift and change sizes, but why my body has to essentially keep the same characteristics, right? I mean... I can't change my scale color or my eye color, but I can change size to a point... and I can increase my bulk or lithe out as I choose, to change the dynamics of my body... yet it still remains visibly me." He glanced down, before looking curiously around at the four. "I... do you know what... do you understand what's happened to me? Everyone speaks so highly of you four, and you're referred to as the Goddesses..."

They laughed at this, and the Drakkaren looked confused before Fire murmured gently: "Goddesses... just as in the Hez'Rannan lore. We're not so much deities as we simply... we simply are, though." She halted and shrugged a bit, blushing quietly. "We've been around for many years... we were born not of the Terrors, but of the Dark Goddess who created the Drakkai..."

"We were servants and slaves, soldiers and priestesses..." Air murmured gently, looking down and shaking her head slowly. "We were the spearhead and the shield..."

"We were the controllers of the elements... the ones in charge of weather, of nature, of keeping everything to the Mistress's liking... we were the entertainment, both warriors in the areans and playthings for her favorite soldiers..." Water whispered, closing her eyes and releasing a quiet sigh. "We were...

"Nothing to her, just toys... just objects to be used." Earth finished, and then she laughed a bit and quietly pressed closer to Zerrex's body, clinging to him and murmuring: "Our true powers have been sealed ever since we became part of this Hell, when we came from the Beyond, all that is left of the Goddess's Realm. The Drakkai have changed so much from the Hellbreed... bred with other reptiles over the years and diluted their original demonic blood... and yet still so many end up here in Hell, from the lusts and sense of wrath and revenge that has never left the species."

They were quiet for a little while, before Zerrex sat up... and immediately all four clung to him, Water wrapping her arms around his body and Air slipping up onto the bed to wrap her arms around his neck and press close, as the other two grasped either arm and held tightly on to him... and Zerrex lowered his head, asking quietly: "Then why me? Is... is it because of Narrius?"

It was a wild guess... but the four nodded against him, and finally one of them whispered: "Yes... Lord Zerrex, I fear that is a major part of the reason. He killed the Goddess and destroyed her made-mortal body... and he absorbed the power that was not shredded by his vicious attack and became a monstrous quasi-deity himself. You carry the blood of the Goddess in your veins, and we are forever bound to her... and as you are the one mentioned in the Prophecy, the Darkness born of Darkness... you are our master and lord now. We are your Iuratus, just as Mist and Shine are... and we thirst for your presence.

"The Princess knows this... and fears you..." Kisses traced over his body, heads and horns gently pressed against him as the voice continued to murmur quietly: "You do not fully understand your power yet, and it will take many millions of years of training for you to proper grasp it all... but one day you will, and that day she will either enslave or destroy you. Although she can see into your mind and the minds of all others... we can see into hers, and it is a strange and familiar place to us. She is no Drakkai, but she thinks as many of them do, in the old, primitive, instinctual way, the way we did before we ascended from the Pit, from the Dark World, and into the Light... she is full of bad feelings and bad instincts, and in a word... she is evil and cruel."

"Yet essential..." Zerrex murmured, not knowing why... but yet it fit properly. He shook his head slowly, hugging himself gently and looking down thoughtfully as the voices sighed and heaved around him... before he rubbed at his head and mumbled: "Well... I'll deal with one problem at a time. And the first person in my way is the Warlord, not her, and I should deal with him as soon as I can to at least stop the attacks on the world..."

"But then return? Will you have the strength to, Lord Zerrex? Because with the death of the Warlord, every Black Hole will close... and you'll be forced to portal with the remaining dark essence, or be sealed forever on the face of the world." Fire looked up quietly, and the others nodded slowly, Water kissing Zerrex's neck gently. "And although you can create a portal and have learned the ways of creating even a vortex between dimensions... you may not wish to, with all you have to gain... and all that you have to lose."

Zerrex nodded and looked down, reaching a hand up to rub at his own muzzle in a nervous gesture... and then he let out a loud sigh, looking away and murmuring: "I... either way, I don't have a choice. I can't let the Warlord continue his rampage and reign of terror on the world... and..."

"Then we shall help you, as we are sworn to." Earth said quietly, looking up into Zerrex's eyes, and the Drakkaren blinked before blushing a bit as she softly kissed his lips, adding gently: "You go, then... and we'll aid you as best we can from here, and keep the Princess from sending soldiers out after you too quickly."

