Belly Through The Brush

I stretch my body, enjoying the sensation of Blodwyn's Virtue. It's... pervasive throughout our whole body. Doing it now was the best choice as our trip to the Cathedral was... uneventful. All the previous horrors were gone, leaving it as just an empty building. Looking down at my left hand, I see my veins are differently colored. Our blood... it's no longer mere crimson. Flakes of black intertwine with the usual incarnadine, creating a splotched view into my veins like that of ink. If I didn't know any better, I'd think it was a corruption or infection or something, but no. It is Blodwyn fusing with my body and soul more and more. Tightening my fist, I feel the vigor and corded strength within. I think... I think I'm, no, we're pretty damn strong now. Smiling, I turn and follow the others as Aniwye hurries them along.

And in less than an hour, we're already out of Apathy, rushed to find my father, but not without a series of warnings from Birdie as she sprints to us, still wounded all over. The Chief is always worried about us and makes sure to let me know what we're walking into. I can't help but smile at her genuine care, the grin made by Virgil's recent advancement even more exhaustive now.

"Iva is dead, but Depravity is still under Her control. There are dozens of Angels there, and Isaac even mentioned a Dominion or two. And not just any—ones that have fully implemented the Darklight. They'll be more potent than Iva, more lucid, and far more capable. Watch out. If you want to make it beyond No Man's Land, you'll have to pass that city first."

I nod to her, understanding the risks. Aniwye also pays attention, making notes with her eye in the air. She moves it as if writing, and I can instinctively know it's her way to preserve her memory in some specialized way. I thank Birdie and turn around to continue through the Underworld, but the woman grabs me by the arm.

Her brows are furrowed, and her hands are bloodied, but her eyes are brilliant flames, both literally and not. The Chief's voice lowers to a whisper, as if she doesn't want anyone to hear what she has to say other than me.

"I'll do what I can to convince Isaac to accompany you. I know you well enough that I can figure you'll end up being pulled into fighting the forces within Depravity. It'd be good to take back the city, too. There is much in the town that we can use. Plus, it's a strategic point. So... just don't rush into anything. Take your time. Scout things out. And... wait for us. I'll get him to come. I promise."

Birdie's words are heartfelt, and I can see the genuine care on her face. Yet, I can't help but wonder why she cares so much. Sure, we've met before. But we never did get all that close. Why?

"How come you—"

The woman's gifts within her sockets flare as if to be a non-verbal warning. She leans in close, murmuring into my ears.

"Hell is breaking loose, and the living have appeared. I'm not... religious, but there couldn't be a better sign for salvation even if a God tried. I don't want to die. And even less so, I don't want all the people, dead and alive, behind us to die. I still have family. Even if... I might not know or remember them anymore, I know they are out there. My heart can feel it. And... I like you. All of you. Be a shame if you all up and died like a bunch of rats."

Then, Birdie pats me on the shoulder, stepping away from our group with a wave. Patrick is behind her, arms crossed as if annoyed to all hell. The two quickly return to Apathy, likely heading to speak with Isaac. Pursing my lips in thought, I walk back to my group, and Bonfire immediately asks me what is happening.

"She told me to be careful and take our time. Beyond that... probably better if Aniwye tells us mentally."

"Good call, little one. He is right. There are surely scouts somewhere nearby that are watching, listening, and probing for information. I would not be surprised if a Dominion of some nature was watching us even now. The Virtue will do her best to have... Isaac follow us to Depravity, at the very least."

The others nod with Aniwye's words, and even the two 'twins' seem to agree that we should keep this quiet and only in the non-physical channels of communication. As we walk, though, the conversation quickly changes as if not to draw attention.

"What's it like being a Virtue?"

Virgil's eyes flicker over from above his mask to greet mine. Even this deep into the earth, he wears clothing so tightly bound around his form. I wish he would lighten up a bit, but I know that won't ever happen. It's just who he is—a broody, quiet, emotionless man who is my most dependable friend.

"Wouldn't you like to know? Oh, wait. You do."

I grin at him as we climb over some rock. I even catch the corners of his eyes lift slightly, the semblances of joy leaking out. See, Aron? I can get him to smile!

