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Crack. 

As the Chief laid maimed on the ground, Katie proceeded to do the most logical thing. She turned around...and started heading back toward the Iron Maiden. 

For a moment, the only thing she wanted was to get back to heaven. Screw Mr. Isaac! Forget about Caitlin! Nothing could stand in between her and pleasure! And she almost did go back, but just as she was about to return into the cage, she suddenly clutched onto her head and growled loudly. 

Caitlin...she needed to go back and save her! God knows what Mr. Isaac was doing to her right now! Would she be sacrificed alive to the Chaos Domain, or would she just be killed and see her soul sacrificed instead? Either way, she had to go back. She had to! 

“Ahhhh!” The brunette screamed. Her knees hit the ground as she tried to break free and follow what her brain told her to do. Pain was like a drug, and she was an addict. Every minute without pain was crippling to her. Thankfully, the suffering of all those around her also fed into her addiction, and guess what? An unsatiated addiction also hurt, and it in return fed into Katie’s desires…

All of these factors came together and allowed Katie to regain some control of herself. It was the only thing preventing her from just stepping back into the torture chamber, shutting the door on herself, and forgetting about the rest of the world. 

“Ok…” She whispered gently. Her chest raised and fell violently in a rather pleasing sight as she tried to calm herself. “Ok. Mr. Isaac. Caitlin. Sacrifices. I have to get back to school as soon as possible and take care of that asshole!” 

The interesting thing was that if Mr. Isaac was here instead of the Chief, Katie would be holding onto his severed head by now. After enough torture to drive most sentient beings in the universe mad, Katie’s power was boosted by countless times. The Chief was at the level of a weaker Dark Pantheon Lord, capable of destroying Mr. Isaac in a few strikes, and Katie demolished the Chief with ease. The Chief’s most powerful strikes, capable of corroding Dark Pantheon Predators to death in a single move, barely delayed Katie.

A Predator like Mr. Isaac wouldn’t nearly be a match for Katie when she was first woken up.

The issue was that it would take time for Katie to get back to Riverside High School and confront Mr. Isaac, and even now, Katie could feel herself getting weaker and weaker with every passing second. She was still absorbing power from agony, but the level of power was nearly insignificant in comparison. By the time she got back to Caitlin, she would once again be too weak to do anything. 

“Damn it!” The brunette cursed as she realized her dilemma. She had to go back, but unless a miracle happened, Mr. Isaac could simply restrain her with relative ease. He was already capable of doing that a while back. With the power boost he got with the sacrifices that he had no doubt done for the past two days...her chances weren’t great. 

Unfortunately, she didn't have too much time to think. The nature of her power meant she had to move immediately. With that in mind, Katie knelt down beside the Chief. The leader of the Seven Tribes didn't look well at all. His arms were folded at an unnatural angle, and there was a large hole in his chest. But ultimately, he was alive. 

“Thanks for the rescue, by the way. Truly appreciate it.” Katie said with a wide smile on. 

The Chief turned to the side, half expecting the girl to just strike down and end his life. To his surprise, Katie simply stood up and left him alone on the cold floor. Yes, the sadomasochistic immortal that was Katie Lockwood spared him, and not just the Chief, but also everyone else in the Seven Tribes strike force. 

Why did she do that? Well...the Chief was her enemy, and he would and could appear before her one day and brutally strike her down! Why would she possibly rid herself of such an interesting experience by killing him and terminating the threat altogether? What was she? Boring? Rational? 

On her way out of the abandoned factory, Katie suddenly stopped in front of one particular body, the body of the female Dark Pantheon member. Of course, having fallen victim to the Chief’s acidic leaf, the body itself was pretty much completely liquified. Her jacket, though, appeared to be made of some special material and survived the acid. 

Katie gladly grabbed onto the black leather jacket and wrapped it around her body. As the acid on the interiors of the leather jacket touched Katie’s bare skin, the girl went back on her way, leaving behind an entire factory of injured Tribesmen. As she moved, she finally managed another small smile on her face. 

A little was better than nothing at all.

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Riverside High School. 

After Mr. Isaac initiated his final game, the entire campus of the high school came under the effect of the curse. Most of the world, aside from a few extremely powerful beings, would forget this school ever existed. Parents would lose all memories they had about their children. Wives and husbands of teachers within the school would suddenly find themselves single. Good for them. 