The others nodded... and Zerrex rubbed the back of his head, before Water squeezed him firmly before he could speak, smiling faintly and saying quietly: "It's our job to aid you as best we can, after all... there's no need to thank us, so don't, as tempted as you are." She nuzzled gently into his hair, then murmured softly: "Go now, then... while you have the chance. We'll anxiously await your return."

The reptile nodded as he slowly stood, and he glanced down, rubbing the back of his head before turning around with a smile... but all four simply shook their heads, Fire laughing a bit as Earth blushed, and Zerrex finally grunted and nodded, creating a portal and walking towards it as he mumbled finally: "Still, thank you. I feel bad if I don't say it, you know. Politeness and all doesn't really cost anything, after all."

"You're a sentimentalist, Lord Zerrex." Air said softly, but she was smiling as she put her hands together and stood with her sisters, bowing a bit as she gazed quietly at the Drakkaren. "Take care of yourself... and come back alive."

"I will." Zerrex nodded, then stepped through the portal with a twist of mixed emotions in his gut, stepping into the entrance of the Ravenlight Estate, then groaning as he heard a loud crash followed by angry shouting. Well, at least that answers my question about where Ixin is... although it sounds like he just ran into Selena...

The reptile mumbled to himself under his breath as he started for the stairs, rubbing slowly at his head. Since now he could hear loud whining paired with the infuriated yells, the Drakkaren was starting to wonder how long Ixin had actually been sitting around before he'd gone looking for trouble... or maybe Selena wandered in on him. Either way...

He grunted something to himself as he headed up the stairs and onto the wide landing, heading for the left-side door before it burst open and Ixin barreled past him, sliding to a halt behind the Drakkaren and half-hiding behind him as a naked Selena stormed out, looking furious as her eyes burned with black light. She put her hands on her hips as Zerrex shrank back a bit, Ixin holding tightly onto the lizard's shoulders and trying to hold him in place as Selena shouted: "Get out here, Ixin, or I'll just hurt you even more!"

Zerrex winced at the look in Selena's eyes, and then he asked stupidly as mage let out a whimper behind him: "What exactly did he... wait, why are you completely naked?"

"The fucker burnt off my clothes!" Selena raged, stomping her feet before charging forwards, and Ixin yelped and immediately ran around to Zerrex's other side, the Drakkaren looking back and forth with a wince as the demon and immortal circled him back and forth, Selena adding furiously: "Piece of shit, come here, I'm going to choke you to death! Not so tough without your fucking precious magic, huh?"

"This is totally unfair! Selena, come on, it was a joke!" Ixin squealed, and then he yelped as Selena tackled him over the railing and the two fell to the floor below with a loud crunch. Zerrex slapped his forehead as Ixin groaned in pain, before flailing stupidly as Selena began to shake him violently, screeching: "I'll restore them I can restore them perfectly fine, I just... come on, I'm exhausted and I need my flute!"

"Restore this!" Selena snapped, then she punched him hard in the face, Ixin's head twisting to the side as he groaned loudly before she struck him hard again in the forehead. Before she could land a third punch, however, Zerrex caught her wrist and half-glared at her, and Selena calmed down a bit, dropping Ixin flat to the floor so he could roll around in pain as she muttered and threw a last kick into his side: "Fine. But don't think I won't beat on you later."

"You suck." Ixin said plainly from the floor, and then he winced and crawled quickly away when the demoness shot a deadly look his way again. He curled up against one of the staircases leading up to the next floor, looking moody as he rubbed at his bruised face slowly before mumbling: "Besides, I always considered ‘hot-tits' to be a compliment..."

Zerrex cleared his throat as Selena rose a fist, and she shot him a look before the Drakkaren glanced to the side and said clearly: "Sin, I'm back at the Ravenlight Estate's lobby, when you're ready." A pause, and then he looked to Selena and gently grasped her shoulders, kissing her forehead softly and earning a frown from her before he said quietly: "I have to leave for a while to the mortal realm."

"What? You... you mean, you found a way back?" Selena looked both surprised and... almost disappointed, but she tried to hide the latter with a small smile as she whispered: "That's... that's good... I..."

"I'm going to come back after I kill Az'Iriel..." Zerrex said softly, and the demoness frowned, although her eyes gleamed with relief at the same time... but it didn't bother the reptile as much as it once would have. After so many years in Hell, he had started to understand the ways that demons worked... and he knew that Selena could be incredibly possessive of not only her prey, but also of her partners. "I don't know how many years that will be, but-"

"I'll wait for you." Selena said firmly, taking his hands and looking up into his eyes quietly, before she laughed a bit and glanced away. "I mean... you know. Not... not that I'll... stay chaste or whatever while you're gone, but I mean... I'll still be waiting for you when you get back. To be your... wife... again..."

