The council was gathered, the hags, Noir, Marc, Mia and Johan standing along the kitchen table.

"Each of us has strengthened their own power, and with Knight invading their home, they concentrate on the western gate exclusively, leaving themselves vulnerable when we come. What is the state of our army?"

The first to speak was the horseman of conquest, his armor shining in the kitchen light.

"The lost legion is ready to march and in top shape, given our plan to attack tomorrow, I had them rest today."

Everyone nodded at that, the collective gazes switching to Mia.

"I have four hellhounds and one Imp, my fire has also increased in power, and everyone is brimming with the urge to slaughter."

Everyone nodded once more, smiling as he did so.

"There are currently four skeletons, two zombies and a single golem under my command, and all the living in here rile them up quite a lot."

Once again, everyone agreed, before their eyes fell upon Noir.

"The hags and I optimized the bugs and made sure they hate the church with a passion. It might have consequences later, but right now, anyone that fights on our side is a boon. Fenrir has trained himself in hunting and running, Famine has gotten pretty big with all our wastes dumped into the moat he fills, and I am going for a new experiment today that will make my punches even more dangerous. Our attack tomorrow should start with a massive attack on the southern wall. Mia, I trust you with that. We will follow this attack with a storm on the western wall while the bugs harass the east. With the continued storm, Fenrir, Famine and I will attack from the north once an opportunity presents itself. If Johan attacks the scorched area, we force them to split their attention between all four gates. Now, our resources are running low, so we need this fight to be won, else we can't continue feeding the Army, and my work on the nutritious goo still needs a bit of work to create a version that works without the whole mutation thing. Any questions or additional information?"

If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

The Hags were the first to interject, the first shaking her head.

"Not once did any of you think about having us with you. My sisters want to help."

The second sighed, nodding.

"Esmeralda is right. Now, I can't change and read your minds like she can, but I will unshackle your souls a little, allowing for your power to flow more freely."

The horsemen were surprised at that, but happy for any help they might receive.

"And I can make everyone harder to spot for a total of one minute, thought it will afflict all of you at the same time. It targets an area. Just break this little token when it's necessary, and the spell should activate."

Then, they went out, directly heading towards the neighboring ruin they set up shop inside.

Mia went with them, ready to be the first unshackled and experience its effect.

The others went out to wait next to the door, curious what would change.

It took about a minute when the entire building suddenly heated up, only to freeze to zero a second later, slowly stabilizing as pained screams came from the inside.

Soon after, she came back out, the men blinking for a second before realizing that it was her. Her skin had turned crimson, and her black hair fell between a pair of wicked horns, her eyes seeming to flicker red and yellow as they gazed upon the world around her, her familiar flicking around her, the air around her heating up just by her breathing out.

"You are hot." Marc noted.

"I'm aware, this body is great, like, can I turn any more epic?" She answered, smiling and exposing her wicked teeth.

"I mean literally, I could probably cook an egg on your forearm." He noted, going inside right after.

About two minutes after heading inside, everyone felt a chill run up their spine, coughing as Noir and Johan fought to keep themselves from dying.

Shortly after that, Marc came back. He still looked sickly, though his skin was now parchment levels of white and seemed to directly cling to his body, eyes turned into orbs of icy blue, his presence making the two unraised feel old.

Third, Johan went in, the overwhelming pressure Noir felt as soon as his friend entered the building almost throwing him into the ground.

When the conqueror returned, his skin was shining and his eyes had taken on a golden coloring, Noir feeling it hard to not stand at attention as he greeted his friend.

"Hot, Edgy and Regal, what will happen to me, ugly?"

The grafter asked Jokingly, his familiars waiting on the outside as he went in.

"Hold my hands, and unleash everything you have. Mix and match if you want, just empty yourself until you are reduced to your most simple thoughts."

And so he did, pushing every thought into the elderly women's hands, focussing his powers as if to get rid of them, while his essence was stripped away.

He grew simpler, his dreams compressed into the urge to make the world better, his fear of stagnation and his desire for entertainment compressed further and further, until a single word remained.

"Now focus on that word. Focus the entire torrent upon it and then speak it once. Do not repeat this word ever, it will be taken from you. Using it will kill you."

What happened next was unbearable pain. He saw himself twist in ways he never did as he took his power back in.

As he uttered the word, he blacked out.