A Not So Friendly Meeting With God, Rev. (Eve’s POV)

My eyes opened to an odd ceiling. Or, really, the odd lack of ceiling. I certainly remember passing out underneath a large portion of the mountain.

The clouds shifted. A beam of light fell down and alighted upon the ground next to me. It slowly shifted towards me, although I was unsure of whether it wanted to. Just before touching me, a shadow passed over the source, stopping it. I turned my head to look.

An angel. His face was so well-defined he could have been a marble bust. His hair was a bit on the long side, about half the length of mine, so it reached to just under his shoulder blades. His clothes were closer to a vest and pants. Most of his chest was uncovered, the vest made out of a thin cloth blowing behind him. He didn’t seem bothered by the slight chill in the air that I certainly didn’t remember from Fronag.

All in all, he seemed angelic, even without the four wings. But there certainly were four wings. They extended out from his back, covered in silvery feathers that almost looked as if they were half made out of mana.

With a short attempt to sit up, or stand, or even roll over, I came to the conclusion that I was unable to move. I wasn’t afraid, however.

At least, I wasn’t afraid until he pulled out the knife. It was twisted, coiling around itself as if it was trying to tie a knot. But the scariest thing was his eyes. They were completely emotionless. Blank and devoid of everything.

I tried to move my body. But, just like the last time I tried, I was incapable.

“Augmentation!” I shouted, still able to move my mouth. The magic kicked in, giving the angel pause. But then he hastened the fall of the blade. My muscles burst with power, 500 mana strengthening them.

6 inches away.

5 inches.

4.

3.

2.

…

My body lurched forward, twisting painfully to dodge my death. I barely managed. A few strands of my hair were cut short, twirling away in the wind. I put a hand to my spine, feeling the strain. The blade was buried into the ground, showing exactly what damage would have been wrought on my body if it had touched. To describe it in words wouldn’t send the same message as seeing it anyway, but I’ll do my best.

When the blade touched the ground, it began to squirm like it was living. It bent backward, making a U shape in the dirt. Then it twirled around, warping the entire time. Dirt sprayed everywhere, digging out large clumps while slicing the grass up millimeter by millimeter.

If it had ended up inside me, I would probably be continuously killed as my heart was torn out of my body. Or maybe it wouldn’t even be aimed at my heart, and would just rip large chunks of flesh from me until I died from blood loss.

All in all, I’d rather not get hit by that.

The scenery shifted. Instead of the plains, I was just in, now I was deep in a forest, the trees towering so high above me.

A voice thundered down on me.

“Why do you wish to live?”

I screamed in pain, clutching my throbbing ears.

“What is your willpower centered on?”

It hurt, so much so that I couldn’t move. The words reverberated in my head, forcing me to think about them.

“Is it strong enough to survive through anything?”

I heard the rushing of a liquid. I forced myself to look up, barely able to through the pain. My head felt like it was splitting in two.

A wave of water, even taller than the trees, was rushing towards me. And it wasn’t doing it slowly. I estimated 20 seconds, tops before the water hit me. A look to either side wasted 2 of those but told me that there was no hope in sidestepping.

My mana was limited, but I would have to use it all at this moment. 1956 mana solidified in my hands, split perfectly into two balls.

I began my prayer. I didn’t have the mental capacity to do them both in my head, so I spoke them both out loud.

“I pray to Hana, Goddess of the Icy domain. Gather your power in my left hand so that I may freeze the earth to the core!”

“I pray to Mercurum, God of the Rocky Earth. Gather your power in my right hand so that I may bend the stone to my will, protecting and destroying with the strongest of materials!”

“Blizzard! Iron Maiden!”

I chanted my spells, doing my best to keep my voice steady. The wall of water was nearly upon me as I yelled out the spell names, the mana in my hands leaving my control to form them.

I was unable to see what happened, as my vision once again faded to black. My mana hit zero, for the second time. How interesting.

