ã€ŠThe Ashen Canyonã€‹


 Ch 1: A sinister Promotion

    The sultry temperature was the first thing the mercenary Maria noticed as she knelt before the head of the Noble Opazyr family, Fia Opazyr. It was odd to her, considering how unbearably cold Opal City was.

    "Red Wind Maria..." The Noble played with every syllable of the mercenary''s title. Her ruby-red eyes soaked in every detail of Maria''s tattered, barely maintained armor. She didn''t even bother to hide her disgusted expression. "I''ve heard no end of your numerous achievements throughout the years. Although I''ll admit I expected someone of such high acclaim to be a bit... cleaner."

    Maria was thankful her head was down. Her unkempt curly locks hid her amused smile. "Apologies, my lady. I had just come off a job. I had little time to freshen up, less I kept you waiting."

    Fia averted her crimson eyes from the mercenary. Preferring the pristine gray of her throne quarters walls over the rusted silver armor and muted crimson cloths that decorated Maria''s body. "Right, well... Your diligence will not go unrecognized. I will return the gesture by keeping this matter swift."

    "But of course," replied Maria. It didn''t take a psychic to tell just how much Fia hated having the mercenary in her presence, but Maria didn''t mind it one bit. Every chance she got to irritate the nobility was a victory for her.

    Fia awkwardly cleared her throat. She was becoming blatantly aware of the mutual hostility shared between them. A part of her wished the mercenary would act out of line so that she could prosecute her, but she knew Maria was a professional for that.  "Recently, we''ve made a discovery in the Ashen Canyon up north. We''ve found powerful crystals that are ripe with Mana. If the Oppazyrs were to acquire these crystals for ourselves, it would greatly increase our political power within the greater Ilefirn empire."

    "So, I''m assuming there''s something in the way of securing the goods?"

    "Precisely, we sent out some women to get ourselves a bigger haul for testing, and none of them returned." The head Noble stood up, picking up a bottle of pure white wine and a small glass on a nearby table. "These mana crystals must be secured, for the sake of our humble little city. Whatever is disrupting our operations must be exterminated."

    Noble lady Fia walked down from her throne room. The sound of her heels filled the vacant room as she placed herself before the ragged mercenary. "The truth of the matter is, I already have two people set up for this job. But one of them I don''t really know that well, and the other isn''t ready for this kind of job."

    "So why put them on the job in the first place?" Maria raised her brow in confusion. Her eyes drank in the intricate gold patterns that decorated Fia''s white robes. The fact that the Noblewoman''s attire cost more than every coin Maria had earned in her lifetime was almost enough to make her reconsider the worth of living.

    Fia poured the wine into the glass, careful hands and sharp eyes made sure not a drop was spilled. "Well, the first girl is a part of my family. She''s a little upstart knight. The only thing is, she''s still green." Fia looked to her wall, her stare running along the long trail of meticulously painted portraits. Her gaze settled on the portrait of a lone young woman in beautiful steel plate armor. Disappointment accented her fake smile. "Your second ally will be a herald from the Hoary church. The church insisted they meddle in this business, but I know what they are trying to do."

    "Basically, you don''t trust either of them." Asserted Maria. She loathed the politics and tiptoeing of the nobility.

    "I wouldn''t exactly call it mistrust. It''s more like I don''t have faith that they''d get the job done." Fia gently offered the wine glass to the mercenary. "Have you ever had Opal Wine?"

    "Is that some kind of joke," chuckled Maria. "It''s far too expensive for my ilk."

    "Well then consider this a sample of your future." The head noble tempted the mercenary with a simple roll of the liquid.

    After a brief moment of hesitation, Maria took the wine from the noble''s pristine fingers. She took a small sip. It was smooth, and nearly sweet to a fault. Maria could only describe it as liquid candy.

    "I''ll get to the point," continued Fia. "I want you to join those girls, and make sure my niece comes back with her head on her shoulders. On top of that, I want that canyon secured. My niece will have a few soldiers with her, But the missing retrieval unit doesn''t inspire confidence that the common foot soldier will be that much help."

    "and I''m supposed to make a difference?" Maria scoffed. The job sounded more like a glorified suicide mission.

    "Don''t act so humble, Miss Maria. I''ve heard of the things you''ve done. The people you''ve killed outside these lands. I also know that you mostly take jobs for the Rift raff. For a woman of your skill, I find that simply unacceptable."

    "I''m just staying in my lane. I''m just a common street wench-"

    "Nonsense!" Fia Rebuked. "Those of high skill should serve the nobility! Your talents are wasted, and wasting talent is a sign of bad leadership. Do you think me to be incompetent Miss Maria?"

    Maria bowed her head and gritted her teeth. "Of course not, my lord. I would never..."

    The Noble head walked back to her throne, approaching a small lock box that sat beside it. It was ornately decorated and carved out of pure Opal. She pulled from it a small crest. On its face was an image of an Opal jewel that replaced the sun. It illuminated a vast sea of what looked to be sand. Fia strolled back to the mercenary, towering over her with a malicious grin. "A woman of your skill should be recognized. Take this." Fia''s voice was somewhere in between a harsh command and a self-indulgent song.

    Maria''s eyes widened. She swallowed hard. The usually calm sellsword reached out a trembling hand. She took hold of the crest with a feeble grip. "M-my Lord!"

    "I need good women in my family, Maria. If I don''t lay proper claim to the talent in my own city, someone else is bound to snatch up your loyalty sooner or later." She poured herself a glass of wine and circled back. Fia watched as Maria stared in shock at the crest. The mercenary was barely able to keep a grip on the wine she had in her off-hand. It took everything the Noble lady had to keep from laughing. "A toast, to Maria of House Opazyr!"

    "To House Opazyr." Maria couldn''t muster the strength for an enthusiastic response. She was too busy fighting the urge to vomit on the head noble''s pristine floors.

    ***

    Maria walked out of the grand noble castle. Its white marble walls were nearly blinding against the cold sun''s grayish rays. She eyed the crest in her hand with disdain. To many bootlickers, the crest was an honor. It meant you had been acknowledged as an official member of the Noble household. It was a birthright to those who shared the head''s noble blood but it could be earned with extreme and rare excellence by common women. It was usually only given to the most pristine soldiers and scholars whose work proved to be of high value.

    But for Maria, it was a leash. To decline the offer would have been a great disrespect, and disrespect against the house was a deadly crime. Fia Opazyr knew that well and leveraged the power gap to trap Maria into service by offering her Nobility.

    Maria''s reputation had grown beyond her. She was a sellsword.  She would take on any job for a peasant''s wage. Sometimes she would take on perilous work just to get some favors in her back pocket. She had slain many women in her time, and the odd beast here and there. She had rescued as many women from death''s door as a seasoned priest. She was the people''s soldier.

    Her mother always told her that what she did would come back to bite her. She always thought that meant lying dead in a ditch in some unmarked location. Now she was a rich woman''s slave. She dragged herself back to her home. The further she descended from the rich, clean streets of the Noble district the heavier her heart became. The dirty streets, the young girls playing with whatever scrap they could scrounge into toys, it was all her beloved home. She felt a deep sense of betrayal just holding the crest. The nobility never cared about them. All they did was impose taxes and play ignorance to any problem that didn''t affect their lavish lifestyle.

    Maria''s home was no looker. It was run down and old. In reality, it could barely be called hers. The woman who owned it previously had died of illness and the kind neighbors allowed the merc to squat in it. It was a token of trust between them.

    She lit the candles in her living room, changing out of her worn-down armor and slipping into a ragged but comfortable tunic. She shuffled around the rustic environment preparing for the setting sun. Her candles were burnt down to their final hours. Maria picked up her coin purse, opening it up to see just a few silver coins. The work she was accustomed to didn''t exactly pay well. After all, she was a soldier of the peasantry, and that means the coffers were light no matter who you worked for.

    She thought about the potential payout from the nobility, her mind wandered to what she could spend it on. But those lavish dreams were interrupted by the flashing memory of Fia''s disgusted face when having to be burdened with looking at the mercenary''s worn armor.  She sucked her teeth. She couldn''t fathom what went through the minds of people like Fia when they looked at the source of all their wealth and power with such contempt.

    Her smoldering anger was interrupted by a knock on her door. Maria froze in place, her gaze transfixed on the rickety wooden panel of a door. Again there was another knock. Maria instinctively moved to pick up one of her blades, a well-maintained, single-edged curved sword. "Who is it?" She hollered. She never received visitors this late into the night.

    "We''re here on word of Lord Fia Opazyr. Please open the door, Lady Maria," pleaded a stern voice.

    "What in the hell?" Mumbled Maria. She lowered her blade and approached the door quickly. She cracked it open, only letting her face be seen. The dim candlelights from her home were just enough to light the faces of two female soldiers standing stiffly in front of her door. "Can I help you?"

    "We''ve been requested by Lord Fia to relocate you to a more appropriate dwelling," explained the soldier. "The lord has graciously made you a member of the Noble house. As such you cannot be allowed to live in such squalor. "

    Maria was slow to respond to what she had just heard. The struggle to maintain a straight face, the bone-crushing grip on her door handle that made the metal knob whine for relief, and the innate instinct to start barking profanities like an uneducated dog were all overwhelming her ability to navigate her thoughts. She took a deep breath, trying to rationalize that throwing a fit would get her nowhere fast.  She put him down her sword, knowing that holding it while so infuriated would only cause more problems. "Look," she rasped, her voice barely staving off a rabid growl. "I don''t exactly get the nobility. But whatever superficial problem you girls see with my house can wait. The Lord has assigned me to a mission that starts first thing tomorrow morning. Even if I wanted to leave I can not simply pack all my belongings and allow myself to be whisked away to a completely new space the day before an important job."

    The second guardswoman nervously moved between the two. "Please, My lady. The Lord was quite insistent that you be moved to a living space fitting of your accomplishments. Someone as powerful as you shouldn''t be living among such filthy peasantry." She moved to open the door, catching Maria by surprise by the sheer casual quality of her audacity. "I mean, this place is practically crumbling. Why would you want to stay in such a worthless-"

    "WATCH YOUR MOUTH!" Maria exploded into a fit of fury. She pushed the door open, causing both the soldiers to stumble onto their rears The sellsword stood firm in front of her doorway. Her black eyes seemed to beckon the very abyss with her hatred. "This house belonged to a good woman, and I was graciously allowed to live here when I had nowhere else to go! Speak one more slight against my home and I will consider it the highest of disrespect! You wouldn''t disrespect the background of a newly appointed noble, would you?" A vile red miasma seemed to seep from her very core.

    The guards immediately prostrated themselves before her. Their heads nearly smashing the ground in a panic. "A-apologies! We meant no disrespect!" They stammered in unison.

    "Now, return from wherever it is you came. I will go through the transitions after my mission, and not a moment before. And if anyone touches my home while I am away there will be hell to pay! Is that understood?!"

    "Y-yes ma''am. We will relay that you wish to keep your environment stable until after your assignment. Please forgive us!"

    "Good," spat the merc, "now leave me be. I need all the rest I can get."

    The two soldiers scampered away into the darkness like wounded hounds. Seeing them try their best to keep some dignity by suppressing their urge to sprint away did wonders to quell her rage. She closed her door, letting go of the metal handle that was now engraved with her handprint.

    She felt as if the gods were punishing her by forcing her to deal with the pompous nobility. But she would prevail. She had too, for her mothers'' sake.

    ***

    When the sun rose, Maria found herself standing at the city limits, waiting patiently for her new ¡°comrades¡± to make themselves known. If it were up to her, she''d be gone at the sun''s first glimpse of the land. But she assumed these noble types were more slow-going folk. Maria played with the ornate broach that held the Opazyr family crest. She looked towards the expanse of gray, rolling hills. The Opazyr occupied some of the least fertile land in all of the Ilefirn empire. Most of their goods were used to sustain themselves rather than trade. Their only export being stone, metals, and jewels from the various mining operations that did more to tear up what was left than help it out. Maria reckoned that in the next century the city would be a shell of itself. When all the mines were bled dry, and the crops wilted for the final winter everyone would simply pack their bags and head to the next city in the land.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    Her thoughts about the uncertain future of her city were interrupted by the ever-increasing sound of a rolling cart accompanied by the stomps of marching feet. She turned her attention to the cobbled road behind her and sure enough, a small group of fifteen women armed with shields, spears, and heavy chainmail were approaching. In the middle of their formation was a highly decorated carriage pulled by a fine white steed.

    The group pulled up to Maria and came to a stop as two women walked out of the carriage. One was undoubtedly the Niece of Fia. Her nearly pure white hair was tied tightly into a bun. Vibrant red eyes met Maria¡¯s stare with a youthful curiosity. Her steel armor was beautifully decorated, and on her breastplate was ingrained a lengthy oath in fine print. The second woman was dressed far more modestly. She had a steel half plate over a gray gambeson, all draped in a pristine gray cloak currently serving as a cape. She had blond hair and deep blue eyes that seemed to be deeply exhausted.

    This was in stark contrast to Maria. Her cuirass had been battered and bruised. Tears and punctures were patched with scrap metal that had been amateurly welded and sanded down. Her raggedy merlot-colored cloak was torn and singed at its bottom. Underneath her cuirass was a simple dusty tunic. She felt like a rusted copper coin sandwiched in between two gold ingots.

    The blond woman gave Maria a cautious gaze as the Opazyr practically skipped over the mercenary. ¡°You must be Red Wind Maria!¡± hooted the Opazyr. ¡°I am Lucy, famed knight of our beloved family.¡±

    ¡°Our?¡± The denial practically shot itself from Maria¡¯s soul. Hearing herself being actively included in their ilk disrupted all the thoughts in her mind.

    ¡°My aunt told me that she ratified you as the newest member of our house.¡± She pointed to the broach between Maria¡¯s fingers. ¡°It''s rare that a new member is gained outside of birth and Marriage.¡±

    ¡°Rare is an understatement,¡± added the blond woman. ¡°The last time it happened was well over two hundred years ago. When Knight Commander Azylith was made an honorary member of the house to commemorate her sacrifice in fending off a god who cursed the city with a blight.¡±

    ¡°She sounds like quite the hero.¡± Maria was genuinely impressed by the tale. She cracked a cheeky smile and held up her broach. ¡°Let''s hope it''s not a red herring. I''m not ready to die so young.¡±

    Lucy tilted her head and closed in on Maria¡¯s face, much to her discomfort. ¡°I mean, aren''t you in your forties, Maria? That''s a really good run for a warrior. Most usually retire before then.¡±

    Maria¡¯s face scrunched in horror and her whole body pulled away from Lucy. She patted her face to check for wrinkles, which was a fruitless endeavor considering she was wearing gloved gauntlets ¡°Excuse me?! I''m only thirty-two! I''m way off from retirement!¡± She cried.

    Lucy blinked slowly, confusion radiating from her place face. ¡°Huh, you seem to carry experience many years beyond your age. How is that so?¡±

    The blond woman pulled Lucy out of Maria¡¯s personal space. ¡°I''ve heard it''s because she¡¯s always taking on low-paying jobs for gutter rats. But rest assured Lady Lucy, she could have a hundred years of mud fighting and it still wouldn''t compare to a real knight¡¯s training.¡±

    Maria scoffed at the pandering comment. ¡°And who might you be?¡± She asked with as much apathy as she could muster.

    The blond woman smiled. ¡°I am Anise of the Hoary church.¡± She bowed as she introduced herself. There was a deep pride in her voice. ¡°I am accompanying Lady Lucy on this mission to better the relationship between our two institutions.¡±

    ¡°Right, right,¡± Maria let everything that came after her name flow in one ear and out the other. She turned her attention back to Lucy. ¡°So, Lucy. I take it that this is your first real job?¡±

    Lucy was seemingly dumbfounded by the question. ¡°Yes, it is. How did you know that? Do I look that inexperienced?"

    Maria nodded in refusal. ¡°No, you look fine, girl. Your aunt told me you were still green. It''s just something that''s good to know since I''m in charge of getting you back alive.¡±

    ¡°Oh, well, I promise you that I''m more than capable of taking care of myself. I''m a knight after all.¡±

    A gentle smile played on Maria¡¯s lips. ¡°Ah, the amount of times I''ve heard shit like that.¡± She pat Lucy on her shoulder. ¡°Just make sure you keep your head on straight. Now let''s go. We''re wasting daylight.¡±

    The path to the Ashen Canyon was long, if not uneventful. The harsh, gray, rocky wasteland that surrounded the Opazyr territory was always an eyesore. Maria was always giddy when she got the chance to leave it for greener pastures, even if it was to paint said pasture crimson. She pulled the collar of her cloak over her face to guard against the crisp, cold morning air. Unfortunately for her, the Ashen Canyon wasn''t beyond the reach of this gray expanse.

    Maria led the cart. The soldiers preferred to stick to their rigid formation, one woman in the formation stood out to Maria in particular. She led the cart formation, putting her right behind Maria. Her skin was nearly as gray as the cobbled road they walked on. Scars marred her otherwise delicate skin in such high numbers that Maria wondered how she ever survived so many blows to the head.

    ¡°Oi, what''s your name?¡± Asked Maria.

    ¡°...Veronica,¡± croaked the woman. She said her name slowly, almost as if it took active recollection to find.

    ¡°Shit girl, how many concussions have rattled that brain of yours?¡± Maria slowed her pace until she was walking right alongside the woman.

    ¡°I''m still alive, so not enough.¡± Veronica let a small chuckle escape her lips. Her tired obsidian eyes sparkled with a moment of joy.

    Maria snorted and giggled at the rather dry joke. ¡°Well, well, a survivor with a good sense of humor. I like that. How long have you been in the rank and file?¡±

    Veronica¡¯s eyes widened to a more quizzical gaze. ¡°I''m 25 now, so about ten years.¡±

    Maria whistled her praises. ¡°Sheesh, as soon as you even had the chance to wrestle with the idea of becoming a woman. That''s tough.¡±

    ¡°What about you?¡± Asked Veronica.

    ¡°Well, I didn''t start racking up bodies until I was twenty, but I''ve been a little thug since I was about sixteen.¡±

    ¡°You should be careful¡­ it''s bad for a noble to call themselves that.¡±

    Maria waved away her comment. ¡°Oh, bite me! I know what I am. I''ve killed women for the money in a whore¡¯s coin purse. I''m anything but noble.¡±

    ¡°Do you regret it? All the things you''ve done?¡±

    ¡°Not for a second,¡± There wasn''t a hint of hesitation in Maria¡¯s body. To Veronica, she almost looked proud.

    Another soldier, who was one of two marching behind Veronica, tapped on Maria''s shoulder nervously. ¡°Um, Excuse me, Ma''am, don''t you think you''re better off in the cart with Lady Lucy and Anise?¡±

    ¡°Pfft, and do what? Sit in awkward silence the whole ride. You girls are much more my style. And besides, it''s easier to watch from danger when you''re not encased by wood.¡±

    Lucy leaned her head out of the winder, peering down at Maria like a bird on a perch. ¡°I don''t know what you''re talking about. These carriages help to preserve our strength for the mission ahead. What if I get tired from walking and we''re ambushed?¡±

    ¡°That sounds like you need to work on your long-term stamina, little princess.¡± Maria wagged her finger. ¡°Long treks are a part of the job. You better get used to it.¡±

    Lucy pouted, she opened her mouth to give a rebuttal, but couldn''t argue against the logic of her newest house member. She slunk back into the carriage, defeated. Veronica had to stifle a snicker, much to Maria''s joy.

    The group continued along the cobbled road, taking a fork that strayed from the path to the next big city. Instead, they took a path that slowly increased in elevation. It was a very gentle slope made to feel more extreme by the fact that the surrounding land did not follow the elevation of the road. The same road, which had plenty of space for everyone, now felt cramped and narrow. The weak-hearted would easily panic as they noticed the land around the road become separated by tens of feet in sheer cliff.

    ¡°This road¡­ it doesn''t feel natural,¡± Veronica stated while peering off into the distance. The white rocky wasteland was starting to give way to what seemed to be a desert of white sand. She found the sight absolutely memorizing.

    ¡°The Ashen Canyon is anything but natural,¡± confessed Maria. ¡°They say that it was made by the violent rupture of the earth. Hot fire came roaring out of the land and froze over to make the Canyons as we know it, burning what once was to ash in the process. It''s also why the desert is so pristine. That''s not sand at all. It''s ash.¡±

    ¡°What used to be here?¡± Veronica leaned into Maria, her eyes beaming with curiosity as if she were a child hearing a fairytale for the first time.

    ¡°Who knows, it could have been a forest, or maybe a beautiful plain. It''s been that way for at least two centuries.¡± Maria followed Veronica¡¯s gaze, but her eyes fell on the distant sun. ¡°It''s strange really, from Opal City to the Ashen Canyon, the sun doesn''t give off even the slightest bit of warmth. Maybe that''s why the land is so bad.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean the sun doesn''t give off any warmth?¡± Veronica tried to look at the sun directly, but regretted it instantly, shielding her eyes and uttering a quiet curse upon it.

    ¡°I''m assuming you''ve never left the Opazyr territory, huh?¡±

    ¡°No, never.¡±

    ¡°That''s not surprising, judging by all those scars you look like you''ve been hunting Descended most of your life.¡±

    Veronica nodded. ¡°When a new mine opens up. A lot of Descended will appear. The knights only come out when things escalate. But by then¡­¡±

    ¡°It''s already too late for people like you.¡±

    ¡°Exactly,¡± Veronica touched the scars that riddled her face. She let out a deep, tired sigh.

    Maria put a hand on her shoulder. ¡°Chin up, you''ve lived this long and that''s what counts. Descended are probably what caused the disappearance of the initial retrieval team.¡±

    ¡°How many of those monsters have you killed?¡±

    ¡°Sorry to disappoint you, but I''ve only killed about five or so. They weren''t particularly powerful either. My work usually involves more human-related problems.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­ well, I still feel safer with you than the two in the carriage.¡±

    Maria¡¯s face was flushed by the soft purple hue of blush on her chocolate skin. ¡°Ahh, that kind of praise does the heart good.¡±

    Maria suddenly focused her attention. Coming down the path from the Ashen Canyon was a woman in dusty gray robes over purple linens. Her hood was down, and mysterious blue sharp eyes analyzed the soldiers through frizzy violet locks. In her clutches was a satchel that quietly hummed like a distant swarm of insects. The wooden staff tied at her hip like a blade indicated a magical background.

    The two women''s gazes locked, and abyssal black met cracking cobalt. The mage¡¯s attention darted to the cabin and then back to Maria. The Mercenary returned her suspicious gaze with a long, curious gawk at her satchel. It was glowing. How curious. The mage clutched her satchel tightly, betraying its importance.

    There was no doubt about it. She had gotten her hands on some of the mana crystals. The same ones that the Opazyr would not take too kindly being scavenged from underneath their bottom lip. As they got closer to each other Maria began to reach out for her. She looked like she was going to call her out, demanding she open the bag for a search. The mage¡¯s eyes lit up with terror, shuffling the satchel behind her.

    Maria paused, mouthed the words ¡°just kidding¡±, and waved her off. The mage hastened her pace to not draw any more attention to herself. Maria knew that if Lucy and Anise were walking out with the soldiers, they would have caught her and made her surrender every last crystal on her person. But Maria was hired to secure the canyon. The mage was outside the locale and thus, outside her jurisdiction. Or at least that''s the excuse she told herself. She wondered how that mage managed to get around whatever caused the original procurement team to disappear. Maria played with the idea that she might have been the cause, but considering how close she was to wetting herself during their little wordless encounter she doubted she could have had anything to do with it.

    Not ten minutes later did the cart arrive at a natural bridge. It was a strange strip of land. The inclined road that led to the canyon, although unnaturally elevated from the rest of the world, was a solid bit of land. Maria looked over the road''s edge to see a raging river at the base separating the road from the canyon. It was hard to wrap her mind around how such a stream would have given birth to such an extreme arch on the bridge''s underside. She reckoned there was only about twelve feet of rock that actually made up the volume of the bridge.

    What was even more curious, however, was the woman standing on the other end. She was shrouded in dark blue robes and a cloak that obscured her form. In her hand was a single, decorated dagger with a skull at the center of its hilt. Grasping hands reached out from the hilt to form the cross guard, and the blade was white so pure that it seemed like a slight against the laws of reality.

    The soldiers maintained their positions around the cart with spears and shields ready at any moment. The duo of Veronica and Maria were locked into a silent standoff with the enigmatic roadblock. Maria kept a calm hand on one of her curved swords, but she was ready to draw them both if need be.

    The shrouded figure¡¯s silence spoke volumes. Clearly, they were not welcome here. To stand against a full unit of women with her weapon drawn was nothing short of a bold decoration. But would she have the gall to turn her silent threat into reality?

    Maria''s mental mullings were cut short by the heavy clang of metal greaves. Lucy stormed out of her carriage, eager to know the reason for the sudden cease of progression. Anise was right on her heels, looking more like Lucy''s personal butler than a herald of a religious order.

    ¡°Why have we stopped?¡± Asked Lucy, she looked to Maria for answers.

    The ragged sellsword simply nodded toward the end of the bridge where the shrouded woman stood firm and silent. ¡°She''s blocking the path. I''m gonna take a wild guess and say we''re not welcome here.¡±

    Lucy cocked a brow and leaned in with genuine confusion. ¡°What? But this is our territory!¡± She snapped her head over to the bridge guard and pointed a vindictive finger at the lady. ¡°You look here. You dare stand on my family''s land and bar my access to this canyon? Step aside or be branded a treasonous wench!¡±

    The woman clad in night silk tilted her head. ¡°You must be mistaken. Traitors are those who betray their own. I am not Ilifern, nor is this land yours. It belongs to the past, right and proper.¡±

    Lucy took a moment to process her words before settling on saying ¡°You''re speaking Gibberish. Ilefern born or not, you need to respect our territory and step aside!¡± was the right choice.

    The woman clutched her ghostly dagger painfully tight. Maria swore she saw the skull hilt cry in silent agony, but it was at such a distance that she dismissed the absurd notion.

    The bridge keeper took a deep, rocky breath to stay her nerves, or at the very least make an attempt at doing so. Her voice was stressed by restrained fury. ¡°And if I do not step aside?¡± She hissed. Her free hand reached into a pocket deep within her cloak.

    ¡°Then you shall be executed under my rightful authority as a knight of House Opazyr.¡± Lucy was slow in her delivery. Making each word as clear and concise as she could muster.

    Lucy motioned for her soldiers to take up an offensive formation. But before they could even take a second step Maria roared them stiff. ¡°No!¡± She yelled hastily. ¡°Get back!¡±

    Lucy jumped from how loud Maria screamed at them. Her head swiveled from side to side, unsure of what to make of the outburst. ¡°What''s wrong!?¡±

    The shrouded woman pulled from her pocket a white Crystal, it hummed with the same low, insect-like buzz that filled the bag of the disgruntled mage. She was quick to crush it, sending out a thunderous shockwave as pure power forced its way into her body.

    ¡°I said get back!¡± Maria tried to push Lucy back while drawing her blade, but Anise caught her. The herald glared daggers at the mercenary for laying such a forceful hand on real nobility.

    There was no time for another attempt at saving hides. The enshrouded woman dropped to her knees, stabbing her dagger deep into the ground. The dagger let out a blood-freezing, ghostly whale that froze everyone in their place. Maria tried desperately to move her feet but it was no good, she was paralyzed by a deeply primal type of fear.

    Magical power surged from the knife and into the stone causing it to crack and crumble! With all the speed of a true disaster, the bridge came crumbling down, taking all four named girls with it in its hundred-foot plummet to the rushing waters below.

    The remaining soldiers fumbled back as the carriage began to slip into the madness. The beautiful white steed let out a pitiful cry as it followed its passengers to a watery grave with its cabin right behind it.

    The soldiers, dumbfounded and terrified, looked up to the cause of this disaster. The enshrouded woman had her gaze fixed on the rapids. Once the last bit of loose rock made its splash she turned her back on the soldiers, now separated from her by a well over thousand-foot drop. ¡°If you were wise. You''d return home. Those women who fell are surely dead." Her tone was cold and confident as she quietly left them alone, disappearing into a storm of ash and soot.

    But as if to spite her, Maria''s ragged glove gripped an ashy river bank with desperation. In her other hand, she dragged an unconscious Lucy out of the water. Ahead of her were Anise and Veronica, who were trying their best to expel the water that had ravaged their lungs. The party now found themselves alone. Behind them, and across the river was a thousand-foot stone wall so smooth a spider would have slid off. Ahead of them, the small ash beach narrowed off into a Canyon pathway.

    ¡°I hope there''s an exit on the other side,¡± Maria rasped. ¡°Because we damn sure aren''t leaving the way we came.¡±

 Ch 2: Sticks and Stones to Life and Death

    Deep within the Ashen Canyon, where the stone walls gave way to singing crystals, there rested a monster of horrendous proportions. It was a lizard larger than any dragon, with scales that burned white with hatred. Every breath it took was long and laborious, but not painful. It was as if the creature was constantly trying to steady itself.

    Crunching footsteps cut through the huffs and puffs as the blue-robed bridge guardian approached the creature. She lowered her hood to reveal tired, sunken eyes. Her matted, stringy brown hair did nothing to accent her sickly pale face.

    "Why are you here, Hiri? Do you need something?" The lizard''s voice was gravelly and booming. It rattled the woman''s bones with every vowel and scraped her ears with every consonant. Despite this, there was a recognizable femininity somewhere within all that distortion.

