Chains of Corruption

"Now Farah!" You yell and the Ashstep begins to shake.

Twin beams of destruction blast into the beast and leave massive gaping holes in its flesh, but it is still alive. You imbue electricity into your sword and it crackles violently with the amount of energy inside it. You leap off the deck and just as you reach the beast, you slice down and release all the energy in your sword at the same time.

The slash creates a stunning arc of pure energy and it easily slices through the neck of the behemoth and even the building behind it before dissipating. You land just as the beast's body collapses to the ground and you look around. The other demons look shocked that you just defeated that monster so easily and you decide to use this to your advantage.

You yell, "Don't let any escape! Let's show Iliya what happens when she picks a fight with us!"

Your comrades and even some of the townsfolk cheer and within an hour, the rest of the demons have fled or been killed.

"Is that all of them?" Kira asks.

"I believe so, that was quite an impressive display Mika, and you too Farah." Priscilla says while catching her breath.

"Well don't thank me, I was gonna come over here and raise some hell anyway." Farah laughs.

Astrid walks over to you and says, "I had no idea you could control magic so perfectly, you took that thing down in one hit!"

You look back at her and say, "Neither did I."

Astrid looks taken back for a second and then laughs heartily. "Well either way, that was something. I feel like you just might be able to beat Iliya, aww what the hell, I'm not doing anything important anyways, I guess I'll go with you. I wasn't sure at first but after seeing that, I'd be a fool not to see what else you can do. Sounds like it's gonna be exciting from now on." Astrid pats you on the back as she laughs and you can't help but join her.

"Ok then, let's help put out the fires and then we'll meet back here and I'll cook up something special!" C.C. says.

The townspeople were already trying to extinguish the fires so it doesn't take long before you are sitting down to eat with everyone.

"C.C. you've outdone yourself with this." Priscilla says looking at the huge feast C.C. somehow prepared very quickly.

"It's the least I can do, after all, you are the ones that protected this building. I would have nothing without my home, so thank you all." C.C. says with a warm smile.

Over the meal, you describe what you went through to get back here and Priscilla asks, "So there was no slime on the island?"

You shake your head and say, "I didn't see any except what they were pumping into Mara."

Priscilla says, "Hmm, and what about the island itself? Can you describe it?"

"Dead. There were no trees or plants and even the ground looked like it had dried up." You respond, thinking about that desolate landscape.

"I see, the meteor most likely killed the plant life, and the slime took the nutrients out of the ground, preventing them from growing again. We thought the demons were using it as a deterrent, to prevent us from gaining a foothold on the island, but maybe it had a different purpose all along." Priscilla says.

Priscilla seems deep in thought, so you ask Kira what happened after you vanished.

"Well, you were talking and then the next second, you were gone! There was a little bit of black smoke but we didn't know what happened to you. Astrid thought someone teleported you somewhere, but we didn't know where. We tried looking for you, but we decided it was better to stay close to the city in case you came back. Then after two days, we were about to head to Valen City to look for you when the demons attacked." Kira says looking sad.

Then Farah slams her mug down while saying, "And then we kicked their sorry asses!"

Astrid seems to find this funny as well, and laughs with Farah. After the meal, you ask Farah if you can have a ride back to Valen City.

"Sure, it's on the way back to Cyldell so that's fine. There's a problem though, it's why I haven't left yet. The Ashstep runs solely on magicores, and using them to travel here that fast burned it up pretty quick. I thought ahead though and redirected a shipment of magicores here. They should have arrived already, but they ran into some trouble. They're alright but they have been delayed by a day or so. I'm kind of stuck here until then." Farah says ashamedly.

"It's better than walking, thanks Farah, we'll wait until you're ready to go." You say.

C.C. adds, "The rooms upstairs on the left are all clean and you can sleep there tonight. I think I'm going to take a bath, good night ladies."

As C.C. glides up the stairs, Priscilla says, "A bath does sound nice about now."

Astrid looks over and says, "Those rooms are for VIP's and all have their own restroom."

Priscilla looks up and says, "Really?"

Then Kira asks, "Hey mind if I join you?"

Priscilla asks why and Kira responds, "It's kind of a waste if I go alone."