The campus itself was transformed into the playground of the devil...correction. The playground of the Predator. Either way, countless died every hour, with their souls flowing to the middle of the high school, where a stage was raised from the ground. 

An altar was placed on an elevated stage two meters above ground, with steps leading up and down the stage. Mr. Isaac was standing in front of the altar with his eyes closed and his eyelids trembling. He was channeling the Will of the Chaos Domain, and it was hardly an easy task. In fact, it was an extremely dangerous and exhausting step that many Dark Pantheon operatives fell victim to. One mistake, one accident, and he would be wishing he was dead. 

Ideally, the sacrifices should make the Will on good terms with Mr. Isaac, but only a fool would think the Will of a place literally called the Chaos Domain would be easily predictable. Unless Mr. Isaac wanted to find himself yanked into the Chaos Domain where he would be no more than an ant, he better remain cautious. 

Mr. Isaac has been in that state for hours, working tirelessly to make sure the final steps of his ritual wouldn't end up as his last moments alive. Suddenly, sensing something, his eyes suddenly snapped open. The Dark Pantheon Predator let out a breath of relief as he turned back to face a colleague who just made his way onto the stage. 

“Dominator Lupon.” He hissed quietly. “You have some explaining to do.” 

The figure in front of him tilted his head. He was the one who posed as a Section U Agent and lectured Katie and Caitlin of the Dark Pantheon and Mr. Isaac’s intentions. At the end of that conversation, he had Katie slice off his own head, which was given to Mr. Isaac to show the class. The Dark Pantheon Dominator himself found his way into a new body. Another Section U corpse. 

“Explaining?” He replied innocently. 

“Don’t play fool with me. You tried playing tricks against me by warning Katie Lockwood and her girlfriend. You thought they could ruin my sacrifice and get me killed.” Mr. Isaac pushed forward recklessly. “How foolish of you.”

“Oh, did I?” Dominator Lupon smirked before taking a step forward. “Tell me, Predator Elias, did I?”

Before Mr. Isaac, or rather Elias, could do anything else, he felt his body lifted into the air. Countless Chaos Descendants loyal to him sprung into action to defend their owner, only to be held in place by an invisible force. In the air, Elias cast a dozen spells in a matter of seconds. None of them worked. Not a single one. 

But instead of being terrified, Mr. Isaac simply found himself smiling in satisfaction. This power...it was astonishing, and he would hold it soon! “Let me go, Dominator.” He demanded, more confident than anyone in his position should ever be. “Unless you want to kill me right here, and face the wrath of Lord Horen himself? After all, his decree stated that things like this are forbidden...”

Even before he could finish, the Dominator waved his hand and freed him. Mr. Isaac fell back onto the ground and immediately hopped back up. Victorious, he pushed forward against a being countless times mightier than him. 

“Either way, your attempts have failed. Caitlin is done, and Katie...she is trapped and constantly slain with no way out. You have taken your shots, and you have missed. Once I ascend into a Dominator...I assure you, your transgressions will not be forgotten.” 

The interesting thing was that, even now, Mr. Isaac didn't realize all the Predators and Spiers he posted at the abandoned factory were dead. They might be terminated, but their psychic presences remained, and the two Ling Tribesmen were not nearly powerful enough to do that even if they were still conscious. 

Dominator Lupon didn't answer him. He just didn't bother. Instead, the man simply turned and left, leaving Mr. Isaac to continue his task at the altar. 

Just before the Dominator disappeared, he threw a glance at the entrance of the high school. 

There, a figure in a black leather jacket was approaching, and she didn't look too happy. 

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It took Katie a while to find her way back to Riverside High School. First of all, she didn't exactly have a map on her and her phone was long gone. After acquiring a phone and a vehicle with...rather inappropriate methods, she was finally set on the right track.

On the way, she made a pleasant discovery and pulled out her Knife, which one of the Predators decided to stick in her chest because, well, why not? She pretty much forgot that was there until now…

Either way, in the end, Katie was back. Most of her powers were depleted, but Katie was never one to let obstacles stop her. Caitlin was in that school, and she was going to her. 