She looked down in embarrassment, and again Zerrex was reminded of Cherry as he reached up to stroke her face gently. A moment later, they both looked up as Sin stepped through a portal into the room, and she bowed quietly before looking across at the Drakkaren with a mix of sadness and unabashed love, murmuring gently: "Amiglion will be joining us once he's completed his job... Ixin, sir, would you like me to heal you while we wait?"

Ixin shook his head and stood up, his features smoothing out and becoming serious as he half-bowed to her. "Thank you, Lady Sin, but no... but Lord Zerrex, there's something we need to discuss while you prepare for what's to come ahead, but you should gather your gear while we do so... privately."

Zerrex nodded and glanced over to Selena, but she only shook her head, saying softly: "It's fine. I'll go and talk to Lily, get a place at the encampment and hopefully make it back with her before you leae... and Sin can take care of this place here. Just... watch your ass out there, Zer. And... and come back, please."

She almost pleaded the last, and Zerrex smiled faintly, nodding and reaching out to touch her face gently... but Selena brushed his arm away and grunted something, turning away and creating a portal of her own to head embarrassedly through as Sin bowed deeply to Zerrex... and Zerrex smiled a bit at her as well before motioning for Ixin to follow as they headed for the stairs. I may never see them again...

The Drakkaren stepped out into the Northern Province less than an hour later, the soul-absorbing blade on his back and a silver longsword holstered on one hip, with the revolver and speed-loader Feldspar had given him so many years ago now on the other. Upon his arm was the golden vambrace that Lily had bestowed him, and the rest of his odds-and-ends were kept in a sidepack on his belt.

He peered carefully around the large rock he was behind towards the closed portcullis of the Northern Palace and the spiked, hundred-foot-high walls of stone of the fortress. The bridge was lowered over an enormous moat filled with magma... but on the other hand, fire elementals were dancing and patrolling through the lava, some of them tossing bits of magma almost playfully at each other. On the other hand, if I get pelted by lava, I'm not going to last very long...

The reptile bit his cheek, trying to think of how to get past this obstacle... then winced and drew quickly back as several white-armored soldiers on Wyrms rode slowly by, huge, barbed lances at their sides. A pause, and then one of them sighed and shouted: "Hey, get the hell out of there! That isn't your playground, don't make me get Lady Majesty!"

There was squealing and whining Zerrex recognized as an elemental language... but that didn't mean it hurt his head any less as he winced and covered his head. Thankfully, it was interrupted by an angry yell from one of the soldiers, and Zerrex heard a loud squishing and hissing as one rider muttered: "They come down from the volcanoes and fire-pits nearby... they like the moat because the mages charmed the lava so it'll never turn to stone. Come on, let's resume our patrol."

The riders moved away, and Zerrex took a breath after a count to one-hundred to lean back out from behind the rock, tossing a glance at the barren, war-torn battleground behind him before looking back to the fortress. A glance up towards the battlements, but the few posted archers looked bored, if anything... and the reptile shrugged a bit before making a face and running out from behind the rock, snapping his arm out and launching a tentacle towards one of the conical spikes.

It wrapped several times around it, and Zerrex kicked off the ground at the last moment, pulling himself forwards at the same time even as he felt the tentacle slipping slightly... but thankfully he moved fast enough that he caught the spike a moment later, swinging his feet down to lodge against two more as his other hand pressed against the wall, the reptile breathing quietly and wincing as he felt a dull pain roll through his body. He glanced down, then stared at the fact he'd impaled himself on two of the spikes â€" nothing serious, but just enough to leave him feeling very glad he hadn't been moving at too great a speed or anything as he swallowed and slowly began to climb.

Twenty-five feet up and Zerrex was already frustrated from how slippery the spikes were... not to mention how sharp the tips felt. It didn't help the rows were uneven and slightly-curved, making it extra-awkward to climb... and the Drakkaren mumbled something under his breath even as blue energy glowed around his hands and feet. He made it sticky to enhance his grip... but the problem was it didn't really work as great as he'd like it to, and it didn't help that he had to keep his eyes skywards and halt every now and then as an archer strode slowly by.

Fifty-some feet up, Zerrex halted for another rest and to frown a bit as he looked at the way the shape of the spikes turned into crescents above him... and when he reached up a hand to test this, he cursed and stared at his fingers, which were bleeding from several rather-deep cuts. He closed his hand, running blue energy over it and into the wound to heal himself as he made a face at what was above... and this time, when the Drakkaren closed his eyes and concentrated, his hands slowly coated themselves in a thicker layer of azure energy as the reptile muttered: "Prepare, prepare, prepare. I hate going in with no info..."