Priscilla agrees and they make their way upstairs.

It's just you and Astrid now and she says, "I got to see how you handle magic earlier, but I'm curious, how good are you with that blade? Want to spar a little?"

You feel up for it and from what you saw of her tonight, maybe you could learn a thing or two.

"Sure, why not?" You say and lead Astrid outside.

"You already impressed me with magic so let's just use swords." Astrid brings her hands together and black energy starts to form around them. She begins spreading her hands apart and in between them you can see a pitch black sword forming. Her left hand grabs the handle when it is fully formed and gives it a swing. It makes a pulsing sound as it cuts through the air.

She smiles and says, "Ready?"

You draw your sword and nod. Astrid begins walking to you calmly and then lashes out. You know she's holding back, but her attacks are quick and powerful. You can see them coming easy enough with your powers, but she isn't leaving much of an opening to counterattack. All you can really do is block each strike as it comes and slowly retreat.

Astrid slices downward and you sidestep and hit her in the ribs with the hilt of your sword. She takes a step back then lunges at you with a wide sweeping slash. You use all your strength and return her attack. At the moment the two blades crash into each other, your sword breaks in half and Astrid's blade of energy comes to a stop inches from your throat.

"Oh shit, sorry." She says releasing the energy as her blade dissipates.

You look down at your cracked and broken sword and almost feel sad. This has saved your life more than once and now it's gone.

Astrid says, "Don't worry, I know a blacksmith in town, he owes me a favor anyway. Maybe you should look at some new armor while we're there."

You look down and realize that your armor looks mangled and even has a few cracks in it. Vestix really worked you over.

You agree and say, "I wasn't able to ask you before but, why are you fighting the demons."

Astrid looks at you and says, "Demons aren't all the same. Some of us couldn't care less about enslaving people or constantly doing evil things."

You ask her if she knows Iliya and she says, "Yes, Iliya was the first to awaken here and soon after she claimed the island. She declared herself ruler and it did not go over well. She quieted the demons and said if anyone objects to raise their hand. Hundreds of demons proudly raised their hands in defiance of this woman, but she just smiled. She spun around quickly and blood sprayed everywhere. Every single hand that was raised had been severed. Even that monstrosity we fought earlier lost its arm. Most of their wounds began dissolving their flesh and they quickly died. Some of the stronger ones were allowed to regenerate only if they pledged their allegiance to her. I had no interest in her games, so I played along until I had a chance to leave. Iliya is extremely powerful, but she isn't without faults. She underestimates humans because you are so frail, which is probably why she left you with an assassin instead of killing you herself. You won't have that advantage anymore."

"I know, I'm just glad I didn't have to face her alone." You say sighing in relief.

"Let's go back in and get some rest for now." Astrid says walking back to the brothel.

You follow her upstairs and choose a room. It's been a while since you had a bed all to yourself. After taking a long bath, you lie down on the soft mattress and easily fall asleep on the luxurious bed.

Chapter 25: The Amalgam

In the morning, you make your way downstairs and are greeted by C.C.

"Morning! Sleep well?" She asks.

"Yeah, the beds here are really comfortable." You reply as Priscilla and Kira walk downstairs and join you.

"So what are we gonna do today?" Kira asks.

You look around and see Astrid sitting in the lounge and say, "I need to have my sword repaired, and maybe get some new armor. Astrid said she knows someone."

Kira frowns and says, "What about us?"

You smile and say, "We can't leave until Farah's ship is ready anyways, just relax and have some fun while we have the chance."

Kira smiles and Priscilla says, "Then Kira and I will have a look around the city, I've always been curious about how this place works."

As you walk over to Astrid, you hear Kira complain, "That doesn't sound like fun at all!"

Astrid is looking toward Kira and says, "You sure have some odd friends."

You laugh and say, "I know, but I'm glad they're here."

Astrid stands up and says, "Come on then, let's see what old Frost can do for us."

Astrid leads you outside and past some of the destroyed buildings.

"So Frost is the blacksmith?" You ask and Astrid laughs.

"His real name is Haevar, which means 'fiery will' in elven, but he's kind of an asshole, so I just call him Frost to piss him off. We get along great, but I do like to make him mad." Astrid says with a smile.

