Shadowbane

"Wait," Markus said, stopping me just as I'm entering my soul realm.

"What's wrong?"

"Instead of relaying to us what he said after the conversation is over, or showing it to us in your soul realm, I'd rather we were all there from the start. Also..." Markus looked down, "... I really want to see the Tengu god in person."

............

{I know what you're worried about, Rei. However, fret not, Markus won't ruin the meeting.}

"... Markus is seasoned enough to not make a mistake like that, but I'll admit I'm slightly worried that his emotions may get the better of him." I looked at Markus and continued, "Your god says you won't be an issue though, so that's good enough for me."

Shana poked my thigh, "Has that ever happened to you?"

"Losing my cool and acting irrationally? Of course. That's why I ended up attacking Xelba after all. It was a ridiculous plan now that I think back on it, and it's hard to believe that I actually succeeded in destroying that place. It's a shame I wasn't able to kill Vikt---Wait..." I looked at Shana and Nisha, "Why were all of you captured and not eaten like the rest of Viseux's citizens?"

Nisha chuckled, "You're a little scatterbrained sometimes, Rei. You had weeks to ask us that." Nisha paused for a moment then continued, "Actually... Didn't we already tell you?"

Keith shook his head, "No. You told us about what had happened while Rei was out looking for food. I figured you had already told her before the rest of us had been resurrected, but it seems I was wrong."

"Oh... Whoops." Nisha leaned back against the wall, "Um, well, I'm afraid there isn't much to say. Someone had told them to capture anyone connected to 'The group who was staying at Euphemia's manor'. The person who told them that was supposed to show up and 'collect' us, but he or she never did."

"What the hell? So they were specifically targeting our group that had helped Kellog?"

"That's what the guards said. They were having a party in the guardhouse to celebrate their captain's retirement, and thanks to that they had a little too much to drink, which resulted in them telling us why we were there." Nisha said.

I looked at Shana, "And how'd you save Nisha?"

"After the Demons assault I was finally able to sneak into the portal area since most of the restrictions were gone. Jericho's people were focused on repairing the guardhouse and trying to figure out what to do next." Shana continued, "It didn't take me long to catch up to the Demons but when I did I realized that Nisha was the only person I could help. They had her at the back of the procession with barely any Demons guarding her because she gives off almost no mana signature."

Ahh, because she seems weak they probably just stuck some imps around her, and they weren't even wrong. By herself she can't do much.

"Alright, you got your answers Rei, now let's say hello to the crow," Markus said, visibly shaking.

He doesn't seem scared. If anything, he appears to be excited? It's not quite the same, but I suppose I'd be the same way if I knew I was about to meet Viktor.

I hold my hands out to the side, signaling for the others to gather around. One by one they sit down and grab each other's hands, forming a circle. Once they're ready I focus inward and enter my soul realm, pulling the others inside as well.

"... This makes me wonder how Godwin and his family are doing," Markus said as he gazed at the Xerath growing out of the ground.

Oh that's right... Long ago Markus was inside my soul realm along with Godwin's family. I hope they managed to escape Urza.

{Please begin.}

"... Alright. Here we go, everyone." Even at this point it's still surreal that we're actually doing this.

I focus on the small connection the Tengu left behind during our last meeting. At first nothing happens, but eventually I started to see my soul realm change. The world itself began to dim until the light was nearly blotted out, and that's when I felt the Tengu's connection flare to life. Immediately, the Tengu's massive form appeared in front of us. As usual, it dug deep into the ground as it peered down at us.

"It has no legs...?" Markus mumbled.

I didn't notice it last time, but he's right... That's definitely odd.

{ALIVE... HOW?}

So he knew I had died in Viseux? Either that or he just assumed.

"I don't know..."

The Tengu looked around at everyone here, ending with him staring at the sky.

{THE DAWN GOD... FASCINATING.}

And it seems he also knows Arkaios is here...

"Tengu, we... No, I, wanted to ask for your help."

The Tengu looked back at me. While he's not quite as readable as people are, I could clearly see how confused and stunned the Tengu was. The idea that someone might ask him for help was probably not even a possibility in his mind.

"Do you know where we are right now?"

The Tengu closed its large golden eyes and re-opened them about ten seconds later.