He reached up and gripped the blades the spikes turned into... and thankfully, they didn't dig through the ‘gloves' of energy he'd coated his hands in. He worked hard to keep his chest and limbs from brushing against other blades, but by the eighty foot mark, he was covered in small cuts and wounds before the Drakkaren stared at the spikes sticking out of the last twenty feet of wall.

They were curved, twisted, jagged, any shape he could think of... and they all seemed to be moving. In other words, they were impassable by the means he had... and the Drakkaren gritted his teeth before staring over his shoulder as someone yelled at him angrily, the sound faint but still there. A moment later, a rock bounced off the wall beneath him... and the element of surprise lost, Zerrex cursed and threw himself off the spike wall, feeling irritation building in his head as his angelic wings tore out of his back and he flapped them once, the white energy flickering with static and remaining only semisolid as he shot upwards.

They vanished a moment later, and the Drakkaren landed on the battlements, immediately drawing his silver sword and slashing down the archer in light armor nearest, his bow firing uselessly into the air before the reptile spun around and drew his revolver. He fired three quick shots into another archer, then leapt forwards off the battlements with a curse as soldiers in the courtyard below began to yell and scream, an alarm going up as the reptile holstered his revolver, his eyes narrowing.

He spun the silver longsword around his body, driving back several of the soldiers that had moved forwards to encircle him before he leapt through a hole in their ranks, at the same time cutting out the leg of a minotaur as arrows hailed down towards him from the battlements. The Drakkaren snarled a bit as he ran down the center of the courtyard, watching as soldiers flooded out from the buildings on either side as the alarms continued to blare, the reptile's eyes flicking back and forth as he watched necromancers mutter to each other in their dark robes and other mages storming out of other buildings...

A moment later the alarm halted... and all was silent for a few moments as soldiers looked at each other uneasily, archers with their arrows nocked and ready to fly, mages coordinating their magics. But when a door opened in a small, ramshackle brick hut that had been built on the side of one building, many of the soldiers retreated immediately, and archers loosened their bows as a sick, twisted laughter rose up.

Slowly, a horse with chestnut hair streaked with black dragged his hooves along the ground, body clothed in jeans and rusted silver armor covering his chest, black eyes rolling in his head. He left a trail through the dirt behind himself as he headed towards the enormous statue of Az'Iriel and several of his highest-ranking officers, and the statue trembled and groaned as the stone heads all turned to watch as the figure stumbled around it towards where Zerrex stood. Chains clinked audibly with his movements, hanging from the manacles around his wrists, and there was no weapon on his body other than the short chains hanging from his wrists... but Zerrex didn't think this particular entity needed to use brute force to get his way.

Several mages drew back, and a wide berth was given to both the Drakkaren and the horse... and as his mouth yawned open to reveal sharp teeth inside, Zerrex's eyes narrowed as he rose the silver sword, saying quietly: "Gape. It's been a long while..."

"Captain Ravenlight..." Gape whispered, and his body shuddered, his long fingers twitching at the ends of his gangly arms, limbs hanging limp as he swayed a bit on the spot, the horse dragging his eyes along the Drakkaren. Finally, he straightened after a moment with a drawn-out sigh, tilting his head back and sending his mane of black hair spilling out along his back as he murmured: "So glad we could meet again... if only Ghost had the balls to be here, then we could kill you together... but he fears you more than hates you these days..."

"And you just hate me, right? What about Twister, is he around here somewhere too?" Zerrex asked coldly, tilting his head and trying not to shudder as his eyes met Gape's own. He tried his best to remember all he could about the terrible horse from the Goth Legion... but all he could think of were the terrors Gape could induce at will in anyone and anything. But they were his fears, his darkness... he was only ever reflecting himself, forcing his own emotions onto someone else... "Listen, Gape, I'm on a time-sensitive schedule, and it looks like I already have a full army to kill if I want to get into the palace, so-"

"Dismissed! All of you, leave!" Gape howled suddenly, arching his back as spittle and froth flew from his muzzle, and soldiers stared in shock before he leaned slowly forwards, breathing a bit harder and then grinning cruelly as the chains trembled and clanked, glowing with dark fire as he murmured: "You and me, Lord Zerrex... a fight to the death, a duel, like you always seemed to prefer... you and me in a deathmatch... just like I've always wanted. If I kill you, my terrors, my nightmares will go away... I know it..."