    The robed fem fetal, Hiri, gazed upon the creature with soft eyes. "No, I don''t. I''m just here to warn you, Azylith. Women from Opal City tried to gain entry today. I believe they seek your deposits." She motioned to the ocean of crystals that lined the floor and walls. The droning sounds of the minerals made it hard for sounds to travel properly. The only reason the conversation hadn''t devolved into yelling was due to a certain degree of Laziness in both parties.

    The lizard, Azylith, perked up at the mention of intruders. "Opal City? Did they say who they were?"

    "One of them claimed to be Opazyr. So I assume they came on behalf of the nobility."

    "What happened? Did they get inside?" Prodded Azylith. A hasty footstep betrayed her nonchalant voice, her large clawed paw crushing the mana stones underneath her. The gems had grown around her body, as she hadn''t truly moved in years.

    "No, I destroyed the bridge," explained Hiri, "cutting off their troops and sending four of them to die in the fall." She was apprehensive about what she had to say next. "I.. actually there was one lone woman who made it in before them. But I chased her away."

    "What about those women who fell into the water? Did you receive their bodies?"

    Hiri recoiled from the question, "I... I don''t think you heard me quite right. Those women fell into the river below the bridge. That is a thousand-foot drop. That water is going at least 15 miles per hour. That river goes for miles. Those bodies are probably in an entirely different territory by now."

    "That water is also incredibly deep. If they were of any real concern they would have survived such a fall."

    "So what would you have us do."

    "Order your women to start searching the canyon. I''ll get my descended to do the same."

    ***

    Wet, cold, and cut off from the world. That was Maria''s current situation and she couldn''t have been more irritated. In her clutches was a dainty little wannabe knight; Lucy. She barely managed to save her from being washed away in the unforgiving waters of the river they had been violently plunged into.

    Veronica and Anise attempted to catch their breath just a few feet ahead. They had washed up on what could only be described as a funneled beach. High Canyon walls surrounded the river bank and tapered off into a narrow passageway. Ash took the place of sand, forming a gray, soft ground that clung to Maria''s wet clothing like glue. It was a miserable environment, but it only had one exit, which to her frazzled mind meant they were somewhat protected.

    She dragged Lucy over to the leftmost wall and propped her up against the smooth stone. She was quickly joined by Anise and Veronica, who nearly pushed her aside trying to check on the well-being of the Noble night.

    "Is she ok?!" Asked Anise in a panic.

    "She''s fine," huffed Maria. "She''s just unconscious." She stepped back, allowing the two to do all the checkups they wanted.

    Maria turned towards the raging river that flowed along without a care in the world. She felt the sting of cold air touch her soaked clothes and face. It was cold, very cold. The water had been nearly icy, and she remembered that the temperature was somewhere in the low fifties for today. If they didn''t find a way to warm up and dry off they would be in serious trouble.

    "It''s fuckin'' freezing out here. That river run was the last thing we needed," groaned the mercenary.

    Veronica looked up towards the sky. She paced around the small area to try and get a good angle on the sun''s position. "It took us all day to get here... It''s got to be around two or three o''clock."

    Anise took off her glove and pressed her bare hand against Lucy''s face in an attempt to get a read on her body temperature. She turned to the two casually discussing their situation and snapped at them with a trembling, Irritated tongue. "Then quit standing around! You, soldier, go find us some material to make a fire! And Maria, try to get us something to eat. We won''t last long without food."

    Maria''s head snapped from the river and locked into Anise with a look of pure disgust. "and what will you be doing?"

    "Tending to Lady Lucy, of course! She''s terribly cold, and needs someone to keep her warm." Anise hissed. She began removing the wet metal from the both of them, trying to get them down to their cloth clothes to better share body heat between them.

    Maria conceded to her reasoning, although for some reason Anise''s tone still managed to grate her nerves. "all right, we''ll start trying to set up camp. Come on Veronica, let''s go." She motioned the soldier to follow her through the narrow canyon path.

    The two made their way through the tight corridor. It was just enough for one person to pass by comfortably, but no more than that. The high walls made the passage feel almost tunnel-like. Maria just prayed that the entire Canyon would not be this tight in space.

    It wasn''t long before they made it to a clearing, however. They were brought to a wider Canyon lowland. Water had pooled at the bottom to form a shallow pond. Black tree-like structures reached out from the water towards the sky, grasping for some unknown objective. To Maria, they seemed like palms reaching out in agony, although her parents always told her she had a vivid imagination. "What the hell are those things?" She pondered quietly.

    Maria looked down at the water. It was completely still, but thankfully no higher than the soul of her shoes. "Be careful," she warned, "it''s not very high, but still water is no joke."

    "Right, I''ll try not to fall." Veronica stepped out into the open. She headed directly for the strange tree-like structure as Maria began to scrub the walls for potential animal dens hidden within.

    Veronica placed a hand on the strange object, feeling some amount of warmth through her glove. She took off the mitten and felt the extremely pleasant warmth against her fingers. She hugged the structure, pressing herself against the warming structure. "...Warm" she cooed.

    The soldier''s enjoyment of the warmth was cut short when she squeezed the black obelisk just a bit too hard. It let out a ghostly wail that caused her to nearly jump out of her chainmail. She wobbled backwards, almost slipping into the stagnated water. Veronica''s head swiveled from place to place, trying desperately to find Maria. Much to her despair the mercenary was staring right at her. She saw everything, and to Veronica, that was the height of embarrassment.

    Maria was more concerned with the screaming structure. She motioned for Veronica to back up as she approached the strange object. She cautiously examined its form and shape, gently probing it with no response. She then gave it a hard kick, and almost lost her soul to fear when it delivered the loudest, most blood-curdling screech she had ever heard. "Fucking hell!? What is this thing?!"

    "I don''t know, but it feels wooden, and it''s warm," Veronica stated. She closed back in on the screaming tree. "Even if we can''t light a fire with it. It could be the difference between hypothermia and being able to wake up tomorrow."

    Maria sighed, she knew the soldier was right. "Alright then. Let''s see if we can''t get it out of the ground."

    Both women positioned themselves on opposite sides of the ghostly structure. In order to tear something so large out of the ground they would have to enhance their bodies with Mana. Mana was something every woman had and could learn to control with practice. Mages would let mana flow through their minds to weave complex spells, but for these two simple warriors, it was all about channeling that energy through the muscles and skin to improve their strength. As Maria began to tear the tree from its roots with Veronica''s aid she couldn''t help but think back to the mysterious woman in robes who collapsed the bridge. Just how much mana was in that crystal? How would it feel to have that amount of sheer power flowing through a person? She was eager to find out.

    The tree came out with some great effort. The sounds it made would have convinced any passerby that the most unimaginable horrors were taking place, but after its connection to the ground was severed it began to quiet down. "Alright, let''s get it back to Lucy," directed the mercenary. "We''ll carry it over our heads through the pass."Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    The small walk felt like a delicate trek with the large warning rod carried above their heads. The tight canyon pass felt downright claustrophobic with the extra cargo. But not one complaint was uttered by either woman. They placed the abyssal structure down in the middle of the beach.

    Anise raised an eyebrow. "What is that?"

    "Don''t know," replied Maria.

    "But it''s warm," added Veronica. "Place Lady Lucy on it. It should help her."

    Anise was skeptical, but her body shuddering against the cold was more than enough to convince her to hear the two out. She carried Lucy''s unconscious body over to the log and placed her on it belly down. The herald leaned on it herself and nearly melted over its warmth. There was an audible moan of relief as she tried to get as much of her body into contact with it.

    "Careful," warned Maria, "It will make horrendous screams if you squeeze it too hard. We don''t actually know what it is, but it''s our only hope to keep warm."

    Anise practically caressed the new source of heat. "It could sound like a boar in a butcher shop for all I care. I''ll consider it payment."

    Maria pat Veronica on her arm. "Let''s go, we gotta get one for ourselves. I''m not in the mood to be huddled up like a group of winter pups."

    The workhorse duo ended up bringing several logs back from the clearing, placing them together to form a makeshift bed. It was uneven, bumpy, and the branch-like tendons made lining them up a pain, but with a little effort, they managed to get something they could actually lay on.

    They both collapsed onto the makeshift flatbed. Maria instantly felt relief wash over her as warmth seeped into her bones. She took off her metal chest plate, and after a bit of rolling around like a rotisserie chicken her cloak had become warm enough to use as a nice blanket, dampness be damned.

    It was a quiet resting period as everyone tried to recover their strength and stave off the cold. Lucy was still unconscious, Anise had fallen soundly asleep, and Maria and Veronica were seemingly lost in their vice of stoic thought.

    It was around this way for about an hour until Veronica broke the silence, her voice cutting through the sounds of rushing water and whistling winds. "Lady Maria-"

    "Just. Maria," corrected the mercenary, her sharp speech came off more as a warning than a request.

    "Sorry, Maria... What are we going to do for food?"

    Troubled laughter filled the air. "Ah, that''s the question ain''t it? To be honest I didn''t see a single edible thing in that clearing. I didn''t even see any insects," Maria confessed. "Praying that there might be some fish in that river. The fact that we didn''t all die means that it''s gotta be pretty deep. Gotta be something in there."

    There was a long, awkward pause as Veronica worked up her courage to make a request. "Can we... try and catch something?"

    Maria sighed and rolled over to her side. "damn, I was just starting to get all warm and dry," she grumbled. "But I''ll admit I''m getting hungry too. I''m sure those two had plenty of snacks in that carriage of theirs."

    Staring into the gray sky, Veronica covered her face with her hands. "I hope my girls are alright. They should have retreated after we fell, but soldiers are a rash breed."

    A third voice cut through the conversation. "That would only be a problem if those girls lack discipline," Anise Scoffed. She had been woken up by her light nap by Maria''s coping laughter.

    Maria rolled over to face Anise, angry veins barely contained the rage she felt. "That''s rich, considering Lucy was the one who couldn''t shut the hell up on that bridge back there!"

    Anise lifted herself from her relaxed huddle. "That''s Lady Lucy to you! And she was well within her right to assert her family''s claim over this land!"

    "My god would you please pop her dick out of your mouth for five seconds!?" Maria mocked. She was all too ready to argue with the herald. The mercenary''s black eyes seem to light up at the first signs of confrontation.

    "E-Excuse me!?" Anise covered her heart. She had never been so offended.

    "You heard me! The Opazyr haven''t done shit with this land for as long as anyone can remember. It''s possible that people have been living in these canyons for generations! And here you guys come talking about ''my land this and Opazyr that! Neither of you have any clue how to navigate a disadvantageous situation!"

    "Preposterous! This barren land has been covered in ash for centuries. That woman was no native. She was clearly just here for the crystals."

    "And how do you know that? We found a way to make it work in that stone shit hole we call Opal City, didn''t we? Oh wait, you guys didn''t do that huh? The peasantry found a way while you guys live off imported goods."

    "Are you calling us lazy?!" Anise gripped the abyssal log underneath her. Her nails raked against its smooth surface, causing it to screech in agony. She jumped like a cat, letting out a pathetic yelp.

    Maria smirked as Veronica tried her best to stifle a snicker. "If the shoe fits."

    "Why you..." Anise dug her fingers into the sand to avoid triggering her screeching log. A gentle hand reached out and grasped her shoulder. The herald snapped her head towards Lucy who had a foggy look about her.

    "What''s with all the yelling?" The words barely managed to fumble out of her mouth with her face still planted on the log.

    All that anger that was bubbling up just melted away. Anise nearly broke her neck to dote over the noble like a worried mother. "Lady Lucy! You''re awake?"

    "Yes, but my head hurts. So I would appreciate it if you all could just keep your voices down."

    "Yes ma''am, of course." Anise scowled at the two grunts, making sure to convey that their argument was far from over.

    Maria simply scoffed and turned her back on the herald. Picking up her armor and cloak and putting them on again. "I''m gonna go scrounge for food. I want to see if we can find anything deeper into the canyon before I have to take another dip into that river. You game?" She asked, standing over Veronica.

    The soldier shrugged and picked up her spear. "Better than just sitting around." The pair took off beyond the funnel leaving Anise to care for the laxed Lucy once again. Little did any of them know the eyes that watched them from the high Canyon walls.

    Maria and Veronica traveled deeper into the Canyons. Past the screaming trees and through another narrow path was an empty clearing, free of water and lined with the bone-white Mana Crystals that were so vital to this operation.

    The girls shuffled over to the nearest wall, distracted from their goal of food by the root of their troublesome predicament. "These gotta be the crystals Lady Fia was talkin'' about," said Maria, looking more agitated than curious.

    "Yeah... it''s magical energy... pulsing like crazy." Veronica was transfixed on the Crystal. She reached out and placed a firm grasp on it. Her eyes widened and her grip tightened until the crystal exploded under her grip. Unlike the robed woman, she failed to absorb any power from the Crystal. She looked at her hand in horror.

    "What was all that?" Maria asked.

    Veronica backed away from the wall, clutching her spear tightly. "Something is wrong with those things... The hatred... It''s evil."

    "Huh, hatred?" Maria couldn''t make a lick of sense out of what she was saying. But she was no fool, hatred and evil were all she needed to hear to motivate her to put at least a couple of feet between her and the gems.

    She slung her arm around Veronica''s shoulder as a stoic attempt at comforting her. "Well shit, if there''s something wrong with these crystals then that could be a problem," explained the Mercenary.

    "Not ours, though. We''re just here to clear the place out. Let the Nobles figure it out." Veronica had a look of steel and grit. It was clear she didn''t want to be there, and that was bringing out the soldier girl in her.

    "Right, let''s just do our jobs and go home."

    "You should just skip to the part where you go home," howled the voice of an angry stranger.

    The duo whipped around, coming face to face with another blue-robed woman standing on the ledge of the Canyon walls. On her right and left flank were strange creatures, wolves with scales in place of fur. Jagged teeth replaced what should have been the creatures'' lips and drool dripped from their twisted maws. These creatures were descended; beasts who had been corrupted by negative energy caused by despair and human destruction.

    Maria''s eyes were locked in on the robed woman. In one hand was a short sword, in the other a crossbow. She seemed to have control over the horrendous monsters. her hood was down, letting the absolute disdain in her icy blue eyes shine under the cold sun.

    "It seems she was right. You''re still alive," she spat, jumping from her high ground, with her demented hounds following diligently.

    Maria was quick to place her hands on the hilt of her blades. "So your allies with the bitch who blew out the bridge, right? I''m guessing there''s no way to talk this out?"

    "Perhaps," she responded. "If you agree to leave these canyons and never return, that could persuade me to let you go."

    "Ahh, see, my hands are tied. Some very powerful people want the crystals in this canyon. They likely won''t stop until they get it, sending body after body long after you''ve killed me and my friend here."

    "So you are here for the deposits. Does the greed of the Opazyr know no limits?"

    Maria scratched her cheek awkwardly, embarrassed on behalf of her employers. "Nah, nobles will gobble up anything worth a hot damn. The real question is why you gals are willing to scrap with people like that. Are you natives?"

    The blue-robed woman held out her sword, pointing it towards the duo with pride. "I am Linette, and these azure robes represent the Crypt Keepers. It''s our job to tend to the lands and civilizations of the past. This canyon is under our care." She dragged her foot across the rocky ground, tearing a gruesome gash into the stone. Screeching, crying souls escaped from the earth and fled towards the uncaring skies in a violent whirlwind.

    "The spirits here are in agony," continued Linette, "and they tell us that the Opazyr are responsible for their pain."

    Veronica raised her spear and pointed it at the Keeper. "Why would the spirits be angry with the Opazyr?"

    Linette''s crossbow whined underneath the force of her grip. She grit her teeth, unable to contain her rage. "To commit a sin is one thing... but to forget the crime was even committed is unforgivable! The punishment for such ignorance will be death! You can learn why the spirits hate you once you join them!" Her power flared up, the power of her mana on full display.

    Maria drew her curved swords, a fiery, crimson aura wafting off her body. "Oh well, guess we''re doing this."

    Veronica widened her stance, ready to pounce at a moment''s notice. "I''ll handle those Descended, you take the woman."

    "Wouldn''t have it any other way," chirped the mercenary.

    They had no more time for planning. The pearl-scaled hounds launched towards them, kicking up dust and debris as their initial leap carried them across the entire clearing while remaining just inches off the ground. Maria and Veronica split off from each other, with the soldier dashing in and taking the attention of both hounds.

    Maria took the opening to dash in on her human prey. Linette was quick to respond with a shot from her crossbow aimed right at the mercenary''s face. Maria swatted the bolt with one of her blades with a loud ping! She took a swipe at the Crypt Keeper with a horizontal slash, forcing her to backpedal to avoid it.

    Linette held her crossbow up to the heavens, and as if receiving aid from a god, had her crossbow instantly reloaded. She swung her aim downward and shot at Maria''s legs, forcing her to stop her advance of risk getting it.

    Maria glared at Linette with hungry eyes. She lurched over, her curved blades gleaming like the fangs of a saber-tooth tiger, and her crimson aura resonated off her body like blood washing down a stream.

    "Look at you," scoffed Linette, "your bloodlust is disgusting!"

    "Shut up and fight!" barked Maria. "You wanted this. So we''re doing this. It''s that simple."

    The two eyed each other up, looking for any means to paint the stone with the other''s blood. Violence had been chosen and for Maria violence was a way of life, but would that life end up buried six feet in ash?

 Ch 3: A mere Skirmish

    Clashing steel and stomping feet rattled the high walls of the Ashen Canyon. The mercenary Maria and the spear soldier Veronica were locked into combat with a sudden assailant: The Crypt Keeper Linette, and her two monstrous hounds.

    Maria landed on her feet. The last blow from Linette sent her flying. The fight had only just started but it was clear that her opponent was no slouch. The mercenary corrected her form and brandished one of her two curved blades at her opponent. ¡°Come on!¡± she growled. ¡°If you''re going to hit me then do it right!¡±

    Linette lowered herself into a crouching stance, leaping forward with such strength that the ground under her feet trembled. She let loose a bolt from her crossbow, trying to lay down pressure on the mercenary. Maria was quick to parry the bolt, swatting it away from her face. In the time it took to parry the bolt, Linette was already within striking range. She thrusted her short blade at Maria¡¯s chest, but she was able to parry the blow downward.

    ¡°Too exposed,¡± she spat with murder in her mouth. Maria went to strike with her second blade but Linette was strong. She planted her feet and used all of her strength to heave her short blade into the air despite Maria locking it down with her own sword. This all but destroyed Maria¡¯s balance. Linette pulled her blade back and threw out one quick thrust after another. Maria was barely avoiding each blow with her balance so compromised.

    Linette threw out another thrust aimed at the head, but Maria used her stumbling to her advantage. She let herself fall, twisting her form and pumping mana throughout her entire body at an accelerated rate. She forced herself to become a tilted, spinning top, with her curved swords acting as a dangerous field of steel. Linette was able to block the first steel blade that came her way, but it nearly knocked her sword out of her hands. Maria had turned a fatal moment of vulnerability into an advantageous position. Linette could either back off and reset the neutral to catch a stray blade to the body, so she relented and jumped back to safety.

    Maria¡¯s spinning was so violent as to be indistinguishable from a tornado. Her entire body was nothing but a blur, and only the white streaks of steel could be discerned with any reliability. The winds created from the maneuver were so strong that not only did they keep her from falling, but they straightened her position, putting her back on her feet. ¡°They call me the Red Wind. Let me show you why.¡± The winds were distorting and stretching her voice through the turbulence. Her red aura mixed with the thrashing winds to conjure up a bloody wind.

    Linette raised her crossbow to the heavens, using her mana to manifest and reload another bolt. She aimed it at the spinning tornado and took her time to concentrate. She focused her energy into the wire of the crossbow and sent it flying at Maria with a thunderous whip and crackle! The bolt streaked through the air, leaving Linette''s blue magical essence in its wake.

    It crashed against the raging Storm, its metal tip grinding against the razor winds. With a sudden pop, the bolt bounced back. Linette barely managed to weave out of the way. Her eyes followed the bolt as it flew past her even faster than when she had shot it out. But the ever-growing sound of wind tore her attention back to Maria. The rabid typhoon rushed towards her, threatening to shred her to pieces. The Crypt Creeper was quick to act, tearing a wide gash in the floor with her blade causing an abhorrent outpour of crying souls. In their bid to escape their ashy stone coffin, they formed a solid wall.

    Maria slammed against it, grinding her wind, mana, and blades against the souls. But their anguish was stronger, and knocked her out of her whirlwind, sending her skipping across the ground. She quickly rolled over onto her stomach on instinct. Dodging another crossbow shot in the process. "What an annoying bitch!"

    Just meters over, Veronica was locked in a frenzied flurry. The monstrous dogs that attacked her knew no restraint. They lasted out one after the other, clawing and biting at her from both her left and right flanks. She was backpedaling to maintain distance. Although she would run out of room to run eventually, she knew that. She threw out a sharp thrust to the dog on the right, only for it to weave her blow. In response she swung her spear to her left, trying to slash the other across its face to punish its aggression. It ducked underneath her swipe and rushed her down, its maw open wide, hungry for flesh.

    Veronica countered with a sharp knee, snapping its jaw with a shut with a deep crack! She reeled her spear back and Brought it across the other dog''s face, it ground against its white scales with a terrible screech.

    She backed off, one dog was rattled, but the other was still giving her issues. It seemed to be acutely aware of her spear and circled her just outside of thrusting range. But Veronica knew she didn''t have the time to be careful. The dog she hit with her knee would recover at any moment.

    Veronica focused herself, drawing her magical energy into her limbs. She let it flow through her legs and arms while leaking into her spear, she calculated her next move and then executed it. One foot forward, lean in, and thrust! It all happened so fast that it was a blur. By focusing all her mana into limbs, she sacrificed all other enhancing aspects for pure speed and power. She couldn''t even perceive her own movements, but she had to have faith in herself. Blood splattered all over her chainmail as the spear pierced the dog''s white scales. It sounded like shattering glass as she tore through its body.  She smiled, ripping the spear out and bringing her flow of magic back into regular circulation.

    Veronica turned her attention to the final doc with a ravenous grin. "I''ve never eaten Descended before. Let''s hope you taste good!"

    Veronica honed in on her prey, meanwhile, Maria was still locked in vicious combat. Maria had gone on the offensive, slashing and swiping with deranged passion. Linette weaved every blow with minimal movement. What she couldn''t dodge was deflected using her sword or crossbow. The only problem is that the Crypt keeper couldn''t find her opening to get an attack in. Her crossbow bolt hadn''t been reloaded yet, and Maria was surprisingly nimble. Each attack was just a primer for the next one. Dodge or deflect, the next attack would come before Linette could find her grounds to riposte.

    It was an all-or-nothing gamble, but it had to be done. Maria came in with a horizontal slash to Linette''s sword arm, she used the pommel of her short sword to lock down the curved blade with a twist. Maria came in with the other blade, and Linette countered by raising her crossbow with its nose pointed to the heavens. She tilted it, allowing Maria to cut through the string and hit the barrel. She yanked it down, snatching the scimitar with the limb of the crossbow. But Maria''s grip was strong, she chose to be pulled down rather than lose her weapon.

    Linette''s sword arm was too busy locking down her other scimitar, so she improvised and crashed her knee into Maria''s face with thunderous force! Maria lost the grip on her scimitars as her entire body rebounded from the blow. Linette took her opportunity and threw out a thrust attack aimed at her head. Maria, still dazed from the blow, put her guard up with her gauntlets. The sword glanced off her wrists with sparks flying. Linette was stunned that she could muster such a recovery. That confusion led to a moment''s hesitation, which led to her getting punched directly in her face.

    The mana flowing through the first, the metal rim that accented her knuckles, and the fact that Maria was at least a whole weight class above her led to Linette''s world being rocked. Linette was sent into a spiral, having to practically dance to keep herself from falling over. She stumbled back, eventually hitting the canyon wall and leaning on it for support.

    Maria picked up her sword and chucked one at Linette. Her blade sang through the air, spinning like a gear in rotation. It barely missed the Crypt keeper, grazing her shoulder and piercing the wall. This caused another outburst of souls, which threw the Crypt Keeper to her knees. She watched in horror as the mercenary approached. Her steps were heavy and measured.

    "What, one good punch bad you''re down? You must be new fighting."  She raised her curved blade like a butcher getting ready to handle a slab of meat. "Why don''t you grab that crystal? Makes you mighty powerful, it worked for your friend back on the bridge."

    Linette eyed the wall behind her. There was but a single crystal within arms reach, but she refused. "I- you can''t just use Azylith''s deposits. If you aren''t mentally sound it will-"

    "-Consume you? I figured as much. My friend said something about hatred. Guessing it''s too much for untrained minds to handle."

    Linette''s eyes darted to her hounds for help, but she was met with bloody heaps of ivory scales. Veronica was checking their insides to determine if they were edible. She was alone now.

    "Damnit, don''t think this is over!" Linette screamed and smashed the ground. She pumped as much mana as she could into the floor, causing a shockwave to spread and tear the ground apart. The restless dead came pouring out. Maria had to backpedal, jumping back to avoid getting caught up in the desperate typhoon.

    When the dust settled Linette was gone, leaving the women to their lonesome. Veronica regrouped with Maria, carrying the carcasses underneath her wingspans. "She''s gone..."

    "Yeah, tactical retreat no doubt." Maria plucked her sword from the wall and tore off one of the crystals. Just holding it filled her with a desire to kill Veronica. Maria grit her teeth and suppressed the emotions being forced upon her. "You were right Veronica. These things are vile."

    "Then why are you still holding it?"

    "Because these things hold power, and power is useful. If I were that girl I would have crushed one the moment I was cornered, even if it meant losing my mind."

    "You''d become a monster over dying human?"

    "Course I would. I like living, and I''mma do what I got to do and keep on. Besides, I''m sure I''d come back to normal eventually."

    "You''re making a lot of assumptions. What if you''re wrong and you permanently lose control?"

    "Then it is what it is," Maria states bluntly. "But at least I tried. At the end of the day losing my mind or dying don''t seem like different fates" She motioned them to start moving. "Enough of that though, let''s get those things back to base. I''ve never eaten Descended before, after that we can try and come up with a plan. We might need to find somewhere better to hide."

    ***

    Linette scampered across the plateaus of the canyon with clenched fists and teary eyes. She couldn''t believe she lost. She had been running for what felt like hours. She was already tired from her fight, and her legs were still shaky from the close brush with death.  She stopped running just short of a canyon crevice. It was a long and thin pathway that twisted in on itself into an uneven circle. Along the path was a small cave entrance. It was home. She slid down the canyon wall and let it carry her into a light jog.

    Her mind flashed back to several hours before. She stood in attendance with her six sisters in arms as their leader, Hiri, gave them the rundown. She had never seen her so angry before.

    "The Opazyr have come to the canyon seeking Azylith''s deposits," she explained. "I shouldn''t have to explain to you why we can''t allow any more of those crystals to make it out of this canyon. We suspect the lone mage that came before them already made off with a small handful. That''s an egregious error on our part, and one that we cannot repeat."

    Hiri paced back and forth, seemingly overcome with intense anger. "Those Opazyr are responsible for this cursed land. They are evil, and cannot be allowed to have access to the maddening power of the crystals. Is that understood!" She barked. Spit flew out her mouth like a rabid animal, and her dilated pupils seemed to be whipping between each member excessively.

    Silent nods were the only responses given.

    "Good! Now I want this place scrubbed from top to bottom! You find them, you kill them. Their Bodies should be brought back to Azylith so she can confirm their deaths personally. Even the descended have been made not to feast on their corpses, so you have no excuse! Now go!"This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    The dark cave was lit by torches that were evenly spaced. The ground curved into a slope, if one wasn''t careful they could easily lose their footing and be sent tumbling to the bottom. Said bottom was a manmade clearing. Stone supports had been carefully left in place to keep the entire structure from coming down. Smaller offshoots lined the perimeter, but there was no doubt that this was the main component of this base.

    The smell of hot bread and a hunter''s pot greeted her nose and lulled Linette into a false sense of safety. That safety was ripped away by a harsh voice. It was Hiri.

    "Where are the hounds?" She asked. Her voice was cold and judgmental.

    Linette didn''t want to turn around. She swallowed hard and steeled herself. "T-they''re dead. They were defeated by the intruders."

    There was a long pause. The only thing breaking up the long silence was the crackling fire underneath the hunter''s stew. Linette could feel her own heart pounding as if to try and break free from her ribcage.

    Hiri tapped her foot, waiting for Linette to turn around. But when the defeated keeper continued to stare at the wall for what seemed like an eternity she lost her patience. "Damnit Linette! Would you at least look at me?"

    Linette turned around, sweat ran down her face with such abundance you''d think she was under a shower head. So when she was suddenly grasped with a crushing grip, the woman let out a terrified whimper, before realizing she was being hugged tightly.

    "I''m just glad you''re safe," Murmured Hiri.

    The roller coaster of emotions led to hysterical, sputtering laughter from Linette. She returned her leader''s embrace and fell to her knees. "I t-thought you were going to kill me..." She stuttered.

    Hiri looked shocked, no, offended that her subordinate would say that. "Why would I do that?!"

    "You were so rabid at the briefing. I''ve never seen a woman so angry in all my years. I thought you would lash out if I failed. I''m sure the others thought the same."

    "What are you-" the realization hit Hiri like a truck, and then she immediately knelt to console Linette. "No, I was just under the influence of the crystal. I didn''t even realize I... I''m sorry. I didn''t mean to instill fear in you all. I was not myself. After I spoke to Azylith I just felt so stupid and the Crystal I used must have bolstered my emotions."

