O’ miserable fiends, bastards, sinners, liars, deviants, and murders all.

Heed these words!

The Blood Games for the latest recruitment cycle have come to a close. The Lowest House hopes you’ve enjoyed your time, and plucked the ripest fruits, most juicy with potential!

In sixty full revolutions, the new System War will be upon us! That’s right, Sinners! The prize approaches—the way is clear! The home realm of the Trespassers stands open to us, and Earth will soon know the tender caress of our Claimed Hells.

But alas, it is a Hollow World, dry of Essence and poison to those with spirit. Lest ye be Trespasser in origin, to exist in such a space delivers a certain fate: spiritual dissolution. And it is that we must flood the realm with new waters—inject it with proper Essence and see freshwater turned to salt for our demons to invade.

But there are only so many Towers—and our Circles stand legion!

What to do, what to do?

Oh, I know! How about another competition? A contest for worthy Knights and the like to represent their Circles or factions as the vanguard into this new world. It has been some time since a new novelty graced our Black Theaters.

Hark, Sinners! Hark and heed me! Let this be evermore flavored. Let this challenge bear a shared essence with this world we are about to claim: Let our Knights perform, and let primacy, priority, and the privilege of first access be granted with the decision of a vote.

A vote to see who shall ride the first tower through the supple atmosphere of Earth…

Stay tuned for more details…

-Mepheleon the Harbinger

II-1

Preceptor’s Descent

The cold silence slid into place after Wei and his father concluded their exchange of words.

For a few beats, no one spoke, both sides observing the other. The Trespassers were powerful, though they numbered only three. Two were known to Wei, while the last one, Sarah Moonscar, remained an enigma. But she was here for a reason, and Wei caught her staring at Rafael with something a bit more than curiosity.

The rest of the disciples of the Drowned Sky Sect looked on from behind the Trespassers, trying to glean what was happening. Next to Wei, Agnesia shuffled awkwardly, her fists closing and flexing as if preparing for another battle. Finally, the silence was broken as Bishop gave a cough.

"Well, you all made…" he said, his voice trailing off as his eyes narrowed. "Where’s Ellena?" Wei grimaced. Bishop’s gaze shifted, his expression softening. "So, sorry, kid. She, uh—no, it wouldn't make sense."

"She didn't die," Wei said quickly. "Mepheleon… he kept her from death… things happened at the end.”

That, however, provoked a greater reaction from the Trespasser.

"What do you mean ‘kept her from death’?"

“It means that if the Harbinger didn’t intervene, my mother would have died from her beheading,” Agnesia growled. Her voice was too tired to fully convey her misery, but there was still plenty of rage in her breath.

Sarah Moonscar shot Bishop a look, and he returned it. "Well, that's something," Bishop said. "Harbinger doesn’t intervene to save someone from death all that often. Guess you all are special.”

“At least one of you, anyhow.” Moonscar smirked. “Whatever the case, I’m sure you all had a long day. We arranged temporary accommodations for everyone in the first ring and have scheduled transport as well. If you’d follow us, please.”

"I wouldn’t object to some food," Roggi said, groaning as a few dead worms fell out of his beard. "and maybe a little bit of sleep as well."

The Trespassers led the group out from the plaza. Using his Omniscience, Wei picked up bits and pieces of conversations around him. The lesser disciples were searching for Ellena as well, some already chattering amongst themselves about her supposed fate. In the short time since his sect's re-establishment, they seemed to have taken a liking to his quartermaster. He didn’t blame them. Ellena was a capable woman, skilled, focused, and experienced in the matters of running larger organizations. Her absence was a true wound—more than material.

With how much his Class’s Perception had grown, his Omniscience now spread well over a space of a full kilometer, though still far from sufficient to grasp the whole plaza. Studying the square beyond the Black Tower’s gateway, Wei studied his surroundings. The center of the plaza hosted a detailed depiction created from panels of painted glass: A man wearing a frock coat stepping into the body of a muscular, red vivisected demon. Framing the artwork in a circle were the words: "Here begins Preceptor's Descent."

Enlightenment: The place where the Harbinger became the Harbinger, where his exile became his liberation.

Wei frowned. His Enlightenment just spoke to him. It didn’t use to do that.

Gate [2] System Ascesion Available

Right. He would do that soon. Not here. Not with so many people around him.

There were other people leaving the Tower as well. His gateway wasn’t the only one. It looked like there were hundreds of exits trailing out from the base of the structure, and from each radiant threshold game groups of two to five, but never more than that. There were others here too. Knight-Tier Classed judging from their Essence signatures. Each of them stank of a specific Sin. Circle representatives here to claim their new recruits, Wei guessed.