"Of course. I see that you're trying to play catch up. But seriously, is it good? The advancements, I mean."

Virgil gained his Sigil in a similar way to how I did. Only his Sigil was born out of help from a fallen God, and thanks to the proximity of the Priest he got. Mine was simply pure, raw resonance that pulled a Sigil from a vast, incomprehensible distance.

Because of how he advanced, I know that there will be some mysteries for him to solve, namely his path forward and what his new Sigils bestows him. Yet, Virgil doesn't seem too worried.

"It's fine. The bits I know are wonderful, but as for the ones I don't, I'll figure it all out shortly. The visions weren't too confusing. Though... watch this."

Virgil bounds forward with a single step, only to vanish and reappear hundreds of feet away less than a second later. My jaw nearly drops as I see the incredible leap in potency of his Virtue. From a mere few feet to a massive distance, he can now Flicker out of any incoming danger.

From this distance, I can see his shoulders heaving up and down. For a second, it appears to be from exertion, but as we approach Virgil, I notice that it isn't. It's laughter. He's chuckling, holding his chest as he laughs heartily, something I oh so rarely see from him.

Bonfire joins in, with his own style, tossing a ball of fire at Virgil, who vanishes in place once more. The shadow appears behind Bonfire, slapping him along the back of his head. Stumbling forward and almost falling flat on his face, Emmet shouts backward.

"Oy! Why did you do that!?"

Emmet Knox rubs his head sheepishly, laughing off the pain with a grimace. He then steps back away from Virgil, raising his hands in self-defense.

"Hey! Hey! It was to test your new stuff! I promise!...?"

A long, drawn-out sigh comes from my mother as the immense demon reaches down a grand palm. Bonfire screeches as she picks him up like a baby and holds the struggling man in her grasp.

"That's enough. Let's get on the move."

"LET ME GO! Damm! Wyatt! Tell your... mom? To stop! HEY! HEY! I'M TALKING TO YOU, YOU BASTARD! I'LL EAT YOUR CARDS!"

I join Aniwye with a sigh as I spot Otto slide behind Aniwye, shuffling carefully not to be spotted as he attempts to free the fiery man. Virgil simply scratches his head with his hand before entering the shadows, becoming invisible to everyone who takes their eyes off him for even a second.

This is going to be a long road. Maybe fighting Motherbound really isn't the worst thing ever?

*************************

I'm a dumbass. Of course, it's the worst!

Cradling a broken arm, Blodwyn helps set the bone and fuse it back together while fires simmer all around us. The process is at least twice as fast as before his Virtue and along the lines of insanity. Just watching the flesh and bone molt into form throws me off every time. The heat is toasty but rapidly dropping as they melt the Darklight and Motherbound into nothingness. The road to Depravity isn't physically long, but with all the obstacles, it's going to take us a while.

"Not easy to heal. This Darklight is invasive... hard to expunge."

He says that... but he's still doing it quite fast. Nonetheless, I agree with my companion, knowing what he means wholeheartedly. Darklight is one hell of a bitch to take care of, even with Rapturous. The skill works well for Darklight from weaker foes, but when it comes to Angels and the like, it takes far too long to extinguish.

Marion and Otto, however, have been showing off their strength far more since we left the cities. They are both massively versatile. Otto can turn any object into a lethal weapon. His ropes no longer even need knives at the end of them, while Marion can copy one Power at a time from any that he has seen in the past day.

He often copies Otto, as they spend the most time together, but recently, he's been copying Virgil's, finding Flicker to be insanely oppressive when used by two people at once. One person disappearing and reappearing to stab you in the back is bad enough. Two? Yeah. Might as well die.

Without them, these battles on the road would be far worse. They may be a bit weaker than us, but the gap between Virtues and Powers isn't colossal. Eli might have been a Virtue back then, but he was not a normal one. The aid the two 'twins' can provide in a skirmish is invaluable regardless. I offer Otto some of the jerky that I brought, and he accepts it gladly. However, I notice Marion's sadness as he does so, obviously lamenting the fact that he is dead and can no longer enjoy such simple delights. Silas has long settled into the depressive nature, not even glancing at me.

