Beads of Blue

The jangle of chains and the steady drip of water echoed throughout my cell as I tried in vain to escape into my dreams.

Weakly lifting my head, I struggled to recall how many days had passed since I was tossed into this hole or how long it had been since I'd given up on any form of rescue for that matter. I shook my head, trying to rouse some memories.

“My name is Paris, a lowly cobbler just trying his best to eke out some form of living amidst many others in what was supposed to be one of the last safe havens in the country, but I've found that even sanctuaries cast shadows as on my usual route home, I was abducted and thrown in here.”

My thoughts are disrupted as the heavy thud of boots pounded the ground outside my cell. My eyes winced as the dim orange flicker of torchlight grew in intensity with every passing step until two dark-robed men stood in front of my cell. A rusty screech answered the crackling of the torch as one of my captors stepped inside while the other held the door.

A bandaged hand gripped my face turning it to face his own. My eyes finally adjusting to the new light, looked upon a white mask adorned with a jagged smile as the dark shimmer of empty eyes glared back into my own.

“Paris, shoe shiner, no outstanding relations, an outsider as well as no records of being admitted into Eternelle through proper channels. He won’t be missed, just another notch the guard will never find.”

My mind and heart raced as his partner spoke of my fate as one would speak of household chores, as a flood of questions began to drown my mind.

“H-how did they know so much about me? Who are these people?”

But all that panic quickly turned to horror as my eyes fell upon a sight that answered all my queries, a dark emblem on his mask, that of dark ivy coiling around a single skyward hand.

“N-Nox-Hedera”

I choked out that name as the whites in the man’s maniacal eyes widened in surprise, his hands beginning to twitch with noticeable glee at the revelation.

“To think even a lowly boot shiner knows of us, perhaps we can use this one, what say you, brother?”

Excitedly, he looked back at his partner who quickly gestured an urgent hand motion. Quickly turning back, he removed his mask to reveal an unnaturally handsome face, with fair skin and flowing oaken hair, as he spoke through a set of perfect white teeth, his voice laced with fanatical zeal.

“Paris, my name is Faux, and I, too, was a downtrodden fellow much like yourself not too long ago, you see, but through dedication and grace to our fellowship, opulence and good fortune could surely befall even you!”

With his arms outstretched and fingers erratic, he continued his crazed spiel, his words fast fading into the background as a surge of painful memories welled up; the sounds of screams and the crackle of fire echoed as I remembered hulking beasts and their dark-robed masters who bore the same emblem as they overran my village, consuming it all in a dark blaze.

The man's bandaged hands snapped me back into the present as his mania finally subsided and through heavy heaves and wild eyes, he offered me his dark pact

“So, what do you say? A true escape from destitution and much Mo…”

My response is as swift and impactful as I could manage, given my enfeebled state, as my spit landed squarely on his flawless cheek

*Smack*

The side of my face erupted in pain as faint stars crept in from the fringes of my vision, and my freshly ejected teeth clattered on the filthy prison floor below. Faux quickly wiped his face as he donned his mask once again, all traces of his amicable facade gone as he hissed in anger to his partner.

“He has made his decision known, brother. Make sure he goes today and is conscious in time for the rite.”

As he strode off and his partner approached to take his place, I fought to stay awake, my eyes darting around trying to focus on anything but the pain. Feeling the side of my face starting to swell, my eyes widened as, not far from my loose teeth, they fell upon a small pile of blue beads that lay strewn amongst the dismal stones.

“My prayer beads, they must have slipped off my wrist when I was thrown in here.”

As my mind felt a brief reprieve from seeing my beloved trinket once more, I suddenly felt the weight of the cuffs fall away as I slumped to the floor, not wasting a moment I dove past my captor with my arms outstretched as they reached for the prayer beads just as a heavy boot drove into my back soon after.

I flailed underneath his boot as I felt the full weight of the situation drive into my back, with my ribs and mind threatening to break I managed to quickly stuff the prayer beads down my shirt as that same deadpan voice sounded once more.

“Can’t have you flailing about now, let’s make this a little easier for us both.”

In an Instant, something cracked across the back of my head as my vision finally gave out, and I was finally granted that merciful escape into sleep I desperately craved.

                                                                                 * * *

My mind peacefully swam through memories of days past. I remembered a time when I was very sick and my parents would read to me in bed as they nursed me with stories of tales from long ago.

