Chukshene emerged from the thick smoke, clearly exhausted. Limp hair plastered to his face, he stared in wide-eyed triumph at the devastation.

“Well?” he called, choking on smoke. “Are you gonna lay about all fucking day, or you gonna get your skinny ass out of here?”

“What fucking kept you?” she hissed.

“Would a little fucking gratitude kill you?” He covered his mouth and coughed. “I told you it takes time. And it wasn’t enough to stop them all. So, move it, Long-ear!”

She didn't dare look behind to see if the hooded figure was there. The crawling feeling that he was standing right behind her made her want to turn around, but didn't. Instead, she sprinted hard toward the gates, her breath loud in her ears. “Which way'd they go?”

“Huh?”

“The Bloody fucking Nine! Which way?”

“Oh,” he waved an arm southward. “They went that way somewhere. I didn't see. I was too busy trying to save your ass. You won't catch them now. I don't give a fuck how fast you can run, their horses are running faster. We've got to get out of here first. There's more coming. We’ll figure out what to do when we’re clear, alright?”

The elf snarled, but accepted the truth of his words.

She would follow them, of course, but now they knew she would be on her trail they would ride as fast and far as they could.

Nysta bared her teeth and her eyes glittered. It would just take more time, is all.

Why they were heading south was a mystery to her. They'd have to know she'd follow them to Grimwood Creek. Beyond that, they couldn't go much further south before reaching the border. And only the Jukkala were skilled enough to journey deep into the southern kingdoms. It was too hard to hide the ears of an elf and the Caspiellans would kill them on sight.

There had to be something else, then. They'd have to have good reason for going to Grimwood Creek.

Maybe they were meeting someone?

But that puzzle could wait.

She skipped over several smoking corpses and made to follow the spellslinger out the gate. Nearly lost her footing as the ground gave a sudden violent lurch. “What the fuck?”

Weak from casting, Chukshene couldn't keep his balance through the trembling of the earth, and tumbled down onto his ass. He squeaked an outraged curse and rolled quickly onto his side in an effort to snatch the grimoire from where it had fallen. This was more difficult than it should have been thanks to the pale-skinned arms erupting up from the ground to snatch at his robe. They dragged him back down easily, pinning him to the ground.

“Nysta!” he shrieked, still trying to grab his spellbook. “Help me!”

The elf grunted as several arms drove up between her feet and wrapped cold hands around her ankles. Fear burst in her veins. “Sorry, 'lock. I can’t help,” she called as she used A Flaw in the Glass to saw through flesh and bone. Black blood spurted over the already stained ground. She stabbed rapidly at the sodden earth, sickened as chunks of meat and bone were savagely torn free. “But I reckon they all want to lend a hand.”

“Why do you struggle, Child of Veil?” The hooded figure's voice curled around her ears as he emerged from the shadows. With a shiver, the mutilated arms she'd been fighting sank into the earth like wilting flowers. “Surely you feel the tug of the Lady’s touch upon your soul?”

“Nysta?” the spellslinger gasped. “This doesn't look so great.”

She glanced at him. He'd given up struggling and was staring aghast at the figure looming before them.

“Reckon you're right, Chukshene,” she allowed with a calm she didn't feel.

Turning slowly on her heels, she loped towards the hooded figure.

He lowered the hood to expose features long withered with time. Deep cracks traveled down his cheeks like ancient scars and his eyes were deep pits of black like the Lichspawn.

But he was clearly something different.

Long dark hair hung in twisted ribbons from his dry scalp and a strip of flesh down the side of his jaw had torn away, exposing clean white bone.

She'd seen Deathpriests up close before. Seen the effects immortality had on their flesh, but this went beyond even that. She had the feeling his body could wither away to dust and still he would live.

Shuddering, she studied the expression on his face. Achingly sad. It was as if the dry parchment skin had been weathered more by sorrow than time and once more she felt a pang of pity, though she couldn't say why.