{VECA... LOST... USELESS... ANOTHER DEMON STRONGHOLD.}

"They have that much power here on Veca? We only know that they were near... uh..." Shit, what was the nearby nation called?

{Belfor. We are in my temple near the ruined nation of Belfor.} Arkaios said.

{BELFOR... WHY?}

"Demons brought my friends here and forced them to dig for something. Now the area is covered in a dense fog and there are unknown large monsters prowling around everywhere. Also, this is just a suspicion on my part, but I think anything they kill turns into a puppet of something else here."

"What?" I heard both Markus and Keith say as they turned toward me.

"The Lion and Minotaur; they both had pure white eyes and blood drizzling out of them, and like Albel said, the Minotaur was weaker than it should have been. I don't know if the Lion was originally stronger though."

It was almost imperceptible, but I noticed the Tengu react to two specific parts of that back and forth. The Demons digging for something, and my description of the creatures I believed to now be puppets.

{............}

The Tengu closed its eyes again.

{... I HAVE ONE CHILD ON VECA... HE DOES NOT LISTEN TO ME... BUT I WILL RELAY YOUR REQUEST TO HIM...}

'Does not listen to me'... Just like Arkaios said, there are some Tengu Lords who follow their own path.

"What is he doing on Veca?"

{KILLING DEMONS... THREE CONTINENTS NORTH OF YOU...}

"Shit... Even if he agrees to help, it'll take him ages to get here." Lindon whispered, but the Tengu heard him anyway.

{NO... FOUR... OR FIVE DAYS...}

Tengu Lords can cover that much ground? Either that or this specific one is much faster than the others.

... Honestly, I'm surprised at how smooth this conversation is going. It's not like I had any idea of what to expect, but there must be a reason he is relaying our request to one of his Lords. Possibly something related to the digsite...? But it could also just be on a whim since we're the first people that have ever asked him for help. I don't know that for certain, but I'd be shocked if we weren't.

{HE HAS AGREED... THREE DAYS...}

"Why are you helping us?" Markus asked.

The Tengu looked at Markus and narrowed his eyes.

{TEMPLAR...} The Tengu leaned down and turned his head sideways so one of his eyes was a few feet from Markus, {YOU AND YOUR GOD... ARE FOOLS...}

Markus gritted his teeth, "And why is that?"

{RAI'GA... TSUKIKO... SHIVA... DO YOU TRULY NOT UNDERSTAND?}

"Huh...?" Markus was clearly puzzled. He was not expecting the gods of Urza to be mentioned in this exchange.

{Can you please elaborate?}

{YOUR 'BRAND' IS NOT SPECIAL... ELDRITCH ALSO INFUSE HUMANOID SOULS... MAKE THEM A PART OF OURSELVES... MAKE THEM IMMORTAL...}

"Everyone knows that! What does this have to do with the gods of Urza?!" Markus yelled.

{LIKE I SAID... FOOLS... I REPEAT... MAKE THEM IMMORTAL...}

"And like I said, we already know that..." Markus replied.

"Wait... By 'immortal', do you mean complete immortality? As in the Eldritch can secure a line to their worshipers and revive them whenever they die like you do with your Lords?"

{INDEED... SAW THROUGH VIKTOR... AS EXPECTED... THE OTHERS SHOULD SEE THROUGH ELDRITCH TOO... SIMPLE CREATURES... EASILY CONTROLLED...}

Lindon scratched his head, "Um, can someone explain it to me? I'm one of the 'simple creatures' apparently... I don't get it at all."

"My Lord?" Markus said.

{... I had wondered about this long ago, but none of the Eldritch were saving their people from Meizha'thul, so I figured it was impossible for them to protect souls in the same manner that I can. There are always exceptions of course, so that's what I considered the Tengu. Nothing more than an exception.}

{YOU TRULY DID NOT KNOW...? FOOLISH INDEED.}

If what he is saying is true, then... Shit, that changes everything. It would mean the Eldritch who form nations aren't doing it out of some desire to create kin of their own that they can nurture and assist, but instead they're more like a bunch of farmers fattening up pigs to feed to the queen of all monsters. Except that raises another question, why the hell would the Tengu care about any of this?

"Why would any of that matter to you?" Keith asked before I could.

