~~~Karen~~~

Karen smirked at the demon groveling before her. This was the way things should be. This was the respect they owed her. Everyone owed her!

"Have you considered our offer?" Calderon said. The creature hid its true nature behind a seeming of profane magic, yet she had seen the truth beneath the mask. They were dead things that strutted about in defiance of God's will. Her will.

Karen didn't answer. Letting her gaze wander around the area instead. Surrounding them were her Crusaders; men and women who'd answered the call. Who'd finally found a real purpose in their wasted lives when they surrendered to the words of God. All chosen for their usefulness to the holy crusade, all but one.

Eve, the prodigal daughter, knelt at her left hand; the stubborn, poisonous, blasphemous brat, now finally silent! Now finally showing the proper respect to her mother. It was ever so sweet to witness her subservience. The girl was useless in all other regards, but worth bringing along as a reminder that even the lost could be brought back into the fold. Also, her brother had begged on her behalf...

Ezekiel stood at her right hand. The boy, always so much more obedient than his sister, so much more cooperative, was her trump card. He carried an astonishing power that both uplifted and frightened her.

That golden light could restore the most grievous of injuries as if they had never been, yet it also corrupted his mind against the word of God. It would corrupt any mind it touched. Would poison every mind against her. She had tested it extensively against the weaker and more useless of her followers, the fodder. To a one they all rebelled under that light. Even as wounds healed and amputated limbs reappeared, they would all forsake the holy words of God.

She alone was immune to the insidious light. A gift from God, no doubt. Because she had needed his light to save her own life...

It was a galling reminder of her own failings, that she needed another to save her. That she had to keep the corrupted brat at her side in case that monster returned. A test of her faith... something to keep her humble, perhaps.

That was, of course, what led her to this place and these... creatures. So-called Eternals that offered her a false mockery of the eternal life God already promised. False, but much like her own son, something that could serve the greater good once it was in her hands. She did not have to fear the devil's promises, for all power was of God, and she alone was the arbiter of His will. She would use even the devil's power against him, for nothing could turn her from the righteous path she followed.

"I have considered it," she finally said to the devil. "And I will accept it under the terms discussed."

The handsome man before her smiled, his face a mere illusion hiding the wider grin below. "Of course. You will serve no one. We do not seek domination, merely to correct the chaotic life of this world into a more controlled and orderly structure. Something I'm sure you would appreciate."

It lied through its teeth at her, but the power it offered was very real.

Race Shard: [Menthrall Vampire]

Enthrall the world.

A Vampire variant of the Eternal Undead Race. A physically weaker species that specializes in mental domination and control of vast armies of thralls.

Accepting this Race Change will shift your Racial Alignment from Monster(Sapient) into Civilized(Sapient).

New Race: [Menthrall Vampire]

Racial Traits: [Immortal] [Race Conversion] [Mentat]

Accept Race Change Y/N?

With this power, she would no longer have to fear anything. Even Ezekiel's power would not threaten her dominion.

She would take the power from these creatures and turn it against them. They would regret it in time. When she rose to supplant them. When she brought the entire world under God's banner. Her banner.

~~~Eve~~~

Eve watched the dangerous man that stood before them and she was ready to throw herself in between any attack that might threaten the Holy Prophet. That was her one duty. Her one purpose. To be a shield. Fuck that fucking bitch!

The impotent whispers of the devil plagued her mind constantly, but she was used to tuning them out. Rip out her fucking tongue! The word of God was absolute, and she lived to serve. She only yearned for the day that her life could prove useful. The day when she would be called on to fulfill her ultimate purpose: to die for the Prophet. A glorious day that would be. Yes! Die and escape this fucking... No... can't leave Zeke alone... not with that fucking psycho bitch! Kill her! Tear out her throat!

She watched with bated breath as the man reached out with a small black shard in his hand. Was it an attack? Would she finally get to give her life to the Prophet? Never!

The Prophet took the shard, her eyes gleaming at something only she could see. "This will do nicely. Yes, I accept."

So not an attack. Eve focused her attention fully on the stranger after the black shard vanished into the Prophet's hand. It was still possible he was planning something. She had to be ready. Kill the cunt!

