Thalgodin’s wings immediately opened all the way as he drew all three swords from his side. “A priest?”

Temikiel adjusted the crown that sat on his bald bulbous head. He had a sly smile on his absurdly small mouth. “And what is a neural demon going to do against the likes of me?” Temikiel picked up the white statue, analyzed it, then tossed it to the side, shattering the ivory piece. Silver blood dripped from the shards. “A lowly servant like Venoliel will provide no competition for you. Sloswen will forgive me for intervening, I believe. If not, the bishops will have something to say.”

“Who is he?” Owin asked quietly.

“I don’t know.” Myrsvai’s staff glowed magenta. “Secrets are separate from the dungeons, I suppose, but this is abnormal. This is—”

“Abnormal?” Temikiel asked, his high pitched voice whining. “Are humans capable of seeing irony?” The cathkabel cracked his neck. “And you, goblin, feasted on my junior.”

“I did and I’ll do it again.” Owin pulled the lich knife from his belt, slipped it into his bag, and took the whole bag from his shoulder. A single touch of luminous damage against the lich bone would shatter the blade. That left him with wands as his only weapons. He was hoping to get one of the swords from Thalgodin, but the demon looked about ready to dive straight in.

“As if it is a surprise that one such as Ruvaine would allow an anomaly to escape her domain. Those who commune with demons cannot be trusted. A surprise to none.”

“If a priest has been sent after us, we have angered the emperor.” Thalgodin beat his wings once. His hooves clicked on the stone floor as he readied himself for a fight. “Use caution, Myrsvai. This fight is not one I expected when assaulting this fortress, but it is one I will gladly take. Eliminating a priest outside of a normal encounter will surely be a devastating loss for Elysium.”

“Explain,” Myrsvai said.

“The dungeon cannot respawn what it does not own.” Thalgodin grinned, revealing sharp canines. “One of us dies forever today."

Temikiel fluttered his wings. “Any final words? I will be glad to inform the Vile Fiend of your demise.”

Suta forcefully grabbed Myrsvai’s arm and tried to pull him toward the door. “Go.”

“I’m not going anywhere.” Myrsvai pulled his arm free. “We didn’t come here for you to protect me again. I can fight.” Myrsvai smashed his staff against the stone floor.

A flaming magenta knife formed directly in Owin’s hand. He grabbed it before it fell and shifted his stance. Everyone was tense. Fighting was going to start at any second. For once, Owin didn’t want to be the one to get things started.

Abyssal Knife

Summon of Myrsvai Ryllsion

“Go,” Suta said again. He pushed against Myrsvai without any actual strength.

“The insect wishes to flee,” Temikiel said.

“I will tear head from shoulders,” Suta said without looking back. “After Master leaves.”

“An unnecessary attempt at survival.” Temikiel beat his wings, launching himself forward.

Thalgodin blocked a punch with his axe and attacked, but Temikiel dodged all three swings of the demon’s swords. They went into a frenzy of attacking and blocking.

“No time for this, Suta! I will stay back this time. Go!”

Owin dashed past Temikiel and leapt at one of the champions. Suta did the same on the opposite side, keeping the cathkabel off Thalgodin.

Owin stopped himself short as the champion’s sword sliced the air right in front of him, barely dodging the attack. A quick hop brought him over the sword, where the knife easily slashed across the cathkabel’s face. If it hadn’t dodged, Owin would have driven the weapon right into its eye, though he still managed to cut it from its jaw to his forehead.

A white fist smashed into Owin’s face, throwing him back at the ground. He flipped midair, landed on his feet, and bounced once. It was a move he would have never been able to do before, and one that felt surprisingly easy.

The cathkabel champion leaked blood down its neck. It spun its sword and let its own small pair of wings extend. “A fast opponent.”

Owin grabbed a wand and pointed at the cathkabel’s feet. It jumped aside before Owin could even cast a spell.

“A trick,” the cathkabel said.

Owin grinned, as if he had intentionally tricked his opponent. All he had wanted to do was put a magma mine underneath the mob. Instead, he could use it later.

