Time itself seemed to slow to a near halt as the monstrous entity cackled manically. Aridean watched, utterly mortified, as her protector slowly slumped to their knees and ultimately to the ground. Despite the loud and sinister laughter, all Aridean could hear was the sound of her heart beating in her ears. Eyes, lined with wet tears, wide and focused in on what was unfolding in front of her. Her mouth had fallen agape and she was not even sure if she were breathing.
“N-no… you… b-but why?” Aridean softly called out. Before her lay her savior, the one to have suffered a mortal wound at the hands of the abominable Carla. A warm, red pool was slowly collecting around them. Aridean, unable to think straight and still sore after the demon’s first attack, finally drew a breath. Slowly, she began to crawl her way up to the one to have saved her from certain death.
That… didn’t just happen… no, it couldn’t. Please, get up… please, Aridean mentally pleaded her with her friend. She reached her friend’s legs and pulled herself over the stone floor that was pooling with blood. Nothing about what was happening seemed real to her.
“N-n-no, you can’t… y-y-you said you’d…” Aridean lamented as her vision blurred through the tears. Just as Aridean reached her friend’s side, she took their hand in her own. Her desperate eyes looking into her friend’s; their eyes were empty and lifeless. Aridean, seeing there was nothing left, began choking on her own breath as she sobbed quietly. As the dust continued to settle, an alarmed gasp could be heard from where the stone wall had been breached.
“Oh… God help us,” Magdalene could be heard begging from beyond the near settled dust. Her tone was full of shock by what she had discovered. Aridean turned over only long enough to glance at her remaining comrades with tear-flooded eyes. The girl covered her mouth with her hands and looked on in disbelief. Beside her was a black furred minotaur whose dropped jaw and eyes showed even further refusal to believe the sight ahead.
“Oh, don’t worry, whelp,” Carla taunted as her laughter quieted down. The vicious woman put her hands on her hips and leaned forward toward Aridean. Looking up to the vile monster, Aridean could see her despicable tentacles reappearing from the dark beyond. With a smug look on her face, she continued, “You’ll join h—”
“NOOOO!!” an anguished cry of remorse rang out. Carla rolled her eyes with an annoyed expression on her face as she turned toward the dust cloud. However, her crimson eyes immediately went wide as something was fast approaching. The scarred woman stumbled backward; her head having been thrown back as a crossbow bolt now rested within her forehead. In the process, she had dropped Aridean’s axe to the ground. Aridean’s weapon hit the ground beside the woman with a loud crash.
Carla stumbled backward just a few feet, her head held back and facing up toward the tomb ceiling. Having regained her footing, the monster stood, still as a statue. Aridean watched as the entity simply paused for the time being, its vile tendrils having vanished into the dark again. She could hear the rush of hooves clopping on the stone as Vidor ran to her and Rana. The male minotaur wasted no time in skirting around Aridean and kneeling down at his sister’s side.
“Rana?! Rana! C’mon, please! Don’t do this! You—you promised me that--” Vidor shouted as he rolled Rana over onto her back, only pausing as he looked into her lightless eyes. He had begun to lightly shake his unresponsive sister. Aridean surveyed Vidor and his fruitless attempts to rouse Rana; the longer she watched the more sorrowful her heart grew. He looked up to see that Magdalene was still standing at the blown-out hole in the magically erected stone wall. With pure rage and urgency in his voice, Vidor shouted, “Get over here! Heal her!”
Having been brought back to reality, Magdalene quickly raced her way over to her minotaur companions. As she knelt down beside Aridean, her hands began to glow. As the girl’s hands passed over her body, Aridean felt almost immediately revitalized. Injuries and aching from having been thrown against the stone wall had been entirely undone as Magdalene worked her healing magics. As Aridean began to sit up again, Vidor impatiently took the half-elven girl by her still glowing hands and forced them over the gaping wound in Rana’s chest.
“What are you--? She… she’s already--,” Magdalene calmly and somberly stated as she tried pulling her hand back. Vidor looked into her eyes with utter resentment. The frightening gaze that Vidor was giving her was enough to cause Magdalene to freeze up again. Once Vidor looked back to his sister, cradled in his arms, Magdalene too looked to Rana. Lifeless eyes looked up to the ceiling and Magdalene shook her head gently. As her hands slowly turned into loosely clenched fists, the magical glow surrounding them began to dim until they finally vanished.
“What do you think you’re doing?! Help her!” Vidor violently snapped at the girl. Magdalene remained silent, simply looking into Rana’s face with a somewhat upset look on her face. Aridean, tears sliding down her cheeks, watched as Vidor jerked on Magdalene’s hand as he desperately tried to have her channel her magic again. His cracking voice, growing more and more desperate, could be heard pleading, “Help her… help her… pleeeease… Ranaaaaa…”
“I… I couldn’t even help that man back in Thellia… I can’t do anything here… Rana’s already…” Magdalene choked as she turned away. Despite not fully accepting the reality, Vidor’s grip on Magdalene’s wrist was released as he moved his hand to Rana’s face. Tears flowed from his eyes and gently fell upon his sister’s still face.