“Well, Paris as the legend goes, Abyssos, a dark place that, before you were born, cast every corner of the world into a dark turmoil the likes of which it had never seen before or since.

That was until four saints rose from the collective cries of the suffering to save us all. They were Saint Ebon, ‘The Black Bolt’, Saint Glamure, ‘The Whimsic’, Saint Solace, ‘The Charnel Hand and Saint Rosay, ‘The Immortal’

Blessed with powerful abilities and indomitable hearts, they through great strife and sacrifice pushed back the hordes of the “Sodomborn” back to their dark realms, as well as bestowing us with divine knowledge so that we too may defend ourselves.

So noble were these saints that at the end of the long battle, they exchanged their lives to ensure the sealing of the gates to that demented place, finally allowing the world the mercy of peace.

But to this day, the dark forces beyond that gate toil endlessly to weaken their bonds and invade once more, and will offer anything to anyone, anywhere, to see that goal met.

However, as long as you stay strong in your faith like those saints of eld, you’ll surely never stray from your path and always walk in their light.

My eyes began to droop as I drifted off to sleep once more, watching the backs of my mother and father leave the room as the candlelight finally died out and plunged the room into darkness once more.

                                                                                 * * *

Hooves on cobble and the smell of wood dust wake me up as my eyelids struggle to open, only to see that I’d been moved from my dark cell to a wooden box of some kind. I find that my iron cuffs have been swapped for rough-spun rope that bound my hands and feet, and that a cloth gag had been stuffed into my still-aching mouth as my head painfully lay upon a bruise larger than any pillow I had ever slept on.

Days with meager food and rest quickly ended my struggle to loosen my bonds as I lay motionless. Deciding to remain deathly still, I bid my time conserving what little strength I had left as I strained my senses to gather any clues of my whereabouts and my destination.

“My wounds are still fresh, so not much time could have passed; we must still be within the city. Eternelle, being one of the last four great cities in the country is strict with what goes in and out of the alabaster walls that surround it. If they mean to leave we’d have to pass inspection through one of the checkpoints, that is when I must make my move.”

My rest is short-lived as the carriage finally stops, as it seemed my hypothesis was correct, a myriad of noise and smells assault my senses from other wagons, livestock, and most importantly, the clanking of iron armor belonging to the town guardsmen.

Summoning the last of my strength, I throw myself against the wooden paneling of my container, each blow sending shockwaves of pain through me, as I try to force a scream through my gagged mouth.

“Please someone, anyone, hear me, I-I don’t want to just disappear, please…”

To my shock, I hear the creak of wood and feel the carriage tilt as a heavy boot lands on the carriage step outside and I hear the handle to the door begin to fidget, along with a pair of voices outside. I wreck my voice and body one final time trying to break from my bonds.

“Saints above, open the door, please, I’m being taken!”

Just as quickly as hope had rekindled, it snuffed out like breath leaving the body as a familiar cold voice hit my ears once again

“What do you think you’re doing? This is an important delivery!”

“Apologies, sir, just on errand waiting on an important parcel to arrive via sanctioned transport from the priesthood, much like this one, so I just assumed, given how rare they are.”

“This is departures, you oaf, arrivals are over there, it's pretty hard to miss like that red hair of yours, now clear out, I’m behind schedule.”

“Very well apologies for the misunderstanding sir. Good day and safe travels.”

As the exchange came to a swift end, the carriage tilted back upright and quickly jerked into motion. Hope turned to desperation as I clamped down on my gag and jammed my foot into the sidewall as hard as I could one last time. A loose board finally cried out in protest as a small beam of light cut through the darkness, giving me the slightest view of the outside, only for me to see the last of the alabaster city walls give way to a dirt-laden road.

Tears of anger ran down my filthy face as I lay in abject defeat, with wood dust clogging my nostrils and my foot now a swollen and bruised mess.

I turned away from the crack in the box to ease my frustration, only for the small wooden clatter of beads to shake me from my bitter spiral as they fell out of my shirt, seeing their blue hue match that of the sky outside a final desperate gamble came to me.

Through gritted teeth and bitter tears, I managed to undo the prayer beads and gathered them up into a small pile before me as I muttered a small prayer to anyone who would listen.

“Saints, I beg of you, may someone please find these and someday find me or what’s left of me.”