Flying demons dressed in black and white attire and sporting small ties waved and guided new Sinners. The survivors of the ordeal looked haggard as a whole—eyes wide, their spirits weak, bodies brutalized, faces slack.

Passing through the Hearted Realm took something from everyone.

These new recruits weren’t heading the same direction as Wei and his group, however. Nine painted paths led off to a corresponding number of archways. Each one burned with a Circle’s title. All except for the one where Wei was heading. It simply said: “Unaffiliated.” Another thing he noticed was how sparse his path was. Aside from him and the Trespassers, there was no one else heading in that direction.

Using his Omniscience to scout ahead, Wei saw the path led down a set of stairs, descending underground. A wailing noise sounded, and Wei watched a series of long, fast moving forms clambering along extended rails running toward a sprawling cityscape. A film of thin red blurred the specifics of the city they were bound for, but Wei could see structures stacked upon structures. Layers. And there were things moving in a the sky as well, giving a sense of circulation, like he was looking a beating heart rather than dead architecture. Eight shadows rose above all others. A major edifice rose above all others, casting its shadow far, and a rippling wavelength of Essence further. Wei tasted the tang of coin and wealth. The power of Greed was in the air—perhaps this was one of that Circle’s major bases?

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

"That’s a mansions," Bishop said, gesturing toward the grand structure. "You’re going to be seeing those a lot while you're here. Every Guild has one. The entirety of Preceptor's Descent was built out from them—the founding pillars of this art-deco madhouse."

So Wei's guess was correct. But there were other things he didn’t get. “What’s art deco?”

The Trespasser snorted. “Told you back down in the Moongraves, kid. Got a lot to show you.”

They continued past the archway down steps carved from ivory, glass, and obsidian. Wei found himself proceeding down a tunnel, and an underground station expanded before his senses. After a few more minutes of walking, Wei saw a row of windows staffed by demons constantly stamping pages over and over while mumbling. “Ticketing… ticketing…”

"This is a crawler station," Bishop explained. "That's how most people get around the city. Usually, you need to buy a ticket, but we, up at Trespasser's Lodge, have a special pass that makes us very important people."

The tunnel stretched on, spanning kilometers, markers pointing to different platforms that burned midair with hellfire. A feeling of unease gripped Wei as he noticed how empty it was here.

"Very vacant," Wei commented.

"Yeah, supposed to be," William replied. Wei’s shifted a look of disdain at the back of his father’s head. Why did this subhuman think he had a right to speak? "This line is for those unaffiliated with any circle. Not many like us, usually. If someone’s here, it’s either a recruit for the Lodge or someone from the Crossroads."

"And what of the Inheritors?" Wei asked, his glare unbreaking.

"I would have included them, but they seem to have fallen on hard times recently. Something about trying to disable the Harbinger and throwing the Blood Games into chaos. A bit of a massacre has taken place… is taking place across the city. Open season on their like. The rest are going to ground—feeling into Crossroad establishments to avoid to storm. They fucked up big time with you.”

That was something, at least. Wei smirked cruelly. So, the Inheritors were punished for their misdeeds. He suspected as much when he saw the bodies coating the second gateway. It seemed the Harbinger was truthful about delivering retribution. “Glorious.”

Wei felt his father flinch slightly but continue walking.

“Nineteen,” Bishop called out and took a left turn. He passed though what looked to be an empty doorframe made from strange alloys and then led them down another staircase. A signpost above confirmed his statement: Platform 19 - Crawler to The Cherub’s Corpse.

"Cherub’s Corpse," Rafeal said, sounding slightly uncertain.

"It’s an unaffiliated den," Bishop explained, "Non-Circle turf. Not far from where one of the Lodge’s branches are. We booked lodging for you there, so that’s where you’ll be staying for the foreseeable future.”

"Why is it called Cherub’s Corpse?" Wei asked.

"Because that’s literally what it is," Bishop grunted. He didn’t offer any more details.

As they were about to reach the bottom of the stairs, Wei felt a faint Essence signature approaching. The coming presence was barely at Knight-Tier, but the Essence empowering it was constant. Flowing. Endless. But when it entered his perception, he was still surprised. In retrospect, he shouldn’t have been. He remembered the demonic spider he rode with Schrödinger when he first arrived. Demons were the lifeblood of this place, so why wouldn’t a demon be the main form of transportation as well.

A massive, centipede-like creature slid out from a pit of darkness, and veins of pulsating red danced down its body. Wei counted twelve segments to its body, with each one running twelve meters long. Long demon. Ridiculously long. More than that was the bronze fused into its flesh and the vents that hissed screaming steam into the air. This thing was more then just hellish biology—there was some kind of golemancy at play as well.