“Asked you once,” she breathed, struggling to push the slow trickle of compassion for the tormented creature from her heart. “You didn't give me a decent answer. Ask you again. What do you want?”

The Lichspawn gathering slowly behind him, lifted their heads as one and their eyes drilled into her as their mingled voices crawled across the street. “The Darkness,” they intoned like twittering bats. “Will fight again.”

“My friends speak true,” he said. “The Darkness will fight again. It must.”

“That's not an answer! What is it you want?”

He cocked his head, considering her words. When he replied, his brow creased with a crackling of dry skin. “We fought many wars. Slew many heroes. The blood of kings has passed our lips and tainted this blade.” He lifted the sword as though only just remembering it. “But our Lady is gone. Fallen. No more.”

“No more,” the Lichspawn echoed, bowing their heads. The elf took a hesitant step backward at the sudden emotion in their voice. An emotion she was still freshly acquainted with.

Loss.

The figure nodded. “Yet, the Darkness will fight again.”

“Yeah,” she said carefully, edging slowly to her left. He didn't seem to mind her movement, or notice her fingers grip the blade in her fist harder. “You said that. Reckon I've heard of you, you know. You're Gaket. That right?”

For what seemed an eternity, he didn't move.

Didn't even breathe.

She wondered if he even needed to, and instantly doubted it.

“Gaket,” he said, as though tasting the word for the first time. “That is . . . an old name.”

“Well, you ain't exactly looking too fresh.”

Gaket stared down at his undead body as though seeing it for the first time. The rip of bone sticking up through his thigh to show where his leg had been broken and would never heal. The rough, nearly skeletal hands. Desiccated flesh.

He nodded slowly. “That name was lost on the day I accepted the Lady’s blessing.”

“What do I call you, then?”

“We have no names. None are needed, Child of Veil.”

“You keep calling me that,” she said, twisting her lip. “But Veil's dead. You said it yourself. Fallen to Rule. She was dead before I was even born. I'm no child of hers.”

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“You are Elfblood. You are her creation. Even in death, she owns you.” His lips cracked as they parted to reveal splintered teeth. Thick black ooze glistened between the cracks and the stench of the grave was overpowering. “You fight well. You are a gift to us. She said you would be.”

Fighting the impulse to gag, her blood froze at his words and she shivered. “Don't reckon I like the sound of that,” she said. A Flaw in the Glass flickered nervously in her fist. “You want to fight me? Is that it? I'll tell you something. I won't die easy.”

“All things die easy in the end,” he said. “But we are not here to fight you, Child of Veil.”

“Then what is it? Why haven't you killed me, Gaket? You've slaughtered a whole town here. Yet, you let me live. What do you want? Reckon it's not because of this Elfblood shit. Or the Child of Veil crap. You’re spitting riddles, but it all amounts to the same thing. You want something. And I'm not gonna like it, am I?”

“We need you.” He took a step closer, his boot nudging the burnt skull of one of the Lichspawn. He didn't notice. “You will save us.”

“Save you?” She shot him an incredulous look. “You're immortal. You chew through armies. You've killed kings under Rule's very fucking nose. It's been said you could kill Rule himself if you wanted to. And you need me to save you? What could I possibly do that you can't?”

“The Darkness will fight again.”

The elf made a disgusted sound in the back of her throat. “But what the fuck does that mean?”

“The Darkness will fight again,” he repeated, injecting some urgency into his voice. It was this urgency which scared her more than the Lichspawn shuffling closer behind him.

“You keep saying that,” she scowled. “Over and over, like it might make sense. But it doesn't. So, you want to fight again. But you don't want to fight me? And you won't let me leave. It's not making any fucking sense, Gaket. What are we doing here? Are we gonna kick each other's ass or what? I'm losing my patience for this. Every second I spend standing here in this fuckhole town is another second Raste and his assholes are breathing air I don't want them to breathe. So, make sense, you undead piece of shit. Fight like the soldier you were or get the fuck out of my way.”