{MEIZA'THUL... MOTHER... THEY ARE MY ENEMY... YOU PAWNS ARE IN THE WAY...}

The vitriol with which he said 'pawns' speaks volumes about his feelings towards all the different races who worship Eldritch and form nations around them. Ahh shit, now that I think about it, that means Terra'ka is probably the same way... That could become a major problem. But for the time being I won't bring it up around Ishar since he looks like he's already been through hell and back. The last thing he needs right now is to hear more bad news.

"Mother..." Nisha trailed off.

... Yeah, her name being dropped here didn't slip by me either. I heard theories in the past that Mother was actually an Eldritch, but everyone always laughed those people off as if they were crazy.

"Mother is an Eldritch...? How is that possible? She's a planet." Markus asked.

The Tengu pulled the claws from his right hand out of the ground and proceeded to draw four circles on the ground. A massive, large, medium, and a small-sized circle all lined up next to each other.

The Tengu pointed at the massive circle. {MEIZA'THUL...}

He pointed at the large circle next. {MOTHER...}

The medium-sized circle. {PLANETS... AETHERIA...}

And finally the small circle last. {MOONS... URZA... VECA...}

Everyone went silent as they digested the horrors of this information. But I had one more question nagging at me.

"Eldritch are created through these moons and planets, right? Is their spawn rate tied to the corruption level by any chance?"

To my right I could see Keith whip his head in my direction. His eyes were wide open in shock.

I'm not surprised that he was the first to realize why I was asking that. After all, he's the one who ended up sacrificing people in a vain attempt to escape Urza. And why did he do that? Because Eldritch and some Demons were popping up everywhere, which led to the death of many of his friends and a few loved ones. And that was all thanks to Xelba and Jericho. After all, they are the reason the corruption level of Urza kept on rising. Keith's Demon ritual just so happened to be the tipping point.

Surprisingly, it all leads back to Viktor...

The Tengu looked at me but he didn't say anything. It was hard to tell, but he appeared to be happy. After that he looked up into the sky.

I really doubt Aresa knows about any of this. Shiva died the moment Aresa was born, so the only other Eldritch who could have told her was Rai'ga. Whether he did or not, I don't know, but she believed he lied about everything, so she would've thought the same thing concerning this information as well.

"One last question. Why are you trying to capture Aresa? She's only a lord."

{SHIVA NEEDS HER... ANCHORED HER SOUL TO THE GIRL...}

So it was to prevent Shiva from coming back... I didn't know about the anchor part, but I had a feeling it was related to Shiva.

{ONE REQUEST FROM ME... SAVE THE NINJAS...}

Shana, who had remained silent up to this point, was obviously surprised at the mention of ninjas from the Tengu.

"Why do you want us to save them?" Shana asked.

{WHY...? THEY BELONG TO ONE OF MY CHILDREN... THIS GROUP... LED BY A FOOL... BUT SAVE THEM ALL THE SAME...}

I thought Shana was going to say something else, but instead she just sat down and went silent again.

"... Are we done here?" Markus asked.

Instead of answering, the Tengu lifted himself up a little and promptly disappeared. Shortly after that I could feel his connection to my soul close shut.

"Looks like we are..." Lindon mumbled.

I exit my soul realm, ejecting everyone from it in the process.

"So the ninjas serve a Tengu Lord? Now that I think about it, the girl I got this artifact armor from originally had the artifact in the same aesthetics as your armor, Shana. It was kind of dark in that home though and I only saw the outfit once, so I didn't connect the dots until now."

Nisha walked over and sat down next to Shana, "You okay?"

Shana shrugged, "It doesn't bother me. If anything, I'm happy knowing a little more about my grandfather. I don't know the exact reason he fled to Urza, but it's not hard to guess based on what he was working under."

"So are we just going to wait for the Tengu Lord to show up?" Albel asked.

Markus sat down and began praying, "That's exactly what we're going to do."

"Actually, I'm going to head over to the prison and scout it out some more. I can't help Ishar and the others yet, but it can't hurt to know what else is inside the prison."

"Good idea, we could always use more information," Markus said.

Nisha looked up at me, "I don't understand... Are you never scared? I know you can turn invisible, but the area over there is filled with monsters who can still see you under the right circumstances."

"Scared, huh... Sometimes I am. I'm definitely afraid of the spider capturing me again, but I know Arkaios will save me."