Wei’s Omniscience allowed him to perceive within it as well. He looked over luxurious cabins with plush carpets, leather seats, tables laden with food, and impish demon servers on standby. They were small, impish creatures with bat-like wings. The kind Wei wouldn’t think twice about killing in one of the Moongraves, if not for their formal pieces of attire and oversized hats.

As their group finally reached the base of the stairs, Agnesia’s eyes widened despite her sullen mood. "What in damnation is that?"

Crawler: Lv. 50

A high-pitched squeal echoed through the station from the head of the creature, and from one of the doors emerged a familiar figure.

"Alright, you bastards, show me your tickets," Schrödinger barked. Dressed in a peculiar uniform with a small hat, he spotted Wei. "Well, I'll be damned. You didn’t die."

Wei nodded. "Schrödinger. I never intended to make a liar of myself. You still owe me lessons."

The goblin made a smacking noise with his lips. "You know I never technically agreed to that, right?"

The young master ignored him. "Good. I’ll be speaking with you in the future. I look forward to my continued education."

Rafael leaned inw with a sniff. "Wei, I thought I was supposed to be instructing you."

"Everyone will instruct me," Wei said casually. "I will claim all knowledge."

Nearby, a slight snort escaped from William Yu. “Haven’t changed.”

Wei’s momentary banter dissolved as he spat at his father’s feet. The comments stopped after that. “Think not of me as anything to you anymore.”

This moment wasn’t for William. Whatever memories Wei had of his father were falsehoods. Defilements.

Bishop showed Schrödinger a pass he drew from his Inventory, and the goblin squinted before nodding. "All right, so you got the pass. Big whoop-dee-doo. Get in."

Bishop and Sarah Moonscar entered first. "Sort yourself among whatever train cars you want. Full service is included," Bishop said telepathically. "Wei, bring your crew to car one. There are some things we need to discuss."

Without hesitation, Wei followed, Roggi and Agate lumbering close behind.

"This doesn’t look like any train I know," Agat said.

"Train?" Wei replied.

"It’s a locomotive," Roggi added.

Wei blinked.

"It’s like a mechanical carriage that moves on its own. Sometimes it uses steam, other times essence, or some other form of magic. This one’s probably running on pure hellish energy. Everything runs on sin in the Claimed Hells."

As Wei stepped into the car, he saw the luxurious setup his omniscience had revealed earlier. Bishop, Moonscar, and his father were seated at the far end, and Wei joined them, planting himself on the leather sofa across from them. Roggi and Agate, being considerably larger, sat at a special table with an entire spread of food and drink before them. There was even a towel and a large box of wet-papers for Roggi to deal with his… condition.

"So," Bishop began. "What the hell happened after I left?"

Wei shook his head. "Seever happened. The Project Lead. He—he was too fast—he managed to take Ellena. I tired… I was… I wasn’t enough. I broke his perception, but I failed to…” Wei’s hands began to shake. He remembered. He remembered how his mother’s form overlapped with Ellena’s head. He remembered—

“Wei,” Bishop said, reaching across the table.

The young master flinched back. "It’s nothing," he said, shaking himself.

Sarah Moonscar studied him closely. "It’s not nothing. I can feel what’s broken inside you.” Her eyes gleamed as she spoke, but her words inspired only rage.

"I will not discuss this with you," Wei interrupted. "I do not know you, nor do I need your words about my mental state. I am well. I am well."

You are well, his System agreed.

She wanted to continue, but Bishop shook his head. "No," was all he said, and all he needed to say. Wei was thankful for that. Bishop respected his boundaries, something Wei appreciated.

Another high-pitched squeal signaled the train’s departure. Schrödinger walked through the train cars, ringing a small bell. "Alright, get seated and dig in. If there’s anyone still at the station, we’re leaving you behind, and you’re probably going to get eaten by one of the ticket demons when they get bored. It’s happened before. Make sure no one’s left behind!"

And with that, the train started moving. The station outside began rolling along as the Crawlers legs began to skitter. Wei used his Omniscience once more to ensure all his disciples were aboard, and only then let out a breath.

They were… they survived… He did it. At no small cost, but they did it.

“Wei, listen,” his father began, leading over the table between them. “About what I did, your mother—”

Bishop felt what was coming and shook his head. “Fuckin’ idiot.”

Wei punched his father. With all he had. His knuckles crashed hard against his father’s nose. Hit so hard that Wei felt his knuckles fracture. So hard a sonic crackle sent everyone around him stumbling against their seats. So hard that William’s head snapped backward—but not before a spurt of nosebleed splattered over the glazed chicken between them as new topping.

Bishop just frowned at the chicken’s newest condiment. “Come the fuck on, you two, we were going to eat that.”

“I’m still going to eat that,” Wei said, seething as Source leaked from his hand. “I think it might even taste better.”