“Do you need help?” Myrsvai shouted.

“Help Suta,” Owin said.

Suta bounced off the ground, holding one of his opponent’s arms. Silver blood coated nearly every bit of the familiar.

Owin wanted to watch the rest of the fight to see what kind of brutal things Suta had done, but he wasn’t given time as the champion launched itself forward. Goblin Cunning gave him an advantage that he didn’t intend to waste.

A quick lean let Owin dodge most of another swing, though it sliced the tip of his ear off. A leap brought him onto the cathkabel’s face, and like he had learned long ago, he jabbed the knife into one eye and the wand into the other.

“Arcane Blast!”

Blood ruptured out as the cathkabel’s eye popped, though the mob was still alive and ripped Owin from its face. More silver blood poured out as the abyssal knife was torn out, leaving the cathkabel blind.

“Beast,” the champion said.

Owin took a step to the side, watching as the blind cathkabel tried to track, but lagged behind. It still had some sense of where he was.

“You fight with the Vile Fiend’s vigor!” Temikiel shouted as he backed away from the demon.

Thalgodin had been worn down, but the demon still grinned and flapped his wings. “Elysium will lose a priest today.”

Temikiel adjusted the brass knuckles on each hand before crouching low. His long, feathered wings flared out to the sides. “If only the Abyss cared for its servants. No one will miss you.”

Temikiel and Thalgodin flapped their wings, launching themselves at one another. Before Owin could watch the clash, a white sword slammed into the tile beside him. The champion swung wildly, forcing Owin to dodge over and over. Its attacks weren’t accurate, but they were wide, sweeping things that forced him back a step.

“How are you alive?” Owin asked.

The cathkabel smiled. Silver blood flowed between its teeth. “A blessing of Elysium.”

Owin dashed forward and slid underneath a wild swing of its sword. He pivoted and leapt onto its back, smashing the knife into the top of its head. With one solid yank, he tore the champion’s head open, revealing a pulsing, silver brain.

Owin looked across, making eye contact with Suta, who stood beside a dead champion. Magenta flames circled him as Myrsvai held his glowing staff in the air.

Thalgodin backed away as a quick jab from Temikiel tore what little remained of the demon’s forearm free. Thalgodin was bleeding profusely. Despite using brass knuckles, Temikiel had torn skin all over Thalgodin’s body, leaving him looking more like an undead than a demon.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“This is why I prefer to choose my own champions.” Temikiel cracked his knuckles. “A four against one? Are you so irreverent that you would intervene in a fight of destiny?”

“Destiny? You’re not even the boss of this secret,” Owin said.

Temikiel looked back to the shattered ivory statue. “It is not every day I get to kill a neural demon, an anomaly, and an abyssal magus. Venoliel will forgive the intrusion.”

Thalgodin continued backing away. “If I was fully manifested, it would be a proper fight.” The demon coughed and fell to one knee as his wounds continued leaking a steady stream of blood. “This is beyond me.”

“Suta,” Myrsvai said.

The familiar smashed its fists together, mimicking what Temikiel had done before the fight. Temikiel flapped his wings and gestured to Suta as a gale formed and battered the familiar, pushing him back. Owin ran forward, but was immediately struck by more winds, causing him to flip over backward.

There was plenty he didn’t know about Elysium or the Abyss. If Owin only stuck to his first impressions, he would have assumed Thalgodin was an enemy, much like the Malignant Spirit had been in the Great Forest.

Thalgodin coughed blood onto the floor. He was barely able to lift his head.

Temikiel forced Owin and Suta back against the opposite walls with a spell that didn’t let up even as he lowered his hands. The priest remained crouched, ready to pounce. “A failure, as demons always are.”

“I’m sending you back,” Myrsvai said. He raised his staff.

Thalgodin roared and stood back to his full height. He stomped his hooves and swung his three arms out, splattering blood from his mangled lower arm. “No.”