    "It''s fine, but I think we should call a retreat before the others do something rash. Those women are not weak. We all spread out to look and I''m certain that any one of us would lose if we attacked them by ourselves."

    Hiri put a calming hand on her shoulder. "don''t worry. I''ll rally them before they do something stupid."

    ***

    Maria and Veronica dragged themselves back to the campsite. The fighting caught up to them and now they were feeling the exhaustion. Veronica was still holding both carcasses In her arms, and Maria was dragging another cursed log to hopefully use as kindling for a fire. The sun was setting, and their stomachs delivered sharp, painful blows as a war cry for sustenance.

    Maria spotted Lucy and Anise down by the river bank and called out to them as she flopped the log onto the Ashy ground. "Oi, Chow''s in!"

    They both looked back with star-studded eyes, thankful to be fed. But their faces contorted into horror as soon as they laid eyes upon the dead Descended.

    Lucy pointed at the carcasses with a shaking finger. "W-we''re not going to eat those, are we?"

    Veronica placed the dogs against the cavern wall and went to inspect the log Maria had brought in. "Of course we are. It was the only thing we could find."

    Maria joined the soldier, tearing off protruding branches to use as a fire starter. "Yeah, luckily for us one of those crazy broads in blue attacked us with some controlled Descended. Otherwise, we''d be shit out of luck."

    "Absolutely not!" Anise screeched. She stood in front of Lucy with a furious face. "We cannot do something so barbaric as eating Descended! You don''t know what could happen if you eat those filthy creatures!"

    "I know what will happen if I don''t eat it," retorted Maria, "and I don''t like to starve, so..." She took out one of her curved blades and sized up the log. She hoped cutting it up wouldn''t make too much noise.

    "You''re not listening to me! It''s unacceptable for Lady Lucy to-,"

    "-THEN SHE CAN FUCKING STARVE!" Maria yelled indignantly. The rawness of her scream put Anise on her rear. The mercenary stood up with her scimitar in hand and stomped over to the cowering pair.

    "I''ve had just about enough of you two! First, you get us trapped in here! Then you lazy about while we find heat and food, literally fighting tooth and nail to get it, and now you want to complain about the hall?!" Her magical aura began to flare up. Against the setting sun, one could just barely make out its luminescent properties. "Why are you upper class so fucking spoiled? Knights? Heralds? Don''t play with me! If this one is a knight then the entire order is fucking worthless!"

    Anise grabbed her wrist and lowered her blade. "How dare you speak to her like that. That is-"

    A gloved hand gripped Anise''s throat and lifted the herald off the floor. "I''m so sick of you. I despise dick-suckers. Why don''t you let the girl speak for herself, huh? She''s supposed to be a knight, right? A big girl. A real elite. So fuckin'' treat her like it."

    She practically threw Anise to the side, tossing her into the sand. Veronica watched it all, unsure of what to do. She looked at her spear. She would protect the Opazyr at any cost, as were her duties. But a part of her wanted Mara to send Lucy floating down the river.

    Maria lowered herself over Lucy, glaring at her while the veins on her face struggled to keep from bursting. Lucy backed up, fearful, but unable to pull together the mental fortitude to reach for her blade.

    "I-im sorry. Just please calm down. I didn''t mean to offend." Whimpered Lucy. "I''ll eat it. Your efforts shouldn''t be disrespected."

    Maria stared into her eyes. It was uncomfortably intense, but Lucy did not look away. Whether that was due to paralyzing fear or sudden bravery was unknown, and it didn''t matter. It was enough to get Maria to back off.

    "Damn right you won''t," she grumbled as she stomped back over the log.

    Anise crawled over to Lucy, reaching out for her and gasping for air at the same time. "are you... Alright... My lady..?" Each breath was labored, bookended with wheezes and coughs.

    The knight pulled her into an embrace. "I''m fine, what about you?"

    "That damned oger is stronger than I gave her credit for, but I''ll live. You should be careful my lady. I feel she could do great harm if provoked."

    Veronica eyed the mercenary while they toyed away at preparing the food. "was that necessary?" She asked in her usual hushed tone.

    "Don''t know," Maria answered. "They were pissing me off though. I had to do something."

    "You''re aware it''s my job to protect Lady Lucy, right? If you hurt her-"

    "-Relax, ok? It''s also my job to make sure the brat comes home alive. I''m not that dumb. Plus It''s just that herald who keeps raking my nerves."

    "As long as we''re on the same page. I don''t have any particular orders about the herald either, but if Lucy were to command it-"

    "-Yeah, yeah, you''d have to step in and stop me from hurting her. I get it, alright. I know how these things work."

    "Just had to let you know."

    The two went back to preparing the meal as if nothing had happened. Meanwhile, Anise and Lucy awkwardly waited for them to finish.

    Half an hour passed by. The smell of roasting meat filled the funneled beach, invading Lucy''s nostrils and accented her hunger. Lucy''s stomach growled loud enough to startle Anise, who was still resting in her lap.

    "Sorry," she chuckled, "I guess the meat won''t be as bad as I thought."

    Anise returned a spiteful gaze to the two roasting literal monsters on a stick. "It''s still not right. Descended are monsters corrupted by negative energy. Their flesh is probably chock-full of it. It could turn us into Descended for all we know."

    "Well, the only other option we have is to try and fish from the river," Lucy said. She shivered against the breeze. It was night now, and the temperature had already dropped ten degrees. "But I don''t think I''d make it. That water is really cold. And the current is still raging. Even if we didn''t get swept away I don''t think we''d be able to catch fish with our bare hands."

    "I still think those two could have found something better."

    "Well, I''ll be sure to eat your share then," Lucy traced a circle on the herald''s face. "I haven''t been this hungry in a while."

    Anise practically teleported upright. "Now hold on a second! Let''s not get carried away."

    "Oh, I thought you didn''t like the idea of eating the Descended?" Lucy covered her mouth like a schoolgirl trying to keep a secret.

    "I don''t, but if I don''t eat I''ll be weak." Anise grabbed her arm and lowered it from her mouth. "I don''t exactly trust those two to keep you safe."

    Lucy snatched her hand away. "I''m a knight, you know? I can defend myself. Otherwise, what was all that training for?" She glared at Anise, eyes full of skepticism. "You don''t believe in my strength either, huh?"

    Anise recoiled, receding into herself. "O-of course I do, my lady. The training of the Opazyr knights cannot be bested."

    Her hollow words did nothing to reassure the knight, who simply stood up and walked away. "Yeah, truly convincing Anise."

    Lucy approached the two chefs as they tended to the roast. Conversing and debating on if the meat was fully cooked, or close to burning. They stopped and stared at Lucy, her red eyes gleaming against the fire like rubies.

    "Meats not done yet, princess," said Maria. "If you eat now you''ll regret it."

    "Be truthful," Lucy demanded, ignoring the quip. "Do you guys think I''m weak?"

    "Well, that depends on what we''re talking about here," Maria said. "If we''re talking about fighting skills. I have no idea. I''ve never seen you swing your sword. But you don''t seem too bright. Your adaptability seems like it''s garbage, and you''ve let that herald speak for you since we''ve met. So your self-reliance is probably abysmal as well. If I had to guess I''m pretty sure you''d be dead by now if you were on your own"

    Maria leaned over the fire, checking the tenderness of the meat with her finger. "But, there''s also the fact that I just met you. So there''s still time to turn those first impressions around."

    Lucy whipped her head to Veronica, who seemed to be ignoring her existence in favor of her future meal. "Soldier, what about you?"

    "It''s not my place to say?" She replied.

    Lucy knelt down and placed a gentle hand on Veronica''s shoulder. "Please, the truth. I need to know, Soldier."

    "Soft, like spoiled fruit," Veronica quietly sighed. She averted her eyes from Lucy as she spoke. "You might know your way around your sword. But you''re still a little girl."

    Lucy fell back on her rear. This was the first time she had ever received such harsh words. She had grown up with nothing but praise for her accolades, but now it felt like all those words were lies. Spoken to her status, and not her as a person. "No way... But Lady Fia allowed me to go on this mission."

    "Allowed?" Maria scoffed. "Now it sounds like she didn''t intend to send you on the mission at all."

    "I told her it would be a perfect opportunity to prove myself. She agreed, I thought she believed in me." The knight''s words were distant. She was trapped in her own mind, reliving her conversation with her aunt.

    "If she believed in you then I wouldn''t be here." Expressed the mercenary with a tone cold as ice. She took a stick and tore herself a piece of meat to see if it was cooked. "People don''t normally hire a street thug to protect knights."

    Veronica snatched the meat from the mercenary who yelled in protest. She ignored her, taking the first test bite of the exotic flesh. "That''s not exactly fair, Maria. You''re not just some street thug. From what I understand you''ve done every sort of job in every corner of the country. It''s not right to compare a knight to a seasoned adventurer. Plus you''re an Opazyr now just like Lucy. Stop calling yourself a thug." She nagged, cleaning the stick of its last bits of flesh. "Also the meat is definitely done. Good too."

    "Shit, for real? Gimme my stick back, you have your own!" Maria chirped, snatching back her tool.

    Lucy sat in disbelief, nobody had believed in her from the start,  not her soldiers, her aunt, nor her two comrades who were supposed to be her equals. She gripped the ash beneath her, her frazzled mind coming to one conclusion. "If none of you believe in me, then... then..."

    Maria and Veronica turned to her with looks of curiosity and concern respectively.

    "Then I''ll just have to become better!" She howled. She raised her fist defiantly, throwing about the ash that had been caught in her grip. "I''ll just have to become more adaptable, more intelligent, more independent! I- I can rough it with the best of them, you''ll see. I steak my noble blood on it?"

    Maria''s face twisted into a smug grin. "You''re gonna put that on house Opazyr?"

    "Absolutely!" She exclaimed with determination. "I know that within me is a woman worthy of my family name. I''ll find that woman by the end of this expedition, And become someone my aunt can place her full faith in!"

    Maria tore off a large chunk of meat, "then eat up, kid. You can''t prove me wrong on an Empty stomach."

    Lucy took the meat and started to chow down. She was so consumed by her determination that she forgot any apprehensions she might have had about the descended meat.

    Veronica and Anise laughed as she ate away. "I''ll give you something kid. You''ve got heart," complimented the mercenary.

    Anise crawled over to the fire, unable to resist the aroma of well-done meat. "All alright, I concede. Cut me a piece, will you?"

    Maria handed her one of her scimitars. "Cut it yourself. Try a leg or something. Mind the scales though. They''re hard as hell."

    Soon the air was filled with greedy munching. Anise was the only one who tried to contain herself in the feeding frenzy. Lucy was so unchained in her feeding that she began to choke, skittering over to the stream to try and wash down her ill-chewed food while Maria laughed at her.

    Anise ran over to make sure she was ok, leaving the two grunts to their own meal.

    "What are we going to do?" Veronica asked. "We can''t stay here. We''re sitting ducks. I think we should try to move deeper into the Canyon."

    "Can''t, I thought about it but unless we find another source of running water we''re stuck here." Maria countered. "besides, unless we get real lucky I don''t think there''s a place in that canyon where we won''t be surrounded. Worse comes to worse we can jump in the river and be floated off to safety."

    Veronica looked up at the canyon walls. Its cold, smooth gray face seemed to stretch infinitely into the night sky. She could not see the end of the ledge in the darkness, which only made her more uneasy. "I feel like we should at least move to the top of the canyon. I feel trapped down here."

    "You''re probably right," Maria admitted between gulps of charred flesh. "Look, when the sun comes up we''ll move the logs up to the flat-tops. Deal?"

    "I can work with that." Veronica squinted to see Anise trying desperately to give Lucy the heimlich maneuver. She stood up and briskly walked over. "Step aside, you''re doing it wrong!" She demanded calmly.

    Much to Maria''s amusement Veronica was quick to save Lucy from herself. The mercenary laid down by the fire, picking off bits of the roast and staring into the starry night sky. "Gods, is this gonna be every night with these girls?"

 Ch 4: A Third Party

    The sun gradually emerged over the towering walls of the Ashen canyon casting a harsh, cold glow. Maria shifted and tossed on her bed of logs, trying to stave off the attack on her senses. A gentle hand grabbed her and pulled her into a warm embrace. She hugged the person tightly and nestled herself into what felt like a pillow.

    The realization quickly hit her that she was neither home nor sharing a bed with a cheap vixen. Her eyes shot open, scanning the ash breach desperately before landing on Veronica, who was holding her like a child held a stuffed animal. She tried to pry herself free, but the soldier''s grasp was ironclad.

    "Veronica!" She called out in a hushed tone.

    No response.

    Maria tried to tickle her to loosen the grasp, but it backfired almost immediately. Veronica let out a small chuckle before rolling onto her side, taking Maria with her, and flipping her over into an even tighter cuddle. The mercenary regretted sharing the bed with her comrade.

    "Damnit! I should have gotten my own logs," she grumbled.

    She tried to squirm her way free, but every motion made Veronica''s grip tighter. She gave up, not wanting to get crushed by the unreal strength of a trained soldier. She looked up at her captor''s face. She hadn''t really paid much attention the other day, but with the morning light bouncing off her skin it was a shock to see just how pale Veronica was. The Opazyr were known for being pale and fair, with Lucy being a prime example, but Veronica was white as salt. Her skin had not a hint of hue to it, save for her lips which were the palest of pinks. She noticed how her Raven-colored hair, despite being unkempt, was still relatively straight.

    It was like Maria was looking at her polar opposite. The mercenary was easily the darkest woman in the entirety of Opal City. Deep ebony skin and curly hair were her trademarks that sang the song of immigration. Her mothers had traveled from a distant land where the sun was said to be both unparalleled in brightness and warmth. Maria wondered if Veronica was also a foreigner. She imagined one so pale could only come from a place devoid of sunlight.

    "Screw it, I guess you are pretty warm anyways," admitted Maria. With her plans of getting to work at the crack of dawn seemingly foiled, Maria opted to go back to sleep.

    She next awoke to snickers and awes. She turned her head and through grog and fog she could make out two silhouettes leaning over her. She tried to move but was still underneath Veronica''s dominating grip.

    "You two look so cute together!" exclaimed Lucy.

    "Yes, it''s strange to see such a savage woman embroiled in intimacy," chirped Anise.

    Maria let out a low growl. "Shut it! I''m stuck," she rasped. There was a deeply embedded form of respect keeping her tone hushed.

    Anise crossed her arms. "Come now, with a little bit of mana you could break out easily. Just admit that you''re comfortable. That soldier''s pretty strong. Does she make the big, bad mercenary feel safe?"

    "It''s Veronica," spat Maria.

    Anise raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

    "Her name is Veronica!" There was a fire in Maria''s eyes. Her charcoal pupils lit up with passion. "You''ve been calling her ''soldier'' ever since we got stuck in this place."

    Lucy and Anise looked at each other in confusion.

    "Well, you probably don''t know, but we refer to soldiers by rank number. But she''s not a part of a greater group right now, so ''soldier'' is a sufficient title." Lucy scratched her head, unsure of what the issue actually was.

    "That''s not the-" Maria was cut off by a hand on her head. She looked over to see Veronica''s eyes open, staring at the canyon wall ahead.

    "Just stop, Maria. It''s just the way we operate. No need to make things personal." Huffed the soldier.

    Lucy''s face twisted into a dissatisfied frown. "Hey, that''s a member of the Opazyr you''re talking to. Show some respect and acknowledge her Ladyship!"

    "Of course, My lad-" Veronica found her lips scrunched and sealed between Maria''s fingers.

    "Call me ''Lady'', and I''ll tear your lips off. Got that?" She warned. She let go of her mouth and gave her a death stare.

    "Wouldn''t dream of it, Maria."

    "Perfect." Maria relaxed with her small victory. She came close to snuggling into the soldier just as thoughts of freedom returned to her. Then came the realization that Veronica must have been awake to jump into the conversation in such a seamless manner. "Oi, how long have you been awake?"

    "About fifteen minutes..."

    Maria gripped her arm with irritated hands. "So why are you still holding onto me like a damned stuffed animal?"

    "..."

    The lack of an answer didn''t make Maria any less frustrated. "What? You''re acting like you''ve never cuddled with a woman before?"

    "I haven''t."

    The blatant admission caught Maria like a bat in the sun. She looked to the others, who just stared with covered mouths trying to hide their shock.

    "It''s strangely comforting. I don''t want to move." Veronica buried her face into Maria''s curly head of hair.

    Maria tried wrangling herself free once again. "Oi, oi, don''t get all comfortable on me. Have some shame will ya? We''ve got two pairs of eyes on us."

    Anise began to push Lucy away from the sight, dismissing the two with a flick of her wrist. "Oh, don''t mind us! I just remembered what you said about there being mana crystals up ahead. We should go check those out."

    Maria tried to reach out to them to stop them. "wait, we should follow you, right? It''s our job and all that."

    Lucy turned around and pointed a finger into the air. "Actually, I think it''s criminal for any woman to die without experiencing affection. That''s what separates us from Agamics. So I declare that you take all the time you need! Besides, you deserve rest after working so hard yesterday."

    Maria opened her mouth to rebuttal, but nothing came to her. Lucy was correct, intimacy was very important to their species: Conjugates, or more simply known as women. It was what separated them from the Agamics, otherwise known as men. They were very similar to women in shape and appearance. But they did not know love, nor did they have the means to sexually reproduce. The two races could never get along, and so they lived on completely separate continents. If Veronica died on this mission without experiencing any sort of intimacy it would make her no different from a man.

    She had been out on cherry-popping duty, and she couldn''t believe it. "So, do you really want to do this?"

    "The sun just came up. I don''t think there''s any reason to be in a hurry. Reinforcements won''t come until mid-day." Veronica rolled over onto her hands and knees placing her on top of her.

    There was a long strand of silence as the soldier stared longingly at the mercenary. Maria, unused to having anyone in such a dominant position over her, felt more awkward every second that no action was taken. "Something wrong? Second thoughts?"

    Veronica gave a gentle negative nod. "No... You''re just really beautiful."

    Maria couldn''t believe this was the same woman who was making passive threats in the name of her lord the other day. She had been defanged by unchecked lust. "Wooh girl... we''re really starting from ground zero, aren''t we?"

    ***

    Beyond the canyon, on the cobbled path that connected it to Opal City, the sound of marching feet filled the air. A unit consisting of eighty soldiers led by a single knight; Avery Opazyr. Her silver bob cut and sharp ruby eyes were a proud declaration of her heritage. Her armor was steel, painted black. Over it was a blue banner with an ornate imprint of her family crest. With a sword in one hand and a shield in the other, she walked fearlessly to save her fellow clansmen. She thought about the conversation she had with Fia she had moments before the night before.

    Avery stood in Fia''s throne room. Lucy''s soldiers who had been left leaderless after the bridge collapsed had just returned and finished reporting the details. Fia sat in her chair, dissatisfaction twisting her entire form. From impatient tapping to her stare that was locked onto the portrait of Lucy that was hanging up amongst her many family members.

    "That girl couldn''t even make it into the canyon before she failed," Fia sighed.

    "Do you really think she''s dead?" Asked Avery.

    "Most likely. The reports say she plummeted a thousand feet into raging rapids. I''d say there''s a fifteen percent chance she''s still alive somewhere."

    "But that means there''s still a chance. We should ready a rescue team at once!"

    "Don''t be foolish. We shouldn''t waste time and resources on a knight who shouldn''t have been out there in the first place."

    "What about the other women with them?"

    "Unimportant. One was just a member of the Hoary Church, while the other was a mercenary. The mercenary seemed rather accomplished, so it''s a pity if she also died in that fall, but again it''s something I''d rather not waste the resources on."

    "That mercenary, I heard you inaugurated her into our house. Does that mean nothing to you?"

    "It was an act to lay claim to a potentially powerful asset, but she couldn''t even protect Lucy. So no, it didn''t mean much at all." Fia turned to face the Knight. Her eyes glowed with a silent rage. "Are you done questioning me?"

    "... I suppose I have all the information I need. I assume you want me to pick up where they left off?"

    "That''s right, I have faith you will not disappoint. Oh! By the way, the reports tell of a woman in blue robes with a wretched dagger. I would like her head laid at my feet."

    "Of course my Lady, it shall be done post haste,"

    Her words were, to put it quite frankly, a lie. Avery would find Lucy and the others first, then finish the mission. She was not going to leave one of her own out to dry. She had even sent out a secret team to scout the river''s entire length. At the very least she wanted a body, she wouldn''t be satisfied with anything less.

    Fate had other plans, however. The cobbled path she treaded had long since begun to elevate itself from the rest of the ground. They were nearly to the Ashen Canyon, and she estimated the height between the cobbled road and the surrounding land was at least five hundred feet or so. Which would not have been a problem if the road wasn''t blocked by a group of women ten-strong. Their white and purple robes distinguished them as members of the Purlikin Wizards. She analyzed the myriad of scowling faces staring back at her with confusion.

    "What''s wrong?" She asked. "If you ladies are conducting research, we only need to pass by." She knew how short-tempered their ilk was when it came to research, but their organization was headquartered in Opal City, so at the end of the day they answered to her family.

    There was no response. Not one peep from any of the mouths before her. Avery took this as some kind of Anxiety. She assumed that encountering such a large force must have been frightening. "Excuse me, we will just be sliding past."

    She motioned for her soldiers to follow her, and took a solid three steps before immediately running into a barrier. She shook her head, unwilling to come to terms with what just happened. Again she tried to walk forward, but again she bounced off the barrier. The repulsion was stronger this time, nearly throwing her off her feet.

    "Ok, what is this?" she asked with a small chuckle. She raised her sword, tapping on the barrier to test its strength. "You have ten seconds to start talking, and the words that come out of your mouth better be an explanation!"

    A singular Wizard stepped forward, her purple hair was long and unkempt, and her ocean-blue eyes were anxious, but determined. "The Purlikins have decided to cut ties with Opal City. Our interests no longer align and as such we cannot allow you to pass."

    "So, it''s treason then?" Avery stepped back from the barrier before taking a swing at it with all of her might. It crashed against the magic wall with a thunderous bang! She could feel the barrier threatening to repel her and send her flying. No matter how hard she pushed she could not break it. The Purlikins snickered and teased her, egging her on to waste her strength. But she knew better. She stopped her assault, backing up away from the barrier with her hands up in defeat.

    "You see now that you can''t get past us." Said the purple-haired Purlikin. "So return home, give up on the Ashen Canyon! It''s ours to claim."The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    "Oh really? I don''t think it''s going to work out that way. So, tell you what. You give me your name, and I''ll be sure to give you a very nice tombstone to celebrate one so bold and brave as yourself."

    "It''s Ingrid, and mock me all you want. I don''t see a single Wizard in your entire rank. You cannot break my barrier." The wizard pounded her staff against the cobble to accent the pride and assurance in her voice.

    "Alright, Ingrid, you caught me. I don''t have a single Wizard within the entirety of my eighty troops. But just because we''re not academic in our use of mana like you all doesn''t mean we''re incapable of using our brains." She raised a hand to bring her soldier''s attention to herself. "Girls! Heart piercer formation on the double! Make it forty strong!"

    Half her army shuffled into place within seconds. They split themselves into two columns of twenty and further divided themselves into groups of ten. The small ten-women group would interlock hands, pouring all their mana into one woman who funneled it to the group ahead. The two front rows had one woman each who stood at the inner corners of the formation, just barely out of arm''s reach from each other.

    A soldier outside of the formation handed Avery a standard spear and returned to her rank. The knight smirked, eyeing up the gaggle of confused wizards. She placed herself at the front of the formation, in between both columns, allowing the soldiers that bookended them to grab a hold of her shoulders.

    "I see you''re confused Ladies. I know that mages think that they''re so superior to us simple warriors, but I''m going to have to ask you to open your eyes!"

    The soldiers funneled all the mana formulated by the formation into Avery. Her magical aura exploded, unable to be contained by her body. A deranged smirk burst onto her face from the depths of petty hell as she raised her spear and readied to throw it.

    The Purlikins backed away from the barrier in fear. "Impossible, how can her body withstand that much mana?" Cried a Purlikin who had positioned themselves the farthest away from the barrier.

    Avery let an ugly laugh claw its way free from the depths of her soul. "You Wizards spend all day working on those damn circles! Your bodies are frail, and your mana reserves are garbage. It should be obvious that dedicating your life to your body will result in a much higher mana capacity overall. Now observe!"

    She let the spear fly from her fingertips with a simple, well-formed throw. It streaked through the air, singing a harsh tune of destruction as an overwhelming amount of magic infused into the bow threatened to tear it apart atom by atom. But the spear held its form. As a quality tool of the proud Opazyr it would not shatter under its burden. It slammed the barrier as sparks of electricity flew through the air and shockwaves rattled the cobbled road. One Purlikin lost their balance and had to be caught by her comrade.

    The spear defied all laws as it continued to push itself into the barrier, propelled by the raw, unrefined magic hoisted upon it. Bit by bit the barrier began to break down. Each crack came with a deafening cry, forcing everyone to cover their ears.

    One of Ingrid''s close comrades tried to pull out her spell book to reinforce the barrier, but the deafening shockwave damaged her ears and destroyed her focus. The raging winds generated by the mana clash also made finding the right spell circle impossible, as the wind threatened to tear the pages apart.

    All the wizards could do was watch as their barrier shattered like glass in a massive explosion. No sooner did it shatter did it turn to dust, and blow away with the wind. Avery picked up the spear as it rattled onto the floor. It was still sizzling hot, its wooden length burned by excessive mana. However she deemed it still usable, so she tossed it back to its original handler. She turned towards the Purlikins who were dripping with anxious sweat.

    "If you surrender right now I will spare each of you. Wizards you may be, but you''re outnumbered eight to one. So don''t betray your intelligence with unwise actions. Give. Up." The knight took a menacing step forward. She drew her sword from its sheath, her mana dripping off the blade like drool off a tooth.

    Ingrid readied her staff and spell book for battle, but it was another Purlikin who made the first move. She jumped in front of Ingrid gripping a white Mana crystal.

    "To hell with you all!" She cried.

    "Wait!" Ingrid tried to stop her, but it was too late.

    The Purlikin crushed the crystal and let the maddening power overtake her. She held out her wooden staff and a magical circle was carved on its head. She pumped every ounce of magic given by the crystal into the circle, unleashing the full might of its spell on the Oppazyr''s forces. It was a ceaseless volley high powered energy bolts that flew through the sky like birds of prey.

    Avery hopped to the side, dodging the first blast that came her way. The second one came just as quickly, but she was able to bat it away with her shield. She whipped her head around to see the endless volley of mana blasts steer clear of her soldiers. They veered off the sides of the raised road, slamming the unnatural formation with one powerful concussive blow after the next from all angles. It didn''t take long for the bridge to collapse, sending her entire force plummeting to their deaths.

    "No!" She screamed. She had managed to be spared from the collapse, but the death of her soldiers was all she could think about. She turned to their killer in a smoldering rage, her grimace showing cracking teeth under the extreme pressure of her fury.

    The rampaging Purlikin let off another blast of soaring mana from her staff, but it was weak. She had already used most of the Crystal''s power in her initial attack. Avery swatted it away like a fly. The knight sprang into a full sprint, closing the distance between them within a second. With a single sword slash, she cut open the mage from hip to neck.

    Ingrid stumbled back in horror as her comrade hit the floor, lifeless. The magic from the crystal sizzled off her corpse. Avery would have killed her as well if another Purlikin hadn''t put up a magical barrier between them.

    Avery raised her foot and bucked the barrier, instantly breaking it. Ingrid backpedaled while casting the spell ingrained on her staff, a reliable and large fireball. Her flames slammed Avery''s shield. They danced around the knight trying to find something to consume, but were fought off by her magical aura.

    She continued to fire orb after orb, taking advantage of the cobbled pathway''s limited area. Ingrid could tell that she was only delaying the inevitable, as the knight slowly drew closer despite each fireball packing quite the physical kick. "Damn knight freak! How much mana do they have?"

    The 8 remaining Purlikins rounded themselves up behind the lead Wizard, each gripping their spell books with white knuckles.

    "She might be stronger than us. But..." Without finishing her sentence, one wizard slapped her hand onto the page she had opened. She pumped her mana into the page, and lifted a spell circle from its surface traced from her own mana. She cast the spell, causing a magical box to shoot from her fingertips. It hit Avery, bouncing off her shield and instantly growing to surround her.

    Another Purlikin took to the skies. Magical circles etched into her boots allowed her to levitate above the action where she used her staff to rain down red blades of energy onto the sealed box from every angle. Avery had nearly broken free from her bindings when she felt the sharp pain of magic piercing her body. The blades stabbed through the barrier, pinning her like a rabid porcupine.

    The knight let out a feral screech, and with a reckless outpour of energy, she broke through the barrier. The swords of mana were destroyed in the show of brute force as they were unable to hold their shape when overexposed to her powerful aura.

    Ingrid pulled out another spell as Avery came within arms reach with a deadly thrust of her blade. She stabbed through her spell book, grazing the wizard who avoided death with a desperate pivot. She stuck out her hand at her waist, launching a raging tempest from shaking hands. The powerful gust blew Avery off her feet, sending her completely airborne.

    Another Purlikin saw the opportunity and cast a powerful spell from her book. An enormous spectral hand shot from her spell circle, hitting the knight with hundreds of newtons of impact force. She was helpless as she jettisoned away from the cobbled platform. She was sent flying over the collapsed area, hitting the other side with a meaty thud. Avery groaned in agony as her body slammed the stones with bone-breaking force. She bounced off the rocks, sword still tightly gripped as she fell to the bottom.