But then, unexpectedly, I woke up instantly. I was lying in a bed, which, judging by the large canopy over it, was inside Helila’s house. Was she actually one of the richer dwarves?

I sat up, groggily looking around. My left hand was a bit heavier than the right one, so I looked over to determine the cause.

Rayne was asleep by the side of the bed, his hand gripped tight around mine. I gripped his back, not sure if I should wake him. I decided against it, choosing instead to run my fingers through his hair. Some parts were plastered together from demon blood, but that didn’t really bother me. It gave an interesting texture to the normally soft hair. It was smooth, running between my fingers like thread on a loom.

I smiled, not thinking any more about the pain in my head or whatever just happened. I could do that later. I mean, nothing was going to happen anytime soon anyway.

Rayne really was fast asleep. It didn’t seem like he was going to wake up anytime soon. He also showed no signs of releasing my hand until he woke up.

So I smiled wider as I pulled him into bed with me, trying to get him comfortable under the sheets. I slid my other hand over to his, gripping it tightly. A sense of satisfaction awoke when he gripped mine back, even while he was still asleep.

“Eve…” He was talking in his sleep, letting go of my hands for a second. I was a bit stunned, not moving for the duration I was able to.

He wrapped his arms around my back, pulling me to his chest. I could feel my face heat up. Somebody could fake affection when they are awake but asleep? I don’t think so.

“Please… Come back to me…” He whispered.

I could feel the pain in his voice. For a long moment, I wondered how long I had been gone. It felt like a few minutes, maximum. But I realized that I should probably think about everything later, when I had access to Rayne’s amazing thinking powers.

For now, I would simply enjoy this moment. Rayne’s body was cold, but it was a comforting chill. I melted into his embrace, pressing as much of my body to him as I could. My heart was beating so heavily in my chest, I wouldn’t be surprised if Rayne’s was being forced into my rhythm.

I squirmed in his grasp a little bit, just to get a little bit higher. His hands now rested just above my waist, the end of my spine. For a moment, I wanted to go a bit higher, but I held myself back. It just wouldn’t do for me to sleep like that.

I closed my eyes, filling my mind with memories of nights like these before the silver haired girl came along.

Finally, Peace (Rayne’s POV)

I could feel my heartbeat first. Slow and steady, pumping with a predetermined tempo. Calm and measured, like the conductor of a symphony.

Then it was the feeling of my nerves bringing the sense of touch. My skin tingled and pulsed, ever so slightly, to the beat of my core. But it pulsed faster, too. Different parts at different times, all symphonic. Like the chorus of a song, many pieces overlapping others.

Smell and hearing hit me at the same time. My nose picked up a single breath of air, swirling calmly like a background instrumental to my systemic symphony. My ears could hear the beating of my chest, along with another few sounds. The tapping of feet a floor down, faint but still there. A soft breathing from in front of me, steady and deep.

All of these were perfectly in harmony. Somehow, each tap of feet hit right on the beat, each breath like a deep wind instrument, each beat of a heart like a metronome, keeping the others in tune.

So, why, when the body worked so perfectly together, was the brain so chaotic? Thoughts crashed into each other like mortal enemies. Plans were half formed, fraying at the ends. Counterplans pulled at a single thread, tearing the entire plan apart. Emotions were like drugs, tearing apart your will to resist. The lack of emotions brings you into withdrawal, needing more and wanting something else. Addiction is so easy to fall into, but so difficult to pull away from.

My eyes opened. Only three seconds had passed since I was awake, but it was enough.  I was already depressed. It didn’t help that Eve would probably still be asleep today.

Eve was atop me, lying facedown. I was confused for a few seconds, before leaving those thoughts to the side. There was no way in hell that this could have happened without one of us waking up, and I most certainly didn’t.

So, figuring Eve finally woke up, I hugged her tightly, feeling tears come to my eyes. She had been asleep for an entire week. It was already the Week of Work.