Myrsvai smashed his staff onto the ground, opening a fiery portal beneath Thalgodin. “Go home. Be safe.”

Thalgodin beat his wings as he hovered in place without dropping through the portal.

“I can’t truly fight with you summoned,” Myrsvai said.

“I know. Suta. Goblin. Let us slay this creature.”

Temikiel smiled. “You can try.”

“Go,” Myrsvai said. Magenta flames spun off the end of his staff as abyssal tendrils erupted from the ground surrounding Temikiel, latching onto his arms.

The priest easily ripped through the spell, but not before Thalgodin attacked. Temikiel’s armor was stronger than it looked, taking the full force of the battleaxe. As he was launched, the priest flipped, flapped his wings, and landed on his feet, back in his crouched position.

Whatever spell had held Owin against the wall vanished. He made eye contact with Suta across the room. At once, they took off. Myrsvai’s summoned knife still glowed in Owin’s hand, though it had lost some of its magic.

Thalgodin was a demon from the Abyss, but he was also Owin’s ally. His friend.

Owin didn’t let people hurt his friends.

Temikiel launched himself forward, throwing a wild punch aimed at Thalgodin’s head. The demon blocked with the flat of the axe, but the cathkabel’s attack shattered the metal, throwing pieces throughout the room.

One of Thalgodin’s swords managed to cut the priest’s face even as the demon was tossed onto his back.

Temikiel straightened, stunned, and looked about the room. “Where . . . who . . .”

Owin leapt and drove the summoned knife directly into the cathkabel’s ear. At the same time, Suta smashed his fist into the other side. Bones crunched. Owin left the weapon embedded in the priest’s skull and took a step back. Suta held his hands up, ready to continue the fight.

Temikiel staggered forward a few steps, then fell to his knees. His wings beat on their own, twitching in the air. “Elysium,” he said quietly.

Thalgodin lumbered forward. He was down one arm and his battleaxe was completely destroyed. Even one of his horns was chipped and cracked. The demon didn’t look the least bit upset, even as his blood drained from his wounds.

“What does the emperor say about this?”

The summoned knife vanished as Myrsvai approached. The magus was sweating, despite having not moved much at all during the fights. Any magenta glow around Suta had also faded.

Clarity came to Temikiel’s eyes. “Neural demon scum.”

Thalgodin spat a glob of blood onto the priest. “You won’t be honored in the halls of Elysium.”

“A pawn of the Aby—”

Thalgodin drove both longswords through the priest’s head. He used a hoof to kick Temikiel off, letting his body slap onto the floor. The fiery white doorway in the back of the room vanished.

“Send me home. Recover your mana.” Thalgodin sheathed his bloody swords and faced Myrsvai. “Summon me to kill more cathkabel when you can manifest my true strength.”

“I will, friend.” Myrsvai raised his staff.

Thalgodin nodded to Owin. The demon couldn’t stop himself from grinning as the portal opened under his feet. “Farewell, heroes.”

“Are you out of mana?” Owin asked.

“Out? No. I am low.” Myrsvai cradled his staff in his elbow and wiped sweat from his brow. “I was managing Thalgodin’s summon, your knife, and Suta’s enhancement at once. It is an effort to keep many spells at the same time.”

A flash appeared from where the statue had been standing as a stark white chest formed.

“Suta, are you hurt?” Owin asked.

Suta shook his head. The familiar had a visible gash from his mandible all the way across his head, though the blood had already slowed.

“Are you sure?”

Suta nodded.

Owin approached the chest and stared at the wall where the ethereal door had once been. Was that a doorway to Elysium? How did a level 60 appear on the first floor? When he flipped the chest open, a single little gem sat inside.

“A void gem,” Owin said. “Come use it to fix your leg.”

Myrsvai approached and leaned on his staff. “I believe there are better uses.”

“You’re not getting a shard if you can’t move quickly. If Thalgodin wasn’t summoned, we would’ve lost that fight. You weren’t going to take on Temikiel.”