    The Purlikins scrambled to the ledge to watch her demise. It was a long fall, surely the knight would die on impact. Unfortunately for them, the fall was too long, at 500 feet, the five seconds it took to make contact with the earth was just enough time for the knight to employ a hair-brained scheme for survival.

    Avery knew that without Wizardry her magical function was limited, but she still had options. She funneled her magic into her blade and pointed it at the ledge. Mana shot from her sword''s edge, extending its length just long enough to stab the wall of the very ledge the Purlikins stood on. She kept pouring her mana into the blade, which extended its length and pushed her back into the cobble. She had managed to use both ends of the collapsed road to slow her fall, coming to a rough, but livable landing. She fell to her knees, exhausted and injured.

    The floating Purlikin was not inclined to let her escape. She sent down another round of raining blades to blanket the ground below, but Avery defended herself with her Shield and the minor amounts of mana she could conjure up.

    "Damnit? How did she defend against that?!" cried the wizard.

    "You can''t spread your spell so thinly," answered Ingrid. "Focus on just one or two blades."

    The Purlikin followed her advice, shooting down two blades that were more mana-dense than her previous spraying, but Avery rolled out of the way, scampering around the corner of the raised road for a moment''s reprieve.

    "Damnit. Why won''t she die?" Growled the Purlikin. She hovered over the road''s edge. Ingrid followed her to the best of her grounded ability, getting as close to the corner as possible without falling off herself. She could see the knight against the wall. At this distance, she was as small as an ant, but that didn''t stop her from reaching her staff to fire on her.

    She held her hand to her chest plate and smiled. "The best part about traitors is that they always forget that they were once your allies." She pumped her chest plate with a weak stream of mana, and the faint glow of a magical circle escaped its gaps. She exhaled away the last of her pain, keeping her mouth open as her cracked teeth slowly began to heal. She stood up, one hand clutching her blade, and the other hand glued to her chest keeping up her healing. She would have to abandon her shield for the time being. A fireball flew by, slamming into the bodies of one of her fallen soldiers. Then a mana blade stabbed the earth inches from her toes.

    Avery craned her neck upwards and got a good look at her assailants. The fact that the floating Purlikin didn''t come closer to increase her accuracy meant that they feared direct confrontation. In Avery''s mind they were right to do so. She reckoned that dedicated wizards such as them only had a tenth of the mana as a fully trained knight.

    Despite the disparity in strength, she had to admit that the unique ways in which they used what little mana they had secured them the victory. And as much as she hated running, she still desired to save her clansmen. So she ran, sprinting off into the open fields of blood-soaked pebbles. Her survival banked on them not giving chase, as she thought that the floating wizard would wear her down with enough determination. While those women had geared their spells towards battle. She doubted they were actually experienced in fights. They were far too panicked to have faced a knight before. So she hoped her little rampage would properly deter them.

    "She''s getting away!" Howled the aggravated Purlikin. She darted after the knight, but the translucent mage hand of her comrade caught her and reeled her back in.

    "We''re not chasing her. We need to head to the canyon," Ingrid declared. She checked the body of the fallen wizard just to be safe, but there was no helping her. Her innards painted the cobblestone beneath her.

    "Let me go! She killed Dara! I''m gonna finish her off!"

    "No!" Snapped Ingrid. "listen to me, Naesha! If she has the strength to run like that, that means she probably has the strength to kill you in single combat. You saw how she just blew through everything we had, didn''t you?"

    "Then give me a crystal! You can''t seriously think I''d lose with that kind of power."

    "Dara did, so what makes you think you''re any better? With how you are right now the crystal would probably drive you completely mad and you''d end up killing us all. We need to get in that canyon so we can work on figuring out a way to reduce its frenzying effects." Ingrid was practically pleading now. She choked back the tears as she tried to speak with authority in her voice. She was the one who brought the white crystals back to the city. When everyone grew emboldened by their potential and wanted to make a play for power, she reluctantly agreed to lead the treasonous expedition. But now one of her friends lay dead at her feet, and she would not condone the death of another.

    The Purlikin holding Naesha in place with the magical hand pulled her in. She lowered both of their hoods to force direct eye contact.

    "What Belor? Why are you looking at me like that?" Naesha hissed.

    The Purlikin Belor was a stern-faced, older woman. Her wrinkles only accented her displeasure. "You know why. You aren''t using that head of yours! We need every woman in this party. It''s bad enough that Dara is gone! We can''t afford to take any more risks. We were lucky to take out the Oppazyr''s forces. That should buy us a full day before they come back with even more troops."

    "That''s why you should have let me go after her!"

    "No! It''s why we will put everything into perfecting the usage of crystal while in the canyon. We''ll use that power, along with the advantageous terrain to crush whatever they send our way!"

    "She''s right," Ingrid said. "Even with the crystals, if we challenged the entire Opazyr force to open combat we''d most likely die. Waging war from those canyons is our best bet. We might even be able to form an alliance with the strange women there."

    Naesha groaned. "You mean those freaks who ran you out the first time? Are you delusional?"

    Ingrid shrugged her shoulders. "Who knows, when we refine these crystals we''ll have some real negotiating power. Anything is possible."

    A stoic Purlikin walked up to Naesha and Belor and placed a finger on the spectral hand. She forcefully injected her own magic into it, destabilizing the entire spell. It crumbled away, dropping Naesha on her rear. "We don''t have time to argue," she spat. Her voice was monotonous, but her eyes were sparking with impatience. "We need to get moving. We made everyone in the guild evacuate under the cover of night for this mission. I''ll kill anyone who doesn''t take it seriously." She glared at Naesha, gripping her staff with murderous intent.

    A few awkward glances were exchanged before feet started shuffling. One after the other they began to move towards their destination, but Naesha didn''t move an inch. "Wait! What about Dara''s body? We''re not going to just leave her here, right?!"

    Ingrid looked back at the lifeless body with a heavy heart. "It''s not like there''s anything we can do. We don''t have time to bury her properly."

    "Grab her spell book," commanded the stoic wizard.

    Naesha was quick to follow the order. She grabbed the corpse''s book, and struggled not to look back as she ran to catch up with her comrades. "I got it. But her body..."

    The stoic Purlikin opened her own spell book, flipping through innumerable pages, only slowing down when she realized she overshot her intended mark. She placed her hand on one of the many finely printed transmogrifying circles and gently raised a magical tracing of it. The casting was violent in comparison, with a wind-shearing shockwave and a vibrant green light bursting from the spell circle.

    Her magic enveloped her fallen comrade, twisting and compacting her body into a small seed. It flew into her hand, and she held it up for the others to see. "when we return to the city we''ll plant the seed in the throne room of that wretched lord. It will grow into a tree, immortalizing her over the ruins of the Opazyr."

    Belor cocked an eyebrow. "Katelyn your spells are as weird as ever. What I wouldn''t give to study that noggin of yours."

    Naesha groaned in frustration as her eyes scanned over Dara''s book. "I''ve never tried it before, but it''s actually true. You really can''t read another Wizards spell book. Her circles make no sense to me."

    The stoic Katelyn walked over and forcibly closed Dara''s book right in Naesha''s hands before handing her the fallen woman''s sapling. "Like I''ve told you before. Everyone''s mana is unique, and spells are made specifically to transform their energy alone. Another person could never cast a spell that someone else created unless the designer wizard specifically crafted it for them."

    Naesha tucked the book away in her satchel, squeezing it in to fit with her own book. "Well with the way everyone keeps their spell books so close to their chest, I assumed that was just some kind of propaganda to keep us younger members from trying to piggyback off our seniors."

    Ingrid shook her head, "Nope, it''s the truth. We weren''t just being old-fashioned or selfish. Wizardry and spell crafting cannot be taught. Each individual has to start from scratch."

    "So when a Wizard dies, they take their spells with them..." Naesha gawked at the sapling that held Dara''s essence with a quivering lip and teary eyes.

    Ingrid walked up and took her hand, pulling her into a steady stroll to catch up to the others who were already starting to walk again. "We''ll make sure she''s not forgotten. For now, we just need to focus. We''ll surely overthrow those Opazyr. Our ancestors didn''t have the money nor the power when that white-haired cult took over three hundred years ago."

    Katelyn gripped her staff tightly, causing it to groan for relief. "Damned red eyes. They haven''t done a damned thing for this city since they got here. I''ll return the greenery to the land once they''re gone."

    Ingrid could feel the growing determination in her comrades. They would learn the secrets of the crystal and take back their city, even if they had to fill the canyon depths with blood.

 Ch 5: Something to Prove

    Maria and her small team stood atop the flat tops of the Ashen Canyon. She felt small. Despite gaining some height by scaling the wall of their funneled encampment, she could see patches of the canyon where the flat peaks rose even higher. The Canyon looked like it was segmented, with bundles of peaks coming to the same unnaturally flat end. They were at the lowest point, where the peaks were only 30 feet up from the funneled beach they washed up on. However, other swathes of peaks dwarfed them. There was no transition between patches of plateau. They were merely separated by one of the many sheer drop-offs into tight ravines.

    Maria set the last warming log down and rubbed her aching back. She quietly slung a string of unintelligible curses at her pain. She gave Veronica an annoyed scowl. The soldier quickly averted her eyes in embarrassment. The quick interaction garnered a few snickers from Lucy and Anise. Maria''s scowl did nothing to quell their amusement.

    "That''s the last time I ever let a virgin go to town on me," Maria grumbled.

    Anise covered her mouth to hide her growing smile. "What? The big, bad warrior can''t handle a little passion?"

    Maria rolled her eyes. "Please, if you were in my shoes Veronica would have torn you in half. Consider my sacrifice an act of mercy from the gods."

    Veronica walked in between the two, avoiding the gaze of everyone around her. "It''s so flat up here..." she commented in a desperate bid to change the subject.

    Lucy blotted out the sun with her hand and tried to scan the many cliff edges surrounding them. "Yeah, it''s strange. Moving up here was supposed to give us an advantage, but I feel just as exposed up here."

    Maria sat on the bed of warming logs, checking on her swords with meticulous attention. "But it''s better this way. By the beach we''re completely boxed in. We can''t move far from here because we need the water but I can already think of multiple exits. Plus it will be harder to surround us from up here. Add the better lines of sight and we have ourselves a much better position."

    "She''s right, but on another note," Veronica agreed. She turned to Lucy and Anise with a curious gaze. "You two went to see the crystals, right? How was it?"

    The knight and the herald looked at each other with worried glances.

    "It''s like you said last night. The energy they give off is absolutely repugnant but potent," Explained Anise. "However, I still grabbed some just in case. although I don''t know if any of us can even use them without losing our senses." She tapped a small sack attached to the belt of her trousers.

    "If you''re scared then hand them over." Maria motioned for Anise to toss the sack to her. Her attention was still dominated by her weapons.

    Anise''s brow furrowed in annoyance. "And just what do you intend to do with them?"

    "Use them, obviously. I got no intention of dying because I was too afraid to get a little crazy in combat." Her voice was sharp and harsh. Anise could hear the insult that was buried between her words.

    "And what if you lose control and accidentally hurt Lord Lucy?"

    "As opposed to her dying at the hands of the enemy anyway? Look I''m not just gonna go crushing the damn things every time an ant challenges me to a pissing contest. But I can tell that you guys wouldn''t even use the things on your deathbeds. You all look uncomfortable just hearing the humming."

    "Of course we are! Any proud warrior would hate the idea of succumbing to madness." Anise snapped

    "And any reasonable woman would hate the idea of dying more," retorted Maria, "Besides why are you all assuming the frenzy is permanent?"

    "Why are you assuming it''s temporary?"

    "I''m not. I''m just willing to take the fifty-fifty."

    The silence that followed was long, only interrupted by the sound of the pouch plopping against Maria''s side. She picked it up and was immediately suspicious of its heft.

    "You guys act scared, but this bag ain''t light. Why get so many if you weren''t gonna use them?"

    Lucy placed a hand on her chest plate with a proud smile. "They were supposed to be an offering to Aunt Fia, but we can always pick more after we''ve secured the canyon from these squatters."

    "Young bucks are eager to make a name for themselves. You''re thinking mighty far ahead for someone who might not live the next couple of nights."

    Lucy pouted and pulled Anise in close to her with her arm slung around her shoulders. "Don''t be so negative. We''re warriors of Opal City. They can''t beat us!"

    Maria couldn''t stop herself from laughing. The mercenary fell over, slapping the cold ground in a fit of hysterical amusement. "Oh! Gods, haha! Warriors of Opal? That''s a good one! I''ve seen wolf packs in better shape than Opal forces." She laughed and laughed, bucking and teasing Lucy the entire time.

    Anise growled lowly. She hated the sound of Maria''s snorting laughter. "Are you really just going to disrespect us like that?"

    Maria finally managed to quell her laughter, wiping a tear from her eyes. "It ain''t disrespectful. It''s the truth. Veronica is the best warrior I''ve seen out of our town by a country mile."

    Anise crossed her arms and let a confident grin overtake her. "That just means you''re ignorant. You''ve clearly never seen a knight or a herald in action before."

    Maria went to open her mouth. But she eyed Veronica, who was just watching from the sidelines in her usual awkward manner. "Ugh, you''re lucky I have respect for Veronica. or else I''d pull out some real foul facts. But I''ll leave it at this. I''ve been all around this damned continent doing jobs that would probably make you both throw up. Opal City''s hard hitters are average at best, So don''t go thinking you can just take anyone on because you''ve been knighted. I''ve seen plenty of your kind in gutters."This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    The wind tried its best to break up the deafening silence that followed in the wake of her words. No one wanted to speak despite having plenty to say. They couldn''t afford to escalate things any further.

    The merc stood up, placing both of her blades into their sheaths and strapping the sac of crystals onto her belt. "My job is to keep your Lucy''s head on her shoulders. There''s nothing more frustrating than babysitting people who think they won''t get cut touching broken glass. But if you think you two think you''re that competent, then I want you to fight the next opponent we come across."

    Lucy was quick to place a hand on her sword as a declaration of readiness. "I can do that! I''m positive that a knight''s training is more than enough to beat any one of those robed weirdos."

    The grin that skittered across Maria''s face made Veronica shudder. "Good," cooed the mercenary. "Now let''s go see if we''ve really got any reinforcements coming. You can prove yourself to everyone once we meet up."

    The group was quick to move out. They traversed the canyon flat tops, finding the path of least the least resistance. Despite their bodies being enhanced with mana, they could only manage to jump so far. They had to find narrow passes to cross over and work to find the next patch of plateaus that were close enough in height. It was arduous, but it was better than traversing the endless maze that was the ravines and gorges.

    They had fallen into a rhythm, with Maria leading them in the path of least resistance. They eyed up the next level of plateaus they were trying to get to. She quickly measured that it was ever a couple of feet higher than the leaps they were used to making, so she adjusted her mana output to make the leap. Wind muted her senses as she ascended thirty- seven feet into the air and came to a gentle landing at the top. She turned around to make sure everyone made the jump, and they''d repeat the process all over again.

    "Ugh, finally, we made it!" Sighed Lucy as they finally came to their biggest landmark, the cobbled path that had led to what used to be the bridge that connected the canyon to the outside world. The bridge might have been crumpled, but if they stood at the top of the path they''d be able to see any incoming traffic.

    "Indeed we have. At least it''s not nearly as long of a pathway as the way into the canyon," explained Anise.

    Maria started to walk up its sloped path. "Yeah, that''s because it''s ten times as steep. The path coming out of Opal City was the world''s most gentle hill. The height snuck up on you eventually. This side of the path on the other hand-"

    Before she could make it even ten feet up the hill. Her senses flared off. Someone was conjuring up a dangerous amount of mana. She instantly determined it was coming from behind, she whipped around and drew one of her blades as she dashed to shove Veronica out of the way. Veronica seemed to be aware of the danger as well, but Maria was slightly faster than her. A crescent wave of energy was sleeping across the ground at high speeds. Maria barely managed to jump over the blast herself. The attack cut deep into the cobbled road. It wasn''t wide, whoever shot it was trying to cripple Veronica specifically. She gazed towards the edge of the platform as a woman pulled herself up from between the gorge split.

    She was a Crypt Keeper, with fiery red hair and sharp eyes. However, the most daunting thing about her was the large scythe she carried on her. She was clearly irritated that her attack didn''t hit its mark. "Damnit, it was hard to set that up. But I guess there was too much power in it for a stealth attack." Her eyes scanned over cautious faces, all ready for battle. "Looks like Hiri was right, you guys would try to leave the way you came. But I can''t let you do that."

    Lucy was the first to speak, walking in between the Keeper and the Mercenary. "We''d never run away. We just wanted to meet our reinforcements. If I were you I''d get your group and leave while it''s still possible. You raised your weapons against the Opazyr, you''ll be hunted like dogs for that."

    The Crypt Keeper let out an ugly snicker that evolved into a hearty laugh. "Wow! Reinforcements!? You''ve got a bunch of people coming to a place they''ve never been. This place is nothing but a maze of tight passages, still water, and uneven terrain. An army doesn''t scare me. You''d have to wipe this place off the map to have any chance at victory, but you won''t because you want the resources here. I heard it all from Linette."

    Anise moved to stand by her side. "You underestimate us. We''ll fight to our very last woman if our Lord deems it so. For she is the most noble, and backed by the most righteous of the Hoary Church!"

    In that moment the Crypt Keeper and Maria had become mirrors of each other. Letting out groans and rolling their eyes in disgust.

    The Keeper brandished her scythe, her eyes pale white eyes sharpened by smoldering anger. "Righteous? Noble? All those words leave the worst taste in my mouth. People who call themselves that usually end up being the worst imaginable."

    Maria crossed her arms and shook her head in sarcastic disappointment. "Damn, any other day and we might have been good friends."

    "Whose side are you on?!" Barked Anise.

    "Look, my job is to keep Lucy from dying. I wasn''t hired to parrot your beliefs or kiss ass to the system. I don''t like you noble types, just as you noble types don''t like us peasants," retorted the mercenary.

    Lucy drew her sword with a tight grip. She stared down the Crypt Keeper with a scorching gaze. "That''s not true. I love my people, as do all my family."

    An image of Lady Fia flashed into Maria''s mind. She remembered her disgusted eyes all too clearly. "God, you think so highly of your family. It''s almost cute enough to not be insulting."

    "Enough, save your treacherous thoughts until the enemy is dealt with!" Anise drew the halberd from her back. She stepped forward, eager to initiate the conflict, but a firm hand grasped her shoulder to hold her back.

    "Oi, hold on a minute," Maria commanded, "Let''s let the little lady handle this one. I want to see the might of an Opazyr Knight."

    "Are you insisting I leave her to battle alone?" Barked the herald.

    "What? You don''t think the knight can handle a single opponent? Wow! I didn''t know you thought that little of her." Maria exaggerated every syllable with all the subtlety of a schoolgirl. Her face was twisted into a conniving, snakey grin.

    "Why you..." Anise thought about cutting down the mercenary, but it was already too late. Lucy was giving her the side eye. She was silently begging to let her have this moment, to trust her skills as a knight.

    The Crypt Keeper recognized the drama and held off on attacking. "There''s no shame in admitting your allies are weak, better to coddle her than to let her die, am I right?" She didn''t have all the context clues, but a one-on-one battle was a more favorable situation, so she''d help instigate in any way possible.

    Anise knew she was being pressured. She looked to Veronica for assistance, but she had properly "soldiered up". In other words, she was keeping her eyes on the Keeper, and would most likely only answer to Lucy''s orders. She sucked her teeth and put herself at rest. She leaned on her polearm but did not holster it in her back. "Fine, I yield," she huffed. She turned her attention to the knight with a steadfast gaze. "Just win, alright?"

    Lucy flourished her blade, a glorious steel longsword with a lengthy oath inscribed upon its fuller. Excitement twisted her face into a gleeful expression. "Of course, I''ll win. I''ve been trained by the best. Or did you forget?" She turned her attention back to the Keeper. "And you, my name is Lucy of House Opazyr!"

    The keeper let out an amused chuckle as she widened her stance in preparation for combat. "So, we''re throwing out names now? In that case, I''m Nulara, no family name to speak of."

    She found herself transfixed on Lucy''s face; the genuine sparkle in her eye, the smirk that was practically inked onto her face, it all portrayed an almost childlike sense of joyful anticipation. "Gods, that porcelain face you have is unsettling. I think I''ll be doing the world a favor by ripping it apart."

 Ch 6: Steel and Scars

    Lucy tightened the grip on her longsword. The dusty gray plateau around her made for a proper arena. She wasn''t debuting on some glorious mountain peak, or a war-torn battlefield. No, her first fight would be in the middle of nowhere. This desolate maze of tight canyon passages and long-forgotten flat tops. It was an insignificant location, and if she died there it would make her an insignificant woman. That''s why she was confident she would win, because she was special, a knight of her beloved house Opazyr. It was a knight''s duty to bring glory to their family, even in death.

    She knew that her comrades standing behind her didn''t believe in her strength. They thought she was coddled, sheltered and weak. But she was trained by the best of the best, and she''d show the fruits of their labor with a decisive victory.

    The enemy standing before her, Crypt Keeper Nulara, was a little odd. She wielded a large scythe with a sleek black handle. Two cylindrical structures surrounded her hands as guards. Its tang was nothing short of a monstrosity. It was reminiscent of a human spine, with large, malformed vertebrae. The middlemost vertebrae extended into the blade of the scythe, as well as the beak on the opposing side. Lucy couldn''t quite comprehend why she was using such an ornate piece of farming equipment as a weapon. But she recalled back on something one of her fellow knights once told her. When the peasantry takes up arms they''ll do so with whatever they can get a hold of; pitchforks, clubs, kitchen cutlery and more were completely on the table. She had never trained to fight against such a weapon. But in her mind that meant that it was not a threat. It was merely a desperate tool used by a desperate woman, and Lucy would take advantage of that fact.

    Behind her, Maria and Veronica analyzed the situation, quietly trading thoughts out of earshot from the fighters.

    "Do you think she''ll win?" Asked Veronica.

    "Hard to say," Admitted Maria, "I''ve never seen anyone use a scythe in combat before. But that thing is decorated, and you know what that means."

    "I don''t. Explain it to me."

    "More often than not, A weapon that ornate is only used by someone deserving of that decoration."

    Lucy was the first to jump into action, dashing forward with both hands gripped on her blade. She was going for a direct assault. Nulara''s stance seemed sloppy, and overly relaxed. She wanted to crush the keeper swiftly, and absolutely.

    Nulara bared a vile smirk. She fashioned her hands at each end of her Scythe to maneuver it within a smaller reach. Lucy initiated the battle proper with a powerful thrust aimed at her body. Nulara sidestepped it, but before Lucy could recover she had hooked the blade into one of the many exaggerated vertebrae on the back of her scythe''s tang. With one elegant movement, she led her blade in a crescent arc until it hit the floor. This compromised the knight''s balance and immobilized her weapon.

    Nulara''s scythe, on the other hand, was in perfect striking distance, with the back side of the tang locking the longsword down the blade now pointed directly at Lucy. Lucy tried to get her blade unstuck but couldn''t figure out the minutiae of the lock, instead deciding to try and pull it out with brute strength. Sensing an opportunity, Nulara let go of her lock with a simple twist and swung her weapon up at Lucy''s face. The young knight was thrown back from the force of her struggle, allowing her to avoid the Scythe but landing on wobbly legs.

    Nulara pressured her and swiped at her feet to keep her from gaining a foothold. The pressure was simply too much, and Lucy chose to vault herself backward with A mana-fueled jump, narrowly avoiding another sweep to the legs and landing on the cobbled path behind Her. Maria and the others stepped off to the side, clearing the way for the battle to go uninterrupted.

    Lucy took a deep breath. She had underestimated Nulara''s weapon of choice. If she got her weapon trapped again it would most likely cost her life. She had to be cautious. She made her way down the cobbled steps, letting her sword hang low against her side. Her stride was casual, which made the next moments seem all the more instant. As she neared the bottom of the path, she tensed up and poured a large amount of mana into her sword. She brought it to an upward swing that unleashed a powerful wave of magic. It was quick and left her in a prime position of offense. She trailed behind her own attack as an aggressive rush-down method.

    Nulara slipped by the wave of mana with a calm head. Lucy ran in with a heavy downward slash that Nulara blocked with the long handle of her scythe. The Crypt Keeper stepped to the side and tilted her guard to allow Lucy''s blade to slide down its length, positioning her scythe''s edge at her flank. Lucy pulled back, recognizing another trap in the making. She moved her sword to protect herself. With one hand on her handle and another against the face of the blade, she stopped the horrid farm tool from reaping her like a piece of wheat. She shoved it away from her and went for another thrust, but Nulara parried her with the butt of her shaft before kicking her away.

    Nulara pressed forward with clear intent. She stomped the ground and overextended herself to close the distance, throwing out the butt of her scythe in what seemed to be a strike to her face, but when Lucy went to guard the blow Nulara pulled back and slashed with her scythe in one fluid motion. It was a feint in its purest form. The blow was aimed at her neck, but the knight managed to duck the lethal swipe at the last second. From her ducked position she widened the stance and thrusted up at Nulara''s sternum. The Crypt Keeper brought in the butt of her Scythe to bash away the strike before resetting her position.

    Lucy was getting frustrated, the curves and angles of the scythe made it hard to predict the angles of attack and defense. She was fighting something completely foreign to standard swordplay. "So this is what it''s like to truly fight another human being..." She lurched over, holding her blade tight enough for the grip to cry out in protest. "How fascinating! I''ve never been so irritated!"

    Maria was struck with amusement and disbelief. "Wow, look at that. She''s a little psychopath in disguise."

    "Just like you?" Veronica quipped.

    "What''s that supposed to mean?"

    "Yesterday, when we fought that blond woman, you were basically a monster."

    "Yeah well, fighting does that to you. There are two types of people in this world. People who fight because they have to, and people who fight because they like it."

    Their conversation was cut short by the reengagement of the battle. Lucy stood tall and proud as she pointed her sword towards the Keeper. "That weapon is really weird! It''s so Vulgur, eager to kill with the cheapest of tricks."

    Nulara rested her weapon on her shoulder. "There''s no such thing as a cheap trick, girly! Just strategies."

    She stepped backward and took a deep breath. Mana burst from the blade of her scythe and settled with a low hum. She grinned ear to ear and swayed back in forth with a careless cockiness. "But if that''s how you really feel, I''ll show you something cheaper than a sack of potatoes!"

    "Fine by me. But don''t think I''ll fall for it!" Lucy dashed into action, dust and rocks flying in her wake. She charged her sword with Mana and swung it horizontally. Energy flew from its tip and barreled towards Nulara.

    Nulara backstepped, using her own magically reinforced blade to cut through the attack as a defensive measure. Lucy swung again and again, forcing her to deflect one large sweeping attack after another.

    "I get what you''re aiming for, but I''m not that simple," she howled. Nulara knew that each wide arc of mana was a way to force her hand. It was too wide to move out of the way and keep her feet planted, so she would have to either close the distance, keep deflecting, or leap over the arcing mana blasts to avoid it. She was more than confident in her close-quarter combat ability but she suspected that Lucy was already scheming around her fighting style. Jumping over would be a death sentence as the next attack would be hard to avoid. Even if she could protect herself the first time she would essentially be forced to dance. Lucy thought she had Nulara trapped with this long-distance ploy, but Nulara knew better.

    She continued to backpedal deflecting blow after blow. Her smile never faded as she backed herself over one of the thin gorges that separated the plateaus. She allowed herself to fall into the rocky split as another crescent mana blast flew past the top of her head.

    Lucy eagerly pursued her, mistaking her fall as an accident from lack of awareness. She jumped down into the gorge, it was a rail-thin crack. It was merely 10 feet wide but snaked forward for what seemed like an eternity. She landed with grace, her eyes honed in her target.

    Nulara stood with one hand on her scythe. She looked almost surprised that Lucy had chosen to follow her. She laughed an ugly laugh, broken up by hysterical snorts and chuckles. "I can''t believe it. You dumb bitch!" She hooted.

    Lucy met her ugly laugh with a delicate giggle. "Why the mockery? Did you lose your mind? You can''t avoid my attacks in this place."

    While the two postured and jabbed at each other, Maria and the others looked over them from the top of the cliff. Anise was completely focused on the battle below. "Do you think Lucy will win?"Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    "No," Responded Maria with a cold and sharp tone. "Lucy intends to engage in ranged, magical combat. What she doesn''t know is that she''s played into one of Scythe girl''s strengths."

    Anise lasered her focus onto Maria. She was met with the Mercenary''s serious, deadpan gaze. "Explain!"

    "Have you ever tried to flourish that halberd of yours? It can go real fast. Scythe girl will have a far greater output of attacks compared to little Lucy."

    "But that shouldn''t matter! Quality over quantity! If she spreads her mana over that many attacks then Lucy''s should cut right through."

    "And they will, but Nulara already proved she can defend against Lucy''s attacks. So she plans to overwhelm her with a death of a thousand cuts. It''s a battle of attrition." Maria picked up a rock, bookending her explanation by dropping it over the edge.

    "Damnit All!" Anise tried to leap down to intervene, but Veronica caught her and held her back in a tight hold.

    Anise rabidly tried to break free. "Traitor!" She screamed.

    Veronica shook her head and hit Maria with an intense, questioning glare. She was asking if Maria intended to do her job.

    Maria nodded, "Calm down Blondy. I''m not gonna let her die. But a knight is hardened by steel and scars. Not spars and manuals."

