They sat down to plan the theft but quickly agreed the first thing they needed was clothes. None of them minded looking at each other’s bodies — not even Anton’s oddly blinking skin — but after Bella sat on some grass she demanded underwear.

“Where are we going to get clothes?” Anton asked.

“I know you don’t care,” Bella said. “Surrounded by a bunch of beautiful women, I’m sure you’re bloody stoked!”

Anton crossed his arms.

“No offense, but none of you are my type.”

“Shut up.”

“You started this with your insinuations. I don’t know what the problem is. You’re not my type, and I’m clearly not yours.”

Bella scowled but said nothing.

Skidmark stalked up to Anton and leaned on his shoulder. The eyes there squeezed shut to avoid her arm, and when they did his skin seemed seamless and normal.

“So, what’s your type?” Skidmark asked. “You don’t like strong, independent women?”

“I don’t want to talk about it. We still don’t have a way to make clothes.”

Oriz spread her hands and a long strand of grass extended between them.

“I can weave something from my Skein, it won’t be glamorous, but…”

“Thank you, babe,” Bella said. “At least someone is being constructive.”

ding!

Use this.

Zoe looked down at her hand of blackened chains. There was no more coating from the [Silverbud], it must have vanished during the transformation of the New Flesh. She wondered if she would still gain the wings that came with that item, or if that too was gone. Lorilla’s words about seeking flight had not been forgotten.

But the lack of silver made the shining needle in the center of her palm stand out all the more.

[Gool's Monstrous Tailor]

[Once per day craft clothing from the remains of a fallen enemy. Attribute boost dependent on enemy level and ability]

She looked up at her friends.

“I have a solution to our problem,” she said.

###

The needle could only be used once per day, but there was no time in Hell. They set it up with the remnant scraps of the Angel and a manakin of grass that Zoe pushed over. It seemed the definition of ‘enemy’ could be quite loose.

To kill time they explored the island and went over the plan. Bella quickly found the well from Zoe’s map at the apex of the island. A three-foot-tall circle of dry stacked stones holding darkness. It was wide enough that any of them could jump down and fall without touching the sides. The depths suggested water, but there was no guarantee. Bella said it hummed to her like an open mouth singing. Zoe wasn’t sure if that was meant to be comforting or not, but she didn’t ask.

They were all different now.

The time bled as the needle flashed and the group discussed the dangers of the Angel and the methods they could use to secure the chain. Oriz provided them with some stories about Angels, but they were all so steeped in myth that they weren’t of much use. In the end, they had a lot of free time to sit and wait for the clothes. The bubble of calm and the vibrant green trees were relaxing, but inevitably their thoughts turned to the coming circles of Hell, or the mantises on the floating island of Earth, and the many-fingered anxiety of the unknown would creep in like a tide of millipedes.

They made some half-hearted plans for the town’s defense, but only Anton had any real grasp of the geography and even that was limited. There was also the dreaded question: had time passed?

Were they trapped in a sliver of a second? Or were they already too late to save the people from the devouring bugs?

Sometimes, the weight of the future must be shirked from one’s shoulders, and Zoe chose not to worry. She walked the island, practiced with her hound, and eventually manifested two. It seemed they could exist as long as she wanted, but she still kept them away from the group. Some sense of secrecy, of shame, of privacy, she wasn’t sure…

Because she wanted to ask about the Epiphanies her friends had, both the experience in the dream and the eventual rewards of the New Flesh. Anton’s was obvious to some extent, and she could see how Bella and Skidmark’s flesh had been reset, but what did they gain beyond that?

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

In the end, she held her tongue. Nobody asked her, and so she didn’t ask them. It was a deeply personal experience, and when they were ready to share they would. It wasn’t like she volunteered herself.

At last, the clothes were done.

[Angelic Grass Jumpsuit]

[Crafted from the flesh of an Angel and the grass of a loved one, these tailored jumpsuits provide comfort, flexibility, and moderate defense in all situations]

[+ 5 to all stats]

“These look…” Anton held his up and turned it around. Eyes blinked open to stare. “They look…”

“What?” Zoe said, feeling a defensiveness rise on Gool’s behalf. “They’re not that bad.”

“Outrageous,” Bella said.

“I want to tear mine a little,” Skidmark said. “You know, for flavor.”

They each held a tailored jumpsuit with vibrant green sleeves and an iridescent white torso. It stretched enough that they could slip inside them without buttons and then cinch them tight with a belt of glowing Angel leather.

Skidmark tried a crouch, her outfit followed her contours perfectly.

“It fits great,” she said. “Most comfortable thing I’ve ever worn, but…”

“I feel like a kid’s cartoon character,” Anton said as he turned around in the outfit. “This is ridiculous.”

Zoe placed her hands on her hips.

“It’s either this or you’re naked.”

“Fine.”

“Fine.”

“No complaints,” Bella said as she helped Oriz into her jumpsuit. “We look great, like a real team of do-gooders.”

“You’re making this worse,” Anton said.

“No complaints,” Zoe said.