(AN: August, check back on chapter 2.5)

I could feel her stirring in my arms, waking up once again. I hugged her tighter, curling my body around hers. I was overjoyed. All the clashing thoughts in my head gave an armistice to celebrate this moment. Plans all unwound, leaving me with nothing but my objectives.

“Eve… I can’t hold it back any longer… I’m sorry…” I felt her shiver at my words. She seemed to heat up, as well. I lifted her head to face me, pulling it closer to my face.

I tilted it to the side, so I wouldn’t bump her. She was red-faced, her eyes shut tightly. I shut my eyes as well, before coming closer, slowly. I did my best to hold it in this past month, but now that she was awake, I couldn’t help it.

I bit into her neck, beginning to suck. The bar appeared in the otherwise dark view of my eyelids. It was near empty, but it was slowly filling. I wasn’t able to get my fill of blood in a long while. I don’t know what would happen if it hit 0, but I wasn’t about to purposefully find out.

I also didn’t want to kill Eve, so I stopped at about 30%. As a vampire, she could probably take some punishment. I’ll fill it up eventually over a few days. I asked the system about it and she said the health bar, when full, fully replenishes blood. Quite an interesting theory.

Anyway, after all the moaning had stopped, Helila walked in. Or, well, she strolled in. She looked very satisfied for some reason, although I wasn’t going to ask why.

“Oh? What happened in here? Why wasn’t I invited?!” She seemed very angry, completely ruining the smugness she was showing just a second ago.

I looked at the scene. The blankets were everywhere, thrown about by Eve in a pleasure spasm. My hair was messed up, sweat dripping down my neck. My clothes were only half on, probably from some unconscious actions to get rid of the heat.

But, however embarrassing I was, Eve was a few times worse. Her hair was at least two times more tangled than mine, sticking to various places on her sweat drenched body. Her top was completely off, being a button on shirt, her pants halfway to her knees. Her arms were above her, red marks around the wrists, oddly looking like a handprint.

I tried to remember if I had done that, but gave up. My memory of the entire thing was hazy, at best.

Drool ran down her face from the left corner of her mouth. Her eyes were completely glazed over, small giggles coming out of her mouth.

I calmly fixed up my clothes the best I could, having some difficulties because I was slightly wet. Swinging my legs off the bed, I stood and straightened my sleeves, brushing off my shirt. Even with that attempt to look dignified, I still looked like a crazed sex fiend after the act. I suppose it fits.

“So? What's going on? Other than… this.” I gestured with a small flick of my head.

“I came up to say that I finally managed to get that one recipe down, but this seems like more fun, can I join?”

“No.” Short, swift, and to the point.

She pouted, but I ignored it. 24 days with somebody like her would be very difficult without being able to ignore anything she does at will.

So, of course, I learned.

Well, once I registered what she had come up there for, I immediately began to rush towards the bathroom. I needed to take a shower before anything else.

Nothing much was special about the shower, except for the size of it of course.

The soap smelled nice too, almost like lavender.

But anyway, Eve met me at the door, looking just as excited as I felt. She rushed in after I left, stripping fast enough that I heard the damp clothes hit the floor before I closed the door. I’m not sure whether I should be glad or disappointed that I didn’t see.

But I rushed down the stairs, tripping and falling down 8 of the 12. Not quite the best feeling, but hey, I had a perfect reason for my excitement.

What is it, you ask?

Doughnuts.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Well, they aren’t exactly the healthiest thing to eat for breakfast, but hey, see if I care.

Donuts were not something I was able to get very often. On occasions few and far between, I was able to take a single donut back home with me. I would split it with Eve, and that would be our ‘treat’.

I know, they weren’t that expensive in most stores, but the fact of the matter is getting them back to the house. Fighting becomes a few times more difficult when you need to have both of your hands holding the doughnuts, and you can’t move too rapidly. The best situation is when you order a baker’s dozen, and the gang that’s trying to steal them only has twelve members.

