AAAAAH!

Adreanna waited, her pulse steady, silently counting to ten. With each number, the screams bounced off the damp cave, clanging against the walls mind. Just before she reached zero, a still silence filled the air, quickly replaced by another scream.

AAAAAH!

Her lips twitched into a smile. "Clockwork," she whispered. "He's breaking."

She was sure of it. The Youngling of the Stars might have been strong, a lieutenant by the the looks of his beret, but no one could withstand torture indefinitely. Every second new horrors she concocted inched the elf towards his breaking point. Every time his scream reverberated, was one step closer to getting what she needed.

AAAAAH.

Adreanna had all the time in the world. There was no rush to soil her hands—yet. She would wait, biding her time. For the moment she left in introductory pricks of fun to a lesser being. Most beasts soon to be under her command were clumsy, crude, and prone to killing their victims before any useful information could be pried from them. But Dim, a goblin with an unexpected talent for the magical arts, was different. She'd chosen him deliberately, trusting him after little more than a few brief instructions and a single sharp jolt of magic that left no doubt about who was in control.

For someone like Adreanna, delegation wasn't just practical—it was essential. The Goddess Lilith demanded much of her; the oncoming storm. Centuries of fruition had finally come to pass; birthing her, a servant of the divine, born in the body of an enemy. With her spirit now unshackled and Dim busy below, she was free to focus on the greater tasks her Goddess had set before her. But for now, she allowed herself a moment to revel in the goblin's handiwork.

Once awakened, the Goddess had opened Adreanna's mind to the treasure trove of minions known to the Saintians as the beasts. The Goddess showed her their potential, directing her to bend them to her will. At first, she thought there might be some resistance from their creator, but he had dismissed all of his creation as a worthless necessity. He needed them, but hated them as much as he hated himself, something Adreanna was glad to exploit.

AAAAAH.

Fifteen.

The designated stopping point. Now, the goblin Dim would give the elf a few minutes to recover before coming back to him for an answer. So far, the elf had completed three rounds. If he made it to round five, she would take over herself. Despite her busyness, she found the thought titillating. A wicked smile drew across her face and anticipation surged through her hands. She flexed her fingers, feeling the purple energy dance beneath her skin, hot, simmering, always ready to be unleashed. With her, the elf wouldn't need a rest. She could harm as well as heal.

"Patience," she lightly spoke.

A smile played across her lips as she stared off in the distance. The tunnel was high enough on a mountain top that the wind pushed past her sleek purple hair and long black dress. A normal person might have found it annoying, but Adreanna found it a comfort on her already hot skin.

Her violent purple eyes pierced the spire of the elven city far into the distance. Its mere existence exasperated the Goddess's rage. It was a symbol of all the Saintian's progress and the main reason she was in the cave in the first place: planning the cities destruction. If the spire fell, one by one every other nation would tumble in its wake. All the other nations lacked the resources of the elven city. When Goldale fell, there would be no more elves, no more humans, no more Galaks, no more halflings...

"And no more satyrs."

Footsteps echoed behind her. Her anticipation grew, eager to hear the news she desperately sought. But as the heavy thuds grew clearer, her anticipation soured. Her excitement twisted into a scowl as she recognized the loathsome rhythm. It wasn't Dim.

Sighing, she kept her eyes on the spire in the distance, speaking as soon as the steps halted behind her. "Typhon."

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"I demand to speak to her."

Adreanna's fingers itched with the urge to strike. One blast, and his disfigured face would be gone, but the Goddess's restraint held her in place.

"What makes you think she wants to speak to you?"

"Don't test me, youngling." His yellow eyes narrowed with dangerous arrogance. "I killed you once. I can do it again. Let me speak to Her now."

Adreanna rolled her eyes. How dare he, she thought turning to the miserable, goblin-like creature. Unlike most of the goblins, Typhon was tall; easily matching her purple eyes to his yellow. Large locks of hair hung limply down his back in an unkept manner that somehow managed to stay straight despite the wind making its way through the cave entrance.

"I killed the weakling tainting my curves. If you think for one second your power could even touch the fringe of my dress then ready your magic, but I promise you, you'll be in for a world of hurt."