One by one, the small blue beads escaped my prison through the gap, enjoying the freedom I so desperately sought as the pile steadily shrank till only one remained.

The little orb sat in my lap as I stared at the gap and the rushing scenery beyond it. Maybe it was my pride or the futility of it all, but whatever the reason, I sighed and resigned myself to holding on to it until my final moments finally took it from me.

“Father, Mother, I’ll be with you both soon. Please stay with me until then.”

As the carriage finally came to a jolting stop, I heard footsteps approaching the back of the wagon. As my captor and untimely end grew ever nearer.

                                                                               * * *

I don’t think anything could have prepared me for what awaited me on the other side of that door as the lid to my prison creaked open. The putrid smell of copper washed over me as I struggled to breathe through my gag. Standing above me was my hooded captor, whose soulless eyes locked with mine.

“Good, you're already awake. Best not keep our lord waiting.”

Fear gripped me once more as the grim reality of the situation finally began to set in as the shadow of his brutish hand loomed overhead, gripping my collar and lifting my exhausted body from its prison with pitiful resistance.

As I was slung over his shoulder like wild game, I finally saw the carriage proper as we began to leave it behind. My throat tightened as I saw the emblem proudly displayed across its side an unmistakable blue crown surrounded by gilded divine lettering, as I dejectedly looked down, not even having to look twice to know of its validity.

“Saints preserve it was no accident that we breezed through inspection so quickly, they must also have genuine paperwork to back it all up too. Why is the Priesthood allowing this to happen?”

As I shuddered at the theories my mind concocted, I was quickly jolted back to reality as we turned a corner and hot stale air and a miasma of suffering washed over me.

The cave walls were of black stone with a row of torches adorning each side, their flames glowing dimly as if trying to escape this dreadful place, as the heat of the cave only exasperated the foul stench of death that fouled my nose.

Striding further into the cavernous hall we passed rows and rows of thick stone pillars and dark-robed cultists, all seemingly quite relaxed and excited for the evening's morbid affair as hushed whispers and chatter sounded throughout that quieted as we passed by.

Complete silence fell across the hall as we arrived before a great stone altar, completely covered in harsh etchings that just by looking at them filled me with an intense feeling of dread and tears began to well in my eyes.

As I was placed upon the altar, I weakly gripped onto the man’s dark robes in pitiful desperation as I looked at all the masks in the crowd, their serene stillness belying the atrocity that was about to take place

“N-no please I don’t want to die, please sir, anyone…”

A jovial voice shattered the silence as a pair of bandaged fingers gingerly pried mine off the cultist's robes as I was finally laid upon the frigid stone.

“Now Paris. Don’t you know it’s rude to cling to strangers?”

Faux’s flawless face entered my vision as I felt a terrible sensation wash across my body almost as if the rock meant to swallow me whole. I felt as if what little heat was left in my body began to race out as the markings across the altar began to glow a faint green.

My energy all but spent and my will nearly there, I shoot Faux the best look of pleading I can muster as my grip tightens around the lone bead in my hand.

“Ah, I oh so love that expression you wear, Paris. It’s a shame I won’t get to see it again, but rest assured, your cooperation here serves a great and noble cause of releasing our master and freeing us all from this dreadful era, one that you could have been a part of had you not refuted my generous offer.”

He flashed a look of pity as he began to roll up his sleeves and circle the altar. With a wave of his hands, his partner approached with a small box that held an ornate ceremonial dagger as he waved it around in his usual zealous fashion.

As its terrible edge came up to my face, I could barely make out my own reflection for the first time in days.

From sunken eyes to cracked lips, the side of my face had swollen from Faux’s impact prior, and so much grime had built upon me that I could pass for swine as my ashen hair was pulled back and Faux reached for my gag.

“Well, at the very least, we can do away with this dirty thing.”

As the gag fell away, the need for fresh air overtook me; Forcing my mouth open as wide as it could go, I grew desperate for even the acrid stale air of that place to fill my lungs.

And it was at that moment, that man's true sadistic nature emerged in its full repulsive display, as a wretched smile ran across his face, I didn’t even notice when the blade moved, so fast were his hands It could barely be called human and worse still it was painless to the point I couldn’t even register my own tongue lying on the cold stone before me in a small crimson pool.

“Paris, I must truly thank you for your generosity and know that you will be remembered eternally for your part in helping free the wheel of man from the mud of this so-called ‘peace’.”