Being unable to help them in any way is frustrating, infuriatingly so, but there is nothing I can do. We rest for a few hours after the battle before packing up and moving toward that distance wall of moving crimson once more.

***************************

A day passes before we take another break, despite the fact we fight dozens of times. Most skirmishes last seconds, the demons or Motherbound humans dying in just a move or two from Aniwye or Virgil. But some persist far longer if Angels are among the participants.

This break, however, is not because of any battle. Instead, it's because we've made it to Depravity, the city on the border of my vision. Aniwye can see it, too, forcing us to halt in pure caution. Her nose twitches, the bulbous thing frenetically scanning the surroundings as I can feel her mind grasping outward.

The demon's hands stretch out to either side as the happy-go-lucky environment fades on the flip of a coin. Her mental voice growls out to us all.

"Motherbound are nearby, hidden but not so much that they can hide from my mind. Two on the right, below that rock. Another one... hmm... in the air around us. Invisible or formless. Not sure. Little one. Remove the two from the rock. Shadow, reduce his noise. I'll pull the one from the air. Highest caution. All of them feel like Angels. Everyone, kill them as swiftly and as quietly as possible."

I nod to the danger, the Ether already roiling through my body, not that anyone else can tell. Blodwyn is, after all, Muting our Ether all at once. So, as I rush forward to the rock Aniwye alludes to, a grand thing of stone shaped like a malformed egg, I inhale a deep breath, bringing my shoulders back mid-run and unfurling my fingers in the exhilaration.

Air, and the Ether in it, surges into my lungs, filling me with strength. Virgil is right beside me, laying a hand against my back as his dark, tenuous Ether coats me. Immediately, everything quiets down to a far greater degree than my Silence ever has. A thin smile grows as I direct the Ether into my left arm, allowing it all to explode out without much regard for the limb.

Then, I dive, stretching my hand into and underneath the rock as I practically cut through it with the raw sharpness and speed of my body and Ether. It's been a long time since I mastered Whet, and Hone is far stronger than when I first learned it.

Rock explodes as my flesh does, too, the bone and muscle unable to withstand such strenuous forces, though the arm isn't dissolved to nothing. The Virtues from Blodwyn and me, blood and bone, help keep it all together. The noise, however, from the Explosion is limited, even as I'm sent hurtling away from the rock.

A taut rope catches me, Otto only a few feet away. With the help, I land back on my feet before the blood from my harshly injured arm even splashes along the ground. Fortunately, and expectedly for me, Blodwyn heals the arm in but a moment. My left arm is the easiest thing for him to regenerate, likely because he is beyond familiar with it.

The dust clears from the annihilated rock, but flames have already engulfed the region. Bonfire lets his heat run rampant while a swirling cloud of Darklight is brought to bear in the sky by Aniwye. Her grasping hands, reminiscent of Abraham's Force, compel the formless Angel to the ground.

And she's not alone. Marion joins in, copying her skills with his Power, only far weaker without her experience and mental enhancements. Nonetheless, the Motherbound slams into the earth with an audible groan despite not having a mouth.

I glance back and forth between the formless Angel and the cloud of fiery dust, with Virgil creeping around the edges and Otto searching for the escapees from said cloud. I'll help Ma—Aniwye. The slight disparity in thoughts in my head lasts for only a moment before I rush down the Angel, already brandishing a blade from my prosthetic while Blodwyn encourages me with Pautuhm.

"Get it! With one down, the other two will be easier!"

Agreeing with Blodwyn, I stab for the formless creature crushed into the earth using the blade forged by Earl and a dozen of my chains. The blade, despite having the vibrating Ether of Hone coating it, slides right past the being. Yet, my chains do not. They wrap around the being without form, and with a swift restriction, the being rapidly gains form.

It looks like a mantis, with two long-bladed arms on both sides, but it has the lower body of a human. I don't let my surprise hold me back, however, as I immediately strike at its thrashing form. My blade pierces through its skin, drawing sickly green blood tainted with a blackish white.