As Vidor sorrowfully moaned, Aridean heard the clicking of shoes on the stone floor coming from Carla’s direction. She watched as a hand was lifted from the side of the body that had remained still for some time. Her hand daintily wrapped fingers around the crossbow bolt that jutted out from her forehead and gently began to pull upward. Aridean watched as the bolt was removed from the beast’s skull with a sickening sound of flesh being torn apart.
“So very rude! Vlad, you keep some of the worst company,” Carla mocked as she brought her head back up to look upon the group in front of her. Aridean, despite having deduced that the entity before her was a demon, was still in awe by how the crossbow bolt left no damage to the body. Carla held the bolt that Vidor had fired in between two fingers. With a smug and devilish smile, the arrow was snapped into two pieces between the fingers that held them. However, as the broken bolt hit the ground at her feet, another had been fired directly into her skull again.
“How is this bitch still alive?! I’ll kill you for what you’ve done!” Vidor snarled as he reloaded his crossbow. With a bolt set, the minotaur rose from his place on the ground and holstered his weapon. Aridean watched as her friend rushed the evil woman that had survived two crossbow bolts fired into her head. Magdalene had turned back to watch the outraged minotaur charge forward, the young girl seemed to be in a bit of a daze just watching Vidor. Vidor drew two of the daggers he kept and launched a flurry of swings and swipes while Carla simply accepted the onslaught.
“Vidor!” Aridean called out. Unfortunately, it was no use as Vidor was too enraged to listen to anything. Sinister laughter could be heard coming from the woman he was striking with every blow that landed, almost as if she were being tickled rather than cut with blades. Despite her apparent entertainment, with every swing of his two blades, Carla’s body would shoot out another small fountain of dark red blood. Turning to Magdalene, Aridean began to explain, “Maggie, Vidor’s not hurting that thing! It’s just like Raltor! That’s a demon! You have to put an enchantment on his blades now!”
“Wha—uh, r-right!” Magdalene said after realizing that Aridean was talking to her. Shaking her head, the half-elf’s hands began to glow brightly again. After only a second, she threw a bright globe of glowing light in Vidor and Carla’s direction. Aridean quickly rose from her spot beside the girl and raced after the magic orb.
“Hm?” Carla mused aloud as she observed a bright glow overtake one of Vidor’s two daggers. Her eyes widened as the blade came down and sliced her arm. The woman gasped in pain, “Agh! That stings! Vlad, you incompetent oaf! You didn’t say anything about the wretch using holy magic! Rgh! You’ll pay for that, you fool.”
Backing away from Vidor and clutching her arm, Carla snarled loudly and furiously. Vidor raised his blades in anticipation of some sort of counterattack. Despite his rage, he seemed perfectly capable of registering when to defend himself. Unfortunately, none of his training could prepare him for the large, fleshy tendrils that emerged from the darkness behind the vile woman in front of him. His eyes widened at the sight and his hands were slowly lowered to his sides as he held his breath.
“Die, worm; join your pathetic kin,” Carla barked as one of large tentacle-like appendages surged forth in Vidor’s direction.
Raising his arms up in defense, Vidor closed his eyes and braced himself. He opened his eyes again after hearing the nauseating sound of flesh being ripped in half and the loud thud of something hitting the ground in front of him. Opening his eyes again, Vidor saw part of the tentacle meant to strike him writhing about on the stone floor. Crimson blood gushed from where the appendage had been cut apart and pooled around Aridean’s hooves. Aridean lowered her axe and hopped backwards as Carla let out an enraged and pained scream.
“AGH! You pitiful whelps! How dare you!” the monstrous form snapped as she reeled back in pain. Panting and glaring at the two minotaurs, Carla watched as Magdalene moved to stand behind Aridean and Vidor. The girl’s hands were glowing brightly, as were the weapons held by the two minotaurs. Carla grunted her frustration, “Fine then… Why should I have to work for my meal? Vlad will deal with you.”
Aridean, feeling somewhat uneasy, watched as the woman slowly stumbled backwards into the darkness. A maniacal cackle resonated off the stone floor, walls, and ceiling. Slowly, the crazed chuckle quieted down as torchlight began to flood the darkness to reveal a large sinkhole in the back of the tomb. It was the voice that followed the giggling that sent a chill down Aridean’s spine, however.
“Ah… ah… Vladimir, please, help me,” a distressed woman’s voice called out from beyond the veil of the darkness. It was strange, however, as the voice did not belong to the demonic entity that has just retreated beyond the reach of the light.
“Ca… Carla?” Vladimir softly called out. Turning to the blasted-out hole in the wall, Aridean saw Vladimir. Aridean could see that the man had focused in on the voice and what it had asked of him. His eyes wide and jaw dropping. Aridean felt somewhat uneasy when she saw Vladimir hold his head low and grit his teeth. She immediately felt afraid when she saw the dark red glow of his magic return to his hands.
“You… You’re a part of this. You’re the reason my sister is--,” Vidor snapped as he raised his daggers in Vladimir’s direction. The intensity of the magical aura surrounding his clenched fists was rapidly growing yet the man did not look up to the minotaur that had addressed him. Aridean could hear a low growl coming from the back of Vidor’s throat until he finally gave in to his rage. Vidor began to rush Vladimir, “I’m gonna kill you for what you’ve done!”