Bit by Bit, pain began to spread through my mouth, as Faux picked up my stolen appendage and preached words I couldn’t hear to his retinue, the torches that surrounded the hall changed from dying embers to venomous green towers of flame as a twisted chorus began to fill the hall.

Perhaps in an act of twisted mercy, I no longer even had the energy to scream and felt more liquid in my mouth than I had in the past week with not even a single drop running over the edge. The demented altar seemingly drank hungrily as my blood disappeared like water on hot stone as I rolled over to face the dark ceiling, my arms limp and outstretched.

“Denied even the right to gaze upon the sky in my final moments, how cruel.”

As my vision dimmed for what was probably the last time, the clatter of a small bead bouncing off stone cut through the chaos, each beat like my heart weaker than the last as my mind struggled to count them.

“One…two…three…four…”

*BOOM BOOM BOOM*

The bead suddenly began to gain strength again as it bounced higher and stronger than before, the very cave beginning to shake as small rocks and dust flew down from above.

“Five…six…seven? How is that… even? Possible?”

My eyes winced as a crack appeared in the roof over by the entrance that kept getting wider with every tremor, causing a few scant rays of sunlight to leak in.

So absorbed in their hysteria were Faux and the cultists that they were too late to notice the impending cave-in

“W-what is happening?!?! We were assured this site was secret! How can this be?!?”

A Thunderous crash rang through the cave as a great slab of stone quickly silenced Faux’s cries; the impact sending shards of rock flying everywhere, as his blood began to slowly trickle from underneath it. The remaining cultists were thrust into a frenzied panic as they ran up and tried to move the large stone, only for their cries and curses to fall silent as two figures slowly descended from the heavenly breach above.

                                                                             ***

Gazing out to the shimmering warm sunlight that poured in, my eyes weakly turned to the two figures slowly descending into this nightmare made manifest.

One was a man clad in splint armor with an azure surcoat encasing his rugged frame, his armored hand gripped a sheathed blade with a bronze hilt and black scabbard fastened to his hip as he peered through a white feathered helm that covered his face.

The other was a woman who wore a sleepy demeanor, wearing a blue overcoat with hair of white and a pointed, wide-brimmed hat. Her small frame encased in with a white tabard laid loosely over chainmail as she shouldered a large book strapped to her back and a leather satchel across her chest, her ears were adorned with bronze pointed earrings as both bore a sigil I had only seen in picture books, a downward sword lodged in flame surrounded with gilded divine lettering.

“What a sight to see before I go…”

Scattering the stagnant dust as they touched down, the cultists began to draw their blades, the mass of them surrounding the small pocket of light like the shadows themselves as they shouted jeers and threats towards them.

“Sancta Spada, loyal lapdogs of the Enochian Priesthood, your corpses will be most appreciated by our lord!”

As the cultists flung all manner of epithets, the woman began to quickly scan the room as her golden eyes fell upon me and the altar across the hall, she pulled on the knight's mantle as she spoke to him words I couldn’t hear pointing at me all the while.

As the horde of cultists began to charge towards the pair, the knight drew his blade, its silvered edge gleaming in what little sun there was as he dashed forward into the crowd with a familiar boom that caused the cave to shake once more

Quartering two of his attackers before they even touched their weapons, the demented horde raised their blades, clubs, and everything in between as they charged over their cadavers, attempting to overwhelm the lone warrior as one cried out a terrible Warcry.

“The rite is almost complete, bury them both with your bodies, brothers and sisters!”

The knight began to viciously cut a grisly path towards the altar as arms and armaments went flying with every flash of his blade, the lady following closely behind him, clutched her leather satchel as my ears strained to hear their voices as they drew closer.

“Faster, sir Royce, he hasn’t much time left!”

The last cultist tried in vain to block the knight's blade, only for his weapon to shatter from the blow, its metal shards scattering along the floor, as his dismembered torso joined not long after.

“That should be the last of them for now. Please hurry, Lady Ordo.”

A familiar voice came from the knight whose face was still hidden behind his helm as he flicked what remained of the last cultist off his blade and stood guard at the foot of the altar now surrounded by at least two dozen felled.

As the woman took my head into her hands, she produced a small box wrapped in worn bandages, gently prying it open. It felt as if a fourth person stood next to us as I saw the contents of the box: a single eyeball, its iris red in color and disturbingly fresh in texture, as if it had just left its owner moments ago.