    The rock that she had thrown hit the ground between the two combatants with a loud crack and shattered into dust. The noise broke the stand-off and sent Nulara into a flailing frenzy. She spun and twirled her scythe as fast as she could, whipping Mana out the blade''s tip with reckless abandon.

    Lucy was confident, she raised her sword and sent out a slash of mana of her own that cut through most of Nulara''s, but each collision weakened Lucy''s attack, and what arrived at Nulara''s doorstep was nothing but a shadow of what it should have been. It was nothing to bat away. Meanwhile, Nulara''s inconsistent flourish patterns allowed attack after attack to slip past the stronger attacks of the knights.

    Lucy realized she wasn''t going to get anywhere, so she tried increasing the output of her attacks. Angling them to cover each other''s weaknesses. But the same problem arose, by the time they reached Nulara it was nothing for her to bat them away.

    Nulara''s output was high in volume but low in power. The cost on her mana reserves was minimal at best. She surmised that she could keep going until the sun fell. But Lucy immediately felt the impact of trying to maintain consistent high power output. It was like they were both on a treadmill, but Lucy was being forced to sprint, while Nulara was lightly Jogging. She was doomed to fail.

    Lucy relented that she would not be able to win this battle of mana, but she wasn''t out of options. She put her blade in front of her and turned her upper body to the side as much as she could to reduce her profile. She redistributed her mana focus over her entire body, forming a thin shield. In normal circumstances, a shield like this would have been worthless against any concentrated attack. But Nulara''s energy was spread thin enough that it had trouble piercing the mystic armor. It offered just enough protection so that the steel that covered her body could protect her from the rest. The only real thing she had to focus on reinforcing was her head.

    With her body armored to the best of her ability, she charged forth, trucking through slash after slash as they pounded against her body. It was nothing to shrug off. She only needed to close the distance a little more and then she could unleash one powerful attack, one too strong to block, and too fast to dodge. Her victory was assured...

    SLASH!

    Hot blood poured from Lucy''s body. One long slash trailed from her shoulder to her hip. It was deep, just a few breaths shy of bones and organs. another came for her legs and cut them in the same crippling manner. She fell to her knees in agony. She was too stunned to speak.

    Nulara''s wicked grin stretched from ear to ear. "You seriously didn''t think I would raise my output given the first opportunity?" She raised her scythe to finish her off. "You were fucked the moment you followed me down here!"

    THUD!

    Nulara sprang away from the rubble created by whatever just thwacked into the ground. She felt across her stomach, a shallow cut ran through her robes and managed to draw blood.

    "You know, you guys should really invest in some armor. Then again you guys probably weren''t expecting confrontation here. Lucky us I guess." The smoke dispersed as Maria stood with Lucy tucked under her shoulder. Her red aura smoldered and popped. It was a threat that she was ready for action.

    Nulara gripped her scythe with white knuckles. Her first instinct was to get angry. But reality set in quickly. This was bound to happen. "So what? You and your friends are gonna jump me now?"

    Maria raised a confused eyebrow. "Girl, you think I need to gang up on someone like you? I''d turn you into pig feed in an instant."

    "Prove it bitch! I''ll cut you down just like I did your friend!"

    Maria raised her sword and pointed it at her. Her mana dripped from her curved swords like venom. Nulara prepared for another fight, her confidence a fraction of what it was before. She could tell that Maria was different. Nulara was looking at a monster in human form.

    Maria, without warning, leaped from her standing position. She propelled herself from one side of the gorge to the other, catching herself by digging her hand into the stone for the briefest moment. Her speed was baffling, by the time Nulara was able to comprehend the situation Maria was already at the top of the cliff.

    Maria set Lucy down in front of Anise. "There, I didn''t let her die. Just like I promised."

    Anise knelt over her and held her close. "But she''s injured! Damnit. Keep that farm girl away while I heal her!"

    Veronica approached Maria while looking over the ledge to keep an eye on Nulara. "Do you think it was worth it?"

    "Oh definitely. Everyone needs their first loss. She''ll have a nasty scar, but we all do," explained Maria. She watched as she dragged Lucy away from the ledge and began to pray over her body. She began to mumble a long-winded story of a goddess coming back from the brink of death. Anise used Clerical Incantations, the third school mana usage. By reciting the tales of the gods she worshipped and using her mana as a sacrificial offering. She could manifest aspects of their divine tales into reality. It was slow and costly, but the results were miracles that far exceeded any human ability.

    Nulara made it to the top of the cliff, ragged and out of breath. "Damnit, you made that look so easy." She rasped.

    Maria drew both of her swords and stepped forward to protect the group. She motioned for Veronica to take up a defensive position and guard Lucy''s recovery. "I know I did. Making shit look easy is par for the course when life''s been nothing but hard."

    She took a step to engage in the confrontation but stopped with eyes widened by surprise. "Shit..."

    Nulara looked behind her. Her eyes softened at the glorious sight of her comrades. Six Crypt Keepers stood ready for battle, among them was their leader, Hiri. She clutched her dreaded dagger as she elegantly crossed the gorge.

    "Finally found you," hissed the leader. Her eyes were full of hatred, only softening when they settled in her ally. "are you alright Nulara?"

    "I''m fine, I did well even. Got one of them down for the count all on my own." She pointed to Lucy lying on the ground as Anise desperately invoked her holy magic.

    "Well, let''s finish them off. We will take their bodies as proof of concord kept." All of the keepers crossed over the gorge, ready to pounce on the group.

    Maria backed up slightly, a nervous smile on her face. "Hey now, let''s not get too hasty. You wouldn''t all want to leap to your Death now, would you?"

    Hiri scoffed. "Are you insinuating that you could take on all seven of us?"

    "Yeah, one on seven, I''m feeling kinda confident in those odds."

    "Bullshit!" Exclaimed Nulara. She brandished her scythe with frustration. "You''re bluffing and you know it. Just lay down and die, will you?"

    "Oh, so you think I''m full of shit?" Maria revealed a white Crystal with a flick of her wrist. "''Cause I got one hell of an equalizer in my hands."

    The keepers halted their advance. Nervousness strangled their ranks.

    "You wouldn''t!" Snapped Hiri.

    "Why not? I saw the burst of power it gave you. It would give me one hell of a fighting chance." Maria grabbed the bag and tossed it over her shoulder. Veronica caught it and pulled out a crystal of her own without hesitation.

    "You can''t! You''ll go mad you might even end up tearing each other apart!" Claimed the blond Crypt keeper, Linette.

    "On the other hand, I could just let you kill me. I don''t know, it sounds like it''s worth the risk." She began to squeeze on the Crystal ever so slightly.

    "Don''t get cocky, w-we can use them too!" Nulara looked at Hiri in hopes that she would be carrying some crystals on her. She looked hesitant but pulled one from a hidden within her robe pockets.

    Unsatisfied with her response, Nulara reached into the hidden pocket and pulled one out for herself.

    "Nulara no!" Hiri tried to snatch it away from her, but the redhead jumped away, separating from her group entirely. She stood alone, ready to crush the crystal at any moment. Hiri had completely lost focus on the enemy. "Nulara you can''t. We don''t-"

    "-You don''t know if you could subdue her frenzy?" Interrupted Maria. "If I had to take a guess, you''re the only one who can use these things and keep a lick of your senses intact, am I right?"

    Hiri''s silence was more than enough confirmation.

    "Well, that''s the best news I''ve heard all day. Seems like there''s no way any of us are walking out of this unscathed. So why don''t we get this show on the road." She held the Crystal out, ready to crush it.

    Hiri had no choice but to respond in kind, trying to hold hers out as a deterrent. She would crush it only if Maria crushed hers. The air was still. Sounds of hard swallows and tightening grips whispered everyone''s thoughts. They were seconds away from a disastrous Frenzy of destruction.

    Right as Maria was about to sign away her fate to chance, a Keeper gasped with eyes locked on the peak of the cobbled path. The mercenary turned around, expecting to see reinforcements, but was met with a volley of mana streaking towards them at high speeds. She ducked for cover, tackling Veronica in the process. The missiles flew over them and struck the ground with violent explosions.

    "Everyone alright?" She groaned.

    "Yeah, I''m fine." Anise coughed and waved the ash and dust out of her face, "Lucy''s healing is done too, but she''s not going to be conscious for a while."

    Veronica looked up, straining her sight to see the figures perched on top of the hill. It was the same mage they let slip past yesterday, with a large group of people. "The Purlikins!?"

    Maria got to her knees and put her head on a swivel. The Keepers looked like they managed to avoid the attack as well. "The damn wizards? What happened to the reinforcements?" She was able to get a good look at the mage at the head of the pack. It was Ingrid, the same woman she had let walk the other day. Their eyes met, and Maria could feel the disdain and ill intent. "This ain''t good..."

    Ingrid stepped aside as one of the Purlikin''s raised a large magical circle, into the sky. Red blades of Mana appeared one after the other, hanging over their heads like Swords of Damocles.

    Anise held Lucy in her arms huddled close to others. "Time to scatter!"

    "On it," Maria and the others began to retreat off in the first direction they could think of. Maria charged her scimitars with Mana and slashed at the ground, cutting it deep and unleashing a wave of suffering souls. They spewed out at an angle that covered them like a tarp against the hail of swords while they slipped into one of the many canyon cracks.

    A mage amongst the Crypt keepers protected the entire lot with a shield. "We should retreat too!"

    Hiri snarled and began to backpedal with the rest of her soldiers. Her eyes locked onto Ingrid with a passionate disgust. "I knew I''d regret letting you slip away!" She cursed the situation with all her heart.

    Purlikin Naesha prepared to cast another spell. "Should we get them?"

    Ingrid responded with a firm "Absolutely not. We don''t know the real abilities of the blue robes. We need to focus on purifying the crystals first."

    As the Crypt Keepers retreated, Linett moved in closer to Hiri. "What now?"

    "I don''t know!" She hissed. The venom in her voice made Linett recoil. "This place just turned into a warzone. I''m going to have to see Azylith about this."

 Ch 7: Committed

    After a swift retreat from a nigh unwinnable battle, the Opazyr found themselves sneaking through the west side of Ashen Canyon. The only thing that filled the air was a slight breeze whistling against the rocks and the occasional slosh of feet through shallow water. The silence was eerie after all that excitement. They were alone now, but for how long?

    "Should we return to camp?" Veronica asked, her eyes practically glued to the flat tops above.

    "Maybe," said Maria. "But things are way too heated right now. If we''re going back, we''re going back under the cover of darkness. We gotta wait until the little lady wakes up before we can do anything."

    They continued to travel, keeping to the rightmost path that was available. Maria surmised that the pathway leading into the canyon was northbound. They had taken a hard right when they retreated from the battle, and by keeping themselves right bound they were assured that they were heading east. The river ran perpendicular to the path and the water carried them off to the left, meaning their camp was westbound. She was slowly starting to grasp the means to traverse the land. She just needed more landmarks to work with.

    "Hey! Look over there," Anise called everyone''s attention to a cave opening in the wall. Maria and Veronica looked at the cave, then at the unconscious Lucy in Anise''s arms, and decided it would be best to at least give it a chance.

    They came to the entrance with weapons drawn. It was a deep cave that spiraled down into an endless abyss. Maria sheathed one blade and held out her hand. Mana burst from her palm like fire and she held it out stretched like a torch. She used the constant output of magic as a light source to guide the way.

    It was a long walk, twists and turns quickly ate away at the entrance light leaving only the harsh crimson glow of Maria''s mana to fill the eyes.

    "Do you think we can still complete our mission?" Asked Veronica.

    Maria gave an uncertain huff. "Don''t know. But I''m not too fond of failing my first job on Opazyr payroll. Lady Fia already doesn''t like me."

    Anise craned her neck back in confusion. "What did you do to get on her bad side?"

    "I don''t know, be poor? She looked at me like I was a piece of shit on the road."

    "Well, I can see why." She murmured smugly.

    Veronica stepped aside as a violent crack rang throughout the cave walls. Anise leaned against the wall, still holding onto Lucy with both hands. Her teeth were grit tight and she fought back tears as her head spun. Maria smacked her with the pommel of her scimitar.

    "Did anyone ever tell you you''re a real jackass!?" Maria barked.

    "Did anyone ever tell you that you''re an ogre-ish brute?" Whined Anise.

    "Plenty of times." A satisfied smirk skittered across Maria''s face. She waved her glowing hand closer to herself to illuminate her "ogre" like visage.

    After waiting a brief moment for Anise to recover the trio set off for deeper depths. Veronica shimmied over to Maria and whispered in her ear. "I don''t think you look like a brute..."

    She thanked the soldier quietly. That was the last word shared between any of the trio for a long while.

    After an indiscernible amount of time passed the group had finally made it to an opening. It was an endless expanse of abyss, with intricately engraved pillars holding up a ceiling that was far out of eyesight. Junk and debris lay strewn about the entrance. Maria was positive that the moment they wandered too deeply into the cavern they''d be completely lost. "Shit... I don''t think this is gonna work out," she admitted.

    The dark carvings engraved onto the pillars caught the herald''s eye. She tapped Veronica on the shoulder and presented the unconscious Lucy. "Hold her for a minute. I need to check on something."

    Veronica did as she was told while Anise approached the closest pillar.

    "Bring the light closer, Ogre," Anise commanded.

    Maria rolled her eyes and moved to give her the proper lighting. She could tell she was going to be hearing that a lot from now on. She was never going to win with that woman, and she just had to accept that. "Do you recognize the carvings?"

    "I think I do..." She mumbled, half-lost in thought. She whispered the inscriptions to herself slowly. The words were incomprehensible to the others. She was speaking in another tongue entirely. "...This doesn''t make any sense. This script is the same one found in Ancient texts about our goddess, Eyra. But this text was written by men. It''s about their god Amal."

    Veronica tilted her head. "So did this place belong to men? I thought they lived on a different continent?"

    "They do. Men haven''t lived on our continent for at least a millennium. But this place can''t possibly be that old."

    Maria stepped closer to get a better look despite not being able to read a single letter. "Does it have any useful information?"

    "Give me a bit more time." Anise circled the pillar while Maria followed close behind. "It''s like some sort of written record. They recorded names of their citizens and what they achieved and found most interesting." She crouched low to the ground, noticing a small square slit. "What''s this?" She tried to fiddle with it and was able to slide the stone compartment open with some slight effort. Inside was a hole that ran deep into the support structure. Three prongs protruded out as if to hold something in place. "A holding compartment?"

    "But for what?" Asked Maria.

    "It''s impossible to tell. This place is so old. It could be anything!"

    Maria held her torch hand closer to the compartment to get a better glimpse at it. Without warning, the compartment began to siphon her mana from her hand. Drinking in the energy with a greedy drone. Maria yanked her hand back! "What the hell?!"

    They watched as her crimson mana flowed through the pillar and into the ceiling in a flash of crimson brilliance before spreading thin over the cave and disappearing.

    "So, it uses mana as an energy source," Anise determined. "Who has the bag of crystals?"

    Veronica shuffled over, presenting her flank with the small brown sack loosely attached. "I''ve got it."

    Anise grabbed the sack and took hold of a crystal. She shuddered, unable to keep herself from making a disgusted face. "I hate holding these things."

    She placed it into the compartment and closed the slot. The violent drone kicked up again as the crystal rattled around in the siphoning tube. It wasn''t long before the delicate rock shattered and released its energy to the contraption. Pure white power filled the engravings and spread throughout the entire cave, its brilliance never fading.

    The light from the engravings was blinding against the three pairs of eyes that had just started adjusting to the dark. Maria squinted hard, trying to get a grip on her senses quickly in case something went wrong.

    As her eyes fully adjusted she slowly became more enlightened to her surroundings, and it was nothing short of awe-inspiring. The cavern was home to a massive encampment. Before them a gravel road wound throughout the structure. It weaved through small buildings, tents, and workshops. All were in just enough disarray to be considered ruins. But for how old it must have been she had to admit that everything was in good enough condition. The buildings, while starting to crumble, were still recognizable to her. The architecture was straightforward and unwelcoming. Each building looked the same with the only thing separating them apart was a strange assortment of random items that sat in the yards in front of the houses. (If you could even call the stone flatbed in front of every house a yard.)

    Lucy grumbled and squirmed. The brilliant flash of lights assaulted her unconscious senses. She opened her eyes and attempted to roll out of a non-existent bed, but ended up rolling out of Veronica''s arms and flat into her face. She rose from the ground in an instant, holding her nose in pain. "Huh? What? I''m alive?" Her head was on a swivel, trying to reap as much information as possible.

    A hand rested on her shoulder. "You''re not dead yet, Lady Lucy." Veronica knelt beside her, helping her to her feet. "We''re... Well, I don''t know where we are exactly. But we''re safe."

    "I see." She leaned on Veronica for support. "I can''t believe I lost."

    "Believe it," barked Maria. "It''s gonna happen a lot more. Just be glad you''re still kicking."

    Anise was so engrossed in her surroundings that she let Lucy''s awakening go uncommented. "I-I''ve never seen anything like this before..." She stumbled around, confused by everything she saw. A part of her wanted to conduct a thorough investigation, but another part of her was too unnerved to approach anything.

    "I have," Maria asserted. She walked confidently up to the main road, with Veronica following close behind her. "There''s no doubt in my mind. This place was home to Agamics."

    "But men haven''t lived here in a millennium," Veronica droned. Maria couldn''t tell if she was trying to rebuttal her claim or if she was merely struggling to keep up with the situation.

    "We thought men didn''t live on this continent, but this place is fresh. It can''t be any more than a century old, maybe two at best." Maria explained. The three followed her as she approached a stone building. "You see this? How unforgiving and bare-bones this place is? That''s the key sign of male architecture. They''re very narrow-minded, anything that doesn''t fit their interest is usually treated with the bare minimum."

    Anise opened the door to one of the several stone homes. She "I see what you mean. This whole place feels very... Drab. I''ve seen military camps more style than this."

    "But it''s functional..." noted Veronica. She scanned over the ruins, hunting around for signs of a well or some other form of irrigation. She spotted a circular ring of cobbled stone protruding out of the ground. She leaned over it, her ears quickly picking up on the sound of running water. "...Very functional. They even had running water."

    "Ya don''t say. Maybe we should settle here then. It''s an actual shelter unlike what we have going on." Maria chirped. She sat herself against a stone house, making herself at home.

    Anise stood over her, trying to give off an air of authority. "Don''t you think those blue robes know about this place already? If we stay here we''ll be flushed out eventually."

    "That''s bound to happen wherever we go. This is their turf, so they''re bound to find us so long as we''re here. Not to mention one of them was in control of Descended hounds, so they could easily track us when we''re out in the open."

    Lucy slowly pulled up next to the mercenary and sat down. She cupped her hands under her chin. She was deep in thought. "You mentioned that the other day, but that scythe wielder didn''t have any Descended with her."

    "Nor did any of them when they came to pin us down," added Anise. "It could have been that they don''t have that many on hand. But the real mystery is how they''re controlling these things in the first place."If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Maria sat upright, trying to put her full attention on that pressing question. Descended were monsters creatures that were born from despair and Mortal influence was a big factor in creating said trauma: ecological destruction, overhunting, improper domestication. All these things often lead to these monsters being born. As such they were incredibly violent towards humans. She found it hard to believe that anyone could control them. "Something is going on in these canyons that''s much bigger than us. The Robed freaks, the Descended, the souls trapped within the very stone, and this male camp. There''s way too much going on here to not be connected."

    Lucy listened to her thoughts and grew anxious with every unknown she had listed. Her defeat had been a serious reality check, and her self-confidence was shaken. "Goddess above. What are we supposed to do? Those robed women, the Crypt Keepers, or whatever they called themselves, they''re strong. I was never in control of that battle earlier. I was pathetic."

    A swift elbow met Lucy''s side. She nearly crumpled under the shocking force. She gasped, holding her side in agony and staring at Maria for an answer.

    "Cut the shit," she hissed, "don''t go feeling sorry for yourself because you lost once. That''s not how knights should act. The only thing that should be on your mind is how you are going to get your revenge. And I''ll tell you right now, the only correct answer is ''in blood''."

    "In blood..." Her words resonated deeply in Lucy''s soul. She had been made a fool of by some woman using an oversized farming tool. Her Opazyr DNA was howling at a chance for redemption. She could see the disappointed looks of her fellow knights as clear as day. She couldn''t leave until she got her revenge. "You''re right. I can''t let myself be defined by such a loss! Next time I will win!"

    Maria shot her a wolfish grin. "Damn right, you will. But first, you should thank the herald. Without her, you''d be due for a much longer recovery."

    Anise dismissed the praise, turning away from them both. "It was nothing. It''s not like I could let the lady just stay injured. What would Lady Fia think?"

    A warm smile decorated Lucy''s pale face. "Thank you, Anise. No matter the reason the simple fact remains that I owe you a great debt. I never let such a thing go unrequited."

    "I''m honored you feel that way. You can repay me by not losing again."

    "Now that that''s settled, let''s get back to the issues at hand." Maria snapped her fingers, bringing everyone''s attention to her. "We''ve still got a supply issue to worry about. We were banking on those reinforcements to save us, but this place is quickly becoming a warzone. Even if they are still coming getting into contact might be difficult. We can''t just sit at the entrance for them, and this place is such a maze that it would be hard-pressed to easily get into contact once they get in here."

    "We smoked the meat we had from yesterday. But it won''t last forever," commented Veronica.

    "Exactly. We''re strapped for rations. We can''t fight a damn thing on an empty stomach," said Maria.

    "Well, how about we look around here, maybe there''s something we can salvage from the ruins?" Asked Lucy.

    "You want to search for food in centuries-old ruins?" Maria gave the knight a look. It was a silent message that she thought Lucy was truly stupid.

    Lucy twiddled her fingers and chuckled nervously. It only just dawned on her how fruitless of an idea it really was. "Y-yeah... You never know, right? Maybe the men who lived here had a weird preserving technique. I heard that Agamics were pretty good with magecraft."

    Maria sighed and stood up. "Yeah, men are incredible with magecraft. It comes way more naturally to them than it does to us. I guess it wouldn''t hurt to look."

    It wasn''t long before the group was tearing through the cavern, rummaging through room after room looking for anything that could be considered edible. They quickly fell into their natural pairs. Veronica stuck close to Maria, while the more noble ladies did their own search. However, try as they might, no matter how hard they combed through the stone buildings and piles of useless tools and objects, they never found a single morsel of food.

    Veronica sighed in frustration, leaning on a cave wall. "No food, but this place is large. We could be searching all day."

    Maria wiped some sweat from her brow. "Yeah. The size of this place is crazy. We''ve only searched the main part, but this place is littered With small offshoots. We should clear them out just to be safe. But I feel like if anything was inside of them it would have come out by now."

    Both stood by each other, taking a break from the search and the general madness of the day. The stoic silence they shared was short-lived. Veronica just had one question that she was dying to have answered.

    "Maria, how do you know so much about Agamics?"

    "Oh, that? It''s simple. I''ve been to their continent before. When I was working in another land, I ended up falling in with an influential Agamic. He was an eccentric guy and eventually convinced me to help him out in his homeland for good pay. I got to work amongst them for a bit. It was different from anything in female society. It was so... Loose. Everyone was so independent, only working together when they shared a common goal or could bargain for some help."

    "So they didn''t care about each other?"

    "Yeah, I guess you could say that. They don''t really have a reason to. Women do what we do because we''re creatures bound by love. We need each other, we yearn for each other. Men aren''t like that. They have an asexual reproductive process, so things like lust and love are harder for them to comprehend."

    "So what do they have?"

    "It''s kind of hard to explain. I don''t really understand it even after working with them, but I would say men have comradery and familiarity, but no sense of friendship."

    "I don''t get it. How can they have comradery but not friendship? Those are the same thing."

    "Not quite. You''ve been a soldier all your life, so I can see how you''d think that. But take me and Lucy. We''re comrades, but we ain''t friends. Comradery is surface level. It''s built upon a common goal and little else. If you don''t hang out with someone outside of a job, that''s not a friend, that''s a comrade. That''s what men have. They work together, but they don''t live together. Each one is living for themselves, and not shit else."

    "That sounds... Awful."

    "I don''t know, they seem to make it work. They were incredibly kind and relaxed. I would have been tempted to stay if they weren''t so reclusive."

    "You don''t seem very social. Maybe you would have fit right in."

    "Very funny."

    They sat around for a while before the sound of stomping feet perked up their senses. Lucy''s heavy footsteps echoed throughout the ruins. She came to a sliding stop, her steel greaves grinding against the stone. "Hey! You guys! We found something!"

    She led them down one of the many branching paths, it twisted and slopped unnaturally, forcing them to climb, slide, drop, and jump to get across. The engravings became less decorative, giving way to walls of endless scripts. Even without being able to read them, Maria could discern the differences in handwriting. The closer she looked at the writing on the wall, the more she swore that she was hearing something, but she couldn''t place her finger on it. She was so distracted by the noises and scribbles that she barrelled into the knight the moment she came to a stop.

    "Hey! Are you ok?" Lucy grunted. She barely kept them both from toppling over.

    "Huh? Oh! My bad. I was... distracted, no, enthralled," Explained Maria. She stared down the walls with suspicious eyes. "There''s something off about this place."

    Anise knocked on a piece of metal, snapping everyone''s attention to her. She stood In front of a metal gate. Large metal rods barred the door in place. The door itself had one long passage of text scratched into its face. The words faded more and more with each word. Whoever wrote them was weak, possibly even dying.

    "I''ll keep it brief. We found this door, and I suspect there''s something sealed inside."

    "What makes you think that?" Questioned Maria.

    The herald slapped her hand against the cold metal, smiling from the chance to show off her expertise. "These passages on the walls and the door are a bunch of journals. I believe they are addressed to the person behind the door."

    She pointed to the passage scratched into the doorway and read it aloud. "Oh brother of mine, I am all that remains. I have laid the others to rest proper, but there''s no strength left in my veins. That fowl demon wench has marked the end of our clan. Her power grows stronger with every passing day, and our home is irreversibly corrupted by her hands. These last ten years have been leading to this very moment. A relentless effort to persist in you. So sleep well, and gather your strength, and when the time arrives you will be reborn as something greater. I cannot say whether you will be man or monster, but it matters not. So long as you kill the demon..."

    Anise crossed her arms and leaned on the door. "And that''s where it ends. There''s a little more, but it''s all illegible. Everything engraved into this place is one big memoir. It seems like everyone had stuff they wanted to say to whoever''s locked inside."

    "So these Agamics seek revenge, but against what?" Asked Veronica. "Assuming this demon turned the land into the Ashen Canyon, what happened to it? Was it a Descended?"

    Maria shook her head, "In the beginning, the author said it was a ''demon wench''. I think that it was one of ours who did it to them. A Conjugate must have wiped them out."

    "But warping the land? I''ve never heard of any woman in history with power like that!" Lucy refuted. "The only woman I''ve ever heard with that kind of power would have to be the goddess Eyra, but she''s never set foot on this planet. There''s no way an event like that could go under history''s nose."

    Anise nodded along. "It could have been a powerful miracle incantation, although I can''t even think of a chant that would be capable of doing this. Even the most powerful incantation under The goddess Eyra only invokes land fertility and healing. It could be a lesser god, but I doubt an incantation could summon that much power from them."

    Maria strutted up to the door, standing before the pale gray slab of steel. "Why don''t we open it up and ask the man inside?" She placed one hand on one of the many hefty bars keeping the door locked.

    She could feel the shock and disbelief being piled onto her. Anise gripped her wrist with a tight hold. "Are you crazy?! What if he''s hostile, we don''t know what kind of firepower that thing has at its disposal."

    Maria grit her teeth. Being grabbed by Anise struck a nerve deep within her. "Get your hands off me. Or do you want to lose the ability to pay proper respect during your prayers?"

    Anise reluctantly let go, moving her hand to grip the steel latch. "What''s running through that uneducated head of yours?"

    "Desperation. This situation has become a real pain. The Robed freaks have us outnumbered. The Purlikins are clearly moving against us, and something tells me those reinforcements aren''t coming. Whether they don''t care about us or got handled by the wizards doesn''t matter. The point is that we''re in trouble."

    "Then why don''t we just retreat? This mission is beyond us now. There''s no point in doing something that risky!"

    Maria threw her hands up and groaned. "Fine... But it''s not my call to leave. There''s only one person who can give a retreat order." She turned to face Lucy. Her charcoal eyes taunted the young knight. Did she want to give up? Was she going to run home and relinquish the job to a better knight?

    Lucy was hesitant, flashes of her loss struck her like a hammer. Then another moment forced its way into her mind. She was in the ornate throne room of Lady Fia. Standing beside her was her mother, who had been a long-standing knight of exceptional caliber. She was made to sit and listen as Fia and her mother talked about sending her to the Ashen Canyon. Fia kept questioning Lucy about her abilities over and over, but every time it was her mother who answered. It was her mother who had advocated she be sent on this supposedly simple mission. Sure they had lost a retrieval unit but this was still an easy job on paper.

    Yet here she was surrounded by babysitters. Every woman here had the primary duty of maintaining her well-being. She was supposed to be the best out of all of them. The strongest, most valiant person in the room. Yet when she looked into Maria''s eyes she felt weak. When she looked at Veronica''s strong form she felt undisciplined. And when she heard Anise speak she felt ignorant. She was pathetic, and she would feel even worse standing before Fia to report an utter failure.

    "I... I can''t leave. I promised Lady Fia that I would secure this canyon. My mother vouched for me as well. I can''t bring myself to tarnish her good word. So I will stay, and if it comes to it I will die covered in ash before I return home in defeat!" She placed her hand over her chest plate. A feeling of dread washed over her. Her fingers instinctively picked at the deep gash in her armor where she took the fatal blow.