“Kill me? We can only hope,” Vladimir replied with a sorrowful tone in his voice. Unfazed by the minotaur rushing him with intent to kill, Vladimir continued to focus his attention into the empty space at his feet. The nobleman let out a dispirited sigh as his left hand twitched. As his hand moved, Aridean noticed some motion out of the corner of her eye. Turning, she gasped at the sight.
“Dummy! Behind you!” Magdalene shouted to Vidor. Vidor’s expression had been entirely overcome with rage but he managed to pry his eyes from his target for a split second. Luckily, it was that split second that may have saved his life as he immediately halted his advance. A small trickling of blood flowed down his arm; Vidor pushed his opposite hand to the shallow wound. His eyes went wide and face filled with fear as he took a frightened step backward from the one who had just sliced into his arm.
“W-what? What the hell is--,” Aridean quietly panicked. Her attention had been entirely focused on the body that just defended Vladimir and struck Vidor. She could see the crimson blood on the razor-sharp knuckles held in black-furred hands. Vidor’s blood dripped from the blade down to the ground, landing in front of a pair of hooves.
No… it can’t be… Vlad is… Aridean thought to herself as she processed the sight in front of her.
Aridean’s head shook back and forth in disbelief. Vidor had initially been struggling to process what was happening, but upon registering who his aggressor was, had begun hyperventilating as he took another and then another frightened step backwards. His heart was racing and all he could hear was the violent and rapid panting of his breath. Magdalene was entirely awestruck yet managed to speak, “S-she said his magic was tainted… Vlad is a necromancer!”
Much to the group’s despair, before them stood Rana Stonehoof. With fists held high, armed with her sharpened knuckles, the minotaur stood as a guard to Vladimir. Despite the gaping, bloody wound in her chest, the only other especially worrying observation about her were her eyes. Her bright green irises and dark pupils had faded away, leaving only white orbs in her eye sockets.
“It hurts, doesn’t it, Ms. Gray? It hurts so much to know that you caused someone you love so dearly any amount of pain,” Vladimir began to monologue. Aridean pried her eyes from the reanimated Rana to see that Vladimir was now looking her in the eyes with an entirely apathetic expression. His lips moved, “It is such a relief that Ms. Stonehoof does not need to experience that pain; I am the one forcing her limbs to move.”
Aridean gasped anxiously as Vladimir’s hand twitched again. As though controlling a puppet, the twitch of the man’s hand had sent Rana into a frenzied assault against her brother. It was all Vidor could do to just defend himself from his sister as his daggers either parried the sharpened edges of the knuckles Rana swung or he deftly moved out of the way entirely. Every time the metal of the siblings’ weapons clashed against one another, Aridean could feel herself flinching slightly.
“Viiiiiiiiii… ahhhhhhhh…m-maaaaaa…” moaned the minotaur that continued to assault Vidor. Hearing his sister’s voice, Vidor relented for a second. Unfortunately, it was in that second that Rana was forced to act yet again by the flick of Vladimir’s wrist. The female minotaur managed to slice into Vidor’s leg.
“Ah! Ahhh!” Vidor gasped as he fell to the ground. Looking up, his sister approached with her bladed knuckles held high. Closing his eyes and raising his arm in defense, Vidor braced himself for the next blow. However, Rana did not strike her brother and as Vidor opened his eyes again, he saw the familiar glow of Magdalene’s magic at his side.
Magdalene was kneeling down and running her healing magic-infused hands over Vidor’s leg. Looking back to his sister, Vidor saw that Aridean was desperately holding back the undead minotaur. Rana was visibly struggling to free herself from Aridean’s grasp and Aridean was trying just as hard to keep a firm grip.
“This… this isn’t happening. Please, Rana! Please stop this!” Aridean shouted.
“Aahhhrrriiiiii…” Rana groaned. As the older minotaur heard her name, she relaxed her struggling. After a moment, Rana ceased fighting Aridean altogether. Despite the moment to catch her breath, Aridean did not feel any comfort as she continued to restrain her friend. She quietly gasped and turned her head toward Vladimir as the man let out a depressed sigh.
“Such a strong will… such a strong heart… She truly cares deeply for you all, even in her current state. Damn me if you must, but I have a responsibility that I must see through,” monologued Vladimir. The nobleman raised his head and locked eyes with Aridean. As he raised his still glowing hand, he continued, “Please… I beg of you. Make this easy for me.”
Aridean watched as Vladimir’s fingers curled into a balled-up fist. The bright glow surrounding his fist intensified, which elicited a response from his thrall. Aridean immediately lost her grip on Rana and stumbled as the minotaur she was restraining was set free. Turning back to Rana, Aridean saw her friend spinning about on one hoof, the other raised and flying in her direction.
“Augh!” Aridean squealed as Rana’s hoof connected with her ribs. Aridean was launched into the nearby wall and slumped to the ground. Rana then turned her attention back toward Vidor and Magdalene just as the half-elf looked up to her. Magdalene gasped in fright as a large, fuzzy hand quickly reached out for her. Rana’s fingers wrapped around Magdalene’s neck in a tight embrace.