“Gaket! Listen to me!” Chukshene choked as he struggled in the pale arms pinning him to the dirt. His heels kicked, but he was held too tight to wriggle free. “Gaket! I got a fight for you. You can fight Rule. Fight the one who murdered your goddess! And who killed the Dark Lord himself! Fight him, Gaket! For vengeance. For honour, if you believe in it still. Grim's scrotum, fight him for the fuck of it. After a life as long as yours, that's gotta be reason enough, isn't it?”

“Your Dark Lord offered us this choice. It was a long time ago. We remember. The sky was very blue that day. And the Worldgate burned green. It's what drew us there. He asked us to fight.” He closed his eyes. The elf glanced at the mage, who stared back helplessly, his grimoire tantalizingly close. Gaket sighed, and the sound was like a door scraping over gravel. “For a moment, we were tempted. But though she foresaw her fall, she could not foresee what would happen to us when she was no more. That, without her, our mortal memories would haunt us. That we would begin to remember. And to wonder. Then, finally, to feel.”

The Lichspawn nodded their heads as one in a manner the elf thought was almost gentle.

Behind them the buildings burned brighter as magefire spread like a disease, tearing at rooftops. Licking her lips, the elf wondered how long before the flames engulfed the town.

Not long, she thought.

“We fought too many battles,” Gaket continued. “We are empty. We no longer feel the thrill of the hunt. We have withered, Child of Veil. We are weary. Do you understand this?”

She nodded, thinking of Talek. “Seen it happen. You get your fill of killing. But there ain't much else you're good at. So, you don't know what to do,” she said. “That what this is about, Gaket? You're bored? Well, get a fucking hobby. Try pottery. Make cups.”

“She knew you would come.” He drew his lips back and the elf was horrified as she realised he was smiling. “Knew you would be in this place. At this time. We have waited for you for hundreds of years, Child of Veil. At last, the Darkness will fight again.”

“Then get on with it!” she snapped, all the fear shattering as frustration exploded through the thin veneer. “Fight! Come at me. So you're sick of the world. Want to die? That it? Then, come on! What are you waiting for? Maybe I pity you, Gaket. Not because you've been alive this long filled with Veil's curse, or blessing or whatever the fuck. Not that. But because you've lost your balls. Lost them somewhere along the way. Now you drag your feet across the world, crying in your fucking scabbard because you're too weak to end your own life. You're a coward, Gaket. A useless fucking coward. She would be ashamed of you. Ashamed because you sit there weeping over what you've lost. You had both the chance and the power to do something. To avenge her death if you wanted. But you chose instead to cry in the dark, hiding from Rule. You don't have the guts to go to him. To stand before him. And spit in his fucking face! You've waited for me? Whatever bullshit that's about, you can keep. You can bottle it up and drink it on those cold winter fucking nights. Now, I'm leaving. Right now. You can try to stop me. And if you do, I'll finish your fucking whining faster than you can fucking blink.”

As she spoke, the elf's face mottled red with rage and shame. Part of her realised she was enraged by how similar she was to him. How the seething anger burning through her body was disguising the crippling guilt she felt at Talek's fate.

How she felt so helpless and alone.

But, she reminded herself, instead of weeping on Talek's grave, at least she was doing something.

At least she was hunting his killers.

Her teeth clenched tight as she glared into his empty eyes.

Gaket stood unmoving, his sword's notched tip pressing lightly into the snow.

And then that awful smile cut into his face again as he said; “You are everything she promised you would be, Child of Veil. You are hot-blooded. Your passion will serve you well. We will gladly stand in your shadow.”

A terrifying thought trickled into her brain. “I don't think I'd like that much.”

“It does not matter. You serve her. You always have. You always will. It is the nature of things.”

“Nysta?” the spellslinger's voice was tight. “If you're finished playing with the scary thing, I think now would be the perfect time to cut me free and get us out of here?”

She took a step away from Gaket, whose smile kept growing wider as his eyes burned darker. Behind him, the Lichspawn knelt as one.