Eve saw only from the corner of her eye as the Prophet groaned. Skin paled... eyes glowed with a reddish light... and the Prophet screamed! Die, bitch! She turned... and saw that the threat hadn't come from the outsider. Ezekiel had turned traitor... Eve threw herself at him to drive him away from the Prophet. Run, Zeke!

Buff Gained: [Purifying Light]

Hidden Debuff Removed: [Silver Tongue of the Orator]

Everything changed when she tackled Zeke away from the Prophet and crashed into the surrounding Crusaders... No, she was not a prophet. Nothing holy or prophetic about the bitch. She was an absolute cunt of a person. Literally the worst person on earth. She was also their mother.

She saw the bitch's face burning with golden flames that ate away at it even as her eyes turned bright red.

"You demon-spawned brat!" the bitch howled.

"Purifier!" the strange man yelled at the same time. Only, he was no longer a man. Now a towering monstrosity of bones stood before them, and magic bloomed from its hands. Aiming at her little brother...

"I should have killed you in the womb, you ungrateful... corrupted... spawn of..."

Eve wasn't watching or listening, her attention locked on the monster that was about to kill them all. It, and all the crusaders that also leaped to defend the prophet. They seemed mixed on whether to attack her, Zeke, or the monster casting a spell.

Jordan's massive flaming sword lifted high and plunged down... bisecting her screaming cunt of a mother's head from her body.

And she finally stopped screeching. She's dead...

Fresh screams broke out in a cacophony at the same time Eve saw Jordan's eyes and the rage that filled them as he stared at the dead bitch. He's free. Everyone was free. The bitch was dead!

Jordan's sword moved abruptly, too fast for her eyes to follow, and slammed into the skeletal creature lunging towards her. Flames erupted on contact in a deafening explosion of heat and pressure. Yet even that explosion sounded small in the screaming chaos erupting all around them.

The other crusaders each had their own reactions to the sudden freedom of thought Eve had received moments before. Some fell to their knees, weeping and wailing. Others fled into the screaming crowd. While enough attacked the undead in their midst.

It was chaos... and Eve took advantage of it to scoop Zeke into her arms and start running. She didn't have a chance against these monsters. Her departed mother had made sure of that. The bitch!

Zeke struggled weakly against her grip, crying out something, but too softly for her to hear over the noise.

Explosions sounded behind her and the ground shook under her feet as she weaved through the crowd. Much like the crusaders, people's reactions were a mix of horror, anger, violence, and numb collapse. Eve dodged around clawing hands, leapt over the idiots sitting on the ground, and bodily shoved a few aside when they didn't move fast enough.

She could hear the screams all around. But there was something new growing among those shrill voices. A new scream that wasn't from fear or outrage. It was the scream of people dying violent and brutal deaths.

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The first glimpse she got for the cause of those screams was a zombie chewing through a woman's throat with its teeth. Its head snapped up as Eve passed, glowing red eyes locking onto her as it lunged. She dodged behind another running woman and tried not to listen to the shrill, gurgling screams as she sprinted faster.

Then fiery pain bloomed across her back, and Eve crashed to the ground.

Debuff: [Paralyzed]

She couldn't feel her legs as Zeke tumbled from her arms... but she felt the zombie land on her back. Felt the claws digging into her flesh... felt the teeth sinking into the side of her throat. "Zeke, run!"

Debuff: [Critical Bleeding]

Debuff: [Corruption]

It hurt when the teeth ripped through her neck, spilling her lifeblood in a flood of warmth that left only cold darkness behind.

But that pain didn't compare to the thought of how badly she'd failed Zeke as her whole miserable life flashed before her eyes.

Buff: [Purifying Light]

Debuff Downgraded: [Bleeding]

Debuff Removed: [Corruption]

Debuff Removed: [Paralyzed]

Zeke knelt over her, tears running down his face while he radiated a golden light which filled her with strength and burned the zombie atop her into ashes. One hand rested on her shoulder, and he raised the other up defiantly against a massive skeleton now looming above them.

That same light shone from his upraised hand like a beam of golden fire against the skeleton, driving it staggering back as it howled and burned.