“Ah! Ahh—” Magdalene choked as Rana began to lift the girl from the ground beside Vidor. Aridean watched as Magdalene’s legs flailed in the air above the stone floor she was lifted from. The girl’s hands wrapped around Rana’s fingers in a desperate attempt to pry them from her throat.
No! NO! Rana, stop it! Aridean screamed in her head yet no words could escape her throat as she was still trying to catch her breath from the last blow. Unable to look any longer, Aridean averted her eyes and held her breath. She could hear Magdalene still struggling and gritted her teeth. However, her eyes opened the instant she heard the unpleasantly familiar sound of flesh being ripped apart. Looking back at her friends, Vidor stood behind his sister, a glowing dagger firmly planted in Rana’s back.
“V-Viii… ssssooorr…yyy…” moaned the zombified Rana as her head turned in Vidor’s direction. As Vidor released the dagger now resting in his sister’s back, Rana released Magdalene. As the girl fell to the ground in a heap, coughing and gasping for air, the glow around Vidor’s dagger faded away. Vidor watched as his sister slumped to her knees and then fell to the ground. Aridean also observed how Rana hit the ground and tears began to run down her face.
It's like… she’s dying twice now. How? How could Vladimir be so cruel? Aridean internally laments. Vidor begins panting as he looks into his palms. With heart racing and breathing erratic, Vidor then gazes upon his lifeless sister at his hooves. Covering his face in his trembling hands, the minotaur screamed in anguish. The heartbroken cry from her friend is enough to shatter Aridean’s own heart.
Despite the sore throat, Vidor immediately turned to Vladimir with rage in his eyes. The minotaur let loose a hateful roar as he charged the man again. Aridean, tears still streaming down her face, watched as the glow surrounding Vladimir’s hands slowly dissipated. Confused, Aridean began to stand again as Vidor raised his remaining dagger. Vladimir simply watched as the blade came down, only letting out a gasp of pain as the metal tore into his thigh.
“Agh!” Vladimir cried in pain as he grabbed at his leg. Vidor backed off for only a second. As Vladimir looked up to his assailant, he spotted a hoof fast approaching. Aridean watched as the man was sent tumbling backwards. Vidor’s powerful kick had left a red mark on the man’s face. Strangely, the nobleman was able to seemingly ignore the dagger stabbed into his leg and the pain in his face. With his head held low and body supported on his knees and palms, Vladimir remained quiet and seemed to await the next blow.
“Hand me that,” Vidor demanded as he gestured toward Aridean’s axe. Aridean’s eyes widened as she and Magdalene stood only a few feet behind Vidor now. She looked over her weapon before glancing to Vladimir and then to Vidor.
I’ve… never seen this side of Vidor… I… never thought he would be capable of this… Aridean thought to herself. As she looked back to her weapon, Vidor’s hand reached out and grabbed the long haft. With a slightly forceful yank, Vidor snatched away the axe from Aridean, much to the latter’s surprise.
“D-dummy? Y-you’re not really gon--” Magdalene called out anxiously. Vidor immediately turned to look upon the half-elven girl with a furious expression. Aridean noticed his grip around her axe tighten with rage.
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“Shut up already, dammit!” Vidor ordered, much to the surprise of both Aridean and Magdalene. Turning back to Vladimir, Vidor continued, “I hate you… I hate humans… I hate them and elves and half-elves and dwarves and all the other races! They all think so little of us, all because of something we didn’t have any part in! We didn’t do anything to start this war; we never wanted any of this! But now… my sister… all she wanted was to live among the other races in peace.”
“Vidor…” Aridean quietly called out. However, it seemed that Vidor either did not hear her or chose to ignore her as the massive weapon he held was raised over his head.
Unable to look, Aridean turned her head with eyes tightly shut. Her blood ran ice cold as she heard the axe meet its mark and then collide with the stone floor. A mere split second later and a loud thudding sound could be heard hitting the ground near where Vidor stood. Behind her and facing the opposite direction, Magdalene had the most horrified look upon her face. The young girl looked as though she had simultaneously met with a ghost and needed to vomit. Both girls remained quiet but could hear Vidor spit.
“She… she told you… just what your ‘kindness’ meant to her… Now? Now?! Rot, damn you,” Vidor quietly cursed as he began to choke up. Aridean, still unable to look upon her friend, could hear him begin to softly sob. She heard Magdalene slump down to the stone floor behind her.
After a moment of somber mourning, Vidor turned and dragged Aridean’s axe behind him as he approached. The scraping of the axe along the stone attacked the ears like nails on a chalkboard. Even so, no one was in the mood for complaining over the agitating noise. Hearing the clop of his hooves stop just in front of her, Aridean cautiously opened her eyes. Looking Vidor in his face, she saw waterfalls of tears running down his cheeks. Her axe blade looked to have been painted red; she could not bear looking behind Vidor to see just what had been done while her eyes were shut.
“V-Vidor…” Aridean called softly and hesitantly. Still fighting his tears, Vidor shook his head.
“Let’s just… let’s just get out of here… to hell with place…” whimpered a dispirited Vidor with a raspy inhale of air. Aridean could not find it in her to speak at this point. She had not heard Magdalene move from her spot behind her, the girl sat on the floor still as the stone that surrounded the three.
