I secured her in my arms and started running. The rain pelted my face; without my cloak, I was exposed. But my fur rebuffed the water, and I lowered my head as I ducked through the city streets.

People screamed—those that hadn't run away and hid—but I ignored them as they became a blur. Behind me, mayhem ensued, but I jumped and easily cleared the wall of a building, crashing atop its roof. Metal bent, but I kept pushing forward.

Above, the lightning storm oscillated between red and blue, the blinding lights coloring the void in the sky. The heavens roared, and lightning struck somewhere far for the dozenth time.

I took it all in, breathing in the smells as I cleared a long jump and stopped at the foot of the mountain. The rocks were slick with rain, but my claws found purchase. It was hard, not being able to use my arms, but my strength allowed me to kick into the stone itself and climb.

The sky crackled, and my fur stood up. My eyes widened, and I jumped away, but it didn't matter. The crimson lightning struck the castle, sending massive chunks of stone rolling down the cliff. I tasted rot on my tongue and snapped my attention to the top. I jumped and landed using short hops to reach the final plateau. Mud splattered the ground, and I pulled myself out.

"Mmmm," Alice groaned.

I looked down and grinned. It didn't come across as friendly in my current form, but she'd understand.

"You're awake. Does it hurt?" I asked, hunching over to protect her more from the rain.

"Uuuugh. I feel broken," she coughed.

My smile dropped, and I licked my lips. "You are. But alive."

Her eyes fluttered open, and she blinked as she took in my form. For a moment, I paused there as the wind battered my back, and the rain steamed as it rolled through my fur.

"You're warm," she grunted before wincing in pain.

I laughed. "I am."

"So I'm a broken mess once again," she said, closing her eyes. "I thought it'd be different this time."

I shifted so she was closer to my face. She opened her eyes and glared.

"I'd be dead without you."

"I should have killed it."

I looked across the area, where the broken walls of the castle dotted the landscape. "Or I'd be dead. I think we're even."

"Fine," she said, looking up and grinning. "Don't let Devon hog the glory."

Another laugh escaped, and the storm thundered, blanketing the sound. Alice closed her eyes, and I moved into the remains of the castle interior. One of the walls was left standing, and the overhang was barely keeping out the rain.

I placed her into the chair and slowly let go.

She groaned and gripped the armrest hard enough to crack it. I waved goodbye and jumped through the rubble, entering the still-standing hallway. The smell was obnoxiously strong, and I felt the mana in the air like watered-down molasses. I reached the shut door and gripped the lock. It felt abysmally small in my claws.

Creeek!

Metal tore away, and I flung the door into the grass. I growled. The smell hit my nose like a hammer.

Corruption! Purge!

I shook myself and reached for the nearby tapestry, running my claws through the fabric. I created strips and broke them down further before bunching them up and shoving them into my nostrils.

Much better.

It didn't entirely block out the smell. The hunt-obsessed beastie that took up residence in my head stayed agitated, even as the nose-plugs allowed me to breathe. It coated my tongue in the scent, but I snapped my jaw shut and pushed through the destroyed room.

The alchemy lab was gone. Instead of beakers and test tubes, there was shattered glass and broken instruments. The materials crunched under my feet as I reached the door to the greenhouse. There was a rune painted in dried blood across the metal.

I raised my arm and conjured a flame. My blood rushed into the mix, and a jolt of electric fire sprang to life, coloring it emerald. I closed my fist and let the mana build until the air warped. The flames licked the rune and flashed in my sight before my fist dented the metal. The fire exploded and burned through the dried blood, leaving the door a broken heap of scrap that I tore off its hinges.

As soon as I entered, I took in Renner's form. He sat on a throne of black vines curled inside the precious flower he had shown before. Sap covered his lower half up to his lap from inside the petals.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Three layers of dried blood covered the area around the flower, trapping them inside the middle, where the pentagram widened into swirling lines. They glowed, and I made out the gleaming golden thread cutting into the stone.

Renner sat up and coughed up black tar that spilled down his front. "I shouldn't have underestimated... A Grimm."

I took in the area, noting the spiderweb of thread weighed down by screaming souls. My heart thumped, but I reined it in and stopped at the circle's edge.

"Why? Why do all this?" I asked.

"Because!" he shouted before hacking up more of the fluid. He grinned at me with black teeth and could barely lift his head. He grasped his shirt and frantically tore it away, revealing the collar around his neck. "Revenge! Simple!"

"That's it?"

His grin became a snarl, and he clawed at the air. "Yes! Tortured for years! Tortured and freed only to become a slave the moment they learned of my mana! Of my power!"

I looked up and took in the souls. They weren't children but the transparent faces of screaming men and women.

"And this was your answer?"

"What do you understand! A monster!" he hacked before he slumped forward. His arm spasmed as he struggled to hold himself up. "You're not chained! You don't know what it's like! To be seen as too useful to die, and too strong to let free! You're... Feared. Respected! But not me!"