    "Even when born amongst pearls, we shine. We speak better, think better, act better, and fight better. We are flawless and priceless, carved by the goddess with meticulous detail. From our hair that''s white as snow to our eyes that define the very concept of red, we set the example for what a woman should be. With our weapons, we will crush all who would threaten our love and our peace, for they are merely rocks to be ground into a gravel road on our path to greatness."

    Lucy gently grabbed Maria''s hand and placed it over her chest plate. "That is our creed. We cannot leave until all the unsightly boulders have been turned into the finest road. I want Lady Fia to be able to walk along that road and pick crystals like berries."

    Maria couldn''t hold back her smug, toothy grin. Her head rolled over to serve Anise a maliciously calculated side-eye. "There you have it. We ain''t going anywhere. Of course, if you want to run by yourself, go ahead. Although I can''t imagine that the Opazyr would be very happy that a member of the Hoary Church bailed on a joint operation. I wonder how badly that would strain relations?"

    The herald held her tongue, then her breath. She folded her hands tightly to lock them down. She desperately wanted violence, and Maria knew that. She also knew that she wouldn''t act on it.

    "Now that we''ve all made our deathbeds. I''d like to gamble a little bit." Maria threw open heavy metal bars with a deep grunt. They creaked and groaned as they settled into the upright position, locking themselves into place.

    The door, free from its bindings, began to whine and wheeze. Stale air rushed out of every crevice along with an overwhelming sense of magical power. It opened with a slow, deafening creak that was only worsened by the enclosed nature of the cave. It was dark inside, the bright lights that radiated off the cave ceiling made no effort to cross the door''s threshold. It was an unnatural, unyielding abyss.

    The uneven pattern of stumbling bare feet crept towards the entrance. The group watched with breath bated while the steps slowly grew closer.

    A hand grabbed the metal frame, violently gripping it with desperate fingers. Slowly a face emerged from the darkness that was foreign to all but Maria. The strong features, the broad jawline, and the sharp bulb protruding from the throat were a clear decoration of origin. This was an Agamic, a man, and by the look of ornate wooden staff that came lurching out of the dark as a support crutch, he was also a Wizard.

    Sharp, silvery eyes scanned over every one of the women that stood before him. His eyes locked onto Maria, who was the only one who looked at him with certainty.

    "I''ve been awoken early... With four Conjugates standing before me," his eyes bounced from wall to wall, cautiously analyzing his circumstances, "And not a brother in sight..." He chuckled, but his laughter was somewhat hollow. "So, who''s going to take up the mantle of explaining yourselves? I''m deathly curious, and depending on what you say your deaths could be very close."

 Ch 8: A New Alliance

    The humidity was making it hard to think. It wouldn''t have bothered Maria, if not for the fact that she wasn''t feeling water vapor. No, she was nearly drowning in mana. It poured out of the man before her like a tsunami. She had never felt anything like it. Her eyes quickly assessed her allies, each one was as dumbfounded as she was by the sudden turn of events. They now found themselves standing before a blood-lusted wizard with power that was quite frankly unbelievable. To make matters worse, it was an Agamic, or in layman''s terms, a man. She had to take the reins here. It was their only chance.

    "You want to know why we''re here?" She asked, stepping forward from her group. "Well, to keep it simple, there''s a lot of shit going on outside this cave. And we were trying to seek some refuge. That''s it."

    The Agamic gazed at the dark pit he called home, the metal seal of a door wide open. "Alright, so why did you release me?"

    "Desperation. Some of these writings speak very highly of you and we thought we could run the risk of asking for your help. But if we''ve committed some kind of sin by giving you some fresh air we can gladly seal up the door again and let you go back to whatever it is you were doing in there."

    The man inspected himself. His muscular body was riddled with carvings of magical circles. His hair was a gentle pink color, and it was as long as it was untamed, flowing down to his back in an incomprehensible mess. What caught his attention was just how pale his skin was. "No... Unfortunately, I don''t think I can stand another second in that room."

    "How long were you in there?" Asked Anise.

    "I haven''t the slightest idea. I didn''t know the date when I went in, so I couldn''t even put a number on it if I tried." He lazily sauntered over to the cave wall beside him. "It must have been an era, at least. These writings weren''t here when I was sealed, and yet time has already withered them away."

    He stood against the wall, trying to focus on the text, but he was distracted by something the others could not feel. "The beast''s presence is strong here. Yet this place still stands? How could that be?"

    Maria raised a curious brow and took a small step towards the man. "What beast?"

    "It''s the reason I was sealed away. A great terror looms over these lands. It destroyed my people and forced them into hiding. In my early days, the beast''s presence was a faint reminder, now its power is practically bursting through the walls," he explained.

    Maria was quick to put two and two together. "On the surface, crystal shards of mana grow from the walls. We were able to use them to power the magic pillars in this place. Those shards must be from this monster of yours."

    "Interesting. Judging by your words I''m going to assume you haven''t seen the thing with your own eyes."

    "Have you?" Asked Veronica.

    "No, that would have been a death sentence back then. But many stories were passed down to me. And I''m sure more was written on these walls." He squatted down and touched the stonework gently. Not wanting to sully it with his dingy hands. "If you haven''t run into the beast, then that means there''s something else up there?"

    Maria crossed her arms, letting out an irritated sigh. "Women dressed in all blue. They attacked us as soon as we entered."

    Linette''s words bounced off her mind, that this was somehow all related to the Opazyr. Was the "sin" connected to this man in front of her? She kept it in the back of her mind for now. "So, what happens now?"

    The Agamic made a hefty grunt and stood up. "Well, by the looks of things my brothers left this world long ago, and you four look much younger than the text on this wall. So I''ll make the assumption that you''re innocent in that situation." He paced about, racking his brain with an aloof slowness. "I can tell that you are not without strength, so how about we make a deal?"

    Lucy, feeling compelled to embody the noble leader she was supposed to be, wormed her way between Maria and the Agamic. "What kind of deal?"

    "Simple. I was born with the task of defeating the beast that ruined my brother''s home. If you were to aid me in killing it, then I would be glad to aid you in combat against your fellow Conjugates"

    Before Lucy could even say anything, Maria shoved her out of the way and reached for a handshake. "Deal!" She hooted joyfully, all the while shooting Lucy a nasty side-eye.

    Lucy was confused by the hostility, but Maria''s face portrayed something more complex than a simple desire to be the leader. It was a plea to stop and back down. The young knight threw her hands up and walked away, now curious as to why she was being kept out of the bargaining.

    Anise was getting ready to shout a million curses at Maria, but Veronica pushed her back with a strong hand, making a gesture to remain silent. Her eyes were dead serious, like that of a guard restraining a prisoner. The crushing grip on her shoulder told her that disobedience wasn''t in the cards.

    The man didn''t seem to care about the strange inner workings of their group and shook Maria''s hand with a firm grip. "Then we have a deal. You can call me Naviiur, by the way."

    "Good to have ya'', Naviurr," said Maria. "I''m Maria, and These are my associates, Lucy, Veronica, and Anise."

    Naviiur smiled gently. "How pleasant, Conjugate names are surprisingly nice on the ears."

    "Thanks. Agamic names ain''t too bad either. You guys always keep that mystic flair in everything you do. They can be a little hard on the tongue though."

    "Is that so? Maybe later we can do a little culture trade, but for now, I want to rummage through these texts before I do anything."

    Maria gave him a firm pat on the shoulder. "Sounds good, we''ll give you some time to yourself. We have to secure tonight''s dinner anyway." Without another word, she grabbed Lucy''s hand tightly and strutted off.

    She gave Veronica a nod to do the same. With no hesitation, she grabbed Anise by the arm and dragged her off. The herald was too stunned to speak, simply giving Veronica a shocked stare with her mouth agape. Veronica kept her eyes forward and her pace steadfast. It wasn''t until they were halfway up the winding path for the exit that they finally let go of the pair.

    Maria breathed a sigh of relief and slumped herself against the wall, giving Veronica a thumbs up. "Good job girl, that was too close."

    "What was all that about!" Shouted Anise.

    Veronica once again motioned her to be silent. "You would have gotten us killed."

    "How?!" Anise was furious, she was quick to get in Veronica''s face, but Lucy was quick to pull her away.

    "Calm down, I''m sure they had their reasons," Anise pleaded. She turned to Maria, wanting answers to come from the source.

    "Don''t give me that look," barked the mercenary in a low tone. "If I had let you talk any more you would have declared yourself as a member of house Opazyr. That''s the last thing we need right now."

    "What are you suggesting?" Lucy''s Expression hadn''t become any less confused.

    "Yesterday, the crazy wench we fought was spouting something about the sins of the Opazyr. It had something to do with the souls trapped in the ashes. Now we''ve got a lone Agamic who''s the last of his people, stowed away in some sort of last-ditch attempt at fighting. That is not a coincidence!"

    Veronica nodded, standing by her to make her position more clear. "The Opazyr might have had something to do with the monster..."

    "We also have no idea what was going on when he was in his heyday. The Opazyr haven''t been the best throughout History." Maria looked into Lucy''s ruby-red eyes, inspecting the features of her family line. "Although the features of the Opazyr are distinct. So there''s a possibility that your family isn''t connected, but I didn''t want to take the risk."

    Anise was still fuming but decided to stay her words at the sight of Lucy''s calm and understanding expression.

    Lucy crouched down in front of Maria and gave her a radiant smile. "I''ll admit it. You read me like a book. I would have made that deal on the honor of my house. You definitely made the right choice."

    Maria waved away the praise with a dismissive hand. "Don''t worry about it. Being a noble isn''t that different from being a part of a gang. You have to represent your house in everything you guys do. It''s a bit of a pain but it makes you guys predictable, if nothing else."If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    "Shouldn''t you be representing their house too? You are an Opazyr now, as ridiculous as that sounds." Anise raised a curious brow that seemed to be pulling the corner of her mouth into a smirk.

    Maria rolled her eyes. "Tch, I''m not going to throw my life away just to rep a noble family. I don''t even throw my own last name around like that."

    "What was your last name before joining my house?" Asked Lucy.

    "Do you mean what is my last name? Because that

    She stood up, looking to the exit with impatience. "Damn! I''m hungry. What are the chances that we can get back to camp and get the rest of that meat?"

    "It shouldn''t be too bad," claimed Anise. "If we keep westbound and stick to the floor we should be able to get back to camp and grab our belongings. But first, we need to go back into the cave. I left my spear down there."

    Maria began to walk towards the exit, driven by hunger and a desire for the sun''s natural warmth. "We''ll be outside then. Be quick about it. I don''t want any beast getting to our food first."

    The herald shuffled her way down the trail, now illuminated by the crystal''s power. It was much more sophisticated than she realized. The ground was flat, and the incline was never steep. Though the walls were covered in a thick layer of ash she could just barely make out the mana circuits that ran through them. Some buzzed with the crystal''s power, while others were dormant. She wondered if another crystal would cause the entire system to spring back to life.

    She marched over to the small building where she had left her halberd. There were so many things scattered about the makeshift lawn that she couldn''t make sense of. A strange circular object sat on the ground, full of holes that seemed to be meticulously carved into its surface. It unsettled her, the mass of holes triggered a fight or flight response she didn''t know she had, but before she could capitalize on it a voice snuck up on her from behind.

    "Curious?" Asked Naviiur. His sharp eyes read every muscle on her face. Anise jumped back, fumbling to get a proper grip on her weapon. "Oh, did I startle you?"

    Anise was quick to pull herself together, standing with her polearm straight and her body tense. "O-oh, no. It''s just... What is that thing?" She pointed down to the small device. She didn''t want to pick it up herself.

    Naviiur looked both amused and confused. He picked it up without a second thought, holding the foreign device in his hands. The confidence with which he handled it told Anise that he already knew what it was.

    "One of my brothers was infatuated with music. If I remember correctly, this was one of his last creations. I think he called it an Ocarina."

    "That thing is an instrument?" Anise looked mildly grossed out at the thought of using that tool to create sounds, its porous shape led her to imagine every ghastly noise she could think of.

    "I can tell you''re unconvinced, why don''t I just show you." Naviiur aligned the pointed tip of the structure to his mouth and blew gently into it. His pale fingers danced around the holes, plugging them strategically to manipulate the singing winds.

    The beautiful, fast-paced melody had Anise stunned. It reminded her of her childhood when she would handle beasts and farmland that always felt like it was so close to swallowing her hole, but it never failed to reciprocate the effort she poured into it. The seasons would fly by, and the harvest always felt like a climactic battle.

    The melody ended as soon as it had started, it was nothing more than a quick demonstration. She was saddened by the silence. She didn''t realize that she had missed that kind of rough life.

    "How was that?" Naviiur''s face was smug and cozy. He could tell that the melody had touched her in some way.

    "It was fine," said Anise with a slight hint of longing. "I... I should really just get what I came for and head out. The others are waiting for me."

    "When you return, I can play more. I wouldn''t mind hearing one of you sing either. Conjugate voices sound so different from ours."

    "I''ll be sure to take the lead then. Something tells me the other ladies would make for terrible bards."

    "Oh? And what makes you so different?"

    "I''m a Herald. I spend most of my life singing the praise of my goddess." There was a smug confidence in her voice. As much as she missed her rowdy childhood Anise could not deny that she was proud of the woman she was. She walked off towards the exit, not wanting to waste any more time as even her stomach was starting to call for the rations they had left behind. "You''ll see when we get back."

    ***

    Anise hustled her way back up the exit, coming out to the cold sunlit canyon. Now that she had been inside a true shelter the outside felt much more inhospitable. "Alright, I''m ready." She was visibly happier than when she left them. "Let''s hurry up and gather our things so we can get back."

    "Something has you excited." Veronica slid behind her with a look of animalistic curiosity.

    Anise scooched over to put some distance between them. She didn''t like how dead Veronica''s eyes were. It seemed like every emotion she expressed was a cheap imitation, only just trying the key points but always missing the more subtle details. "Well- uh... it''s none of your business soldier! Just keep your head on straight and look out for those robed hostiles!"

    Veronica gave a simple salute before slithering back to Maria''s side. The Red Wind Warrior gave the herald a suspicious look but didn''t bother to press it any further.

    Maria turned tail and started to move, with Lucy and Veronica sticking to her hide like glue. "Come on, let''s get going, I don''t think we''ll be able to find out own asses if we get caught out in the dark."

    Anise couldn''t understand what Lucy saw in Maria, but she decided that they had bickered enough today and that she wasn''t in the mood to catch another pommel to the head.

    The group moved through the canyons, keeping their moments light and their words hushed. It was slow going, as the uneven, sometimes water-filled paths made keeping a low profile an act of near futility.

    Little words were exchanged, which gave Lucy the break she needed to ponder their situation for themselves. "Hey... What do you think happened to the reinforcements?"

    "Probably not coming," Maria''s tone was dismissive like she was staying a blunt fact.

    Lucy was taken aback by how quickly the response came. "How can you just say that? The Opazyr wouldn''t just leave us out to die. Even if they weren''t coming for us then they would still want to finish the mission."

    "-And yet the purlikens were the ones knocking on the door to the tavern party. We walked the trail to get here. It''s a hike for sure but nothing that would take this long. Those soldiers we left behind on the bridge would have made it back to base the same day, and new would have been wearing down the cobblestone by sunrise." Maria looked back at Lucy with a stern look on her face. "Either they''re not coming, or something happened to them. The purlikens probably intercepted them and picked them off."

    Anise scoffed, "Are you insisting that a bunch of academics could defeat a well-trained army?"

    "Under the right conditions? Absolutely! The road to this circus is a long incline. You might not have noticed because you were drinking tea and licking ass in that carriage of yours, but that road was reaching well over 100 feet at its height. The only reason we survived our fall is because we were caught by the river."

    Veronica nodded her head along to Maria''s explanation. "So if they take out the road at the right spot-"

    "-bam!" Continued Maria, "That''s an entire army gone. And when you gather around a bunch of crafty mages who can have literally anything in their spell books it''s not hard to imagine that they got one over on the Opazyr."

    Lucy put a hand across her now scarred armor. She hadn''t realized just how bad that damage was until just now. The cut she suffered from Nulara ran right down the middle of her cuirass, severing the oath inscribed on her chestplate into two halves. "Even so, I believe that experienced Opazyr would not fall to such lowly tactics. Don''t you agree, Veronica?

    Veronica made an awkward squeak. She didn''t want to lie, but it was improper for a soldier of her rank to have such little faith in her superior officers. "Anything is possible Lady Lucy. Take that as you will."

    Lucy knew what she really meant, but decided to twist it in her favor since it was such a non-answer. She pressed her hand against the slash in her armor and concentrated a great deal of mana into her muscles and grip strength. "You''re right, anything is possible. So I choose to believe that they will come." She slowly scrunched the gaps in the steel closed with brute force. She was careful to preserve as much of the inscribed oath as possible, but she could only do so much.

    Veronica was quick to try and keep the subject from focusing on her lack of faith, as she could feel Anise staring holes into the back of her head. "What about the Hoary Church? Is there any chance we could see reinforcements from them?"

    "I doubt it," replied Anise. "It''s hard to tell if word would reach them right now, and if it did they''re unlikely to send another agent. They''ve already done their part by putting me on the job. Me being dead or alive doesn''t change the already improved relations."

    Maria waved one of her scimitars around in the air as an extension of her pointer finger. "Well, then we''d better make good with the only ally we''ve got. That Agamic might make it or break it for us."

    "Can we really trust an Agamic?" Veronica asked, her face twisted with doubt. "They''re not like us. We don''t even know what he''s thinking."

    "We don''t have to worry about that guy," Assured Maria. "Naviiur''s serious about that monster. You got a good look at his body, right? I''m no expert but those looked like magic circles to me."

    Lucy''s eyes lit up like spark plug. "You''re right! Some Knights have special magical circles inscribed on their armor that allow them to cast spells. But we only do that because we can''t cast naturally"

    Maria nodded along, "But mages also do the same thing with their staffs. It quickens up the casting time dramatically in comparison to flipping through one of their big old books."

    Veronica''s eyes widened. She didn''t see a space on Naviurr that wasn''t covered by some kind of magic incantation."All those circles... He''s ready for war."

    "Exactly!" Exclaimed Maria, "Girl, I honestly can''t wait to see him get in on the action!"

    Veronica gripped her spear tightly. "So long as those spells aren''t pointed at us..."

    ***

    Back in the Agamic settlement, Naviiur walked through the homes of his brothers. He did not get to experience much of their proper culture before he was sealed away. So much of his early days were spent focused on training that he didn''t get to know his clan as well as he liked. The writings they left for him on the wall were bittersweet, and he enjoyed everything that was written on them. But his natural, insatiable curiosity made him long for something a bit more particular. What kind of information did his clan keep to their chests? What did they not tell each other? If he could find something like that it would be truly fascinating.

    He rummaged through the inside of a particular shelter in the farthest corners of the settlement. It was so plain on the outside when compared to the other homes that it had to be hiding something, for an Agamic who did not display his interests was a troubled man indeed. This sheepishly plain house had something to hide, or at least that''s what his thought train led him to believe. Now he was grinning ear to ear in the dark, dank abode. His suspicions had been rewarded. In his hands was a book, a personal diary of sorts, and the first sentence it offered up was even more than he could have hoped for.

    "The others do not know what we did to deserve the wrath of that beast. But I do..."

    He couldn''t help but snicker at the find. "Oh, maybe those women waking me up wasn''t such a bad thing after all. What an amazing find."

 Ch 9: A Little Trick

    In a small ditch, half a mile from the crumbled remains of the Cobblestone road sat the honorable knight Avery Opazyr. For the past hour, she had been biding her time. She had been defeated by the Purlikins and forced to retreat. Now she had no choice but to wait in hopes that she could worm her way into the Ashen Canyon behind her enemies. She briefly thought about going back to Opal City to report the situation, but she quickly threw that thought away. The Opazyr had lost two platoons on this mission, and there was no way of telling what their next course of action would be.

    Fia could either order a full assault or abandon the canyon entirely. A full assault would take too much time to organize, time that Lucy might not have. If they abandoned the operation then they''d be abandoning Lucy as well, not that Lady Fia would even consider the possibility of Lucy still being alive.

    No, if Avery wanted any chance at saving her clansman she would have to do this on her own. She gripped her sword handle until it creaked for release. The raging winds above her head only seemed to amplify the impatience coursing through her. But she needed to wait, she needed to make sure she wouldn''t just run into the Purlikins again. "Hold on Lucy. I will find you, I promise!"

    ***

    After thirty minutes of hiking through and over the canyons winding peaks and narrow pathways, Maria''s crew finally made it back to their camp on the flat tops. Thankfully it seemed like it had been undisturbed, the valuable meat was still skewered, preserved by the slow smoking they had performed the night before. Lucy and Anise were quick to surround the rations, tearing off pieces of jerkied Descended to sate their hunger. The battle with Nulara and the healing process had taken a toll on both of their appetites.

    Maria went down to the bank to get her lips on some fresh water. After drinking her fill she sat back and pondered her circumstances. She had completely forgotten about their water situation. Could they even stay in the cave with that Agamic? They would have to scout for a new watering hole, and they didn''t have the luxury to simply cut a new path with their mana, That would be far too noisy.

    After a couple of minutes the mercenary climbed her way back up to the flat top, but to her surprise, only Anise was standing there. "Where the hell are the other two?" She huffed, looking quite disappointed with the lone sight of Anise.

    "Lucy took Veronica to gather more crystals. They can power the lights for the cave so I suggested that we gather a small stock of them just in case."

    "And the doting protector didn''t go with them? What gives"

    "Be quiet!" Anise stomped, "Lucy said it was best if I stayed back with the food. Unlike you, I actually respect her authority!"

    Maria threw her hands up. "Alright, alright, I get it. You don''t value your life as much as I value mine. I understand."

    "Ugh, you''re unbelievable! She''s still a trained night you know!"

    "A trained knight who immediately got cut off from her soldiers and lost a one-on-one duel to an angry commoner with farming equipment." Maria crossed her arms and looked over the flat tops. "Look, I''m not saying she can''t do anything. But she''s about as green as an Emerald. I''ll admit she can fight, but it seems like fighting is all they taught her. This operation isn''t just about fighting, honor, or any of that other knightly crap, we got two hostile parties that outnumber us who both want us dead. Now is the time to fight like dogs, not knights."

    Anise tapped her finger on her arm as she tried to think up a counter-argument. "Damnit... You''ve got a point. But it should be fine. I''m sure Veronica knows that and wouldn''t let her get into any trouble."

    Down at ground level, five minutes from the group''s camp, Lucy and Veronica quietly stuffed their pockets with crystals. The time it took for each crystal to go from wall to pockets was next to zero, as they still weren''t comfortable touching them for long, but Lucy was sure that one crystal could only power the cave for so long, and she didn''t want to constantly come out into the open just to pick them.

    They kept an open ear for any sounds, wanting to make sure they wouldn''t be ambushed. They already had a confrontation with a crypt keeper before in this area and suspected that they might have been prone to searching it more thoroughly now.

    Veronica signaled that she was stocked up to her reasonable limit, the small pouches she had on her were glowing from the contents within. "Should we head back now, Lady Lucy?"

    "Not yet, I want to look around some more. Those rations aren''t going to last us forever, and depending on how long we''re here we might need to find more food."

    "What did you have in mind?"

    "Well, we''ve already stooped to eating Descended, so I''d like to see if we can find proof of a den. There also might be some other things we can find, flowers, wild grasses, and if worse comes to pass, mushrooms. I''ve heard that commoners would eat all those things in times of food shortage." She sighed, clearly not liking what she was saying. "It''s times like this that a noble should look to the practices of the less fortunate."

    Veronica raised an eyebrow, "My Lady, do you not like mushrooms?"

    Lucy pouted and puffed her cheeks. She was trying to hold in her real thoughts, to be a mature Lady of her house. But she failed, explosively. "How could anyone like mushrooms!? They''re either slimy and gross or have the texture of rubber! They''re the absolute worst!" She crossed her arms and looked away before uttering what she felt was a Cardinal sin. "...but I''d rather eat them and live than whine and die."Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

    Veronica snickered, trying to keep her laughter as short and respectful as she could manage. "Well said. Lead the way, My Lady."

    They began to creep down the winding paths of the canyon maze. Lucy looked for anything edible. She combed over the small shrubs and bushes that grew out of the rocky terrain and looked to deeper pools of water for any sort of amphibians or reptiles, all while Veronica kept track of their routing.

    Veronica was so focused on keeping a mental map that she almost bumped into Lucy when she came to an unexpected stop. Lucy was quick to keep her quiet, directing her attention to an Elk-like creature nibbling on shrubbery. The knight turned to her subordinate with a look of excited glee, trying to silently choreograph her excitement at a good source of protein.

    Veronica was disturbed by its presence, however. Wild animals were skittish creatures, and usually not prone to letting anything get this close without some kind of warning.

    She moved Lucy aside while giving her a panicked glance.

    The elk paused from its grazing, turning to face the duo with an eerie silence. It radiated a strong magical aura but made no move to acknowledge the pair beyond staring at them with black, beady eyes. Its skin was gray and scaly, and its horns had an unnatural shape and edge like branching swords.  Veronica thought it was Descended, but its non-violent nature was making her second guess herself. She had never seen a descendant creature that was not irrationally violent.

    "What''s wrong with It?" Whispered Lucy.

    "I don''t know, but we should leave. Just the knowledge that more animals are present should be good enough for you, right?"

    Lucy craned her head up and down. The pair slowly began to back away, all the while the creature never took its eyes off them.

    The sound of sloshing feet suddenly came into earshot, causing the deer to snap its attention backward. Veronica and Lucy froze instinctually, not sure of what could be around the corner.

    The Purlikin Naesha came waltzing through another path, having no intention of stopping. She only froze when she got a glimpse of the Elk and by proxy the Opazyr duo. She readied her weapon, which alerted the other mages to hustle over to support her.

    They didn''t even need to ask questions, Lucy''s white hair and red eyes were a dead giveaway. Ingrid cautiously shoved her way to the front. "Opazyr! You should leave this Canyon at once. We''ve already taken out your reinforcements!"

    Lucy''s heart sank at the declaration. The absence of the extra troops was proof enough. The only reason they wouldn''t be here is if the Purlikins did indeed take them out. Meanwhile, Veronica held her spear firmly pointed at the opposition while inching back to convey her desire to retreat to her superior. She motioned to the Descended elk and tried to nudge the knight into stepping back herself, but Lucy shrugged her aside, much to the soldier''s horror.

    Lucy put a hand on her sword hilt, her lips twisting into an arrogant smile. "So what, you think just because you''ve defeated our reinforcements means you can defeat the advanced guard?" She huffed. She struggled to find a balance between yelling and not upsetting the strange elk that was sandwiched between them.

    Before Ingrid could respond, the hot-headed Naesha shoved her aside. "You think you''re better than a whole army! We''ll send you scampering away just like we did your clansmen. She also thought she was tough shit!"

    "Then take your best shot, you won''t last a moment!" Lucy made a crude taunting gesture with her hands while covering her mouth as if to hide her amusement.

    Naesha growled and conjured up a barrage of magical blades without any hesitation. The sudden flare-up of magic made the elk''s pupils transition from pure black to vibrant white. It let out a small huff through its nose as its blade-like antlers burst into an incomprehensible assault of blades. The Purlikins were barely able to dodge getting skewered as they looked on in horror.

    The elk let out a deafening high-pitched cry, distorted by noise and an overwhelming release of mana. It retracted its horns only to make them burst out again and again, causing the Purlikins to scamper for cover.

    Lucy grabbed Veronica and sprinted back the way they came, allowing Veronica to take the lead since she had been keeping track of their path.

    "How did you know the beast would turn on them?" Veronica asked, yelling over the sound of distant elk cries and splashing water.

    "It was very stalwart. The way it made eye contact with us reminded me of how two people size each other up for a duel. It was just waiting for someone to make the first move because animals usually only fight to defend themselves."

    "That''s why you said all that? To trick the wizards into making the first move?"

    "Exactly, the elk saw them as a threat, so now it''s their problem. We should probably look for weaker game anyway."

    "That was very resourceful of you, Lady Lucy."

    "Thank you, soldier. See, I''m not completely clueless."

    It wasn''t long before the two came up on the flat top near the river where their camp was located. Maria and Anise sat in silence, looking at everything but each other. A wave of relief washed over them as Lucy''s ruby pupils peeked over the ledge.

    "We''re back!" She exclaimed, "And we brought more crystals for the cave." She did a small twirl, showing off her various pouches that were now glowing white with mana crystals.

    "What took you so damn long?" Groaned Maria as she hoisted herself up from her squat.

    "We-"

    "-We ran into the Purlikins," interjected Veronica as she clambered up the ledge, throwing her spear over with a disgruntled look on her face.

    "But we handled the situation and made a clean getaway. So there''s no problem. We should get moving, though. They weren''t that far away."

    Maria couldn''t help but be impressed. "How''d you manage to give them the shake?"

    "The local creatures are surprisingly stalwart. There was a Descended elk that got caught in the middle of the confrontation. It didn''t like it when the Purlikins shot first, so it attacked them. Never mind the fact that I tricked them into attacking first."

    "Huh, well good job. Let''s bring this food back to the cave and we can figure out what our next move is."

    Lucy went to speak some more but hesitated. She wanted to spread the confirmation she received on the status of the reinforcements, but she really didn''t want to believe it. She decided to keep it to herself since the others had already assumed the worst.