Unable to speak, Aridean looked to Vidor again. He refused eye contact as his tear-filled eyes had fallen to the couple’s hooves. Aridean turned to gaze upon Rana, as did Vidor. Without a need for words, Aridean nodded her head. Vidor simply let out a depressed sigh as he started to slowly move toward his sister. Before he could even get two steps in, everyone in the room froze again.
“So, not even your blessed blade is enough to unmake me? To think I might have finally been set free…” a familiar and disappointed voice seemed to echo off of the stone walls of the tomb. Startled, both Aridean and Magdalene shrieked loudly. Vidor, however, simply shifted the expression on his face to show his astonishment.
Looking beyond Vidor toward where the voice had originated from, Aridean and Magdalene gasped loudly. With wide eyes and holding his breath, Vidor seemed to freeze as the voice spoke once more, “‘Rot, damn you’? I wish it were that simple, Mr. Stonehoof.”
Aridean, both amazed and terrified, watched as Vladimir stood back up. Rather, she was horrified to see his headless body rising from the ground. Her jaw dropped as she witnessed the headless body stand and move toward its head. Standing over the head, the body bent over and retrieved its missing piece. Utterly speechless and breathless, Aridean observed as Vladimir simply stuck his head back onto his body. Bones cracked loudly as he seemingly locked his head in place and let out a tired sigh. The man then proceeded to forcibly yank the dagger in his leg free; his blood oozed from the wound for only a second before the hole in the flesh vanished. Vladimir Impalivik, who had just been beheaded, stood before the group again and appeared entirely unharmed.
W-what the hell?! Aridean mentally screamed in her mind. Magdalene had stood back up and was taking cover behind Aridean. The girl screamed at the sight of the dead man walking as she peaked out from behind Aridean.
“AHH!! M-m-monster!! H-how is he getting up?!” Magdalene shouted in a panic. Vidor slowly turned; his astonishment still clear as day upon his face. Vladimir returned the shocked group’s stares with a rather defeated and depressed expression of his own. The nobleman simply sighed as his shoulders fell and his arms went slack at his sides.
“Monster? Even that seems too kind--” Vladimir starts to reply with a somber tone of voice. His voice is overtaken by Vidor’s sudden and rage-fueled roaring. Aridean watches as her friend hefts her battle axe over his head and rushes Vladimir. She is worried by the fact that Vladimir does not move yet does not seem to defend himself either. The recent corpse stands near motionless, almost as though he accepts Vidor’s fury.
Aridean flinches as Vidor brings the large blade down upon Vladimir. The unusual individual’s face immediately contorts to show that he is in tremendous pain. A large amount of blood is violently hacked from his mouth as his regal clothing is torn by the axe and drenched in more of the dark red liquid. With a face full of hatred, Vidor releases the haft of Aridean’s axe and takes a single step backwards. Vladimir grabs at the blade now lodged in his chest and stumbles backwards.
Vladimir falls to the ground again, still grabbing at the axe that had struck him. Aridean can see the man is in agony as he continues to hack up a sanguine mess and is constantly groaning and grunting in pain. However, she is frightened to see that despite having an axe as large as hers forcefully rammed into his chest does not seem to kill him. Her eyes widen as Vladimir, with considerable effort and shouting bloody murder, not only dislodges the weapon meant to kill him, but sees that his mortal wound rapidly heals afterwards. Vladimir rests on the stone ground with Aridean’s axe at his side, grabbing at his side that had been viciously assaulted as he gasps for air.
“Why?! How can you still be alive?! Why are you alive and she’s dead?!” Vidor shouted furiously. Vladimir, coughing lightly, begins to stand again. The man sways left and right slightly but does not look at all as though he had just suffered his head having been removed and his chest torn open.
“H-how--,” Aridean begins to stutter. Vladimir raises one hand to quiet the minotaur. With another deep breath, the man lifts up the hair that covers the left side of his face. Shocked gasps escape the throats of the two minotaurs and the young half-elven girl. Aridean could feel her legs grow weak at the sight of Vladimir’s face, yet she just barely composed herself enough to ask, “Y-you… a-are you a demon, too?”
Vladimir shakes his head as he drops the tuft of hair over his blood-red, left eye and horrific scar. With the most upset and exhausted look in his only visible eye, the noble speaks, “I told you all already, I was desperate. However, I am no demon. Even so, I lost the right to call myself human long ago.”
“Shut up and die already!” Vidor shouted aggressively as he drew his longbow. Aridean could only raise a hand in her friend’s direction before he had already notched an arrow, pulled back the string, and let go. The projectile soared right into Vladimir’s stomach. With a pained gasp, the man stumbled backward again as he grabbed at the shaft protruding from his gut. Just as he had with the axe, screaming in agony, Vladimir removed the arrow with a small geyser of blood erupting from the wound.
“Ah… ah… ugh! That never gets any easier…” Vladimir groaned aloud as he held his bleeding stomach. Aridean’s eyes went wide and brows furrowed as Vladimir removed his hand from his abdomen. Whatever damage Vidor’s arrow had caused had immediately vanished, just like the blow from the axe. Vladimir took a moment to catch his breath before wheezing, “Ms. Gray… I know… I am in no position to ask… but could you please restrain Mr. Stonehoof? He's just wasting his own energy.”