Zerrex shook his head slowly, sheathing his silver longsword before he pulled the larger blade off his back, grasping the handle in both hands as his emerald eyes glowed, and he said quietly: "You're nothing but a poor, misguided fool, Gape... but if that's the way you want to play, then we'll play things by your rules."

"And you'll die either way..." Gape murmured, then he closed his eyes as his jaws stretched hideously wide, dark smog streaming out of his nose and mouth... but Zerrex clenched his eyes tightly shut and turned his head away, avoiding the terrible expression that gave the demon his name and had always caused such terrors to root deep in his victims... and then Gape charged, and Zerrex's eyes snapped open as the lumbering horse snapped out one long chain towards him.

Gape was thin but taller than the reptile, only appearing to be shorter because of his slump... and Zerrex hadn't expected the chains to be as long as they actually were, the lizard leaping backwards as one snapped at his face, before the other slashed upwards across his chest. It only brushed against his large form, but it still tore a wicked slash along his body as Zerrex cursed under his breath before ducking as Gape spun around in a circle, lashing out with both chains at head level.

He leapt forwards and slashed a single cut through Gape's waist, and the horse exploded into dark smog that quickly shot across the battleground and collided with several staring soldiers, knocking them sprawling before Gape reformed... and the soldiers slowly stood up, their fur white and eyes burning black, all three of them charging in with terrible screams as froth leaked from their muzzles and their hands clawed at the air. Zerrex snarled and drew his revolver with his free hand, pounding a single round into each before the weapon clicked empty, but all three burst into dark smog with the single attack, which Gape then inhaled loudly.

His chest expanded and his arms bulged out with muscle for a moment, his eyes rolling as he whinnied loudly... and then he slumped forwards and stared hungrily at Zerrexm, murmuring softly: "You can't win, Lord Zerrex... every soul I feed on makes me stronger, gives me more terror to spread around... by the end of this fight, you too shall join me... that is, if you don't tear yourself apart first..."

Gape stared at Zerrex... and the Drakkaren cursed and staggered backwards, before looking back and forth in shock as the walls surrounding them and the sky above turned dead black, the ground becoming a glowing white-blue phosphorescence that cast a ghastly glow over Gape. All around them, soldiers exploded into black smog that vanished in an instant, and Zerrex snarled before Gape doubled, then quadrupled in height... or perhaps it was Zerrex who shrank, staring in horror up at the fanged horse as he walked slowly forwards and began to chant: "Child, child, don't you cry... the boogeyman won't get you, you're not gonna die...

"Only bad little boys get scared to death today... the boogeyman gets them while their parents are away..." Gape stomped forwards, and Zerrex snarled as he concentrated, his body losing its muscular bulk and becoming lithe, retaining its impressive tone. Immediately, the reptile used his lighter body to his advantage, leaping to the side as one of Gape's spiked hooves attempted to crush him, and the Drakkaren spun around before stabbing towards the horse's ankle... but Gape only laughed as the blade bounced off, turning around and leaning down to grin darkly at the reptile. "It's useless... you can't hurt me..."

Zerrex closed his eyes tightly, then tried to zero in on the sounds in the area... but there was a terrible, rumbling static in the air that distorted everything. He could remember that the assassin who had slain Gape had been blind, though, but Zerrex, on the other hand, had already been trapped in a nightmare world full of darkness, and... idea.

The Drakkaren opened his eyes just in time to see Gape reaching down to flick him with a finger, and the reptile grunted as the huge digit smashed into him and sent him rolling backwards before he shoved both hands into the ground and launched himself into the air, flipping once before raising one hand and throwing all the power he could into the incantation for the most basic spell of all.

A miniature sun seemed to form in his hand, and a blast of white and gold light followed this, tearing into Zerrex's eyes despite the fact he had his other forearm curled over his face to try and block it out... and Gape screamed in agony as the dark illusion was torn to shreds, blue and black streams of energy floating backwards through the air as his gigantic body steadily dissolved until he was left on his knees in his gaunt, true form, his eyes bleeding a sick yellow pus as he howled: "No, it hurts, it hurts!"

Zerrex blinked several times and shook his scorched hand before he staggered quickly towards the horse, and then Gape looked up and snarled at him through white, burnt-out eyes, and his jaws opened wide as his head twisted to the side... and a moment later Zerrex was back in the nightmare world, the Drakkaren cursing before staring in horror as Gape reached up and slowly clawed his own eyes out, throwing the black goop to either side as blood ran down his cheeks... and somehow, the reptile knew that had been no illusion, as the horse whispered: "Ravenlight must die..."