Myrsvai sighed and held out his staff. Suta held it upright as the magus carefully bent down and plucked the black gem from the chest. His index appeared before his eyes. “There is an extraordinary amount of options, even if they’re all apprentice level.”

“I thought it might be a higher rarity since we fought a priest.” Owin pushed some of the ivory shards with his toes. Who was the cathkabel boss Temikiel had killed? He might never see them. This would be his last time in the Ocean.

“This might work.” A blue mana crystal formed in Myrsvai’s hand. “Along with the ones we collected, Poti could force them into the structure and power the leg.”

“Okay. Let’s do that.”

“It could take hours, Owin.”

Owin kicked another shard of ivory. “Maybe we should leave the secret first so another priest doesn’t appear.”

“I don’t want you to wait. Go ahead without me.”

“No. Not until the Isolated floors.” Owin sat on the floor beside Temikiel’s corpse. “Nimble Hogs stick together.”

Suta sat across from him and grabbed the cathkabel’s arm. “Eat?”

Owin smiled. “I wouldn’t want to waste the stats.” He pulled the crown free from Temikiels head.

Unique Relic of Elysium

Crown of Temikiel

A crown signifying the rank of Priest within Elysium. Different sects and regions express ranks in different fashions, but always in the style of a crown.

The Crown of Temikiel raises the dexterity and intelligence

Note: Wearing this item opens a connection with Elysium

“I don’t think I should wear this.” Owin held it up, allowing Myrsvai to take the item and look at it himself. While the magus read the description, Owin ripped flesh from Temikiel’s mangled face.

Myrsvai’s index vanished. “A knight or mender would spend a fortune on this.” He frowned upon seeing the silver blood coating Owin’s hand. “I’ve seen a lot in my life, but that’s still disgusting.”

Owin chewed on a piece of the cathkabel flesh and shrugged.

Suta reached for his own piece, but stopped as Myrsvai gave him a stern look.

“I wouldn’t eat Thalgodin or any demons you know,” Owin said after he swallowed another piece of Temikiel. “Only my enemies.”

Myrsvai laughed softly. “I’m sure that quote would really help with all those people who think you’re a monster. Don’t worry, Verdantallis. He doesn’t eat friends. He only eats enemies.”

“That sounds better than telling them I eat people. I haven’t eaten any humans.” Owin squinted. “Have I? I don’t think I have.”

“I certainly hope not.”

“Tasty,” Suta said.

“You haven’t eaten a mob or a human. You don’t even need to eat,” Myrsvai said.

Suta crossed his arms and pouted.

Wisdom +40

Wisdom: 169

“I can leave the rest. I can take a bite of Graliel too on the next floor.” Owin hopped to his feet and rolled Temikiel’s corpse over. No loot fell out. He pulled the brass knuckles off. They were too big for Owin, but he slipped them into his bag. He set off toward the door facing the black pit.

“Are you certain you want to wait?” Myrsvai asked.

“Together,” Suta repeated and yawned.

“Fine.”

As soon as Owin passed through the doorway, a faint glow of a path appeared, leading back to the entrance. He followed the shortcut, frequently turning around to watch Myrsvai. The magus was clearly exhausted, moving slower than before and still sweating even after his spells had ended. Suta stuck directly behind him, nearly matching the magus step by step. A rest while the demon worked would do Myrsvai well, even if he had to expend mana to keep the demon summoned.

“Is Thalgodin going to be fine?” Owin pushed the metal gate open and hopped off the last piece of the path, landing comfortably on solid ground.

“His injuries were more severe than he showed. If he visits the Burning Workshop or Fighting Pits, they can likely help. He won’t die now that he’s back in the Abyss. The flames will clean his wounds and start his recovery.” Myrsvai took a look back over the pit. “For Elysium to send a priest, you must be well known to them, Owin.”

“They’re not the only ones who don’t like me. I’ll be fine.” Owin waited at the door, letting Myrsvai and Suta leave first. He wasn’t eager to be back in the water, but entering familiar territory was welcome after exploring the vast cathkabel fortress.