“We’re going to catch hell for this, Royce. These Saint Grafts take years to cultivate, you know.” The lady spoke with concern

The knight briefly turned as he pounded his chest with a steel-clad fist in a display of bravado. “It’s fine, I’ll take full responsibility, My lady.”

Looking back at me, she rolled her eyes quickly as she replied, “Hmph, that only works when you’re the only one getting in trouble.”

I looked at the grisly object before me as the lady brought it up to my gaping mouth, too weak to even turn in disgust, the eyeball began to shiver and quake, as it melted down to a small gooey substance, only to my surprise and horror, for it to reform into a pink and healthy-looking tongue as the lady brought it up to my mouth.

Furrowing her brows, the lady’s golden eyes narrowed slightly as she tried to hide the twinge of uncertainty in her voice, “This won’t hurt a bit, child, or rather, no more than what you already underwent, I hope.”

As if alive, the appendage latched itself to what was left of my tongue. And in an instant, my mouth and body felt as if it was set aflame, my mind flooded with visions of vistas and people I had never known as my mind left the cave behind.

I found myself surrounded by flames in a home I once held dear I looked around terrified as I saw no way out. My eyes and throat stung from the smoke and even now, knowing that this was a vision of sorts didn’t take away from how terrifying and real it all felt as I fell to my knees struggling to breathe.

The knight's voice broke through the chaos as his words broke me from my panic. “Resist it and take charge, lad, do not let it consume you; you are far stronger than you know to have lasted this long.”

Straining my mind, I searched for memories of home and clung to them, days of being in the small village, curled up next to my parents as they told me my beloved stories of those heroes and saints of old.

Fueled with a newfound determination to live, the flames and the heat began to slowly but surely dim and diminish as the house no longer was set ablaze and returned to it’s rustic self As I wiped sweat and spit from my face a pair of kind and gentle voices graced my ears that froze me in place.

“That’s our boy I knew he could do it”

“He really has grown into a fine young man hasn’t he?”

Tears began to well in my eyes as I began to turn around, only for a faint commanding voice to sound in my mind

“Don’t speak and don’t turn around and head for the door.”

I bit down on my lip hard as I clenched my fists in frustration at the vile ploy as I silently asked one question in my mind

“Can I trust you?”

“The Graft is testing you. Should you ignore my warning, we will die here.”

As I arrived at the door and began to reach for the handle, the voice of my long-dead parents sounded off one last time

“Take care Paris. We’re happy we got to see you one last time.”

“We love you, son.”

Through a deluge of tears, I charged shoulder-first through the door as my old home faded into nothingness and in an instant, I was back in the cave, my teeth clenched firmly on Ordo’s overcoat.

I turned over as I began to violently hack and cough up blood in my mouth and throat. As my hearing and vision began to hazily return, I felt my arms and legs move freely about as the lady had long since cut my bonds and was now wiping sweat from my brow.

The knight chuckled as he turned around to see me. “I knew you could do it, but you certainly are a hard sleeper.”

The knight motioned towards the glaring teeth marks on Lady Ordos's overcoat, who looked very irritated at the moment as she put the box back into her satchel

“Just be glad it wasn’t my finger, or I would’ve taken yours as recompense Sir Royce,” she snapped, her eye just slightly twitching in frustration as Sir Royce began to chuckle softly

However, in the midst of misguided reprieve the air in the cavern suddenly began to freeze. In an instant, both I and the lady’s breath began to frost as her golden eyes widened in shock at the small wooden charm affixed to her satchel.

A look of panicked horror flashed across her face as she quickly shouted a warning to her companion. The charm started to burn like a lit coal, releasing ominous black smoke like that in my memories.

“SODOMBORN!!!”

I don’t even have the chance to see it happen as Sir Royce is sent flying past us at unimaginable speed. Lady Ordo quickly tossed me aside and turned into a fine silvery mist just as a giant slab of stone came down on where we were.

My vision began to focus once more as the dust began to clear from the deadly Impact. In a horrid surprise, I saw that the blood I had hacked up earlier began to slide away like water on a windowpane across the rough stone floor towards something that lay draped in shadow.

“Tch, clever cherub, no matter, I’ll deal with her later.”

That voice cut through me like ice as my breathing began to panic and grew shallow, as the crimson droplets slowly and eerily ran up an overgrown leg as wide as my torso as it stepped out of the darkness.