A thousand black birds descended from the dark sky towards the Drakkaren as hideous monsters loped by, and the flock shot past Zerrex like living bullets, the reptile staggering backwards as he covered his body as best he could with the sword, the birds slashing and gouging with their beaks and small claws as they passed and digging hundreds of tiny cuts over his form even as their bodies disintegrated into darkness... and then it ended, only for two long-necked, unevolved dogs with inside-out faces to leap at him from the front.

The Drakkaren ducked and leapt to the side on instinct, and a terrible, screaming beast with long, pointed horns shot through the space he'd been in a moment before as the dog-things vanished in midair... and Gape laughed softly from where he stood behind Zerrex, whispering: "Not good enough."

The lizard spun around as he stood and stabbed the blade through Gape's stomach... but it did nothing as the horse reached out and grasped Zerrex's throat, squeezing and choking him before the horse dissolved into black smog and floated away. When he reformed, however, his body was inside out, and he spasmed violently before his ribs tore open and turned into long daggers of bone, launching themselves at the reptile.

Zerrex cursed and leapt to the side, and Gape's body vanished into smog again before reforming to the reptile's left, the creature raising a hand with a snarl as sharp knives tore out of his fingers. The reptile turned too late, and the knives slashed down to rip into his right arm... and Zerrex winced before they both stared as Gape was unable to tug free, the horse frowning and whispering: "This... this isn't flesh..."

Zerrex grunted... and then his arm spasmed, glowing red as the metal and stone plates pushed out of his body, his scales hardening as vines twisted and he dropped his sword... and Gape screamed in horror, jerking back harder before howling as the metal plates neatly tore off his fingers as they clanked and locked together, steam and smoke rising up from a few dents in the metal. The Drakkaren flexed his arm, and then he swung it hard outwards at Gape, smashing him in the chest with his fist... and to his surprise, the horse flew backwards with his armor dented and half-broken.

The horse stood up, shaking his head back and forth in denial even as Zerrex kicked his huge sword up to his left hand... and the Drakkaren sheathed it with a cold grin, drawing his silver longsword again with his other hand as he ran towards the horse... but Gape vanished, instead leaving a pair of massive statues in his place with glass eyes and wooden, carved fur, both of them clad in tuxedos. They were both painted white, and from the bad shape, Zerrex guessed they were polar bears... and then both of them stomped forwards, pinwheeling their arms as sharp claws popped out of their hands.

Zerrex leapt to the side... and the polar bear twins simply continued to crash onwards until both of them exploded and fell apart in a pile of cogs and wooden splinters. These quickly vanished, and Gape reappeared, suspended in midair by puppet string hanging from a massive wooden cross floating in the sky.

He began to twist back and forth, almost dancing... and Zerrex watched as badly-made straw puppets of the horse rose up from the darkness all around them, all of them with different expressions pasted on his muzzle. The Drakkaren cursed, then charged towards the real Gape even as he floated away, slashing apart puppets in bursts of straw and bugs as he passed.

Five of them crowded together in front of the Drakkaren... and a moment later they exploded and a gigantic centipede shot at the reptile instead, roaring from a circular set of jaws that caused Zerrex to do a double-take before he went into a slide as the huge bug floated over his head, and then he cursed as the spiked tail of the bug snapped down and knocked him flat on his back.

The Drakkaren shook his head quickly, shivering a bit... and immediately the scarecrow-bug-dolls encircled him, all of them shuddering violently as they reached down towards the reptile and began to shiver out slugs and spiders that hailed down towards the Drakkaren.

Zerrex cursed in disgust and created a flat shield of energy, the bugs dropping onto it and wandering stupidly around before the shield curled into a tight sphere filled with the ugly vermin, the Drakkaren drawing his arm back before snapping the sphere towards Gape, shouting furiously: "Stop playing games!"

The bug-ball hit Gape and exploded, and the horse screamed in terror, beginning to shake violently and tearing the puppet strings to fall to the ground... and Zerrex remembered a moment later that it wasn't the terrors of target he focused on, but his own. The reptile charged forwards, his eyes narrowing even as the dark world they were in flickered in and out of reality around them... and then he slid to a halt and lashed out with his thick-armored hand, seizing the edge of the horse's damaged armor and jerking hard.

The breastplate tore off as bugs flew in every direction, and now ivy was curling up all around the demon as nightmare creatures stormed into the world, screaming beasts and howling monstrosities, and Zerrex stared down at Gape's torn-open, bloody chest and black, thudding heart... and as Gape leapt up, looking back and forth in terror and screaming in denial of his own abilities, the Drakkaren stabbed forwards with the silver longsword in his other hand.