Hide the doughnut and pray they don’t search you since they already have their share.

But, besides that, we were finally able to enjoy doughnuts again. I held myself back from taking any before Eve came down, which I luckily didn’t have to do for long.

She rushed into the room, her hair still dripping wet and her shirt only half buttoned up. Even if she technically had been around Helila for about 25 days, she had only been awake for a few hours. She should not be able to show off her erotic side this easily. I guess the donuts were just that important.

“So, where are the donuts?” She asked immediately, looking around with sparkling eyes.

I held one up to her, smiling widely. She flung herself into the chair next to me, holding onto the donut as she fell. The momentum tore it from my grasp, so I had to pick up another one.

Not that I minded too much. Seeing her face light up as she took the first bite made my heart beat quickly, for reasons I didn’t know. Taking a bite myself, mostly to distract myself from some lingering thoughts, I couldn’t help but grin.

They were delicious, even more than Earth’s. They were light and fluffy, the frosting just the perfect sweetness. I would have to teach her about the other types of doughnuts, eventually. I can already imagine how good frosting filled donuts would be.

“Hehehe, how do you like that?!” Helila was smug, but this time I had to agree.

“You did great, these are the best I’ve ever had.”

“Can I get a reward?”

“No, of course not.”

“Even if it isn’t sexual?”

I hesitated, mid-bite. I thought for a second, chewing slowly. I swallowed and looked at her, putting on a serious front.

“Let me hear it first.”

“Could you do the thing you did to Eve to me?!” She closed her eyes tight and did a full 45-degree bow. At first, I was tempted to straight man it, but then I thought about it. Technically, it wasn’t a sexual request.

Although, it just barely classified.

“You know what, sure. But, I have some requirements.” I didn’t want her kicking us out, or else I wouldn’t know what to do.

“First, I want you to try to learn any recipes I give you. These are delicious.” I took another to prove my point, “Second, I’ll tell you right now that you won’t receive what you’re expecting to. So, please don’t look at me too different. Third, even if you end up wanting to kick me out, please let Eve stay here.”

I finished my donut, taking my time chewing it, decided carefully if this really is something I should do. I only had 29% of my blood filled, and it should take Eve another few hours before I can drain her again.

To put it simply, I was about to start raging and sucking the blood out of everything. The vampire inside me had been pretty complacent these past few days, but now that she was offering it was starting to win the large battle of willpower in my mind.

I ended up coming to the conclusion that it probably couldn’t hurt to do it, so I went ahead with the plan. I stood and walked over to her.

It would be the first time Eve witnessed me do it to somebody other than her, so it was a learning experience for the both of us. I would learn what a dwarf tasted like, and she would learn how she really looked when she was in the act.

I came closer, Helila panting from the thought until I dug my fangs into her neck. She moaned, the slight tang of pain hitting her harder than it should have. It seems she was feeling whatever turned her on most.

…

I can’t really say what I think about that…

The moaning, as always, was intense. Ironically, Helila’s blood tasted quite similar in sweetness to the very donuts she had made.

(AN: He had to take another shower, and eventually sew his shirt back up, as Helila had torn a gash in the left side with her fingernails in a large spasm of ecstasy.)

My memory seemed to be slightly better this time around, as some parts were seen in full clarity. Not exactly the greatest of ideas, however, as the parts that I saw were parts that not even my erotic little vampire wanted to see. For being a masochist, she sure knows how to insult people. I would have guessed she was a sadist if I only had that to go on.

Well, all in all, I ended up with another 5% on my blood bar, up to 34%. Eve was in her chair, not touching the last three donuts. She wouldn’t look me in the eye.

Her face was red, so either she was sick, or embarrassed. I’d bet on the second one. After all, she probably just realized exactly how erotic she was whenever we did this. That being said, I’d rather be able to control myself, so I’ll need some practice at this.

“Eve, when will you have full health again?”