Shadows tugged themselves out of the ground and began sliding gracefully through their ranks like wisps of smoke. Her guts tightened at the sight of them.

“Reckon you might be right, 'lock,” she breathed, a cold ripple of dread creeping up her spine and into her brain.

“We are tired, Child of Veil,” Gaket rasped. “Our time has passed. The gift I have carried so long must be passed on. I would have passed it long ago, but she forbade it. She told me to wait. To wait for you. Well, you have come. And it is time. Accept it. Accept her gift.”

The shadows darkened as they approached. They intertwined like rope to form thick wires of pure darkness. The kind of darkness that spoke of nightmares become real.

She could hear them whispering to each other as they glided toward her in voices low and alien.

Hypnotised by the bubbling sound, the elf felt her mind shiver but couldn't stop trying to make out the words. Couldn't keep from listening.

Her eyes were heavy. A Flaw in the Glass suddenly weighed too much.

She wanted to open her hand.

Let it drop to the ground.

Sleep.

“Nysta!” Chukshene's shrill voice sheared through her reverie. “Snap out of it! We've got to get out of here! Now!”

Flashing violet eyes open, the elf snarled and her body moved without thought. Gaket hissed as she drew, aimed and threw All Tore Up. The slim blade thudded into his face, just above his nose. His head snapped back and black blood spurted like a swarm of bees before splashing to the ground.

He staggered backward, clutching at the handle jutting from his head. She knew the blade hadn't killed him but hoped it would slow him down.

The first cord snapped at her like a snake, wrapping tight around her wrist. Gasping in pain, the elf realised it was trying to chew on her flesh. And, unlike the mouth of a leech, she doubted it was trying to suck her blood. Rather, it was trying to get inside.

Panicked, she tugged hard. The cord refused to give.

A Flaw in the Glass sliced easily through the thin black wire. As the blade cut through, the cord hovered still for a moment before dropping to the ground and shattering like glass. Dusty splinters glittered around her boots.

The Lichspawn howled as one and the elf spun away with a gasp, throwing herself beside the spellslinger. A Flaw in the Glass hummed, biting through the arms holding him down with sickening ease.

He gave her a sharp nod of thanks and snatched his grimoire.

They rolled to their feet together, the elf slashing at the grasping cords of black, and sprinted toward the gates.

“Shit!” The warlock nearly tripped over his robe and struggled to open the grimoire while he ran.

Bursting through the gates, they were pursued by Gaket's howls and the shadowy cords snapping at her heels. Her terror threatened to make her scream, but the elf bit stubbornly down on her lip. Tasted fresh blood.

“You cannot escape your fate, Child of Veil!” Gaket roared after them. “Her blessing will be yours. The Darkness will fight again! Fight, Child of Veil. Fight! Vengeance. Vengeance for her! Bring the Dark Queen back to the world! It is your destiny! You hear me? She foresaw this moment! It is your destiny!”

“Fuck you,” the elf panted, her legs pumping hard. She snatched at the warlock, trying to drag him faster down the path.

But one of the cords slapped at her knee and she stumbled, nearly taking the spellslinger down with her. Cursing, she pivoted, A Flaw in the Glass gleaming. The blade chopped through the offending cord. Following her momentum, she landed awkwardly on her stomach, nearly opening her head on a jutting rock.

She snatched breaths.

Scrambled onto her side and kicked out as something grabbed her boot.

Felt it let go.

A Lichspawn, quicker than the others, reared up out of the snow and its wide mouth opened as it made to clamp its tainted jaws down on her forearm.

That acrid stench again. Chukshene's words of power roared in her ears. Her stomach churned.

Magefire vomited from the spellslinger's palm and tore the creature's head clean off.

She tumbled away, avoiding the gush of blood and more cords whipping toward her head.

“Move!” he snapped at her, his face pale. Clearly the casting was draining him quickly. “I thought elfs could run faster than this.”

She spat into the snow. Sprinted after him. “Focus on yourself, Chukshene,” the elf growled. “This ain't a race issue.”