I snorted and circled around the flower. The lines were perfectly symmetrical, each line whole and unbroken. I could feel the power like a live wire waiting for me to touch it.

"Got nothing to say?!" Renner spat.

Finally, I looked up and glared. The flower convulsed, swallowing more of his body.

He met my eyes and smiled as his arm sank beneath the sap. "That's right. Look at what I've become. A monster! Just like you. No more chains!" he gurgled as his chin skimmed the surface of the sap. "No more fear! I'll rule the kingdom! Me! Me!"

His mouth sank below, leaving his nose just above the sap. I grabbed a nearby pot and hefted it, testing its weight.

It's so light.

I launched the pot into the barrier and watched as a wall of crimson energy tore it to pieces. The air rippled like water. It settled, and the color faded, returning to the invisible state it was a second before.

"You'll see! I'll become the king! The ruler! The corruption is the key! The cure! Watch my ascension! Become my pet, and I'll spare you!"

His voice invaded my mind like a buzzing fly.

I growled and let mana rush into my claws. "Do you ever shut up? You weren't this chatty when we met."

His body had fully submerged, and the flower closed. Vines weaved together, creating thick strands that surged forward toward the edge of the circle before crawling up.

"I'M FREE! I'M FREEEE!"

I extended my arm and pictured the ball of light. It floated in the void until the mana surged into its core. Light became fire and burned away the darkness. The orb formed in my hand and erupted in emerald flames that crackled with energy. It snapped at the air and grew twice as dense.

The flower continued to expand, the petals elongating until they draped the floor.

"Shut up."

The fireball zipped and splashed along the barrier, creating a wall of verdant napalm. The crimson tide rose and tore at the mana, but the flames reformed and continued to burn until the entire section in front of me became a wall of green.

I conjured another orb and let it grow, watching the barrier struggle to keep up. The souls above vibrated as if the wind were tearing at their chains as the fire continued to rage.

"What are you doing?! This is my ascension! My right! Suffer! Stop it! Go away! Die!"

Renner continued to rant inside my head. I circled around and lobbed the second orb at the wall. When the barrier appeared, the string of souls to my right snapped and faded away.

"Stop! Stop! STOP!"

A third time, I created holes the size of my fingernails. The fourth orb burned a hole the size of my head.

Renner increased his screams as the flower sprouted thorns along its vines. It bunched up and split, revealing a feminine form that looked familiar.

"So that's what you did with the queen," I muttered.

It was her form, but her hair was made of vines, and her skin almost black and glossy. She had no eyes, just two crimson pits that wept black blood. It seeped down her body. The ground sizzled and smoked, filling the air with a tang that burned through the wads of cloth.

"I have ascended Grimm! A monster just like you! My roots will spread; this will be my kingdom! Those who defy me shall wither!" Renner screamed.

I crouched and then jumped. My arms tore through his stomach. Crimson eyes bore into me, and I lifted him into the air.

"I said shut up," I growled.

Mana crashed through my veins, but before I could conjure the flames, a mass of vines sliced my skin and pushed me onto the floor. I tried to stand, but the vines surged and wrapped around my limbs. They snapped and shriveled as I tore myself free, but a rope as thick as my torso forced me back.

Crack!

"Beg and agree to become mine! Swear to the system. Make the oath!" Renner ordered. "Do it or die!"

Screw this.

My core exploded, rushing down my limb and-

I blinked and looked down at the massive vine impaling my chest. The mana that begged to be used stuttered. My core was sluggish, unable to respond.

"Swear the oath!"

I raised my left arm, grasping the vine bef-

Snap!

My arm dangled uselessly as it slipped from the tendril and hung limp.

Renner leaned down, his hair entangling my fur and pulling me closer. I grunted in pain and was forced to lean forward until I was barely an inch away from his face.

"Last chance. Become my dog or be consumed!"

I stared as the vine continued to dig through my chest. It grabbed my ribs and snapped the bone. My roar came more as a pitiful whine as a vine snaked around my throat and pulled me closer.

"Well?"

"I..." I whispered.

"You?"

"I..." I said again coughing up blood. "Swear to..."

More blood rushed through my throat, and I tried to spit, but it merely dripped down my snout.

"Say it! Say it!"

I grinned and channeled the mana left in my arm and into my hand. The connection ever faint, but I could feel it approaching, growing stronger.

"I swear to you... Nothing, you pathetic bitch."

The vines exploded, and the corrosive tar ate my skin.

"Die! Ignorant miscreant! A fool! You'll die! I'll kill y-"

Slthick!

My axe smacked into my palm, and Renner's head rolled free. As it came to a stop a foot away, he blinked, his mouth moving open in a stutter as his tongue failed to cooperate.

"You know, you're not the onlu jerk who's tried to enslave me?" I spat.

He garbled something, but I couldn't understand why, as his tongue continued to slip out of his mouth.

"Fuck you."

I threw my axe, and the blade sank between his eyes.