Astrid laughs again and you hope things will go smoothly as you come to an undamaged part of the city.

"Good, seems like this district didn't take much damage last night. It's a good thing you showed up with that airship when you did." Astrid says making her way past the townspeople.

You follow her and soon she stops in front of a building. There isn't a sign or anything that signifies this is a shop, but Astrid walks inside and as you enter, you see various swords hung on the walls. There are some things that look like they are on display, but this feels like it's someone's home, not a business.

"He's probably upstairs, let's go." Astrid says making her way up a small staircase off to one side of the room.

At the top of the stairs, it is noticeably hotter and you begin to sweat.

"Frost you old bastard! How have you been?" Astrid says loudly.

An old shirtless elven man turns away from the forge and says, "I thought I told you never to come back you demon bitch!"

His voice is gruff and menacing, complimenting his appearance. He is quite muscular for his age and stands up, brandishing a knife.

"Put that down, can't you see I've brought you a customer? Or maybe you'd like me to, remodel, your home for you?" Astrid says with a smile.

Frost looks really pissed now and throws the knife into the floorboards before he says, "This is why all you fucking demons need to die!" The old man turns his back to you and sits at his forge again. "So what the hell do you want now?" He says angrily.

You step forward and say, "Umm, sir, I heard you were an excellent blacksmith and I was hoping you could repair my sword."

Frost looks to you and you hold out your broken blade for him to examine.

He grabs the two halves and inspects them before saying, "Garbage, it's not worth my time to repair something like this."

He drops your sword on the floor and Astrid leans down to him and says, "Then make her a new one, unless you don't need your fingers anymore."

Astrid looks deadly serious and you can tell the old man is scared even though he says, "Why the hell would I help you?"

Astrid points to you and says, "You're helping her, I've told you before, you're useless to me, so if you don't want to do it then I'll take your fingers and we'll find someone who will."

Frost seems unsurprised at Astrid's callous nature and turns to you and says, "You'd better watch yourself, else the demon stink will rub off on you."

Astrid cracks her knuckles and says, "Mika, go wait outside, I'll be there in a minute."

"Astrid, that's enough." You say and Astrid seems irritated but you continue, "I don't have much money, but if I can help you out somehow..."

You don't really know how to finish but Astrid interrupts, "This girl is going to fight the demons. Are you really going to let her go out with some piece of crap made by an amateur?"

Frost looks at you and says, "Fine, on one condition. You have to kill this bitch too."

He points to Astrid who is silently laughing behind Frost's back and you say, "Umm, ok?"

Frost takes another look at your sword lying on the ground and says, "You want something different this time?"

You shake your head and say, "No. I liked the way that one felt, I'd like another like that one if you could."

Astrid chimes in and says, "My friend here is quite the sorceress, so make sure it can handle a lot of energy while you're at it."

Frost looks irritated and says, "Oh, and I suppose you want it to make you fly too? Well I can't do it anyways, infused metal isn't easy to come by and the mine was taken over by monsters a few years ago. So unless you're planning on bringing me some, a normal sword is all you get."

Frost crosses his arms but Astrid smirks and says, "Fine, where is it?"

The old man looks shocked that she would help but says, "To the south. About half a day's walk and you'll see the mine, but I don't even know what kind of monsters are living there, all our scouts have been killed."

"Aww, are you worried about me now?" Astrid says with a smile.

Frost replies, "I meant her! You can die out in the desert for all I care!"

As they argue, you look around and notice that the armor Frost has lying around looks pretty basic compared to what you have and you wonder if it will hold up in a fight against demons.

"Oh that's right, she needs some armor too." Astrid says.

Frost shakes his head and says, "No, what she needs is someone to enchant that armor. What she's wearing is made from infused metal, I can tell. If it can be repaired and enchanted, it would be far superior to anything that I could make."

"And who's going to do that?" Astrid responds.

Frost looks down and mumbles, "My sister."

Astrid looks puzzled and says, "I didn't know you had a sister, I hope she has a better attitude than you."

