Most people weren’t afraid of ants. After all, aside from being disgusting insects, ants couldn’t do anything to threaten human beings, especially individual ants. However, if an ant had crawled into and disappeared in an open wound, even the bravest of souls would find themselves more than uncomfortable. 

This was Katie’s plan. She couldn’t take down the Basilisk from the outside, but she could do a lot more from within the beast. For one thing, it was difficult for the Basilisk to shoot or hit something inside its body. Making things even better was that, unlike the carapace, the Basilisk’s flesh, blood, and bones weren’t capable of repelling magic. 

The Basilisk obviously felt that something was wrong. It tightened the muscles in that leg. When that didn't stop the itch, it lifted another leg and kicked the leg where Katie disappeared in. None of that worked. Perhaps a few lucky movements could crush Katie alive, but she easily recovered and continued climbing her way into the towering monster’s body. 

Now the beast was feeling scared. It was feeling pain. What Katie just did trumped any of the hits she landed on the Basilisk’s carapace from the outside. As Katie kept on moving inside it, the beast twisted and turned, letting out agonized growls that echoed across the entire network of tunnels. It kicked the wounded leg against solid rock, but even that couldn’t stop the entity that was slowly tearing it apart from within. 

Having an ant in its body was bad enough. Having an immortal ant that couldn’t be killed or stopped...now that was just a nightmare. 

Unlike the poor Basilisk, Katie was having a blast! She was making her way deeper and deeper into the beast’s body while leaving behind a little something along the way. What? Flesh? Muscles? Where’s my knife? Hmmm...is that a blood vein? Here’s something for you to enjoy! That’s...that’s an organ, right? I’m sure you won’t mind losing it...

Most of the time, Katie was simply sabotaging the beast. Cut open a few wounds. Dissect some skin. Yet whenever she came across a blood vein, she would leave a few seeds. These were the same seeds that she used against the Angels. A product of the merging between the Mu powers and vampire blood magic, these seeds could grow to a significant size at a terrifying rate as long as they had a source of blood nearby to feed on. These seeds were best used inside the bodies of Katie’s enemies, as they could literally grow out of human and animal bodies alike by feeding on their own blood. 

Katie loved it, and these seeds were perfect for a situation like this. 

The condition inside the Basilisk was certainly far from comfortable. If anything, it was suffocating. Katie had to navigate through a sea of blood, tissue, veins, flesh, bones, and so much more. Every once in a while, a few muscles around Katie would twitch with enough force to crush her alive. Yet Katie let none of that stop her as she moved through this hell, and the shrieks of the Basilisk that she could distinctly hear only made her move faster. 

On the side, Harrison observed the scene of the slaughter in silence. Yes. Slaughter. The Basilisk that had been nearly invincible against them was dragging itself through the dirt, growling and shrieking in sheer agony. The vampire couldn’t see what Katie did, but whatever that was, it was bringing the beast to its knees figuratively and literally. 

As he watched, Harrison Cull couldn’t help but sigh. Oh...the longer this went, the more he could see the arrogance of his original plan. Honestly, if Katie wasn’t here and didn't prove to be tougher than he had ever expected, this plan would never have worked. The brunette was the only reason there was remotely a chance of success. He should really thank her after this was all over.

The torment of the Basilisk continued, and Harrison stepped deeper into the tunnels and closed his eyes. He needed to prepare himself for what was to come. The ability that he was about to use would be extremely draining and challenging, and he couldn’t afford to fail. Not with what was at stake. Not with what had been sacrificed to get here. 

The Basilisk’s suffering continued for over twenty minutes. That was the time that it took for Katie to climb all the way from its leg to where most of the Basilisk’s organs were. Once Katie reached there, she issued a silent order after summoning another pair of Branch Blades. 

It was time for the kill. 

All the seeds she had put in place on her way up started growing. Hundreds of Mu seeds were activated by the command. They started sucking in blood from all around them, draining veins dry and turning the blood into nutrients at a supernatural rate. 

Within seconds, the seeds grew into the size of human fists. Within a full minute, they became the size of backpacks. Within three minutes, each seed became a disturbingly looking plant the size of a full-grown human. These plants were creations of nightmares. They had no leaves for photosynthesis, as they didn't need sunlight. All they had was a system of stems and branches, all of them designed to spread as far as possible and suck in fresh blood while doing maximum damage to their hosts. 

At the same time, Katie started carving into the Basilisk’s main organs like this was a pumpkin carving contest. Blood and guts spilled under her blades, only making her more excited. 