Typhon's hand hovered over the war hammer at his belt, eyes blazing with yellow fire. She wanted this—wanted to feel his skin sear beneath her touch, his arrogance crushed beneath her heel. Just as she prepared to unleash fire upon his oil flesh, a familiar weight pressed into her hand.

The mask.

"Humph. It looks like you'll get your wish after all," said Adreanna, lifting the mask to her face.

Purple light pulsed throughout the tunnel. She felt herself fade away while the Goddess Lilith flowed through every fiber of her being, singing with dark, glorious energy. As much as Adreanna despised losing control, she considered every moment of the experience was pure joy.

Her voice, no longer her own, echoed sweetly through the tunnel. "Brother. Always a pleasure," she sang. Adreanna disagreed, but would in no way interrupt her divine. "What can I do for you?"

"Your priestess is overstepping. She's got El knows how many beasts out there cutting down the trees in the western forest and my goblins have been slaving away in the mines for weeks. At the rate there going, pretty soon they'll punch a hole right through the terra. Furthermore, she's got elven stink filling up one of their homes. What could she possibly hope to gain from the filth but a mouthful of screams?"

The goddess forced Adreanna to give Typhon a toothy smile, but Adreanna wanted to rip out his heart and place it next to the one she collected from the paladin a few weeks ago. In that moment she recalled the sweet memory of the beating tell-tale heart in her hands as Edlyn's would-be champion fell to the ground. The memory elated her long enough to ignore the conversation her Goddess was having with the inferior creature through her stolen body.

"Brother..." She sang. "I have full confidence in my priestess. What your creations are doing for my chosen one, they are doing for both of our benefit. Soon, the nations of Sainta will succumb to the beast and you will be free to rule this world as you best see fit. With their followers destroyed, I will finally have the power to overthrow our wretched sisters and rightfully take my place as Goddess supreme."

"Typhon's eyes narrowed, his hand inching closer to the war hammer again. "And what of Father?" he growled. "Do you think He'll just let us take this world?"

"Father set the rules. We will hold fast to them, until the day He joins our sisters in destruction. He won't interfere."

"I don't trust her," Typhon muttered. "Your priestess isn't like us."

Adreanna's blood boiled. How dare he question her loyalty? Her fingers twitched, the magic begging to be released. But Lilith only smiled, sweet and unbothered. "She is mine," Lilith purred. "And I have never lied to you."

Typhon looked like he wanted to argue, but before he could, footsteps could be heard echoing in the tunnel. Both of them turned to look in the direction and Adreanna saw the goblin Dim running towards her.

"Mistress..." Was all the soul managed to get out, for the moment he laid eyes on Adreanna wielding the glory of the Goddess, he fell to the ground in prostration and wept uncontrollably.

Much to her delight, Typhon was outraged. "What's the meaning of this? Are you proselytizing to my creation? Release your hold of him at once!"

"Weak minds, my brother. Sometimes it can't be helped. Remember what I said. Soon the two of you will lead the beasts into glorious battle."

With that Adreanna felt the Goddess leave her body and she removed the mask. Dim continued to lay there on the ground and wept until Typhon kicked him and screamed at him to stand.

"Report!"

"Master ..." said Dim as he struggled to his feet. "The elf has informed me of a tunnel on the lowest level of the city. He's not sure of its location, but the description has led me to believe it similar to the one outside Lightmount."

At the mention of 'Lightmount' Typhon smacked Dim hard enough to send his body flying across the tunnel into the wall. The impact knocked the goblin out cold.

"Lightmount?" she said, rounding, on Typhon, eyes narrowing. "What did he mean by 'Lightmount?'"

As she stepped forward, his own eyes narrowed, but Adreanna could see a hint of fear behind the tiny beads. She could taste it on the tip of her tongue. The Goddess may not have allowed her to kill the creature, but she was surely going to use every means at her disposal to get what she wanted out of him.

Looks like I'm going to get a turn after all.

Gleefully, she held up a fist full of magic and reached for his throat. "Tell me," she whispered "What's it like to scream?"