The nightmare world vanished the moment the blade pierced through Gape's heart, and the horse staggered backwards in shock, his socketed eyes spurting a bit of blood and falling like tears over his face... and Zerrex released the sword as soldiers of Az'Iriel stared in horror, before the horse turned around and fell to his knees. He released a long, brazen sob, the sword blade halfway out his back... and then the Drakkaren staggered backwards Gape vomited a massive blast of black smog out over the statue and the world beyond it, covering the courtyard in a cone of malignancy over forty feet long.

The stone statue was torn apart by the dark energy, Gape's head twisting back and forth and sending the black smog streaming over the entire courtyard, demons screaming and fleeing in horror as the air reverberated with the terrible voices that had haunted Gape his entire life and the living nightmares he'd experienced over and over from cradle to grave... and then finally the horse arched his back and slumped forwards, falling to the ground on his side as the back half of the silver sword fell out of his back, the front half already completely dissolved by the streams of dark smog rising up from Gape's body.

Zerrex knelt down by Gape and rolled him onto his back, automatically moving to place his hands over his waist, and the horse struggled to look up at him even as his body began to slowly rot away, asking weakly: "Captain... Ravenlight... what are... what are you doing?"

"You were a member of the Goth Legion... and we honor the deaths of our fellows." Zerrex murmured in response, but he knew that Gape heard him over the screams of dying demons throughout the courtyard from the twitch in the horse's body. The Drakkaren reached down and squeezed his hands gently, adding in a quiet whisper: "I've... I've learned that holding on to hatred takes you nowhere in life. It can make you stronger... but ultimately it destroys you. Sleep now, Gape... let go of your fears..."

"I was right... you freed me..." Gape murmured, and his head slowly lowered to the side as he panted hard for a few more moments, his body spasming... and then he relaxed, and his body dissolved slowly away to dark muck, the Drakkaren drawing back with a start as crazed laughter, screams of terror, and a single, weak sigh of relief soared up into the air from the dark ooze as Gape died.

The Drakkaren took the time to stand and nod, not saluting: Ire, after all, had been the ones to warp Gape into this monstrosity he had become, and he wouldn't honor their cruel military or their selfish government any longer. It might sound like the right thing to do anyway, but death was death: the soldier who died didn't care whether or not they received a medal, and no one fighting for a cause should be doing so because of the reward at the end of the journey, unless it was only the reward of knowing that you had done what was right.

He shook his head slowly, then opened his revolver and used the speed loader to reload, pulling it away and watching as six more silver bullets simply appeared back in place after a moment. The reptile shook his head with a faint smile, then he holstered the gun and put the speed loader away as his eyes traced over the remains of the courtyard.

Most of the soldiers had fled, and those who hadn't didn't look like they were willing to put up a fight. When Zerrex flexed his warped, twisted arm, the one necromancer that was trying to rally a group of soldiers shrank quickly away, and the reptile instead strode quickly through the ruins of rotting ground and broken stone, avoiding the puddles of nightmare-made-liquid that Gape had vomited out before he'd died. He walked quickly towards the largest set of double doors... but before he could reach them, a pair of minotaurs in full body armor threw them open and stomped out, ready to do battle.

Zerrex rose his sword... and then he looked back and forth in surprise as portals opened on either side of him, and Queen Carmen and Lily stepped out of either one, the former raising a massive, barbed spear and thundering: "The head officer of this fortress has been slain! We're officially taking over here!"

"Lady Majesty is still here, even if she is currently out-of-body..." one of the minotaurs snarled in return... and then he howled in pain as Carmen rose a hand and sent a bolt of white light slashing through the demon's arm. A moment later, said arm hit the ground and dissolved as electricity crackled over it, and the minotaur slumped to his knees, grasping at his missing arm and whispering: "Please... I... I surrender."

The other minotaur bowed as Lily rose her own glowing silver quarterstaff, bare of any extra adornment or rune... and then the minotaur quickly grabbed his partner and carried him off down the hall as Zerrex looked back and forth at both of the females, both dressed in full battle armor as he said softly: "You're putting yourselves in danger here, you-"

"Well, fuck you too." Carmen said mildly, then she reached out and shoved him lightly, the Amazon grinning widely at him from beneath her spiked helmet, and Zerrex snorted before blinking as Lily hugged him tightly around the neck and held him in place for Carmen to playfully punch him in the gut, causing Zerrex to wince. "But hey, look at this bod! All lithe and shit, not as big and bulky... fuck, that's pretty hot too, you know."