The Basilisk stumbled over the field. Its entire left rear leg was maimed. It was fine on the outside, but inside the limb were hundreds of growing plants that were literally crushing everything that was supposed to be there. Blood was drawn away. Flesh and skin were torn apart ruthlessly. Bones were surrounded by the branches and snapped into a thousand different pieces. 

The Basilisk smashed its infected leg against the wall again in a futile attempt to rid itself of the parasite that was causing it a world of pain. The attempt...remained as nothing more than an attempt. 

If that was the only problem, then the Basilisk would still have a while to live...at least until the seeds start spreading to the rest of its body. Yet the Basilisk had more problems. There was a maniac in its chest, and she had already cut open a significant portion of its organs. The Basilisk tried everything, but nothing could stop her. 

Finally, as Katie punched through what looked like the third heart she came across, the Basilisk collapsed, never to rise again. Its suffering had ended, along with its life. 

Katie slowly climbed her way out of the enormous corpse. She was covered by nothing but blood and gore. All her original clothing was gone, unsurprising considering the fact that most of the flesh and skin she had were new ones, regenerated after the old ones were torn from her body. It was moments like this that made Katie appreciate her decision of sending her jacket away to safety with the War Wolves. As of now...a layer of red armor covered Katie once again and somewhat ensured her modesty.

Katie circled around and reached where the Basilisk’s head was. The two eyes were shut, and the beast was no longer moving aside from some natural twitches of dead bodies. Katie gave it a few kicks to the head to confirm it was dead before turning to the tunnels and waving at Harrison. 

“You can come out now!” She said loudly. “All clear! Unless this thing is playing dead, which I suppose it’s possible...actually...wait a second!”

She turned back, raised her fist, and slammed it right into the eye of the beast. After a few more punches that reduced the eye into a bloody mess, Katie confirmed that the Basilisk with most of its organs destroyed and an entire limb maimed was, in fact, very dead. 

“Yep! It is dead! Harrison...oh, here you are.” Katie raised her eyebrows at the vampire standing behind her. 

Harrison was in no mood to have a friendly chat or crack some jokes. After all, this wasn’t the best day for him. His eyes were locked on the Basilisk. The beast from the war that occurred ten years ago. The beast that was somehow involved in this entire world going to shit. The monster that skewered his son and then crushed his body like a bloody pancake. 

The old vampire took a deep breath and sat down in front of the Basilisk. 

“The runes are no longer working. They seem to be powered by the life force of the Basilisk.” He noted quietly as his powers reached out into the corpse. 

In other words, Katie didn't have to go through all the trouble of flaying the mountain of a corpse. Speaking of...she faded and reappeared two steps away, happy that she could dash again. 

“So…” As Harrison was preparing to use the ability, Katie couldn’t help but raise a question. “This is going to be dangerous, right?”

“Yes. I don’t know if I will survive this.” The old man replied, his eyes still shut. 

“And, not to be rude, but if you kick the bucket…”

“I will try to tell you as much information as I can before I die.” 

“How nice of you.” A noble answer, but Katie wasn’t asking for that. “But who should I bring this information to? Speaking of...who’s gonna pay me and the boys if both of you are dead? I’m a mercenary, remember?”

Harrison opened his eyes. He looked at the giant beast that Katie killed and then back at the brunette again. Really? I am going to do something highly dangerous and potentially sacrifice my life and you’re asking me for money? The first part of her question was fair and important. The second part…

He reached into his pocket and took out a debit card, which he promptly handed to Katie. 

“The PIN to this card is 1029. It has at least a few million dollars in balance. No withdrawal restriction or other safety features so you can take that money out easily, whenever you want and wherever you want. Take the balance for yourself or share it with your pals. I really don’t care.” He frowned darkly. “As for the information…my plans were for Jake to take this information above ground and use it after rallying our people, but...”

“What’s the big deal?” The brunette was confused. “Just tell me the name and address of another high-level vampire and I’ll bring the message there in case you don’t make it. Unless...” She raised her eyebrows. “unless you don’t trust any of them?”

“I don’t trust some of them. The others are too incompetent or have already given up. Either way, it’s worth a try.” He reached into his pocket once again and retrieved a notepad and a pen. Katie was honestly surprised by how many of his personal belongings survived the encounter. Actually, scratch that. She was envious. 

Finally, Harrison handed a list of names and addresses to Katie. 

“If I die, go to these people with the information, starting with the name on the top, but be careful. Some of them may make a move on you, and only a portion of that will be doing so because they’re working for the new factions.” He sounded almost disappointed.

“Selfish people are everywhere.” Katie understood what he meant. 