"She lives west of the city, in a cave. She has always been a bit, different, but when she discovered those potions, she lost her mind. She drank so many that eventually, she turned into something, awful. Every part of her body comes from a different animal but she didn't seem to mind at all. It was like a game to her, but some of the people here didn't like her antics and she was forced to leave the city." Frost says.

"And you're sure your sister can fix my armor?" You ask.

Frost replies, "Well she is my sister. If anyone could do it, it's her."

Astrid pats Frost on the back and says, "That wasn't so hard was it? You should learn to be a little more cooperative sometimes."

Frost pushes her hand away and says, "Well what are you waiting for? I can't start forging the blade without the ore so get going already."

As you leave, you can hear Frost cursing at Astrid under his breath.

"How long until your friend is ready to leave?" Astrid asks.

"Farah said everything should be ready by tomorrow." You reply.

Astrid thinks for a moment before saying, "There probably won't be enough time to do both unless we split up. You need to take that armor to the enchantress, so I guess I'll get the ore."

You look at Astrid and say, "Why don't you take Priscilla with you? She can help with the monsters."

Astrid folds her arms and says, "I can handle the monsters no problem, but an extra set of hands to carry the ore would be nice. Ardent has really been hurting for metal with the mine closed down for so long"

The two of you return to the brothel and relay the plan to the others.

"There shouldn't be much trouble where I'm going, but you two can come along if you want." You say to Kira and C.C.

Everyone agrees and makes their way to the front gate. Your group heads west and Astrid and Priscilla head south towards the mine.

After a while, Priscilla and Astrid are out of sight and Kira says, "So this girl is an enchantress?"

You shrug and say, "I guess so, Frost said she would be able to fix my armor at the very least."

"I had no idea Frost had a sister, I wonder why she would live way out here by herself though." C.C. comments.

You reply, "He also said she took too many potions. It had some kind of effect on her body."

C.C. nods and says, "Yeah they're fun to play with, but you need to give yourself time to cool off before you go drinking another one, otherwise you could end up looking pretty weird."

You agree and say, "I think that's what happened to her."

C.C. shakes her head and says, "Poor thing, driven out of the city because she's different. Maybe I'll offer her a room at my place, if she wants it of course."

Always thinking of her business, no wonder she makes so much money. Kira spots a few large rocks and the three of you take a short break with the rocks providing much needed shade.

"How much farther?" Kira asks wiping the sweat from her forehead.

"All Frost said was that she lived west of the city in a cave." You reply.

After resting for a few more minutes, you stand up and say, "Let's get moving."

Your group sets out again and after about an hour, you come to a tall cliff. At the base, there is an entrance and the three of you cautiously make your way into the cave. The cave has candles sitting on stones that stick out from the walls along some of it's passageways and most of it is lit fairly well. You follow the candles and soon come to a split. On the left, there is a door that has been made to fit the irregular shape of the tunnel, and it looks out of place. The right side continues on for a while, but you decide to check out the door first.

"Looks like someone moved in, you think this is it?" C.C. asks.

"Let's find out." You say as you knock on the door.

You hear movement inside and a girl's voice says, "Who's there?"

"My name is Mika, are you Haevar's sister?" You ask the girl through the door.

"Haevar? How do you know him?" The voice responds.

"I met him in Ardent City, he said that his sister could repair my armor." You say and a moment later, the door opens slightly.

You open the door and the passageway turns into a room, and in the center you see the girl. You've seen a lot of things in this world that you wouldn't have believed before, but this is definitely the strangest. The girl has a normal looking face besides the long elven ears, but that's about the only normal thing on her.

Her torso is covered in a gold and white fur that doesn't match the feathers on her arms, which are light blue. Her arms look scrawny, and you recognize them to be like a harpy's, but there are no wings coming out of them. Instead, the girl has two large red draconic looking wings on her back. Her knees are facing backwards, like the hind legs of a beast and to top it off, her breasts are absolutely massive. You stop staring before introducing your companions and you ask the girl again if she is Haevar's sister.

"Yeah I'm Asleif, did he really not even tell you my name?" You shake your head and she continues, "Explains why he never comes around, he doesn't like what I've become, but I don't care, and it seems you aren't bothered by this either."