“Vidor… I don’t think we can do anything about him,” Aridean softly spoke to her infuriated and agitated friend. Vidor did not seem to like hearing that his pursuit of vengeance was futile but lowered his bow regardless. Nevertheless, the minotaur continued to glare angrily at Vladimir, who in return put on an understanding but dispirited expression.
“What do you mean? You’ve… died before?” Magdalene asked with a judging tone of voice. The girl leaned out from behind Aridean, continuing to use the towering minotaur as cover. She looked to Vladimir with a curious but serious look on her face. Vidor proceeded to grunt angrily, still clutching his longbow tightly. Aridean could see it in his face that Vidor was ready to unleash his entire quiver’s worth of arrows upon Vladimir despite knowing it would do nothing.
“Standing before you is the Count Vladimir Impalivik of Cortonne. The very same Vladimir Impalivik that managed to produce the cure for the Flare-heart Plague almost one hundred and eight years ago,” Vladimir announced much to the surprise of the two minotaurs and half-elf.
He’s THE Vladimir Impalivik?! I thought he was just a descendant with the same name! Wait a minute… back in the lounge, didn’t he say that it was—Aridean began to think to herself. Her train of thought was drowned out by Vidor’s violent roaring.
“Shut up with these damn jokes! Humans don’t live that long. Cut it out with this crap and tell us what that thing is and how to kill it,” Vidor angrily snarled. Vladimir, with the most defeated look upon his face, gently closed his visible eye and shook his head.
“That was a demon lord. One that has fully possessed a mortal heart. It will not die. Children such as yourselves should count yourselves lucky you have yet to be made its next feast,” Vladimir explained with a serious tone. As he spoke, his eyes drifted over to Rana. Upon realizing what it was that Vladimir was examining, Vidor marched up to the man. Grabbing the noble by his shirt, Vidor brought back a balled-up fist. Vladimir was sent flying a few feet back from the blow.
“If that thing’s a demon, why does it work with you? What are you getting in exchange for helping it?” Aridean asked as Vladimir slowly stood from his position on the cold ground. The man was rubbing his now red cheek where Vidor had punched him as he turned to face the group again. As his hand fell back to his side, Vladimir let out an upset sigh.
“It is… a long story. But it does not keep me around because I am useful. I… merely do as it asks for… personal reasons,” answered the nobleman as his eyes listlessly fell to the floor. Vidor’s grip on his bow tightened and his frustration could be heard in the rising fury of his growl.
“Personal reasons?! You’re the reason my sister is dead! What did she do that your ‘personal reasons’ had to take her life?!” Vidor shouted in a fit of rage while pulling another arrow from his quiver. He quickly notched the arrow in his bow and trained his sights on the relenting Vladimir. With a short but forceful exhale, Vladimir’s eyes simply fell to the ground again as he shook his head.
“It has to do with that woman the demon’s possessed, right? Something about Carla? But why does the demon keep you around then? What does it want from you?” Aridean asked hesitantly. Vidor continued to focus his sights on Vladimir with arrow at the ready. Magdalene finally moved out from behind Aridean and stood at her side opposite Vidor.
“That monster is a demon lord of gluttony. It is the true cause of the disappearances you came to investigate here in Cortonne… and has been for over one hundred years now,” Vladimir replied solemnly. The man was incapable of lifting his head to make eye contact with those he was speaking to. He simply stood stiff, only stumbling backwards slightly as another arrow swiftly impaled his chest. Aridean turned to see that Vidor was already notching a third arrow in his bow. Turning back to Vladimir, Aridean noticed that the man did not make any effort to remove the projectile that rested in his chest now.
“So, you’re just the lure to bring in victims. You were going to feed us to that thing?!” Magdalene snapped upon realizing what Vladimir was getting to. The noble simply stood, a small rivulet of blood running down his shirt from where the arrow had hit him, with his head held low. He deeply inhaled as his right hand gripped the arrow shaft. With a pained grunt, the projectile was removed and the wound near instantly healed.
“Yes… but the monster does not feed off mortal flesh. It keeps me because I am its true feast,” replied Vladimir disappointedly.
“What are you talking about?” snapped Vidor impatiently.
“Demons do not require any sustenance; feeding off mortal flesh is simply a… luxury to them. What demons truly feast upon to grow their strength and power are sins and negative emotions,” Vladimir answered with a grave seriousness to his solemn voice. “It relishes in my sins, but even that does not compare to the weight of the guilt, regret, and hopelessness it receives from me.”
It eats sins and regret? Vladimir regrets luring us down here… but he does so for his own reasons. What could drive him so that he would continue to aid a demon lord such as that thing? Aridean thought to herself. As she was thinking, her eyes drifted to her companions. Vidor, still holding a most aggressive expression, kept his bow notched with an arrow and directed at Vladimir. However, looking to her other side she saw Magdalene with wide eyes. It was faint, but she could hear the girl starting to pant slightly. Her ears flicked as she heard the half-elf speak softly.