“Either way, now that that’s over…” Harrison sighed and closed his eyes again. Just as he was about to reach out, Katie stopped him once again. 

“Uh...one second.”

“What now?” Harrison almost snapped. Do you know how important it is for me to focus? Or to gather the courage to do something that's probably gonna kill me? Show me some respect!

“If this is going to be so dangerous, why don’t I try to do it?” Katie asked curiously. “In case you haven’t noticed, I am a lot more durable than you. What can kill you will at most be a minor inconvenience for me. Is it possible for you to teach me this power?”

Harrison was clearly interested by this proposal. After all, he didn't want to die if he could live. Unfortunately, he had to shake his head at Katie's proposal. 

“Look, Katie...I don’t know how you got your powers, but you clearly don’t have much experience with them. Memory reading is considered to be an advanced ability while powers like jumping and healing are more basic. It is easy for high-level vampires to use the basic abilities, but when it comes to memory reading, the user requires a lot of training, as well as plenty of practice. I suppose it can be done instinctively, but that would require the user to be very powerful and have a lot of essences.” 

“So I can’t do it.” Katie asked in disappointment. 

“You may be able to do it, eventually, with a lot of work.” Harrison explained. “Or you can do it if you acquire and absorb a lot of vampire essence…” He quickly caught himself and wisely changed the topic. “Either way, it is too late for you to do this here. Now, if you will allow me to concentrate...”

He shut his eyes again, and this time, Katie simply sat down not far away from him and observed in silence. 

The vampire sat there for a few minutes. Just as Katie was getting bored, he finally reached out with his right hand. Slowly, red blood flew out of the disemboweled corpse and into the air. Harrison tilted his head slightly as the blood started to circle around his body like a river of red. 

“I...I can see it!”

Suddenly, Harrison called out, his voice a mixture of excitement and disbelief. Katie looked around, wondering if she should have a camera ready to record what was happening. At the very least she should have a notepad. Ah well...it looked like she just had to rely on her memory to do the work. 

Harrison paused for a brief moment before continuing, his words confusing and nonsensical as far as Katie was concerned. 

“I’m in some sort of city...it...it is glorious! It stands above all! It is the pinnacle of magic and technology...it transcends everything we know! This is not our world! This is not Earth! But...where is it? It’s a city...the city...wait...what’s the light! No...no! I can’t leave yet! I need to see where this is! Where is it? And the people here...the ones in the black armors...who are they? Tell me! I have to know!” 

He suddenly drew in a deep breath. A growl left his mouth, as if he was struggling with an invisible enemy. The blood circling his body shook and faltered as some of the drops evaporated. Still, the old vampire pushed forward, throwing self-preservation out of the window as he glimpsed into forbidden knowledge.

Katie watched him quietly. She wasn’t sure if this was considered to be standard procedure, with all the babbling and stuttering from the old vampire. Yet what truly concerned her was the change in tone from Harrison.

“We...we have arrived! A whole new realm...a brand new dimensional...undiscovered! This trip will prove quite bountiful! But...no! Something is wrong! We are not the first ones here! We...we have to get out! Recall us! We have to warn...ahhh!”

Harrison screamed as his body collapsed on the ground. The river of blood circling him fell on the ground and splattered into countless drops. Katie quickly walked up to him, only to find the old man shaking like he was mad. Blood dripped out of his eyes...which was especially bad considering this was happening to a vampire. 

“You...you are not allowed to be here! This is not the Core Realms!” The dying vampire stared into the air, but he wasn’t talking to Katie. Instead, he seemed to be speaking from the perspective of one of the people in the Basilisk’s memory. “This is a new age now! One free of the madness and ignorance of your kind! Death will hear about this! Stand your ground, brothers! We are the champions of the Infinite Realms. We are the victors of a million worlds! We...are Voyagers!”

Harrison’s body was shaking even more intensely than before. Suddenly, his body jerked forward and he grabbed onto Katie’s arms. With the last moments of his life, he screamed into her ears.

“Katie...find her...the one who started all this...find her…find her and kill her and end this war! It...it is the only way! Everything that happened to us...is because of her! She is an intruder upon our world! A parasite from far beyond! She...she is responsible for all of this! She started this, and only she can end this!”

“Find who? Who’s she?” Katie demanded loudly. What was he even talking about? She was more confused than ever after everything Harrison said. This trip was supposed to yield answers, not create more questions!

Unfortunately, she wouldn’t get anything more from the vampire. 

“Find...the Protector!” 

The last three words took all the strength Harrison had left. Once the words left his lips, the old vampire collapsed one last time, never to rise again. 

---

Any Voyager fans around here? No? Ok...