    She suddenly felt the embrace of Anise, wrapping her arms around her in that uniquely motherly fashion she was known for. "See, I told you that Lady Lucy was more than capable of striking it out on her own."

    Maria waved her away dismissively, "Yeah, yeah, I get it. My job isn''t to leave her alone. Her neck is my neck, remember? But I''ll admit, I probably underestimated you a little too much, Lucy."

    Lucy averted her eyes in embarrassment, "No, no, it''s fine. I haven''t given you much to believe in up until now. Let''s just hurry back. We don''t want to keep that Agamic waiting."

    The quartet made their way back. They were slowly getting used to the canyon and its quirks. However, there was still one spot of mystery, and that''s what Naviiur would really bring to the table once the action really got started.

 Ch 10: Pest Control

    The Crypt Keepers hustled through the canyon. They had lived there for well over a year, yet as they rushed across the flat tops, leaping over deep ravines and spindly passages, the environment suddenly felt incomprehensible. They decided to make a break for their main base, inconveniently located at the farthest end of the canyon from the entrance. If they ran, it would take about an hour to reach.

    Hiri''s mind was overwhelmed with thoughts. The mysterious woman she let escape returned with a group of wizards. She felt like a fool for thinking the girl would stay away. Based on how long it took the mysterious mage to double back Hiri concluded that they must have come from Opal City. But if that was the case, she couldn''t figure out why they fired on the Opazyr forces. Regardless of their alliance, it was clear they were here to harness the power of the crystals, and while that didn''t make them natural enemies, she was not inclined to let them claim all that power.

    Hiri''s thoughts were so loud that she didn¡¯t hear Linette calling her name¡ªnot until she was practically screaming it in her ear.

    "HIRI!"

    The leader jolted out of her trance and turned to her subordinate. "What?!" she squeaked reflexively.

    "What are we going to do about this? Who were those wizards?"

    "I don''t know who they are, but they''re here for the crystal deposits. What I really want to know is: where are the extra Descended? We''re outnumbered! We need something!"

    A tired sigh escaped Linette. "This is becoming more than we can handle. Maybe we should pull out."

    "We can''t," said Hiri, "not so long as the canyon is the way it is. The souls that are trapped in this place are bound to become Descended if we don''t resolve the issues."

    Another crypt keeper spoke up. "How long are we going to play nice with that... Thing?" Her voice was breaking from irritation.

    "As long as it takes, Draiza. Do you really think we can fight Azylith and live to talk about it?" Hiri looked back at the uppity woman, the edges of her lips curled into a mocking grin. "If I remember correctly. The first time we met Azylith you fell to your knees and cried like a baby."

    "I did not!" She lashed out. "I was merely overwhelmed by the malice. No tears were shed!"

    Another crypt keeper leaned in. "No, you definitely cried Draiza. There''s no point in trying to rewrite history."

    "Shut up!" she growled. "The point is, we are here to prevent descended from happening. Now we''re working with them directly! What if the higher-ups back home found out?"

    "They won''t," Hiri stated bluntly. "Besides, we''re doing our job. Normally, the massive number of souls stuck here would have already coalesced into something nasty¡ªbut they haven¡¯t yet. Azylith also commands some kind of control over the Descended. That is not a coincidence. If we eliminate Azylith carelessly, we could end up with a much bigger problem on our hands."

    ""And we can''t release the souls easily either," Linette added. "The canyon is too big, and they''re trapped under multiple layers of rock. Plus, Azylith''s power is interfering with our purifying techniques."

    She puffed out her cheeks and pouted. "The only thing we can do is uphold our end of the deal we made."

    Another Crypt Keeper sucked her teeth. "It''s still a crock of shit if you ask me. By fighting the Opazyr, aren''t we turning our backs on our own kind?"

    Linette shook her head. "Look, Sharla, I''ll be honest¡ªthe Opazyr have it coming. They''ve never been great, and Azylith''s hatred of them feels justified to me. So our deal kills two birds with one stone. We help Azylith gather her power and get her revenge, and then she goes away peacefully."

    "And if she doesn''t? If she''s just using us?" Sharla asked.

    "That''s a risk we have to take," Hiri responded. "HQ already said they can''t spare any more manpower. If they didn¡¯t want compromises, they should''ve sent more people.

    "For now, we retreat. We need to figure out who we''re going to take on first."

    ***

    After a long trek across the canyon, Maria¡¯s group finally reached their new hideout. As they made their way down the cave path, they noticed it was dimmer than when they had left.

    ¡°See? I knew stocking up on crystals would be a great idea!¡± Lucy chirped proudly.

    ¡°It was very wise indeed, Lady Lucy. Now we won¡¯t have to constantly go out and expose ourselves,¡± Anise said, giving her a pat on the back and a warm smile.

    Maria rolled her eyes. Sometimes, it felt like she had been sent on a mission with a toddler. But she couldn¡¯t lie to herself¡ªa part of her found Lucy¡¯s bright nature charming, especially now that she had shown some real resolve.

    When they reached the main sanctum, Maria quickly popped in another crystal to reinvigorate the lights. The cave began to hum with renewed vigor, a sound that put her at ease. To her, it had the same soothing effect as a crackling fire.

    "Alright, for now, that almost solves all of our problems. We have food, we have real shelter, all that''s left is¡ª"

    "¡ªwater?" Veronica cut in on her thoughts. "I can scout for a close path."

    Maria nodded. "You and I can go together later. For now, we might as well rest."

    Veronica shot her an almost imperceptible smile and returned the nod.

    The masculine voice of Naviiur cut through the air like a hot knife. He approached the quartet with a confident stride, barely concealing his amusement. "So, you''ve returned. Did anything interesting happen?"

    "There was a small encounter with one of the enemy forces, but nothing of much note," Lucy explained. She put a finger to her chin, raking her mind for anything noteworthy. "Actually, we ran into an elk while collecting crystals. It was oddly stalwart and clearly mutated. But it wasn¡¯t hostile¡­ Well, not until the enemy provoked it."

    Naviiur raised an eyebrow. "Interesting. What did it look like?"

    Lucy described its appearance¡ªits gray, scaly body and sword-like antlers. She explained how intimidating it was and how it simply watched until provoked into attacking.

    Naviiur and Maria both took a contemplative stance, exchanging a glance as if sharing the same thought.

    "Something ain''t right," Maria said. "Elk, and any creatures like them, are skittish by nature. They have to be to survive. They¡¯d never let a human get that close, let alone allow themselves to be trapped between two separate groups of people."

    Naviiur picked up where she left off. "And if it was Descended, there''s no way it would have waited that long to attack. Irrationality and hate are all a Descended knows¡ªit would never act so defensively."

    "So what do you think is wrong with it?" Lucy asked.

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Naviiur shrugged. "Hard to say. Maybe the crystals are influencing them somehow."

    Maria waved away the theory. "But those crystals are full of hatred. I can''t imagine any amount of exposure would mellow them out."

    ""Not quite," the Agamic countered. "I was sealed away with the intent to draw on the mana of the land. From everything I knew before I was sealed¡ªand from everything you four have told me¡ªthis place has been undeniably corrupted by that demon creating the crystals.

    Which means I have that very same hatred coursing through my veins, and yet¡ª"

    He did a small twirl, motioning up and down for them to inspect his form.

    "I''m both completely sane and without mutation."

    "So you think low exposure over a long time could have different effects?" Asked Anise.

    "Precisely. But you never know with these things. So I think our first move should be to get the local fauna. If there''s nothing going on with them we can move on. But if something''s amiss, and it''s directly connected to the demon, then we''ll have a whole new problem we''ll need to take care of first."

    Maria gave a heavy sigh, she found a well-placed piece of furniture and plopped down. "Damn... We''re going to end up fighting the whole ecosystem at this rate."

    They continued discussing their plans. At dawn, they would set out to survey the area, searching for unusual animal behavior and identifying a space they could claim as their territory. They would seal off the paths leading to the cave entrance to deter potential wanderers, and only then would they decide how to handle the Purlikins and the Crypt Keepers.

    As the sun began to set, Maria felt her thirst creeping in. She slapped her thighs and hoisted herself up with a grunt, pushing her black curls out of her face.

    "Alright, let''s go, Veronica. We need some water."

    Veronica quickly slid into place beside her. "What are we going to use to haul the water?"

    They both scanned the area, only for Naviiur to appear out of nowhere, holding a decently large bucket. It was pale gray with a strange texture, and a black, fibrous rope served as its handle.

    "Here. You can use this," he offered.

    "Thanks." Maria took the bucket and ran her hand along its bottom. It was rough and craggy, heavier than it looked.

    "What is this thing made of?" she asked.

    "It''s a special bucket crafted by my predecessors. If you fill it with water, the stone will absorb all the contaminants."

    "That''s pretty cool!" Maria muttered, shifting her eyes around suspiciously before leaning in to whisper something to the Agamic .

    Naviiur chuckled and patted her on the shoulder. "If we make it out of this Alive, I''m sure you and I can work something out."

    Maria gave an affirming grunt before strutting out. Veronica awkwardly shuffled after her, grabbing her spear along the way.

    The soldier eyed the mercenary sharply, trying to decipher the reason behind her devious grin.

    "What did you ask him?"

    "It was just business," Maria replied, "If we live through this bullshit, I might have a path to a good source of income."

    "But you already have a stable source of income set up after this."

    "What the hell are you talking about?"

    Veronica quickly dug into Maria''s pocket with sly hands and pulled out the Opazyr family crest. "You''re a part of the Opazyr now."

    Maria sank low, her face shadowed by disappointment.

    "Oh¡­ right. I forgot," she muttered. "But still, I''d rather have my own flow of coin.

    Fia accepted me into the family because she wanted a capable hound. See, I¡¯ve been in the mercenary business for a while, and I¡¯ve hardly ever taken a job from a noble¡ªlet alone one in a position as high as Fia¡¯s."

    "Why? That''s where all the money is."

    Maria placed her hands and her hips and strengthened her posture to be more proud. "Because I don''t like the way they do things. There''s always some ulterior motive. The money might as well be forged in blood, and the cost of working with me is always more than you could imagine."

    "Then why''d you join us?"

    "Because I was forced! Isn''t that obvious?"

    Veronica shifted her eyes from side to side. She was trying desperately to connect the dots. "No... Sorry, but I don''t follow."

    "Well, to keep it short. I was raised in Opal City. I''m a common citizen just like anyone else. We peasants don''t have the luxury to deny someone like Fia. If a noble like that wants you to do something, you''d better do it or make yourself disappear.

    So when she dumped her crest on me by surprise it sealed my fate. She knew it, I knew it.

    That''s why I want to find my own little money source. Money controls, and I intend to be as free as possible."

    No more questions were asked as the two reached the surface. They stuck to the low paths, keeping to the right to avoid getting lost as they searched for a way to the river. They could hear it, but the twisting paths made reaching it difficult. The steep, sloping walls blocked any light from the setting sun, forcing them to rely on their own mana for illumination once more.

    After twenty minutes of careful treading, the pair found what they were looking for¡ªa small, claustrophobic path leading directly to the river. It was just wide enough for one person to fit through comfortably. They exchanged tired glances; neither wanted to be the one to haul the pail back once it was filled. After a brief back-and-forth, the task ultimately fell on Maria¡¯s shoulders.

    She squeezed through the narrow gap in the rock, shuffling down to the stream to fill the large bucket with water. As she pulled it up, she let out a grunt¡ªnearly 80 pounds of water strained her muscles. After a small adjustment, she shifted the weight into one hand, freeing the other to summon her mana light.

    Her red energy lit up the stream, its glow casting crimson accents across the rushing water and softly illuminating the wall on the other side. Maria had always been fond of the way her power lit up the world, so she allowed herself a spare moment to take in the environment.

    Her gaze drifted from the current to the wall, where smooth gray stone reflected her pulsing magic. Something stood out immediately. In a shallow hole in the rock sat a bird¡ªa Towhee, to be exact. Its grayish-brown feathers blended seamlessly into its surroundings, offering near-perfect camouflage. If not for the crimson light catching in its eyes, Maria would have missed it entirely.

    It sat motionless in its barren perch. No nest, no signs of insect infestation¡ªjust the bird, occasionally grooming itself but always watching her.

    Maria''s eyes narrowed.

    This wasn¡¯t right.

    Without warning, Maria fired a powerful blast of mana from her fingertip. The energy struck the bird with overwhelming blunt force, killing it instantly. Its lifeless body dropped into the rushing water with a light splash.

    Without hesitation, she hustled back through the narrow passage, moving without the aid of her mana light. Emerging on the other side, she placed an urgent hand on Veronica¡¯s shoulder.

    "I hope you''re good with directions," she said, her voice low but firm. "Because we''re making it back to camp in darkness."

    "Why?" Veronica asked, slightly rattled by the sudden contact coming out of nowhere.

    "I saw a bird perched over the river. Problem is, that bird had no business being there. No nest, no food, and it was resting in poor shelter. Everything about it was wrong."

    "Was it watching you?"

    "No doubt about it. I don''t know if it''s connected to this demon Naviiur keeps talking about, but it ain''t impossible."

    "Wait. If the animals are watching, then we should use the light to move quickly. Animals can see in the dark¡ªit¡¯s useless to try and use human tactics against them."

    Veronica¡¯s hand pulsed with bright blue mana, illuminating their path in the near pitch-black darkness.

    "Shit, you''re right," Maria admitted. "Let''s hustle back, then. If the camp gets exposed, we might as well be dead."

    Without another word, the pair ran as fast as they could manage without spilling the water. Maria grabbed Veronica¡¯s hand, gripping it tightly.

    "You focus on getting us there. I''ll keep an eye out for any critters."

    The sun had now fully set, leaving only the glow from Veronica¡¯s mana and the faint shimmer of the stars to guide them. Maria kept her head in constant motion, scanning the shadows.

    She had only one way to spot spying animals¡ªtheir eyes. She could use their light-reflective gaze against them.

    They rounded a sharp corner¡ªonly moments away from the cave entrance¡ªbut that¡¯s when Maria saw it.

    Small eyes glinted as they zipped across the flat tops. At first, she thought she was hallucinating, but then the creature made the mistake of passing over a second time. Now, she was sure. They were being followed.

    "Veronica, don''t stop! Run past the cave and go wherever the road takes us," Maria commanded, her tone hushed but firm.

    Veronica obeyed without a word, rushing past the cave with Maria in tow. She led them through a dizzying series of twists and turns while Maria kept her focus on their pursuer.

    It was a small mammal¡ªmaybe a squirrel or some other rodent. Either way, Maria wasn¡¯t going to let it compromise their chance at securing good shelter.

    "Keep straight and don''t stop!" she huffed.

    Maria let go of Veronica¡¯s hand without warning. She planted her feet and skidded to a grinding stop as Veronica raced down the trail, taking her light with her.

    The mercenary could barely make out the outline of the pursuing rodent, but it was more than enough. She dropped her heavy water pail, poured all the mana she could muster into her legs, and launched herself from her idle position with a deep thud.

    She leaped onto the flat tops, drawing her scimitars from their holsters, both bursting with magic. Their glow was the only light guiding her way, but it was enough to see her target. Her feet struck the ground in such rapid succession that her footsteps merged into a deep, continuous hum.

    Within seconds, she closed in on the rodent, leaving behind her signature stream of red wind. Her blades danced in a violent arc, slicing the small creature into an unrecognizable mess.

    She took a deep breath and powered down, letting out a small groan of disgust. She couldn¡¯t see it, but she could feel the creature¡¯s blood and bits clinging to her.

    She made her way down from the flat tops where Veronica joined her shortly after, bringing her calming blue light back into the picture. Maria just gave her a simple nod, and the two hustled back to base before anything could pick up their trail again.

    As they stepped into the overly bright clearing of the Agamic cave, Lucy and Anise greeted them. A wave of relief washed over Maria¡ªthe kind one feels after coming home from a long, exhausting day.

    Somehow, she just knew she¡¯d be returning to this cave often. And for the first time in forty-eight hours, that thought didn¡¯t bother her much at all.

 Ch 11: Agamics and Conjugates

    Avery arrived at the Ashen Canyon just as the sun began to set. Climbing the crumbling road proved to be more challenging than she anticipated, with the cobbled rocks crumbling beneath her every time she made decent progress.

    But that was over, and now she stood before the broken bridge where Lucy reportedly fell. A deep frown burrowed itself onto her face. Now that she was here, now that she could see the chasm that supposedly took her clansman, her faith was starting to shake. The fall was longer than the one she endured during her battle with the Purlikins, and she could hear the rushing water from below. Her initial instincts told her that the situation was grim. But she shook it off, slapped herself in the face, and forced herself to believe in the unlikely.

    "Lucy would not die so easily. No Opazyr would!" she barked.

    But in the back of her mind, she knew that Lucy wasn''t on the same level as the rest of their family. She was green, with a smaller mana output. Her mana control was only slightly better than a trained soldier. When it came down to the facts, Lucy was simply weaker than what would have been expected of her.

    She threw those thoughts away for the moment. Now was the time to be a woman of action, not worry. She knelt down at the crumbled bridge. It was a long gap, about 60 feet across. Whether she could leap across was questionable, but she had a plan.

    She took a few steps back, shaking her hands to prepare them for what was coming next. She took off with extreme speed, vaulting over the stream without an ounce of hesitation. She was falling short of the gap, just like she expected. She fell down into the chasm, slapping the other side of the wall mere feet from the raging water. With mana-filled fists she punched holes in the rocky wall, bringing her to a violent stop. She cursed herself, maybe the plan wasn''t as smart as she thought. Her wrists were screaming at her, but she could tell they weren''t injured.

    She inspected the wall as she clung to it. It was completely smooth, climbing up naturally was impossible. She sighed, steeled herself, and then began to climb up in a way most absurd. She used her mana to turn her hands into climbing picks, puncturing her fingers into the stone wall to pull herself up. She was being fueled purely by her desire to survive, and by the time she reached the top, she was a gasping, shaking mess. Using her mana in such a brutish way truly exhausted her. To top it all off the sun had abandoned her, leaving her with the lonely night sky as her only company. She gathered up the last of her strength and stumbled her way down to a secluded pathway not too far from the entrance. She just had to hope that no one would find her while she got some rest, for she planned to be mobile again once the sun rose.

    <hr>

    Back at the Agamic Settlement, Maria and the group had finally begun to settle in. All five of them had gathered around a cozy makeshift fire. At first, they were worried about the smoke being problematic, but Naviiur assured them that the cave was constructed in such a way that smoke would not get trapped.

    As they sat, they naturally fell into their cliques. Maria and Veronica sat together, respecting each other''s boundaries with a small border of personal space. Meanwhile, Lucy and Anise were practically laid on top of each other, casually cuddling as if they had been a long-standing couple. This left Naviiur as the odd one out, sitting alone on his own bench looking rather at peace with himself.

    He took a sip of water out of an old mug, his eyes shifting from duo to duo. His eyes failed to hide his curiosity as they drank in the new sight before him.

    "So, Conjugates. It''s the first time I''ve ever laid eyes on your kind. Tell me, are you always this... Touchy?" He motioned to Lucy and Anise. Lucy was poking and prodding Anise''s face, while Anise couldn''t keep her hands away from Lucy''s unique white hair.

    "Yeah, actually," responded Maria. She crossed her arms and legs and leaned on Veronica to drive home her response. The younger squeaked with surprise, but quickly shifted her position to accommodate Maria.

    "We Conjugates enjoy loving each other," she continued. "Our goddess made us some real indulgent types, and ain''t no greater indulgence than the flesh."

    Naviiur raised an eyebrow. "Indulgence of the flesh? I don''t think I follow. Surely you don''t mean¡ª"

    "¡ªno, we don''t eat each other. Well, at least not in the way you''re probably thinking about."

    The others watched as Naviiur rested his head in his palms. His face became stoic with concentration as he racked his brain so hard Maria was sure she could hear the cogs turning inside his head.

    Maria held out her hand to try and grab his attention. "Hold on there, man. You don''t have to think about it so hard. We can just explain it to you. We''re not shy about it."

    "Please do," he said in a defeated tone.

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    "It''s simple, Conjugates receive a lot of pressure from the act of procreation." She explained. "We''re people of intimacy, although some women are more impulsive than others."

    "The fact that you gain pleasure from procreation is... Odd, but my brothers always told me Conjugated had an ever-increasing population. I suppose that makes sense if you enjoy the act of making children."

    "We don''t have children every time we have intercourse. There are ways to do it without leading to pregnancy. But there are also those of us who do enjoy being mothers."

    "So your mating ritual feels so good that you''d do it for recreational purposes?"

    Lucy rolled onto her side, the conversation had picked up enough steam to pull her away from her coddling. "Yes, it''s a regular part of our lives. But I''m assuming that''s not the case for men. I heard you''re kind reproduces alone. How does that even work?"

    Naviiur smiled, happy to answer questions in this trade of knowledge. "Well, we reproduce by cell division. In essence, each Agamic is a copy of his father, but the father can change aspects of the son to suit their needs or tastes. For example, my pink hair was given to me purposely to set me apart from the rest of our clan."

    Veronica was enamored with his explanation. "You control the look of your child? I don''t think women could use that kind of power responsibly."

    "So, how do you do it? The cell division I mean?" Lucy asked.

    Naviiur stood up, turning his back to the group. There was a brown spot at the base of his neck similar to a birthmark but far too perfectly shaped to actually be one. He gently tapped it to draw attention to it. "This right here is where Agamics are born. The father begins cell division and devotes his time to properly developing his son. This process can take hours to days, depending on the level of reproduction. It takes approximately seventy-two hours, uninterrupted, to make a fully mature spawn. Most opt to make a juvenile and let it develop on its own, which cuts the time down to about six."

    "That''s incredible. But where''s all the energy coming from? Do you use mana?" Anise asked, resting her arms on Lucy''s side as if she were a table.

    "Spawn permanently cut into a portion of their father''s mana supply, yes. But what we really need is raw mass, so it''s very common for an Agamic to have a great feast either before or during the birth process."

    "I''m jealous..." Veronica murmured.

    Maria pulled the soldier into a one-armed hug. "It sounds efficient, doesn''t it? But don''t be too jealous. There''s a reason it takes us so long to give birth even with two people. Everything''s got its place."

    Naviiur tilted his head. "Call me curious, but how does mating between two Conjugates work?"

    The gals exchanged awkward glances, and ultimately all eyes fell on Maria, as she seemed to be the most comfortable with Agamics. The mercenary let out a groan, feeling like she had to do everything.

    "Alright, so, every Conjugates is equipped with these things we call genitalia. Everyone has two sets of them, one is for receiving essence, and the other is for giving essence. For a little girl to come into this world, one Conjugate must give their essence to another."

    "If you have both sets of genitals then why can''t you use them on yourselves?" Naviiur asked like a child who was lost in a lecture. He sat down, taking up a focused position. One hand on pushing on the knee, the other hand holding up his head as he leaned in. He was engrossed.

    "It doesn''t work like that," Maria said bluntly. "The goddess Eyra thought that mortals should be grounded by compassion and love, so any Conjugate child that is conceived from self-impregnation will not make it to term. It''s simply her will."

    Naviiur nodded along, "And how long does the whole process take?"

    "The act of intercourse doesn''t take very long at all, but Conjugates who received the other''s essence must carry it within her for three months. Only at the end of those three months will a baby come into this world."

    "I must admit. That does sound terribly inefficient. What''s the benefit to such a long and complicated process?"

    "Do me a favor and stand up, Naviiur," Maria grunted as she stood up from her bench with a proud, smug smile.

    The Agamic did as he was asked, and the mercenary walked over and stood right beside him. The difference between them was immediately obvious. Naviiur was a mere 5''8" and Maria was nearly 6''4". Her body was also more muscular, with broad shoulders and equally wide and strong hips and legs. Naviiur''s slender muscles looked meager in comparison.

    "The reason why it takes so long is because Conjugates have stronger, more complicated bodies." She took off her cuirass, revealing the dusty brown tunic underneath. "From my time in the sunlight realms, I got to see a lot of Agamics. Conjugates are a foot taller on average, and we weigh about 40 pounds more than your kind."

    "It''s all starting to make sense now," Naviiur murmured. His eyes trailed up and down Maria''s body, analyzing every facet of it.

    Maria felt like she was being dissected. There was no desire in the Agamics eyes, no lust or passion. He was simply parsing information from her form. It felt violating and dehumanizing, but she didn''t take it personally, for how else was an entity that didn''t understand the concepts of love and lust supposed to look at her.

    "Oh, by the way. What are those things on your chest?" Naviiur asked, casually poking Maria in her left breast. It caught her off guard, causing her to instinctively pull away.

    "Oh! Uh. T-they''re breasts. They''re mainly for feeding our infants," she stammered awkwardly, much to the Snickers and giggles of Anise and Lucy.

    "By the gods, your kind has so much going on with your biology. But I suppose it''s working out. Your people are abundant, your bodies are strong, and from the little my brothers have told me, your Settlements are staggering. Maybe Amal was wrong after all." Naviiur seemed to contemplate everything he knew about the world. Maria could only guess how he was processing all this information.

    "Don''t get too ahead of yourself. Conjugates have plenty of problems. And you''re gonna get to see them real soon."

    "Right, I suppose I''ll be fighting a lot of them starting tomorrow." He chuckled lowly, giddy at the idea of doing combat with these creatures he found so fascinating. "I can''t wait! I wonder if your people are as strong as they were in the era of my brothers?"

    Maria gave him a rough, but well-meaning slap on the back. "Then you''ll be taking charge, magic man! We''re counting on you." She gave her comrades a sly smirk. They had found a willing combatant to take the burden off their shoulders. All they could do now was hope that he could live up to the task.

 Ch 12: Watching

    The Purlikins settled into a small cove in the endless maze of the Ashen Canyon just as the sun finished confiscating its last gifts of light from the land.  They didn''t have any methodology when choosing their hideout. They were simply desperate for shelter and couldn''t afford to be picky.

    After Lucy tricked them into aggravating the sword antlered elk, they were forced to retreat. It was a powerful beast, and they only managed to fend it off. Ingrid was becoming painfully aware of their limited firepower. The Purlikins had spent their entire life in pursuit of academic mage craft, and now they were seeing just how unfit they were to be in the throws of battle. But for what they lacked in firepower, they made up with cunning. They simply had to play it smart and not let emotions get in the way.

    The cave was dark and damp with uneven ground, a truly ill-fit place for their research. But that didn''t stop them. They placed a barrier to shut out any water and contaminants, then began making makeshift equipment from spells stored in the latest pages of their spell books: beakers, magnifying glasses, desks, chairs, paper, pencils, anything a working academic could think of. By the time they were done setting up, the cave had become a right and propped laboratory.

    Ingrid sat by the winding path to the entrance. Her eyes followed her comrades as they put the finishing touches on their lab. They placed a small shrine holding the spell book of their fallen sister-in-arms. It sat higher than any other structure, embedded in a spiraling tree they had grown in her honor.

    "We wasted so much time, but..." Ingrid held a satchel of the spiteful crystals in her hand. Her stoic and determined face wavered under exhaustion. "We were on the move all day..."

    Another Purlikin approached her; she was older than the rest and had the caring eyes of a mother. It was Belor, the only senior wizard who was willing to come along on this absurd mission.

    Belor wiped off her sweaty brow with a soft smile, clearly strained from the labor of setting up the lab. "You must be tired," she huffed, "you should get some rest. You haven''t sat still since yesterday."

    Ingrid waved her away dismissively. "I''m fine, Belor. We can''t afford to take it slow right now."

    The motherly mage stepped into Ingrid''s personal space. Her gentle face was now harsh and stern, light wrinkles highlighted her facial expression, making her seem even more unhappy.

    She leaned in to speak in hushed tones. It was time for a motherly lecture. "We''re not ''taking it slow,'' child. If we run ourselves ragged, we''re bound to make a mistake. Either we will end up botching the research, or one of our enemies will overrun us. Don''t forget that we don''t know anything about those women in blue."

    Ingrid looked at their equipment and then the exit. "And if we''re attacked in our sleep?"

    "Child, consider us at war. A soldier must sleep, or they are as good as useless. There''s always a chance something could go wrong. But that''s just life." She pinched Ingrid''s cheek and pulled on it as if she were a baby.

    "Ow! I get it, Belor, I''m not a child!" Ingrid cried, swatting away the older woman''s hand. "You don''t need to coddle me."

    "Why not? Your mothers never did. They were too busy passing on their generational hatred. Showing you motherly love is the least I can do. I''d feel awful if something were to happen to you in your current state."

    "You talk about generational hatred as if you don''t hate the Opazyr?"

    "Hate is a strong word, darling. I have my grievances with them, but I hardly know the women who live in that marble palace."

    Ingrid crossed her arms and assaulted Belor with a judgemental look. "Then why did you join us?"

    "I''ve watched every one of you girls grow up under homes of pride and arrogance. You''ve been made to hate the Opazyr by those who came before you, and that''s one thing. But now you''ve chosen to act, and not one of the people who instilled that hatred has joined you on your mission. If I didn''t join you, I wouldn''t be able to sleep at night."

    Ingrid rolled her eyes. She didn''t like where this conversation was going. "The elders didn''t join because they couldn''t. All the travel, all the danger. It would do more harm than good," she argued.

    "Nonsense!" Spat Belor. She turned around and drank in the sight of her comrades. Some were setting the groundwork for their experiments, others were mourning the loss of their friend. "Naesha!" She hooted, her sharp voice bouncing off the cave walls until they became booming.

    Naesha shot up from her resting position. She neatly knocked over the memorial and had to wrestle with it desperately to keep it upright. "Y-yes, ma''am?!"