“S-so… that means Pastor only kept me because… a-and if I had killed Ari… Dear Lord, forgive me,” Magdalene seemed to whisper to herself. Aridean watched as the young girl at her side shuddered at the thought she was contemplating. Shaking her head, Aridean redirected her attention to Vladimir again.
“That explains why it keeps you around, but how has it kept you around for so long? Like Vidor said, humans don’t live over one hundred years,” Aridean asked. Vladimir sighed before holding a hand over his covered, red eye.
“It cursed me with immortality… I still feel the pain; I do, in a sense, die. However, it is always undone and I live yet again no matter how fatal the wound. So long as I live, it will always have a source of regret, misery, and despair,” Vladimir answered with a depressed tone in his voice. His hand fell from his face as he continued, “Hell is not large enough for a monster such as myself, so I shall continue to plague this world…”
“You mean… you’ve been at this for over a hundred years? Whatever your business is with that monster isn’t worth my sister, damn you! How can you keep going after everything you’ve done?!” shouted Vidor, his voice resounded with unyielding hostility and rage. Vladimir looked the minotaur in the eyes with a stern expression on his face. His hand fell from his face as his lips moved.
“Because if what I still work toward can come to fruition, then perhaps it all wouldn’t have been in vain! Do you honestly believe I want this?! I’ve no choice but to keep going. If there is even the slightest shimmer of hope--if I could just… my sins would be worth it,” Vladimir professed. With his eyes closed, the man inhaled deeply. As the breath left his lungs, he opened his eyes and looked toward the sinkhole that Carla had fled down. Shaking his head, he speaks softly, “I can’t afford to fail again, not after everything I have done. Not after… everyone I’ve subjected to such a fate.”
He… regrets all of it. What is he trying to do that he keeps going? He knows this anguish he feels only empowers the demon, so why? Aridean wondered to herself. However, before anyone could open their mouth again to speak, a maddening roar of fury and hate erupted from the hole in the tomb. Aridean, Vidor, and Magdalene, each with eyes wide, had to catch themselves from toppling over as the ground itself began to violently rumble beneath them.
“AAAUUGH!! RGGGHH!! VLAAAD!!” echoed the demonic Carla’s voice from the darkness in the hole. With surprise in his one visible eye, Vladimir focused his attention on the hole.
“Ms. Gray struck it with the Heaven’s Edge… did the latent magic have an effect? Perhaps…” Vladimir mused aloud. The magically erected stone wall that the sorcerer had constructed began to crumble as the ground continued to quake. Bits of stone, dirt, and dust began to fall from the ceiling overhead. Shaking his head, he turned to his three remaining guests, “This is new: whatever you did has hurt it. The demon will likely return to its own hellish realm to recuperate. Now is the time to flee.”
“Ari, Vidor, we need to get out of here before the tomb collapses on us!” Magdalene shouted as the rumbling of the stone surrounding them intensified.
“I’m not leaving without Rana!” snapped Vidor as he quickly made his way over to his sister. Aridean, still processing what was unfolding, watched as Vidor began to gently lift Rana from the trembling ground. Unfortunately, because of the loose ground beneath him, Vidor lost his grip and fell to the ground with Rana. Shaking her head, the minotaur turned to Magdalene.
“Maggie, go ahead and get out of here. Vidor and I will be right behind you,” Aridean ordered. With a surprised look on her face, Magdalene stared into Aridean’s eyes with a bit of uncertainty. However, the girl nodded and began to run for the exit. Aridean saw that Vladimir had also elected to escape the collapsing tomb behind Magdalene.
I don’t know what to expect from him anymore… We’d best not keep Maggie waiting long, Aridean thought as she turned back to Vidor. Hastily, her hooves carried her to Vidor’s side and she knelt down to help pull him to his own hooves. As the duo stood up again, the chamber rattled once more and more chunks of the stone ceiling came loose and fell to the ground. Entirely ignoring the collapsing tomb, Vidor grabbed onto one of his sister’s arms. Anxiously, Aridean grabbed Rana’s other arm and slung it over her shoulder.
Slowly and as steadily as they could manage given the quaking, Vidor and Aridean began to make for the exit. Aridean, entirely frightened by the sight, turned to look at Rana. The elder minotaur held her head low and her hooves were dragging along the stone floor. Her entire body was limp and the arm over Aridean’s shoulders was starting to feel cold. Fighting the tears in her eyes, Aridean looked past her late friend to see Vidor. Although he had a focused expression on his face, the minotaur had rivers of tears flowing from his eyes. Just as the couple reached the stairs leading to the outside, another horrifying cry of hatred could be heard from behind them.
“YOU WON’T LEAVE ALIVE, WHELP!” screamed the monster from the dark sinkhole at the other end of the tomb. Aridean and Vidor had stopped for only a second to turn and survey the hole. More stone dropped from the ceiling, startling Aridean as it had just barely missed her. However, what spooked her more was the gasp that came from Vidor.
Aridean turned from the now broken stone that nearly hit her to look in Vidor’s direction. However, before her head could even turn, she felt a powerful force pushing her away. Rana’s arm slipped off of her shoulder as she fell to the ground. Aridean hit the ground with a grunt and quickly turned over to see that Vidor and Rana were no longer by the stairs. Panicked breathing and scrambling over the stone floor could be heard just to her side. Aridean looked toward the sinkhole and gasped at the sight of Vidor and Rana being dragged toward the hole by the demon’s fleshy tendrils.