Zeke glowed brighter and brighter, lighting up like a miniature sun as he screamed at the monster and set it ablaze with golden flames.

Eve saw Jordan limping in behind it, one hand clutching his bleeding stomach as he charged. His flaming great sword glowed brighter than she'd ever seen before as he brought it around one-handed and blasted through both of the skeleton's legs.

It fell before the onslaught, toppling to the ground as more of the former crusaders caught up.

Eve scrambled upright as it went down, just in time to catch Zeke when his glow dimmed and he swayed on his feet, arms drooping. He stared at her with tears filling his eyes... then blinked sluggishly... and collapsed.

Eve pulled him into her arms, disbelief warring with horror in her mind... and saw a horde of glowing red eyes all locked onto her amidst the swarming, battling crowd. Everywhere amongst the throngs of people, those eyes ignored everything and everyone else as they sprinted toward her. Only... it wasn't her they stared at. It was Zeke.

She ran.

Zeke was limp in her arms, unconscious, but still glowing. She held him tight and ran for both of their lives while the hordes of undead pursued. She left the former crusaders to deal with the monstrous skeleton and ran faster than she ever had before.

Eve jumped over people in her path, even jumping off their heads or knocking them down when necessary. She dodged and weaved through the crowds, always putting someone between her and the nearest zombie to slow them down even a little.

It worked, even though she noticed that all the zombies zeroed in on Zeke. At least until he finally stopped shining like a damn glowstick. Then the zombies seemed content to attack whoever was nearest as they slaughtered through the hundreds of people the cunt had gathered.

Behind her in the distance, Eve still heard the occasional roar of that monster's voice as it battled the crusaders. She knew the sound of Jordan's explosive sword, as well as some other's signature skills. Those chosen by the bitch for their power...

Why they fought on rather than flee, she didn't know. Maybe they understood Zeke saved them, even if, as Eve suspected, he'd done it unintentionally. Or maybe they just wanted to fight. To lash out and destroy something. Anything to rid themselves of the violated rage that filled her own mind.

Eve left the fight to them, grateful for whatever help they could offer, even if she knew deep down they were all going to die.

There had been a feeling that descended on them when the monster revealed itself. It was stronger than all of them... though maybe together, they might have a chance.

Eve had no chance. She couldn't fight anything. Her mother had seen to that. Ensured that her daughter would remain as helpless as possible while still existing to sacrifice her life for the prophet. She could vividly remember her mother explaining exactly that, while Eve smiled and thanked her for the chance to serve. She remembered when the bitch grew tired of the compliance and let her have her mind back.

Those times were the worst. When she knew what the cunt had taken from her. When she fought back and got beaten into a bloody mess by the crusaders... When she saw the pain and confusion on Zeke's face... then watched him listen to the lies spilling from that psycho's lips!

It wasn't his fault... he was just a kid. She'd been no better at his age... buying in to the lies spewed by a hateful bitch that she'd trusted. Because parents were smart. They knew the truth. You had to believe them...

It had taken her so long to escape from the nightmare… and she’d walked right back in at the worst possible moment. All for the chance to see Zeke again… Then the world ended and it was too late for anything.

But now she had the chance to save Zeke. The one thing she wanted more than anything else in the world. He could finally be free.

What were a few zombies and monsters when they'd lived with a far worse monster their whole lives? They could survive this. Eve would make sure Zeke survived this. Whatever it took.

So she ran.

She ran until her muscles screamed and her lungs burned. Then she ran faster.

The fleeing crowds thinned, many of them either falling behind or turning aside from her own path. Many more died, but not all.