An uncanny fair face soon followed, and through frayed oaken hair a pair of glowing orange pupils locked on to my crippled self below. I lay in disbelief as Faux, the man I had long resented, had metastasized into an abomination far worse.

“H-how is he alive?!?! He was crushed by that stone earlier as he stood in the aisle…”

My mind shouted in despair as Faux’s unblemished face turned to mine. His hideous discolored body followed suit as his steps thundered on the stone floor, his ragged breath causing no frost as he slowly stepped out of the cover of darkness, allowing me to see his marred body clearly.

The cave was barely able to contain his now hulking stature; his muscles bulged and spasmed erratically, his skin had become like that of a discolored leper, his arms, free of their bandaged wrappings, were covered in harsh red sigils akin to the altar’s, and his nails and teeth had turned black and jagged as the stone around us.

“It was you, wasn’t it, Paris? Years of labor now wasted, hundreds of lives sent to the Abyssos for nothing, how selfish you are, look at what I had to become just to survive.”

His voice was low and raspy but I could feel the murderous intent behind every word as he pointed a long, dark claw towards me as I struggled to stand on my feet. Not breaking eye contact with Faux, my mind was a cocktail of anger, hope, and everything in between as I christened my new tongue and teeth with their first words towards him.

“You were always a monster; now you just look the part.”

With a hate-filled laugh that sounded like a mix of the wind howling in the cave and the cry of a wounded bull, the red sigils etched into his arm began to glow akin to his eyes, as he slowly walked towards me his claws dragging along the floor with a terrible screech as he cooly spoke through a hate-filled sneer.

“I’ll make sure to take my time dining on your entrails now, die in the shadow of things and people greater than you, Paris.”

As his dark claws flew towards me, a distant boom sounded off in the distance and in a flash of red, Sir Royce appeared between us. Sparks flew and a shrill clang sounded across the cave as his sword and the creature's claws deflected off each other, as the Sodomborn cried out in surprise.

“Damnable Mutt of the priesthood, you’re quite sturdy, I’ll give you that.”

Royce quickly flashed two bronze eyes and a scarred face at me as he removed what little remained of his now-destroyed and bloody helmet; his newly freed red hair running down his azure surcoat. Readying his blade, he faced Faux once more his battle stance completely still, puffs of his ragged breathing rising above as he boldly threatened the monster before us.

“Nox-Hedera cannot be suffered to live, now come in peace or in pieces, I care not either way”

With a shrill laugh, Faux bared his dark teeth as he readied his claws and narrowed his eyes

“’ Try it, Knave.”

The two rapidly began to exchange blows, and I threw myself behind the rock that nearly crushed me for cover, just as long slashes began to crack the stone around the steadfast warrior. Lady Ordo appeared in a puff of mist next to me, her face flushed and heavily panting and clutching her satchel.

“I hate doing that. Are you alright, child?”

I nodded at her quickly as the clang of nails on blade rang continuously, and sparks flew overhead lightly singeing my hands as I cowered beneath them.

“Good then, sit tight for a moment.”

With a focused glare, she loosed a whistle loudly using her fingers and quickly unclasped her large book, its pages seemingly flipping autonomously as Royce deftly parried a viscous swipe and stepped away leaving the beast wide open. She began to speak, her voice akin to bells and chimes as she ended with two words even I could understand, “『Lux Bolt』”

, and with frightful synchronicity, the book fired a blinding bolt of light sending Faux flying across the cavern.

Standing still in awe of their near seamless cooperation, Lady Ordo nudged me as Royce ran over to us panting and scathed, his stamina showing clear signs of depletion as he wiped a streak of blood from his forehead and looked at us with grim eyes.

“He’s getting stronger with every moment. We must finish him off now, Lady Ordo. Release him.”

I meekly sat and watched as Faux stood back up, his singed flesh regressing to its leprous state as he turned his gaze to the three of us. He licked his teeth, knowing the knight was on his last legs against his seemingly endless font of hate.

Ordo bit down on her thumb as she produced a white feather from her satchel and ran a fresh bloody thumb across it. Once more, she uttered words that once sounded like bells and chimes as the feather erupted into a chromatic flame. Upon sight of it, the Sodomborn monster's sneer faded as it cried out in vengeful desperation and charged full speed towards us.