She winked, and Lily whispered to the Drakkaren: "Besides, it's not as if I'm going to miss seeing my husband off and out of Hell... but rest assured, I'll be waiting for you when you get back, and then we fight together, instead of stupidly going it alone like both of us have done in the past."

Zerrex pulled free to gaze at her quietly, and he took one of her hands as she smiled faintly to him, before slipping a small, silver necklace out of her pocket. Zerrex tilted his head curiously, and she pressed it into his hand as she murmured gently: "This is my essence... it'll stop your body from being too drained in the mortal world so you can face Az'Iriel on equal terms. Wear it... and take my staff. That sword on your back will be worthless on the mortal realm, since the demonic curse on it won't function properly, so I'll take it off you here."

"I like this sword, though." Zerrex said touchily, but at a flat look from Lily, he smiled faintly and nodded, slipping the necklace on before he shrugged the sword off his back, handing it over to Lily and taking the solid staff instead. It was incredibly light in his hands, and made of that same metal the Princess could generate... and then the Drakkaren tilted his head curiously as Carmen grinned and held up a pair of rings, the reptile asking slowly: "What are those, more charms to keep me safe in the mortal realm?"

"Sort of. But uh... they're nipple rings." Carmen looked at him pointedly, and Zerrex stared before shaking his head vehemently, and she glowered at him, saying irritably: "You don't know unless you try! Hey, Lilith, do you mind taking a look around the Fortress and seeing what demons are just terrified and which are actually willing to serve?"

Lily nodded, grimacing at the same time â€" although whether at Carmen's behavior or at the fact they might be inside an encampment dedicated entirely to Az'Iriel Zerrex didn't know. On the other hand, the soldiers here didn't seem exactly happy with their boss... and the Demon Prince hadn't been in Hell for more years than Zerrex could count, meaning half of them probably didn't even know the already-faceless entity they were fighting for. But currently, Zerrex's big issue was now with Carmen, as he crossed his arms, before saying sourly: "You can't make me."

Carmen responded to this by poking both of his pectorals firmly, and two black nipples popped out, Zerrex looking horrified before squeaking as Carmen simply snapped the piercings into place, and the Drakkaren grabbed at his masculine breast with a groan of pain. He shot her a glare, but then stared as she licked her muzzle before teasingly, bringing her finger up to teasingly jerk at the ring not covered by one of his hands as she said playfully: "See, these are... pretty damn hot indeed. Plus with that nasty looking arm you got there, it looks pretty damn frickin' hot indeed, you know. So that makes you really fucking pretty damn frickin' hot."

"These don't actually have your essence or anything magical about them, do they?" Zerrex asked flatly, and Carmen coughed and looked away before the Drakkaren rolled his eyes, tapping the butt of the staff against the ground as he flexed his stony arm, trying to shrink it down a bit as he mumbled: "If you'll excuse me, I have actual business to attend to now... and I'm too scared to remove them, don't worry about that."

"Good stuff." Carmen turned towards Lily, then softened and added quietly: "She really loves you, you know."

Zerrex halted at the doorway, then he glanced down before looking over his shoulder with a faint smile, saying quietly: "Once before I doubted that... but tell her I love her, and I don't doubt her anymore, no matter what's happened in the past. I'll be back to see her... and to help her take down the Princess. I only hope we can find the High King or Queen, so this can all come to an end..."

"I do too... but maybe it's our Lilith, huh? Wouldn't that be hot?" Carmen winked and grinned slightly, and Zerrex smiled a bit more in return before his eyes narrowed as several arrows shot over the walls of the fortress, all of them with red flags tied around the necks. Declarations of battle in Hell. Someone out there is on to us. "You two better escape or get ready for a hell of a fight."

"Believe me, we're prepared." Carmen grinned coldly, and she stepped out towards the courtyard, spinning her spear around her body and then catching it across her shoulders as it glowed with white light, the Queen shouting: "Eternal Bastion, move on up!"

Portals opened and demons flooded into the courtyard, and Zerrex smiled slightly before turning to walk inside the palace, not wanting to waste any more time. He decided his best bet was in following the blood trail the minotaur had left behind, the pole in one hand and his warped, clawed arm at the ready as he glanced back and forth, trying to ignore the fact he felt like a complete moron with the nipple rings in place... but at the same time, he smiled slightly. Carmen was a lot of things, but not stupid... and she always figured out some dumb way to lighten the mood when things got rough without pissing him off more than necessary. She really is related to Cherry...