“Ahh… Um… About thirty minutes from now…”

“Good, tell me when. I need to do this a few more times today.”

Then I took a second, along with a quick look around.

“That being said, where the hell is Vera? Always disappearing…”

“Umm… You’re talking about the busty fox-girl, right? She said something about the pool.” Helila explained.

(AN: Well, granted, she had a few deep breaths interrupting her, as well as very slurred speech. I did my best to understand what I could. Translated it just for you.)

“What?” I asked.

“Fox? …Pool.” She used fewer words this time.

“Oh, ok, I’ll head over there. I want to find out why that Fox always runs away.” I responded, taking note of the time. There was something I could easily compare to a digital clock on the wall. It used mana, though, with a sensor for daylight in the sun, probably at the top of the mountain. I’ve never checked.

Vera was swimming peacefully. Or, technically she was floating on her back, but she was in the water. Close enough.

“Vera?”

“Yes, Rayne?” She responded while I was still speaking.

“What are you doing here?”

“Training.”

…

“How so?” I asked, sincerely wondering what she was training.

“I’m thinking of some new spells. Floating like this helps me relax. I’m trying to replicate your [Mana Eye], as you call it, for those of us that can’t control pure mana so well.”

I thought for a second.

“Isn't that… really amazing? Where did you learn something like that?”

“Well, I was studying about it a lot, but Thea helped me out with some of the more complicated equations.”

“Equations?”

“Creating a new spell, or modifying one that already exists, is a bit like math. You have to find out each and every point of damage that the spell will do, compare it to cost, the diameter of the spell, cast time, and pretty much every other part of it. A spell is actually just a ratio. Or, a few thousand ratios. To change it, I just have to change one of the ratios.”

She righted herself, standing on the relatively shallow part of the pool. I dipped my legs in as she talked, enjoying the slightly chilling temperature.

The conversation continued quite a bit past that, but the details were pretty long and boring. It was just a lot of numbers, mixing in with some demonstrations and explanations.

In the end, I helped her out with a few ideas of using air magic to sense obstructions. She said it would take her a few hours, so I left her to her work.

My foot hit the ground for the sixth millionth time.

End +2, Agi +1

I continued running after swiping away the notice. I was passing the time by talking to the system about some of its features, which wasn’t too exciting. I learned a few things about how my skills actually work, but not much. I need more perception to learn anything too exciting.

I stopped running, wiping my forehead of sweat. I sat down against a tree, looking into the clouds. The sun was hidden behind them, so too much would hurt my eyes, but I could do it for a little bit.

Space around me started warping as I poured all my mana into it. I’m still not quite sure how I managed to figure this out, but it works. I’m attempting to teleport with a little bit more mana conservation. I can tear a hole in space, however that works, then walk through to teleport, but then I have to tear out the other side, using thousands of mana each way.

So then I thought, ‘Why not just have space itself let me in? Just swirl it away from itself, making an opening. I’ll just be opening a door.’

But no, not really. The thought was entertaining, at least it was a good idea. But that was only in theory. Actually putting enough centrifugal forces to open space was a bit much.

Think of it like tearing a sphere apart. Not just a regular sphere, either. A titanium sphere welded together from thousands of plates. Not demonstrate how you would pull that apart with only an iron nail and a hammer.

Practically impossible.

But I’m still trying. Pulling at parts, pushing others, Space weakened and strengthened. [Mana Eye] was overseeing it, attempting to measure each reaction with the mana I used. Just like Vera said, it was all a ratio.

Then something strange happened as a bit of space tore. A hand reached through, pure black in appearance. It gripped my collar, another three hands holding the edges of the rip.

With my concentration broken, all of the other mana vanished, making me lose nearly 15,000 mana. Pretty rude.

“Who are you?” The voice seemed to come from everywhere at once.

“Umm… Rayne?” I answered, hesitating to make it seem like it was a fake name.