She felt stronger when she wore the outfit. Her stats received a nice bump, but in reality, it felt good to wear something intact. The psychological component of clothing couldn’t be overstated, especially after five days — or Hell’s equivalent — of walking around a sauna in the nude.

When everyone was fitted, they commenced with the plan.

They gathered at the top of the cliff. Bella and Oriz each had their blades ready. Oriz’s long strand of grass hummed with energy.

“I haven’t used this cut since the Mirror Bell dungeon,” she said. “I won’t lie and say I’m not nervous.”

“Will it knock you out like last time?”

“I… I don’t think so.”

“You’ll be fine,” Bella said.

Her runeblade sat on her shoulder. The metal seemed darker and heavier, but Bella carried it with ease. How had the runeblade impacted her New Flesh? Now was not the time to wonder.

She wrapped her chains around the two women and lifted them up and over the edge of the cliff. It strained her to hold them aloft like this, even with [I Will Carry You] lightening the load.

Silver orbs floated free from Anton as he surveyed the area.

“All calm,” he said, and then glanced over at Zoe. “Why don’t you just touch the chain? You know, speak to it with your system?”

“The Angel blocks all communication.”

He shrugged.

“I’ll be happy when we aren’t dealing with Angels and demons and Hell.”

“Just the apocalypse, huh?”

“You know it.”

They turned their attention back to the plan. Skidmark stood by, her hands spread, ready. She had the most important job of all.

A silver orb floated beside Zoe’s ear.

“They’re ready,” Anton said.

“Three,” Zoe said, and the word was relayed through the orb to her teammates. “Two, one. Go.”

Out in the steam, the two swordswomen attacked. A blistering cyclone howled as it ripped apart space. A perfect cut whispered as it separated flesh from chain.

The cliff shuddered. Shattered stone shot into the air in a cloud of black dust. Boiling blood spurted up in a great cascade as the two blades sank into the Angel’s wrist.

Metal clanked as a colossal chain twitched — free at last!

“Now, Skidmark!” Zoe shouted.

Skidmark’s long dark hair stood on end. Lightning crackled between her fingers. Zoe felt the chains in her fingers bend toward the distortion of Skein around the Scottish woman’s hands. A long, reddish-black chain sailed out of the steam like a monstrous metallic serpent.

ding!

It’s me! Look how pretty I am!

The plan was working.

Zoe reeled in her friends. The strain on her shoulders was massive. They felt heavy, and her techniques did nothing to lighten the load.

“More power, Skidmark!”

Blue lightning flashed and sparked and Zoe hurried backward toward Skidmark, leaning on the pull of her magnetism to reel in the chains. She could feel the steady heartbeats of Oriz and Bella, but they were too steady, the Angel had their minds.

But having them rooted to her chains was better than having them stuck in place to the angel or the island. She hoped that distance would break the spell.

No, it had to.

She knew it would.

The great red chain slunk and coiled on the edge of the cliff.

ding!

Hurry, Zoe, I want it, I want it!

Zoe extended a chain and touched down on the massive link. A crimson spark passed between them.

ding!

Tee hee hee hee hee!

The red chain started to thrash and spasm. Each bucking motion shattered a link and the red rusty flakes drifted away like bloody snow.

Hurry!

Tee hee hee hee!

“Time to run!” Anton shouted.

A great shudder passed through the steam. It billowed and spiraled. A silhouette loomed. The Angel.

Zoe wrapped Bella and Oriz up in chains and brought them close. She turned and sprinted away in the steam. The women’s bodies were unnaturally stiff. She hefted them and the red chain and ran. Skidmark and Anton kept pace.

“It’s gaining!” Anton called, his silver eyes still floating around them.

The world shook. Pebbles bounced along the ground. Zoe almost stumbled in shock at the vibrations. Another thud. Colossal footsteps. She waited for the next one, and when it thrummed up through the ground she fed on the vibrations and spurred herself forward. Her chains wrapped around Anton and Skidmark. Her muscles burned. Legs on fire as she carried them all.

Bella groaned in Zoe’s ear.

“You betrayed my trust,” she rasped the Angel’s words.

“You had something I wanted,” Zoe responded as she leaped over a crack in the rock. The well was close. They would make it.

“I judge you wicked.”

“Judge all you want,” Zoe grinned as the well appeared out of the steam. “We’re getting out of here.”

“No!” Oriz croaked.

A shining hand punched out of the mists to the side. It had gained on them so fast!

She launched herself forward out of the way. Celestial fingers dug into the rock. Grooves in the earth. The stone shattered and flew away. She leaped as another hand slammed down. Steam shrouded the Angel’s head, but its eyes glowed like fire through smoke. Red orbs orbiting each other. Liquid smoldering with rage and disappointment.

The well was close, but the Angel stood between her and her goal. It drew its hands back, racking grooves in the earth deep enough to swallow her. The island of hard black rock was as clay beneath its might.

“You cannot win,” Oriz rasped.

“Only repent,” Bella groaned.

The black silhouette of the Angel loomed behind the steam. It lurched forward and a colossal foot stomped down toward Zoe’s head.