As Katie made her way onto the campus, she expected to be welcomed by either Mr. Isaac and/or his forces. After all, he must’ve noticed her, right? It was possible he was waiting for her inside...but even as she stepped onto the stairs leading to the main academic building, Katie was surprised to find that she met absolutely no resistance. Ok...maybe Mr. Isaac was taking a nap or something? Or...or maybe the games were over already and the sacrifices were already made?

This possibility made Katie concerned, which led to her charging right into the halls of the building...and into a pair of Dashers feasting on bodies on the ground.

Katie gutted them alive and bathed in their blood. And that was just the beginning. 

For the next twenty minutes, Katie proceeded to cut her way across the building. She would step into a classroom, and...what? You want me to solve a physics problem? Nah…here’s a knife to the throat! And you, what’s going on in this classroom? Math? Fuck you! And this classroom...why do you have three eyes? Whatever...let me help you change that!

As countless Chaos Descendants and Mr. Isaac’s puppets laid dead under her blade, Katie felt her strength somewhat replenished. Even better, this campus was practically filled with the suffering of countless, and for Katie...it was like a buffet! 

If it wasn’t for certain reasons, Katie might even be tempted to join Mr. Isaac or the Dark Pantheon! This was just all too good! What else could a girl ask for? 

As a Chaos Descendant that looked like some sort of spider gave Katie a last shot of agony before finally dying, the girl arrived at another classroom. She looked inside and was slightly surprised to find neither undead teachers nor students. In fact, there were only bodies inside, but...where is that pain coming from. It’s...it’s Caitlin!

Her eyes widening, Katie charged into the classroom and knelt down beside an unconscious Caitlin. As she helped Caitlin sit back up, she was both horrified and aroused to find that her entire left arm was gone, and a trace of green at the wound was making its way toward her chest. Judging from how much power she was receiving from Caitlin, Katie knew her girlfriend wasn’t doing well at all. 

“No! Fuck!” She cursed loudly, which finally woke Caitlin up. As soon as she saw Katie, even in her condition, Caitlin let out a weak smile.

“Katie...you’re back! I knew it!”

“What happened?” Katie didn't have time for that. She was furious. She was furious and she was scared. “Mr. Isaac? Did he do this to you? Never mind...don’t worry, I’ll get you out of here. I...I’ll take you to...I’ll take you to that Agent guy. We can fix this!” 

Caitlin growled in pain as she slowly reached up with her right hand and ran it down Katie’s cheeks. “Listen to me, Katie. You’re not the smartest, but even you can see that’s not happening. I...I’m hopeless, just like I’ve been hopeless since the games started! I...I was never going to survive this! Mr. Isaac was right. My hope...it has always been an illusion!” 

She glanced at the Knife that Katie had dropped onto the floor. “You know what to do, Katie.” 

“Shut up!” Katie refused once again, just like all the times before. “I told you! I’m not killing you! ”

“Yes you are!” Caitlin retaliated as she grabbed onto Katie’s chin. “Do it! End me, body and soul alike, and then, I want you to hunt down every single student in this school! We will all die before being sacrificed to benefit that monster!” 

That didn't sit well with Katie, who leaned forward and grabbed onto Caitlin’s collar. “You don’t seem to understand the situation, Caitlin! You don’t get to tell me what to do! You...you are mine! You belong to me! You are the only thing I have left, and no one can take you away!”

The classroom was dead silent for a while. Caitlin looked up into Katie’s eyes and saw the zeal within. Katie would never do it. She simply couldn’t. Caitlin was Katie’s last safe place, last harbor, against her urges. Without her, Katie would be lost and broken. 

It was thoughts of her that pulled Katie out of that abandoned factory. It was thoughts of her that prevented Katie from literally joining Mr. Isaac and sitting on the other side of these games while giggling at the screams of countless, friends and foes alike. 

But it had to be done. Mr. Isaac had to go down regardless of the cost, and Caitlin knew that would never happen if she was left alive. This was why she was going to do something really, really cruel to her girlfriend. 

“I’m sorry, Katie…” She whispered into Katie's ears one last time. “I...I love you, and...whatever path you choose to tread down, you will have to do it alone.”

Before Katie could respond, Caitlin grabbed onto Katie’s Knife from the side with her right hand and jammed it into her own heart.

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Huge shoutout to IraDeos and Richard Johnson for their pledges on Patreon! 

Next Chapter: Chapter 61: Despair, Fury, and Endless Agony