    "What is the Greatest asset to a mage?"

    "Our mind! Ma''am," barked Naesha.

    "That''s right, and the mind only ripens with age. That means a wizard''s magic only gets better over time, and yet our most seasoned minds are not with us, are they?"

    Ingrid''s eyes became sharp with suspicion. "What are you getting at? Are you calling the elders cowards?"

    Belor tilted her head to the side, lowering her glasses so she could make real eye contact with the young wizard. "You listen to me, young one. I have known your parents and the other elders since before they developed breasts. I''m not calling them cowards. They ARE cowards. We''ve always been too afraid to take back what was ours. Let''s not try to revise history."

    She let out a long, tired sigh and placed a loving hand on Ingrid''s shoulder.

    "I know that being in our fifties may seem geriatric to you young chickens. But I can assure you that an old mage is more than capable of holding their own. Your elders have grown complacent and are afraid to take action. But they also have wisdom and knowledge. So listen to the elder that has both the brains and the balls when I tell you that you need rest."

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    Naesha approached with careless swagger, punching Ingrid in the arm with endearment. "Just listen to her, Ingrid. You''ve done a lot. You scouted out the place before us and then doubled back and stuck through all the violence. I''ll keep watch outside if it helps you sleep better."

    Katelyn appeared from behind Naesha, causing the redhead to nearly jump out of her robes.

    "I can help keep watch as well. Those who remain can assist Ingrid in developing purification methods."  Katelyn stated blankly.

    Belor clasped her hands and swayed back and forth with love, "Wonderful! I''ll set up a protective barrier while we work. That should be all the protection we need."

    Ingrid passed around a hesitant stare to each of the wizards before her. All three stared her down, their eyes begging her to concede. She threw up her hands, giving in to the insurmountable peer pressure piling on top of her. "Fine, I''m gonna go to bed. If I die in my sleep, we''re going to have words in the afterlife!"

    Belor smiled softly as Ingrid stormed over to a corner of the cave. Katelyn followed close behind her, insisting that she use her strange spells to craft her a decent bed to sleep on.

    "Maybe these kids will reclaim the city after all." She mumbled, swiftly returning to her aids to get the barrier constructed.

    Little did anyone know of the pocket mouse sitting in an unlit pathway to the entrance. Its scaly body blended into the surrounding stone, and its eyes glowed ever so softly with mana.

    It watched the Purlikins carefully, relaying everything it saw and heard to a greater power.

    <hr>

    The crypt keepers sat in their dimly lit hideout. They were quiet, each one looking towards an uncertain future. They huddled together by the fire as a hot pot of stew boiled away. The entire cave smelled of meat and broth, as this particular stew had been boiling for weeks, a forever stew, as they called it. It was the easiest way to cook their food. It was better than simple rations,  for some the samey flavor it offered day after day was wearing down on their psyche.

    "By the gods, I want to go home," croaked Linette. "I want a soft pastry and a good book."

    "Just a little longer," assured their leader, Hiri. "I know it''s been a rough time. But this is our job. Once we handle Azylith, we can handle the spirits in the soil. Once we do that, we are home free."

    They continued to discuss their woes and concerns, which amounted to little more than a gripe session, spewing the same things they had all said a hundred times before. Everyone knew nothing would change about their situation, but complaining gave them some sense of agency. But in the center of their circle, cutting through the chatter with all the efficiency of a dull blade, was an unusually large spider lowering itself on a strong, girthy line of silk. Its gray, armored shell was a clear giveaway to its true nature.

    "Feeling homesick?" A deep voice resonated from within the spider. It was Azylith, piloting the creature from her crystal lair. The spider awkwardly pivoted to face Hiri, a clear sign that Azylith was struggling to control it.

    "A little, but it''s nothing we aren''t used to dealing with. Is there something you need?" Hiri leaned in and placed her chin in her palms.

    Linette and Nulara crowded around her to get a better look at the strange spider.

    The arachnid bounced on its web, accenting the mischievous joy in Azylith''s voice. "That I do! I''ve located the base of one of the invading groups. The wizards have held themselves up in a cave deep in the middle of the canyons."

    "What about the Opazyr?" Hiri asked.

    "I was able to track them down to the east, but they destroyed my vessel before I could find out where they were hiding."

    Hiri scoffed, "How do you lose track of someone with all those animals at your disposal?"

    "Silence." The spider reared its fangs, which dripped with a bright blue venom that almost seemed to flow with its toxicity. "I don''t want to hear insults from someone who''s never done it. Taking over a vessel isn''t easy. I can only control one at a time,  two with limited motor function. When I manage to find their hideout, I''ll let you know. But let''s focus on the easy prey for now-"

    She cut herself off, bouncing on the silk thread as a memory burst into her conscious mind.

    "Oh, actually, I do have something on the Opazyr. Near the entrance to the canyon sleeps a lone Opazyr knight. I don''t know when they arrived, but it would be best to cut them off before they make contact with their allies."

    Nulara perked up, pushing her weight onto Hiri to lean closer to the spider.

    "I''ll do it! I''ve already beaten one of those noble freaks, and I can do it again?" Her grin stretched from ear to ear; her teeth looked sharp, like those of a carnivore. She had tasted the blood of her foe once, and she already wanted more.

    Hiri was quick to throw her ravenous subordinate off of her, accidentally tossing away Linette in the process.

    "Get off me!" she barked.

    The leader stood up, her posture firm as she became the largest presence in the room. "We''ll act on the information accordingly, Azylith. Thank you."

    The spider tipped itself, mocking a human bow. Its eyes lost their faint blue luster, signifying that Azylith was no longer in control. Confused and left to its own instincts, the spider climbed its silk thread back into the dark reaches of the cave ceiling.

    Nulara popped up from being thrown on her back. She crossed her arms in a bid to temper her impatience. "So, when are we moving out?"

    Hiri''s head snapped to Nulara, her brow furrowed and her lips pursed with irritation. "We''ll leave before dawn. We''ve been up all day, we''d need to rest a little before we try to assault the enemy."

    She turned her head to her subordinates patiently sitting around the flame of their stew. "I want everyone in bedrolls A.S.A.P! We''ll be striking it out to catch those mages when they''re the most vulnerable."

    Nulara slapped a rabid hand on Hiri''s shoulder, leaning over her with a ravenous grin. "You''re gonna let me handle the Opazyr, right?"

    Hiri shook her head in disagreement. "I think it''s best if you stay with the group. There''s no reason to be taking one-on-one fights right now."

    "So you''re going to let the Opazyr rally and become an even bigger problem?"

    "We outnumber them, Nulara. Let''s not waste that advantage."

    The red-headed crypt keeper swiveled in front of her superior, her smug, cat-ish grin tugging at her nerves. "Is it really an advantage? As long as we''re in a group, it won''t be easy to catch them. We only caught them today because they were waiting for something, and by we, I mean me, of course. Even Azylith is having a hard time pinning them down."

    Hiri knew she was being manipulated to a degree, but with everything that was going on, she felt like her hands were tied. She had to do what was best for the group as a whole. "Alright, Nulara, you win. You can go after the Stray Opazyr. But you''ll be going alone, and I still want you to get four hours of rest."

    Nulara shot to attention and hit herself on the head with a salute. "Aye, aye, captain! I won''t let you down!"

    Without giving Hiri any time to respond, she darted off towards her bed, disappearing into one of the deep dark tunnels that houses her personal chambers.

    One of the keepers folded her arms and scoffed. "Are you really going to let her go alone, Hiri?"

    Hiri rolled her eyes. "I don''t want to, but it''s better that way. She''ll either pick off an enemy or learn a valuable lesson in humility."

    "And if she dies?"

    Hiri''s face was stern but sullen. "Look, I care for each and every one of you. But we''re all grown women here. If Nulara wants to run off and chase glory, that''s her own prerogative. I can only lead if you guys allow it. If she doesn''t come back tomorrow, then that will simply be the consequence of her own actions."

    She sighed, looking down at the hunter''s pot with exhaustion. "Let''s just focus on getting this job done so we can leave with as few casualties as possible."

    She dismissed the rest of her team, watching as they all dragged themselves to their beds. "We need to end this... Quickly..."

 Ch 13: Sunrise

    The crack of dawn was a little under two hours away when Lucy found herself being shaken awake by rough hands. It rattled her, causing her to jolt awake. The grab for her sword was quick, and the wild swing of self-defense was even faster.

    "Woah! That was pretty fast, little Opal. I''m almost impressed," said Maria. Lucy''s blade rested between the mercenary''s fingertips. All the power she put behind her swing stopped in an instant.

    Lucy was too stunned to speak. She had never seen such a stark difference in power before. Then the realization that she swung on her own comrade hit her, and she dropped the sword like a child getting caught with something they shouldn''t have.

    "Oh! Goddess, I''m sorry I didn''t mean to"

    Maria put out a hand to stop her, giving her a carefree smile to calm her down. "Don''t worry about it. It happens more than you think. It''s not going to be the last time I had a sword drawn on me like that, and it won''t be the last time you do that to someone. If they''re a real warrior they''ll understand."

    Maria stood up as Veronica came into focus. Lucy could see Naviiur standing in the distance, slightly obscured by one of the intricately engraved rocky pillars that supported the cave. She looked to her side, Anise was still sound asleep. "So, we''re the last ones to wake up? One must get their beauty rest am I right?" She gave a weak laugh, feeling embarrassed to be one of the last ones awake. She went to wake Anise, but Maria stopped her with a devilish smile.

    The mercenary motioned for the knight to step aside. Lucy was quick to follow, confused but curious she now stood with Veronica as Maria crouched over Anise''s face.

    Maria took a deep breath, holding it for the sake of building tension. "WAKE UP! THEY GOT LUCY!"

    In an instant, Anise shot up from the floor like a rocket. Her head smashed into Maria''s, but only the herald was left reeling in pain. Tears filled her eyes as she tried to stumble up to her feet. "Huh? What did you say? What''s happening?"

    Veronica backed away. She tried her best to hide her snickers and giggles, opting to turn around and face the Agamic, who was paying their shenanigans no mind.

    "Oops, false alarm. Lucy was just taking a piss, there she is!"

    Anise held her head in agony and leaned against the nearest wall for support. "Ugh, just like an indignant peasant! Does your kind know only foolishness?"

    Maria threw her hands up, "relax Blondy, no need to start with the slurs before breakfast. It was just a little prank."

    "A prank? I feel like I was smashed with a rock? What did you hit me with?!"

    "I didn''t hit you with anything. YOU hit MY head on your way up."

    "Goddess above what is your forehead made out of?"

    "Trauma and tenacity."

    "If trauma could harden a head like that I would have blown right through you. No, it''s got to be more primitive than that?"

    "Why does it have to be primitive? Why can''t it be the cause of something more advanced?"

    Anise was silent. She looked at everyone else in the room, then to Maria. She stared at her for a good while before taking her eyes off her to look straight ahead. "Peasants aren''t capable of advancing."

    "Anise!" Lucy cut their conversation short with her shock. The young knight found herself standing between the two opposing ladies with a stern face. "How could you say something like that? Where is your respect for the common woman? What of the great soldiers in our army right now?"

    "Fine soldiers are made by excellent women. Do you think the soldiers underneath you would be half the women are without the training of excellent Opazyr knights?"

    "Excuse me, Ms. high and mighty," Maria was standing now, arms crossed. She was trying to temper herself, and she was failing. "didn''t you claim to be a herald of the Hoary church? That doesn''t scream nobility to me."

    "I''m not a noble. I''m from the Vitreo district. I''ve never claimed to be one," Anise scoffed.

    Maria''s jaw dropped. "You mean to tell me you''re doing all this noble Schlong sucking and you''re not even one of them? You''re just some middle-class wench!"

    "That''s still a world apart from you." Spat Anise. She believed everything she said, everyone could tell by the way she stared off into nothing as if pulling on some deep memory.

    "Is that so?" A hand stretched out, grabbing Anise by the dollar and hoisting her off her feet. "Don''t know what world you''re living in, but It can''t be that much higher than ours if a mere peasant can touch you this easily."

    Anise didn''t say anything. She kept her cold stare locked on Maria, her first glowing with radiant mana as she grew more angry.

    "Oh, I get it. Your world''s gotta be Limbo! That''s it! Too worthless to be a noble, too arrogant and self-centered to be a peasant." Maria''s face turned smug.

    Lucy gripped Maria''s arm, she locked eyes with the mercenary, giving her demands without words. Maria was impressed by her resolve and she knew she had to show some respect to her status within the group. She dropped Anise, who fell to her knees. Lucy pushed Maria back gently, standing over the herald with a discontent mug on her face.

    "I don''t mind you two bickering, as I recognize you come from very different places. But I won''t allow things to get physical on this mission! Whatever issues you two have need to wait because I need both of you if we''re all going to make it home alive, understood?"

    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    Maria, impressed with the level of backbone, literally bowed out of the confrontation. "Yes, Ma''am," she cooed, a satisfied smile plastered on her face.

    Anise straightened out her clothes, making sure her cuirass was properly adjusted. She was smoldering with a fury so great that it seemed to warp the very structure of her face. "Understood..."

    Naviiur watched the whole scene with his mouth agape. He covered his indignant gawking with a hand, looking rather flamboyant in the process. "I''m sorry, but are these types of arguments common amongst your people?"

    Maria scratched her head and chuckled. "Yeah, we got a lot to argue about."

    "I see. I don''t quite understand the crux of the argument. Nobility, peasant, middle class? Those terms have no meaning in Agamic society."

    Veronica motioned him to stop talking, not wanting to spur either side into trying to explain themselves for fear of restarting their argument. "I''ll explain later. It''s... complicated."

    Anise scoffed, "If you can even-"

    Lucy clamped a hand over the herald''s mouth. "Not another word. Especially not about MY soldier."

    Maria choked back the burning desire to make a snide mark anise. She walked over to Veronica and gave her a tight hug. Veronica yelped and took a deep, strained breath. A lesser woman would have been snapped in half by the amount of strength Maria possessed. But Veronica realized what Maria was trying to do, and simply responded by coddling her, much in the way one would soothe a hound.

    Stuck in an awkward situation, Naviiur stepped into the physical space of the spout, clapping his hands to redirect all the energy and attention onto himself. "In more pressing news: I''ve thought of what our next move should be. We should really focus on securing our position. I don''t think we can afford to lose this sanctuary or our foothold on the surrounding areas. So we''ll need to shut it off from being accessed by outsiders."

    "How?" Asked Veronica, her voice was blunt and impassionate as always.

    "I was scrounging around my predecessor''s belongings and found these," he revealed a small stack of disk-like objects from under his ragged long skirt. "These are mana connectors. They allow for mana to form a trail along anchor points. I can use them to make a large barrier around our location."

    "The distance it would need to cover would take a massive barrier. Do we even have that kind of mana?" Maria asked.

    "Maybe we could use the crystals?" Suggested Lucy, shaking her hips so that the bag she held made an obvious jingle.

    "No, I don''t think that will work," responded Naviiur. "To use the crystals for a spell I''d have to intake the power of the crystals into my own being. There''s no telling if I could keep my wits during the whole process." He stroked his chin, mulling over his choices with careful consideration. "I know I could supply the mana. It would just take time, it could leave us vulnerable for hours."

    "Hours? That''s no good," replied Maria. "I''ve got the feeling that today is where those robed freaks will up their aggression, and this is their turf. We don''t have hours to build a defensive barrier."

    Anise sighed, she was still upset about everything that just happened, but she had a mission to do and she knew that. "I can do it."

    The entire group looked at her in a mix of disbelief and surprise. It irritated the herald, she knew she was being underestimated. "Listen, I make no promises that it will be fast. But I can definitely erect a barrier that''s to our needs in under an hour."

    She took a step into the center of the discussion, standing tall with the pride of the Hoary church behind her. "There is an incantation, a story, of how our goddess Eyra shaped our continent. If I''m given time to invoke the full incantation, I could make a stone wall. You''d just have to teach me to funnel mana through those devices of yours."

    Naviiur crossed his arms, looking thoroughly impressed with her confidence. "Then we''ll be relying on you, Anise. We''ll begin immediately, it will take some time to set it up, we have four mana discs, and they''ll need to be guarded, as well as someone to guard you while you invoke your magic at one of the disks."

    Lucy popped up with her hands on her hips. she had an assertive energy to her that had been missing the day before. "Me and Veronica can guard individual transfer disks. I think Maria should guard Anise."

    "Huh?!" Maria and Anise swarmed Lucy as they both gasped in unison.

    "Let''s face it, Maria. You are the strongest of us right now. And the strongest person should guard the most important asset."

    "Can''t argue there..." Maria grumbled.

    "Well, I can!" Spat Anise, "I think it should be you who guards me, Lady Lucy."

    Lucy chuckled, nervously scratching her cheek. "I feel like I''ve got some things to prove first. And I''d rather not risk your safety to prove my honor."

    Veronica stood by Maria and leaned on her. "She''s a mercenary, protecting people she doesn''t care for is one of her specialties."

    "Fine, but I expect a flawless performance." Anise ran her fingers through her hair with sass, driving in a nail of superiority.

    Maria smiled and waved her petty action away. "I won''t let anyone lay a hand on that weave of yours."

    A deep frown carved itself into Anise''s face, but through gargantuan effort, she was able to refrain from making a rebuttal.

    Another clap came from Naviiur, who felt that anything could pop off at any moment. "Alright, let''s get started."

    After a quick meal and general preparations, they set out to work. They spread out, with each person taking a transfer disk to a corner of their desired territory. Their barrier planned to encompass everything between their home cave and their main water supply. all in all the Barrier would cover a litle over a square mile of land. By the time they had all reached their destinations, the sun was just starting to rise. Veronica, Lucy, and Naviiur took lonely posts to protect individual transfer disks while Maria and Anise stood together, indifferent to each other''s presence.

    Naviiur carefully began to start the process of linking the crystals, setting up his allies to take care of the rest. As he worked he watched the cold sun peak over the gray flat tops with a bubbling glee that threatened to grip his very soul. "I can''t wait to see what these ''women'' are really capable of."

    <hr>

    Stomping feet echoed off the high walls as the Crypt Keepers swiftly maneuvered through winding crags and shallow waters. Glowing crystals illuminated harsh mugs as the sun had yet to pierce the deep groves of the canyon.

    Hiri''s face was a mix between determination and fury, as they were moving one member short. Nulara had taken off long before any of them had woken up.

    Linette looked at her leader, worry was written all over her face. "Do you think she''ll be alright?"

    "We can''t think about her right now," Growled Hiri. "All we can do is focus on keeping ourselves alive."

    <hr>

    Near the entrance, Avery stood by the raging stream, getting her fill of fresh water. She hadn''t been awake for long, but she was already plotting out her search for Lucy. She looked at her distorted reflection in a slightly calmer part of the river. Her ragged appearance made her smile. There was a part of her who loved being in the weeds and wilds despite her noble upbringing. She thought she wore dirt rather well.

    Her attention was taken away from herself by the sound of dragging metal. She turned around, drawing her sword from its scabbard, a curious grin greeting the mysterious entity. "Who the hell are you?"

    Nulara planted her scythe in the ground and lurched over. Her Hyena-like grin, filled with sharp teeth and light snickers, made her seem mad. "Your judge, and executioner. You shouldn''t have come here Opazyr, your kind isn''t welcome. That''s something you''re kin had to learn the hard way."

    "Oh, so you''re saying you''ve done something to my little Lucy?" There was a sudden flare-up of mana. The intensity of her aura shrouded her form in a mask of petty vengeance.

    "You can tell me all about it over your dying breath."

 Ch 14: Big Britches

    Unease settled across Ashen rock and still waters. The cold sun gave no comfort as the inhabitants of the Ashen Canyon began to make their first moves.

    While the crypt keepers honed in on their targets and Maria''s crew set up their defenses, two lone women stepped onto the stage of confrontation. Avery Opazyr was dripping with murderous intent, ready to avenge the perceived fall of her clansman Lucy, while Crypt Keeper Nulara stood bolstered by hatred, staring down the embodiment of what she despised.

    "You''re saying you''ve done something to my little Lucy? Why don''t you tell me all about it over your dying breath!" hissed Avery. Power radiated from her form, mana leaked from every pore of her skin.

    Nulara could feel the difference in their power. Avery was far stronger than Lucy, but that did not bother the Crypt Keeper in the slightest. She made easy work of the lesser Opazyr, so this should have been nothing more than a marginal challenge.

    "I''ll be sure to tell you all the details on your way out, you pale freak!" Nulara bared her wolfish grin, egging the knight into action with an impatient sway.

    "Are you jealous? Pale skin marks a superior lady, after all, free of imperfections." The stark outline of a smile pierced through Avery''s obscured form.

    With each step the knight took, the air became more intolerable for Nulara. Avery''s presence was suffocating, but the Crypt Keeper was far too annoyed with Avery''s comment on skin tone. "Just come at me!"

    The next step brought Avery right in front of Nulara''s face. It surprised her,  but she didn''t try to make sense of it. She focused on adjusting her guard. The force of the blow embedded her feet into the rock, causing the land to cry out in pain. Nulara struggled to push the knight off of her, using all her might to practically throw Avery back.

    Avery was quick to attack again, this time appearing at her side with a horizontal swipe aimed at her neck. Nulara parried it to the side, backing up to create distance.  Avery''s speed was astounding, but as long as Nulara didn''t overthink the situation, she could respond just in the nick of time.

    Avery approached again, appearing at Nulara''s left-hand side in an instant, but Nulara predicted her movements and swung her scythe to catch the knight in mid-motion, only to hit an afterimage, but she didn''t falter. Nulara continued the arc of her attack, shuffling her handle between hands in a fluid motion for a clean three hundred-and-sixty-degree cleave, or at least it would have done so if it hadn''t been stopped by a Shield directly behind her.

    Nulara didn''t think about the fact that her opponent was behind her back. She merely twisted herself into a twirl, spinning into Avery''s shield hand as a powerful thrust barely missed her torso. She grabbed the knight''s hand, pouring her mana into a strong grip to keep her locked down.

    "Impressive girl. You''ve got good instincts." Avery growled.

    "And you''re pretty fast. But speed won''t be enough!" Barked Nulara. She began to overload the mana in her hand, creating a physical outpour of volatile energy. She was making a bomb that could potentially blow them both into unrecognizable chunks.

    Avery looked surprised by the play, but she was not afraid. She pumped her mana directly into her muscles and lifted the crypt keeper off the ground with ease. With a snappy, whip-like motion, she shook the redhead''s grip loose and bashed her face in with her shield while she was still airborne. The resulting force sent her flying into the rocky cliffs that lined the pathways. Ash and spirits poured out in a wretched, screaming mass that obscured the scene.

    Avery didn''t wait for the dust to settle; she charged forth, her sword full of mana as she thrust it exactly where she saw Nulara hit the wall. Her blade failed to penetrate any flesh, and a large rush of weeping souls flooded over her.

    "What the hell are these?" She cried.

    Avery was distracted for only a moment, and Nulara was keen to take advantage of any perceived weakness. She appeared behind the knight with her feet planted firm and her scythe cocked as far back as good form would allow. "Like wheat~" she sang, she drove her scythe into her side, intending to cleave her right in half.

    Avery ripped her sword out of the wall and flipped it into reverse grip just in time. The blade of the scythe met her sword with a violent clash of steel. She had saved herself from getting cut in two, but Avery''s form was compromised.

    Nulara pressed her advantage, she pushed to knock Avery off her feet. The knight resisted as best as she could, but her position was just too poor, and Nulara was applying so much pressure that any attempt to move would have compromised her entirely. So she stood her ground and forced the crypt keeper to use more and more strength.

    Avery focused her mana on her blade, torso area, and legs, ensuring her safety for the inevitable moment when she lost the struggle, but she was not completely without a plan.

    Stolen novel; please report.

    When Avery felt like Nulara had applied just the right amount of force, she gave up on her footing entirely. Within an instant, the knight was snatched off her feet and sent flying as Nulara''s strength catapulted her down the trail. Nulara stumbled and struggled to keep herself upright, not expecting Avery to simply give in to her strength.

    Avery was able to come to a rolling stop, landing on her hands and knees in a perfect position to launch herself back into action. The sound that came from her launch was nothing short of thunderous. She barreled towards Nulara with her shield raised, crashing into a stalwart guard.  She pushed Nulara back to the stream''s bank, kicking up dust and haze as her feet dragged the entire time.

    The Crypt Keeper was losing ground, but she wasn''t ready to give up yet.  A scythe was hooked by its very nature, and most people weren''t aware of the strange benefits that it could bring. Even as Nulara was being forced to hold her guard, her blade had a free path to her opponent.

    With one swift action, she put her boot to the shield and ripped her scythe away from the deadlock. Avery recognized the dire situation she was in and threw out her blade to catch the incoming attack. Once again, she was in a compromising position.

    Nulara put pressure on her shield with her boot and continued to try and rake in her scythe with Avery caught in the middle. The large power gap was the only reason Avery was not already cut in half.

    Avery roared with all the might of a wild tiger. She used brute strength to lift the scythe up just enough to duck underneath it. Without resistance to anchor her, Nulara stumbled once more. Scrambling, she picked herself up as fast as her wits would allow.

    It was not fast enough.

    First, she saw the impish, twisted smile carved from ear to ear, and then the sting of cold metal shocked her senses as Avery slammed her shield across her jaw.

    Her head spun, and her body followed. Nulara couldn''t even muster up a thought. She was helpless as she fell to the ground, limbs splayed out with no ability to catch herself. She found herself on the floor, dazed and confused. She couldn''t even catch her breath as Avery sat on her chest and drove her blade into her stomach.

    Nulara let out a weak groan of pain. Everything was fuzzy, and it showed no signs of improvement. She could hardly hear the Opazyr knight speak over the overwhelming feeling of creeping death.

    "So, what did you do to my clansman? You might as well fess up since you''re going to die anyway~" sang Avery. She leaned in close, her smile widening with genuine amusement as she listened to her struggle to breathe.

    Nulara coughed up blood, a silent fury building her eyes like a distant flame. Avery was content to watch this struggle until she passed away, even if it took all day.

    Nulara balled her fist in defiance. She gathered up her strength for one final act, as well as some final words. "Lucy was pitiful! The Opazyr are a failure of a noble family!" She rasped, slamming her fist into the ground and driving her mana deep into the earth. The resulting explosion flooded a massive wave of lost souls, forming a raging tide. They raced towards the heavens, with no care for what stood between them and the sky.

    Avery was forced to back off or be swept up in the current. Meanwhile, Nulara had no such luck. Her body was flung towards the clouds at rapid speed. She felt the wind kiss her skin for what she was sure would be her final moments.

    But at the apex of her airborne journey, a pair of sharp claws grabbed her like helpless prey. A large bird, mutated by Descension, had grabbed hold of her body and flew off with it.

    Avery chuckled to herself, shielding her eyes from the rising sun as she watched the girl get carried off by a wild beast. "What an ironic ending for such a crude woman. Live like an animal, die like one."

    She put her bloodied sword back in her holster with one elegant motion. She stretched lazily as if she had just finished some menial task. "Alright, that was a good warm-up. Back to looking for little Lucy. Hopefully, she''s not too banged up... That woman wore a different set of robes from those mages. I wonder if any of her kind are around. I can interrogate them for more information." She let out a heavy sigh, She had to have faith that Lucy was still around, even if it was starting to seem like self-delusion.

    Nulara drifted in and out of consciousness. She watched her blood drip into the blurry gray expanse beneath her, the wind filling her ears and thoughts, soothing her frantic mind into acceptance. "This is it... Huh..."

    A deep voice resonated from the bird. "Don''t die on me yet, Nulara of Gohal¨¦."

    The way the voice touched Nulara''s soul was unmistakable. "Azylith?" Groaned the fading warrior.

    "Yes, it''s me. If you can cling to life for just a little longer, I might have a deal for you."

    "A deal with a Descended? I guess I have nothing to lose," huffed Nulara. She knew that her time was ticking to an end, but she figured she could cling to her mortal shell for about an hour. "I''ll hang on for just a little longer. Don''t let me fall asleep."

    "Noted. I''ll fly a little rough if I have to."

    Azylith''s bird flew with reckless abandon, creating a rough flight that wouldn''t allow Nulara to slip into her final rest. Her blood dripped over the Ashen Canyon, where the stones sucked it up like a dehydrated dog.

    Below, the Purlikin duo of Naesha and Katelyn sat posted outside of their cave, masked by a spell of invisibility. Naesha had drifted asleep from the hours of inactivity, and Katelyn was faring no better. She was fighting a losing battle, constantly drifting into slumber for minutes at a time before finding the fortitude to wake herself up.

    If it wasn''t for the splash of blood hitting her forehead, she would have missed the sight of blue robes silently creeping up on their entrance. She jolted awake, shaking Naesha harshly but silently. The hot-headed mage shot awake in a frenzy. She was going to cry out in confusion, but her eyes managed to find the reason for her slumber being disturbed.

    Katelyn quickly charged up her mana, planning to use her current invisibility to her advantage. She took aim at one of the crypt keepers and shot out a magical bolt of sickly green energy.

    Even with the element of surprise against them, the Crypt Keepers were too sharp for such a simple surprise attack. They dispersed as the bolt crashed into the cliffside, looking at the source of the shot only to find no one.

    "Who''s there!" Barked Hiri.

    She was met with no response.

    The Purlikin duo knew that attacking from behind their invisibility was their only way of securing victory. Their colleagues were trusting them to keep enemies at bay, and they would pull every slime dog tactic to make sure that trust was upheld.