Eve kept running.

~~~Calderon~~~

Steven stared mutely away from the immortal being as it flicked golden fire from its hand. He didn’t dare speak. Didn’t dare do anything.

He still wasn’t sure what happened back there. Steven thought they were recruiting the massive group, then it all went to shit. The ensuing fight had been a mess, with far too many powerful humans suddenly unleashing hell on whatever they could reach.

Pure chaos, humans running everywhere, screaming, fighting, dying. Sure, he’d fed well on the dregs and even gained a level despite the weak prey… but seeing the Lord Calderon in pain… seeing the immortal suffer… that wasn’t right, and he feared attracting its wrath.

It didn’t have expressions. There was no way to tell what it was feeling. But he knew. Steven could feel the anger like a physical wave pushing against his flesh. So he kept quiet and looked away.

He watched another of the fodder die as the last golden flames flickered out. Yet, Lord Calderon remained motionless as they stared to the north. The direction that human child had fled…

It had been carried by another, a mere girl, and Steven didn’t know why the immortal didn’t pursue her. Was it that golden fire? He knew the very sight of it filled him with dread, and he desperately hoped he wouldn’t be ordered to fight that thing.

The fighting had dragged on a while, but how far could they have run? She was probably dead already.

"Gather the corpses," Lord Calderon instructed, and Steven leapt to obey.

He didn’t know the plan, but his orders were absolute. So he helped the others as they dragged corpses into great magic circles prepared by Calderon. Monsters rose from each ritual; mindless servants ready to fight and die for the masters.

Steven labored alongside former humans and fodder alike, yet none of them spoke to him or each other. A marked change from his time with Morgrath.

The mood wasn’t good among the others like himself. A few had died to the humans… died even though they were supposed to be immortal.

Immortality. Steven knew he was technically immortal. His status confirmed it. He’d sworn to serve the Lords in exchange for it, and thought them gods at the time. That original belief waned as he watched Calderon build an army.

The god was nervous. Afraid.

~~~Cunning Fang~~~

It was the scent that drew Cunning Fang’s attention away from her grumbling belly. Not the smell of food, but a new clean scent.

"Find it," she told Night Shadow.

Then she sprinted into the lair den with her pack and took the strange beast by its throat. Her teeth dug deep, her jaws tightening in a desperate attempt to silence her prey before it called more of its kind.

Behind her, the pack followed. Two of them took down the other beast and her prey finally fell limp. Her teeth savaged the creature’s belly, ripping it open with hurried frantic motions even as she swallowed the meager mouthfuls.

Then she tossed the innards to the pups. "Eat!"

She devoured the less savory and harder to reach pieces until… "Run!"

Cunning Fang snatched up one pup, and Throat Seeker took the other. Then they fled from the den ahead of the charging beasts. She had to give Quick Bite a solid shake on the way out, forcing him to drop the mouthful he hadn’t yet swallowed.

She had tried to stand and fight the beasts in these dens before, and it nearly cost them everything. They were too numerous. Even prey could kill with superior numbers.

These prey didn’t hunt beyond their den, and she watched them drag her kill away, deeper inside.

Night Shadow returned. "It is a human."

Cunning Fang followed him and found a running human that carried another.

The human female stank of fear and desperation, but also determination and affection for the one she carried. They were pack mates.

Cunning Fang approved. Protecting one’s pack was the most important thing.

However, it was the male who drew her attention. He glowed… a not unusual sight in this strange new world. What was unusual was what that light did to the air.

The stink of foul rot permeated everything now, and the corruption only increased for each new sunrise. The meat of their hunts rotted on the bone before they could eat, and her pups grew sick and hungry. They were forced to hunt into the dens where the prey greatly outnumbered them…

"We hunt them?" Night Shadow asked. "They smell clean. No rot."

"No," Cunning Fang trotted after the humans. They did smell appetizing after so long with only scraps… "We will not hunt the humans. We will follow them."

"The pack grows weak. We must hunt!"

Cunning Fang nipped at him affectionately. "Yes, and we will. We will hunt whatever gets close to these humans."

She dashed past a bush and snatched up the prey that was staring after the humans instead of watching for her. It died without a sound and she carried it while leading the pack ahead of the slow human.

When she dropped it, all of them watched and waited. Yet it did not rot. It did not turn into those corrupted things.

Night Shadow looked at her while the pack devoured their first full meal after so long. "I see."

Cunning Fang felt renewed hope as she briefly nuzzled against her mate. "Bring them after. I will hunt more."

Her steps were light and her pace swift as she slipped past the humans again. There was hope for the pack. Hope that didn’t involve sealing herself into a den. That grim option had lost most of its distaste as she watched her family slowly starve.

Now they had another chance to retain their freedom. She just had to ensure nothing killed these humans…