“Hmmm… Rayne, it shall be then.” The hand set me down. It definitely wasn’t creepy to have four pitch black hands hold open a tear in space, and then continue to tear it. The voice continued.

“I have been imprisoned for a very long time. Probably a few thousand years… But that is beside the point. I have a proposition for you. Care to listen?”

“Would there be any reason I wouldn’t want to? Like, perhaps, my death if I refuse after hearing it?” I asked, making sure to not get any surprises. Those arms were really damn muscular.

The voice seemed to laugh. “Of course not! If you accept, you end up with a good part of the deal, and if you refuse, I’ll let you think about it more. There should be no reason to refuse this offer, though.”

“You might be surprised… Alright, hit me.” I responded, wanting him to tell me the deal.

Sadly, it seemed this entity was quite literal. One of the arms let go of the tear, the one below it raising to make sure it didn’t collapse. Then, it slammed into my chest.

Well, you know how I said the thing was muscular? It may have been an understatement.

I flew back, crashing through the trees with my body, before finally managing to let out some mana. I connecting it to anything, tethering to the trees, the ground, the boulders I flew by, anything to stop my momentum. I was slowed slight amounts each time, finally stopping a few meters away from a river. I must have flown for a few miles, at least.

A sigh escaped my lips. I held my back, which still hurt even though the damage was healed. It would take a while to run back. I hope the thing is still there.

“Oh! You’re still alive! I expected you to have died from that…”

“Yeah, thanks for the vote of confidence. What’s your offer?”

“Oh, I did say I would give you an offer, didn’t I?”

“You did.”

“I forgot it. Oh well.”

“‘Oh well.’ My ass! I just walked for thirty-eight minutes to get back here so you could tell me the damn offer and you say you forgot? What the hell was the point of me walking back here, then?!”

“...”

“Oh, so now you have nothing to say?! I’m just about ready to close that rift on you!”

“No… Please don’t do that. It’s taking me a lot to keep this open. Here, you know what? Give me a minute to think. I might just remember it!”

Through my anger, I had already surrounded the edges of the rift with my mana, ready to close it at a moment’s notice. I moved it slightly away from the tear, to give whatever it was a bit more room to breathe.

“Ah! I’ve remembered it!” The voice seemed surprised.

“Now then, what is your offer?” I asked, crossing my arms and bringing the mana back to the edges of the rip.

“If you open this little tear a little bit more, so I can come through, I’ll grant any one wish of yours!”

Of course, that was something interesting to think about. But I didn’t know what exactly to wish for. So I waited for an entire minute, thinking hard about it.

“Alright. But I want to know what you are going to do before I let you come over.”

“Well… I was planning on killing the gods?”

“Why is that a question? Anyway, don’t kill the gods until I say you can. I have plans for them, myself.”

“But I don’t want to wait another hundred years for some human to die! I want them to feel the pain that I have felt! Feel the full embrace of solitude!”

He sounded like a whining child. But I wasn’t quite sure if I should blame him. The tear in space opened up further, taking much more mana than I would have liked to spend.

“Well, come on through. But you will be fulfilling the deal.”

The four arms bulged, pulling something large out of the wormhole. The wormhole itself warped, twisting unnaturally.

“I thank you… Rayne. This demon will grant your wish.”

Four horns. Four arms. Two legs. Black eyes and skin. But even with all that, he felt familiar. His aura was just like…

“Were you… possibly just in Suratrat?”

He took a half step back, almost into the closing rift.

“How could you tell? That wormhole had no certain destination…”

He hesitated, his guard definitely up. Then he began muttering to himself. After twenty seconds, which I waited through patiently, he stared me in the eyes.

“I will give you my name. You’d do well to remember it. Ilkdis. After all, you’ll need me eventually. Now, I will grant your wish. I’ll let you protect her. I’ll give you the strength.”

He placed a hand on my head.

Time and Space Control Update:

[Time and Space Control] has leveled up 36 times. It is now Max level.