“I WON’T EVEN LET YOU GET THE CHANCE TO BRING THAT HERE”

Reaching out to the feather, Royce extended his bandaged arm and gripped the flame. The aged wrappings immediately catch the same chromatic fire as they quickly begin to burn away, their loud crackle only being beat out by Lady Ordo’s booming voice as her eyes began to glow a brilliant gold as she spoke her decree.

“The Priesthood hereby condemns this abomination. Go forth and excise this cancer upon mankind and the world 『Corpus Divinia』”

Wind howled throughout the cavern, knocking me over as ordo caught me just in time to see a truly incredible sight, the bandages now burnt away, revealed a dark arm completely etched with gilded lettering connected to his shoulder, where skin tones clashed and black stitches held it all together. Royce’s hair once a brilliant red, now began to fade to a pitch black as he looked up and flashed bright Golden eyes, much like Ordo’s as he turned to face the charging monstrosity. He responded to the lady’s request in a few calm yet oppressive words.

“It shall be done.”

As Faux was upon us, his dark claws already in motion to skewer us all, Royce in an instant stopped the black spines with aught but a single hand, sending violent gusts of wind and stone flying as the two monsters stared each other down, each pushing and struggling to keep the other at bay as Faux in turn spat taunts through his dark teeth in a mocking tone.

“So those fools in the priesthood completed their little physick experiment eh? To think your leaders deny us outright but utilize our findings nonetheless, you’ll never be as strong as us!”

Royce gazed back at Faux with a mix of Apathy and boredom as his grafted hand reached for his sheathed blade on his hilt. As I stared on, Lady Ordo grabbed me and quickly dragged me away from the two monsters as she uttered quick warnings between bated breaths

“PARIS, KEEP YOUR MOUTH OPEN AND PLUG YOUR EARS”

As I followed her instructions, a booming voice like that of a king reverberated through my whole body as I turned around just in time to see Royce’s lips and arm move in tandem.

“False, I will always be better.”

I watched in a mix of fear and awe as a silver flash sent Faux and his severed arm flying overhead in utter silence as a Deafening metallic screech from the blade came mere moments later, which was so loud I fell to my knees with Lady Ordo, Also Plugging my ears with her hands over mine.

“Stay still and stay near, child he’s not done yet, and we need to be a safe distance from those two.”

Ordo Uttered through bated breath as she loosened her grip over my ears and threw her tome on the ground and quickly began flipping through its pages as I looked back towards the two Monsters, a gargantuan gash the size of a castle gate that stretched from the floor to the ceiling was their backdrop as a weak battered voice sounded from the ailing Sodomborn.

“I-impossible you can’t be that fast, the only one who ever dared to reach the speed of the divine was….”

Faux’s face, for the first time, showed true abject fear as all color drained from his face, as he choked out the identity of the monster he now faced, as I too stood agape at the revelation of the being's unmistakable ink black hair and golden eyes.

“Y-you can’t be him S-saint Ebon?”

Faux without warning opened his maw and exhaled thick black smog, flooding the floor of the cavern as Ordo uttered another spell from her tome

“『Aer Sancta』”

As white light emanated from the book, it formed a bubble around me and Ordo as the incoming smoke parted around us like a stone before a raging river.

“Stay close. That smog is foul. It won’t kill, but you’ll sure wish it did.”

I look ahead in a panic as the Ebon is nowhere to be found in that black sea of death.

“What about him?!”

“Oh, he’ll be fine, he’s a bit sturdier than he looks.”

As I searched for Faux, I spotted a figure desperately climbing up towards the breach in the ceiling to his escape. In an instant a booming projectile flew from the sea of smog, his own dismembered arm lodging into his back with deadly precision, as it nailed him to the cave wall like a fixture.

“GRRAAAAH, NO, NO, NOT LIKE THIS, NOT TO HIM…”

“『Lux Latch』”

Nary missing a beat, A tendril of light shot out of Ordo’s massive book up towards Faux, gripping onto the flailing foot of its quarry, it began to drag him down to the cave below, his claws leaving deep fissures in the wall the whole way down as he crashed into the ground the smog as if repelled began to clear as the figure of the knight emerged unscathed the letters on his arms aglow.

“Those too cowardly to stand against their fate shall find no escape from me.”