“Vidor!” Aridean screamed as she scrambled to her hooves. Vidor held fast to his sister’s arm as the duo were dragged closer and closer to the demon’s pit. The minotaur was desperately trying to crawl his way back toward Aridean yet the pull of the monster gripping his leg was far too strong. He gasped in pain as the vice grip on his leg began to press his muscle to bone. Tightening its grip on its prey, the tentacle coiled around the leg until Vidor felt such a sharp pain in his leg that he released his grip on Rana.
“Noo-augh!!” Vidor cried out as Rana’s body was quickly pulled over the edge and fell into the dark abyss below. Tears in his eyes, Vidor reached out and frantically tried to pull himself away from the monster. His hands failed to grip anything along the smoothed stone as his body was quickly being forced over the edge. First his legs fell, then his waist, until finally Vidor was pulled over the edge with eyes shut tight. However, Vidor did not fall into the darkness below. He opened his eyes to see the lightless pit beneath him, as well as the tentacle that wished to pull him into the dark. Looking up, Vidor saw Aridean holding his hand and desperately trying to pull him back out from the hole. Despite her efforts, Vidor’s face had filled with apathy as he drew in a breath to speak.
“Aridean… you need to go, now,” Vidor ordered with a gravely severe tone of voice. He looked up to Aridean with a serious look in his eyes. Aridean returned with an astonished expression as her eyes widened and jaw fell open. Shaking her head, she gritted her teeth and tightened her grip on Vidor’s arm.
“I-I’m not leaving you here,” Aridean shouted as she tried to fight the force pulling on Vidor. Vidor’s head fell and he gazed down into the darkness below again. The vice-like grip of the tendril pulling him was crushing the muscle and flesh in his leg. A modest amount of blood began to ooze out from under the abhorrent tentacle and trickled down toward his hoof. He could just make out the small droplets of his own life essence falling down into the abyss below.
Vidor first sighed before covering his eyes with his free hand. Rubbing his eyes, Aridean’s already monumental concern for her friend was growing exponentially as Vidor began to giggle to himself. His quiet laugh quickly evolved into an uproarious cackle, “Hahahaha! This isn’t really how I thought we’d say goodbye. I was hoping it would be a bit more natural, like, old age or something.”
“S-stop talking like that! I’m not letting you go,” Aridean replied as she struggled to maintain a firm grip on Vidor’s wrist. She could feel the ground beneath her rumbling, stone cracked along the walls on either side. Small bits of rock and dust dropped into the dark void as the tomb continued to collapse in on itself. Vidor’s laughter had ceased and he now held his head low as he looked into the darkness again.
“Y’know, you could call this revenge… Think about it like this: you’d be killing the guy that forced you into killing your dad,” Vidor suggested with indifference in his voice. He refused to look up to Aridean who was entirely taken aback by the notion.
“W-what?! I couldn’t do that to you,” Aridean responded after processing the ludicrous idea Vidor had offered. Vidor sighed again as he shook his head.
“Aridean… you’re probably the best friend I ever had. Ever since the day we first met, I knew I wanted to get to know you. I quickly fell for you and wanted a future with you at my side,” Vidor began to monologue as Aridean grunted while still trying to pull him up. Aridean could not see it, but a wry smile formed on Vidor’s lips, “I don’t know if you’d agree to everything I was planning for us. I know kids make you uneasy, eheheheh.”
“W-will you stop talking like this is the end?! Please! Just… give… me—rgh!” Aridean retorted. She felt a forceful yank from the tendril ensnaring Vidor. Her chest, stomach, and legs were slowly dragging along the stone floor, inching ever closer to the edge. Vidor’s free hand began to move toward his belt.
“I don’t always know what’s going through your head. After what happened in Thellia and how I’m the reason for it… Could you really look at me the same way after that?” Vidor lamented aloud as he looked up to Aridean. Aridean herself was gritting her teeth again as she desperately held on. Sucking air through her teeth, she noticed what Vidor was holding in his free hand now.
“Vidor?” Aridean called with surprise in her voice.
“I saved your life back in Konarch. Then you save mine from that sasquatch and again in Thellia. I can’t really count back in Byrden when we found you outside the church, that was more Rana than me,” Vidor spoke with a peculiar tenderness in his voice. It almost seemed as if he was ignoring the gravity of their situation entirely. He slowly brought up his other hand, pointing what he held within it in Aridean’s direction.
“V-Vidor? What do you think you’re doing?!” Aridean shouted as a chunk of stone beneath her chest broke away and dropped past Vidor’s face. Vidor paused for only a second before putting on one of his signature goofy smiles.
“What does it look like? I’m getting even with you,” Vidor answered with friendly confidence. Tears streamed down Aridean’s face as she fought to pull her friend up from the hole he was being dragged down into.
“Vidor, d-don’t you dare. I can still--,” Aridean protested as her tears fell from her face upon Vidor’s.
Still smiling brightly, Vidor spoke, “Goodbye, Aridean Gray. I love you.”
“Don’t do this!!” Aridean screamed desperately.