4,837,792 experience rewarded.

Mana Eye Update:

[Mana Eye] has leveled up 22 times. It is now Max level.

System Update:

Most of the experience has been absorbed by something. Be careful, Master.

Then he pierced me through the chest before I had the time to swipe the windows away.

No Rest for the Wicked. (Rayne’s POV)

I woke up and immediately shot to my feet. I had died again. The windows were still there, so I swiped those away before doing anything else.

I spun on my heel, looking around for any danger. I saw the mountain in the distance, coated in some black liquid.

Fearing the worst, I ran. That damnable demon better not have touched Helila or Eve.

I arrived at the scene, finding carnage hell would have trouble beating. Helila was in four pieces, a smile still on her face. I nearly threw up. But Eve was missing, and that was more important.

I searched through the outside of the mountain. No signs of her. I found the tree that concealed the entrance to the mountain and leaped down it. The house was a wreck.

The walls were shattered down, making the multiple room house a single large cavern.

The ceiling above me had multiple large chunks missing, and small indents that looked like fistprints. I refused to let my mind wander to fear. I forced it into the section of me that was filled with rage.

I rushed through each and every piece of wreckage, dreading the point where I find her, but looking forward to it at the same time.

I reached the third floor. The work floor. It was there that I found her.

The demon held each of her limbs, on for each hand, about two feet off the floor. She was facing me, the demon behind her.

Tears had left small lines of salt on her cheeks. Her eyes were closed. Blood trickled down her chin, coming from the mouth. A large hole was in her chest, slowly healing.

From then, I lost myself. I’m not sure what happened, but it couldn’t have been good. When I came to, I was chained to the wall with some black liquid, the same that was on the outside of the mountain.

Eve was still in front of me, chained similarly. Except for the pulsing nails in each of her limbs. If she was awake, I have no doubt that she would be screaming from the pain. For that reason, I hoped she wouldn’t wake up.

I could hear that demon laughing again.

“I’ve given you a chance, little vampire. Find your way through my bonds, and I’ll let you live. After all, it’s been quite a long time, longer than I’ve been in Suratrat, since somebody has done this much damage to me. Now then, entertain me with your struggles!”

With a laugh, the voice trailed off into nothingness. Even without it, though, I had no doubts he was still watching.

It pissed me off.

The shackles on my legs and arms didn’t look like they were going to come off anytime soon. So, if I couldn’t get the shackles off, I would have to get rid of whatever bound them to me. In simpler words, I’d have to cut off my arms and legs.

My mana wrapped around my shoulder, a pitiful amount compared to my full storages. I winced as it compressed, tearing through muscle, skin and bone. One down, three to go.

My health had taken 10,000 or so damage with each limb, so I had to wait nearly 20 seconds before being able to do the next one.

Just after a minute later, I was free of the bonds. A few seconds after that, I had full use of my body, and a full body to use. I ran the few steps it took to get to Eve.

I attempted to save her, tear out the spikes, rip off the bonds, anything to help her, but nothing worked. The spikes twisted to evade my grasp, the bonds held fast to the wall, and she wouldn’t even twitch to my attempts to wake her up.

I didn’t know what to do. I started to panic. My breathing quickened, becoming heavier each second. I paced back and forth in front of her.

I couldn’t think of anything. I didn’t know anything about what I was attempting to do. I didn’t know what I was attempting to destroy.

So, with those thoughts in my head, I remembered the levels I had gotten. I reached for space, and found it was like another part of me.

So I ripped it in half. Eve disappeared, reappearing a second later, on the ground next to me. I used the tear already in space, sharpened it, and cut the black liquid until it no longer existed. At least, not visibly.

I checked over Eve’s body, looking for any serious wounds other than the five obvious ones. But, in my checking, I realized something.

Her heart had stopped beating. Eve was dead.

And I had a feeling she wouldn't be coming back.