The protective bubble faded as Saint Ebon spoke towards his cornered prey as I stood in frightful awe, watching my once captor be brought to heel as Ordo knelt and spoke once more in a much more dignified tone than before

“We should finish up here, your eminence. The knight commander will be here soon, and I wish not to tire you any longer.”

“Y-y-you bastards will pay for this. You have no idea what my death will set in motion.”

The Sodomborn spoke through choked breath as Saint Ebon walked back toward us. He began to chant softly, akin to ordo, as gilded flames sprouted upon his blade, spilling over the edge like water, as he stared at me with an intense gaze unlike any other. He handed the lit blade to me.

“End him.”

He answered my bewildered expression with a cold stare, though as my mind raced with the concept of ending a mortal life, as well as seeing a figure from my picture books of old, I found that my hand had already grasped the hilt of the flaming blade.

“I have never ended a life before. I-I’m not sure how to…”

“Do not make me repeat myself. He lives on the stolen time of those much like yourself and is not truly alive. The flame on that blade will simply rectify that.”

The Knight's cold, Grafted hand on my back slowly pushed me towards the ailing Monstrosity as the blades' Brilliance visibly caused him to recoil, a terrible sneer growing on his face in defiance of what was to come.

“So the cycle continues, eh? Heheheh, go on then, Paris strike me down but I’ll warn you if that thing in your mouth is what I think it is, you’ll wish for death soon enough….”

My hands begin to shake as Faux spat his jeers, causing doubt to run amok within me, but as I gazed in the flame, I recalled those painful memories and of the terrible acts his cult had committed, and as my ire grew, so did my resolve, as I finally stood before the evil that had tormented me and others for so long.

“For my family and all those you have taken, I will burn evil like you out.”

Faux’s pupils widened instantly as the flame grew. I steadied my hands as I pointed the blade down and plunged it into him. He instantly was set ablaze, violently thrashing as I held fast as his one arm weakly tried to pull me off, releasing a demented cry the likes of which I had never heard before.

“GRAAAAAAAAAAAH, PARIS, YOU WORTHLESS BOOTSHINER I'LL CLAW MY WAY BACK FROM THE DEEPEST PITS OF ABYSSOS AS MANY TIMES AS I MUST. YOUR SOUL IS MINE.”

And as quickly as it had begun, Faux twitched and flailed one last time as the gilded flames consumed him entirely in a large, bright blaze.

“Worry not of his empty threats, lad; they all say something similar upon dispatch, but they’ll never act upon it.”

That cheery voice broke me from my trance as I turned around to see a head of brilliant red hair standing next to Lady Ordo, who reluctantly began painstakingly wrapping his arm once again with fresh wrappings.

“Ugh, this is always the most vexing part.” Spoke Ordo in an annoyed tone

“True, but no one is better at it than you, My lady!” Chuckled Sir Royce

The two bantered and joked as if nothing had just happened as I stood there replaying the harrowing events of the past few days, unsure or perhaps unwilling to believe it was all over. An endless torrent of thoughts crashed down on me until I felt a small tap on my shoulder as Sir Royce knelt before me, the lady at his side.

“Before I tell you what will happen next, I have something to give you, Paris.”

He grabbed my hand and placed a small leather bag into it, opening it, my eyes began to mist over as the bright blue sheen of loose prayer beads shone brilliantly back at me.

“Lady Ordo was able to track you using these beads as markers, a feat only made possible by a great amount of faith imbued in them. Whoever gave you these must have cared a great deal for you. Be sure to treasure them.”

As he dropped the final bead into the bag, tears began to run down my face as memories of my family and kinder times flooded freely through my mind. The pair waited patiently for me to finish my outburst, after which Lady Ordo surprised me with a small handkerchief and a smile.

“All right, that's quite enough, Paris, now come on, look presentable, they should be here any minute now…”

At once, ropes snaked down the breach in the cave as knights dressed similarly to Royce rappelled down and began setting up perimeters, barking orders, and beginning to clean up the whole ordeal. A single knight dropped down in the center of them all, more embellished than the rest and twice as angry. He glared in our direction and barked out a single command in a voice so full of anger that some troops nearby jumped in their armor.

“ROYCE, ORDO, I WANT YOU TWO HERE THIS INSTANT”

Royce chuckled nervously as he pushed Ordo in front of him, who in turn pushed me in front of her as the three of us headed towards the mad dog made human. I smiled for the first time in a long while as I was shoved towards what surely was to be the life my family wished for in those beads of blue.