{It was close, Rei. Very close. I felt something locking onto your soul, and if it succeeded, you wouldn't have reset back here. Anything that affects the soul can intervene directly in the reset. That 'prince' is most likely dead by now, and because of that, the timeline is going to get a little weird over there. The spider is going to know something is up after the next reset. One moment it'll be eating the prince, and the next moment it'll be eating someone else.}

... Thanks for the pep talk, Arkaios. Now I'm a little scared, but I still think I should scout the prison out. As Markus said, any amount of information going forward will be useful. Unless we destroy the prison, the Tengu won't be of much use inside of there, since it obviously can't fit. We might actually need to do that though... I really don't like the idea of fighting that spider without the Tengu's support.

"Alright, see you guys in a few hours. Hopefully I return by foot this time."

I waved at everyone and exited the temple.

Well... I circled the prison, and I found another entrance, but I think I'll just need to get used to evading the three-headed dog. There are dozens of Demons strewn throughout the courtyard in front of me, and while I'm not sensing anything from them specifically, there are hints of another type of aura here and there.

Traps...? Yeah, it's probably traps, and lots of them. This fog is messing with my senses so I can't really pinpoint them, it'll be risky to go this way. Plus, I severely doubt these Demons aren't puppets. I bet if I trigger one of these traps... Actually, let's just test it.

I walk over to a small barrel and tip it over, causing a bunch of wine to come spilling out. After most of the wine is gone, I kick the barrel forward, making it roll toward a 'dead' Satyr sitting with its back against a well. The barrel got about halfway to the Satyr before it suddenly sprang to life, leaping at the barrel and destroying it. The Satyr immediately sits back down but I can see its head, and the heads of every Demon here, darting back and forth as they scan for enemies. This is so unbelievably creepy... As if I needed yet another reason to be disgusted by Demons.

... I really want to know what is in this side entrance. I can see that it leads directly to a set of stairs going down. This is an information-gathering mission, so I might as well just risk it.

I run to one side of the court and begin throwing the wine-filled barrels at the Demons on this side of the courtyard. In response, every single Demon springs to life and begins sprinting in this direction. Immediately I pivot back the other way and try to run through the other side of the courtyard that's now devoid of Demons, but I barely get ten feet in when I step onto a trap that explodes. The artifact armor absorbed the damage from the blast as the impact sent me flying forward. I landed near the entrance, rolling as I hit the ground. I immediately jumped to my feet and dashed through the door.

Upon hearing the blast, the Demons had all turned around and sprinted back to where the trap went off, but I was already long gone. That tactic went much smoother with the dog out front...

I run down the stairs until I reach a large corridor filled with cells on both sides. They're all filled with mutilated corpses... The stench in this room will be unbearable for the others. Hopefully they won't need to come down here.

I walk through the corridor, scanning all of the cells for anything of value, but all I find are rotting corpses...

About halfway through the cells, I spot a girl on her knees. Her hands are wrapped in chains above her head, and the top of her chest all the way down to her belly button is completely ripped open. Demons did this...? It looks like a surgeon had opened her up and just left it like that. What a horrible way to go...

The door to the cell is slightly ajar. I push it open and sit down next to the girl. Light brown skin, black hair down to her waist, and a very pretty face. Her hair looks just as silky as Aresa's... Was this girl also a noble?

As I'm looking at the girl's vacant eyes, I feel a sense of disgust and dread crawl up my spine, and that's when I realize that the girl's eyes are slightly moving. Next her lips open ever-so-slightly, and that's when I hear her whisper something. This girl is alive?! How the hell is that possible? She must be inhuman like me... Otherwise this just makes no sense.

I put my ear next to her mouth. Because of how low she's talking it takes me a while, but I eventually figure out that she's saying 'Ring'.

A ring...?

I look up at her hands wrapped in chains, and sure enough, there's an indent on one of her fingers suggesting a ring had been there until recently.

... So what exactly is going to happen here if I find this 'ring' for her? And I'm also surprised at the fact that she knew I was here. It's one thing if massive monsters with souls far more powerful than my own see through my veil, but when this should be dead noble girl senses me, I'm really not sure what to make of this.

She's definitely piqued my interest though... If I find this ring of yours, I'll bring it back for you girl.