But as with all Motherbound, it heals rapidly. Aniwye strikes at its mind, too, as even Marion joins, adding even more pressure to the being. It quickly falls between the mental and physical assaults, but this 7th Sigil Power is a mighty foe.

In a one-on-one, it'd probably cause me some trouble. I'd be unsure of my victory a week or so ago. Darklight truly does make a creature more dangerous. Regardless, the moment it dies, we move to aid the other three. Virgil is tightly locked with another human, one that Silas, standing on the sidelines, recognizes and shouts out to us all.

"The man is Pete, the Axe. Dumb name, but he holds some real strength! Be careful!"

I levy my focus onto this 'Pete' as I realize he must have been recently converted. Good. He won't be as enhanced as the other ones, then. My friend deflects a disastrous axe with both daggers and his scythe that splits a cavernous hole into the floor as Virgil grunts at the effort. Not to mention, he's sent rolling in another direction. However, he Flickers away the moment his foot finds purchase in the rock.

Expecting him to reappear when he's needed, I rush at Pete while Aniwye and Marion join Otto and Bonfire against the other Angel, a Virtue by the looks of their violet chains.

With Pete, I stab at him with the blade from my arm, using my Living Manacles to pierce his long-dead flesh from different angles as well. But this guy is fast. Very fast, especially with the Darklight twisting around his legs. And each swing holds the strength of a full Explosion.

I don't know how Virgil deflected such a thing, but I don't even let myself get hit at all, evading backward again and again. This guy is only a Power, but the Darklight complements him nicely, something he's already settled into with the bursting muscles and torn skin. Phew. He'd likely be a Virtue if he had any more time to settle with the substance.

It's all so hideous to look at, and when Virgil ambushes Pete from the rear, I take the second to fashion a Ballista using my figments of Madness. It comes into being swiftly, faster than before, and I aim it at Pete while he's distracted by my friend. Before I squeeze the trigger, however, Pete's flaming sockets blink, staring right at mine.

"I see you."

My heart beats faster for a second, and Blodwyn tosses an idea at me.

"Use Insight! He's about to do something, so stop it!"

A minuscule part of me is embarrassed by Blodwyn already coming up with a better idea than me, but he's not the one actively fighting, now, is he? Nevertheless, I do as he says, throwing my soul at him and grasping at his eyes with Insight.

For a moment, I feel a colossal struggle, a weight a thousand times heavier than me pushing against my being, but I force my own weight, bringing the entirety of my soul to bear. Instantly, I know that this only works against those with vastly weaker souls. An Angel like this will break free in but a moment. And as I see from his eyes for less than a second, I yank the trigger on my Ballista.

A split-second before impact, I relinquish my hold, and the Ballista crashes through Pete's skull, obliterating his head. Yet, the Darklight, twisting and crawling, begins putting him back together. Virgil is there, however, not to let it happen on his watch.

Flashing steel, divergent darkness, and even a bit of flickering light dice Pete into pieces while I take a moment to recuperate. Gasps then Ballista wear me out as the Ether they take from me seems to scale with my Sigil, growing in might as I do. Fuck... I killed him, but it shouldn't have been that difficult, even if he's a Motherbound. I know why, though. My Ether is too far behind. Blodwyn, Painsforge, and our Powers alongside our Virtues are what is carrying me here. I need to improve my Ether control. Bad. Or else I will be wasting my strength.

But I don't rest for long on my laurels or my failures. Turning, I find Aniwye shouting at us all as the Virtue begins to run, a demon shaped like a humanoid walking deer. It falls to all fours, galloping away at a pace I know that I can't catch, one that even Virgil would be hard-pressed to meet.

Before it gets anywhere near Depravity to alert the others of its kind, as Angels don't seem to have direct connections to their God, I spot a shifting Dominion, a swift lash of a soul. Then... a head rolls.

Two humans, a man and a woman, come sprinting over from a nearby hill. Both of them have violet chains wrapping around their forms. I sigh with both relief and exasperation as Lennon Hull slices the Motherbound into a thousand pieces before delivering us a broad smile.

"Ah. Just in time."

Beneath that smile, however, I see blood leaking from his orifices. No... not leaking but instead dried. What the hell happened to them?