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Elinor watched the foliage race by her as the Undead Quen’Talrat soundlessly swung through the dense jungle; responding to her desires to guard her mother, it followed the link to her minions defending her.

The forest sounds were faint, but the sheens of light from the two blue moons found its way into the undergrowth, illuminating the many types of creatures that lived there, many she’d never dreamed could exist; she’d literally stepped into another world.  There were a few dangerous looking monsters, from insectile to beast-like, but none seemed brave enough to confront her burning Undead sixteen feet tall ape.

The creatures weren’t the only outlandish sight; the yellow, orange, and green foliage gave off a sickly vibe but teemed with life.  The black trees grew at least a hundred and twenty meters into the sky, and her gorilla-monster moved through it like a native.

Her surprise and interest tickled her mind with the wonder of it all, further quelling the swirl of negative emotions inside her.  A light smile touched her lips as a swarm of violet and pink insects gently flowed around them before moving toward the treetops; they had eight oddly shaped wings that carried them along the soft breeze that cut through the thick jungle.

The wind was one of the few sounds she recognized, the others were foreign, mostly in the distance.  Loud squawks, far off whirring, and low cackling noises below caught her attention.  It was all new, and she wasn’t scared of anything, gently wrapped in her minion’s strong hand.

Focusing on the skeletal toads carrying her father, she told them to gently find cover and treat his wounds, imparting basic first aid instructions that she’d learned in school.  She breathed a sigh of relief as she sensed his life force through the skeletal toads; he was still somewhat stable but seemed unconscious.  Her minion’s constant presence reassured her that he still had life in him.

She pulled her grayish hair back as it obscured her vision, looking up at her two-headed Undead.  What should I call you?  How about Quin.  Quen and Quin sound similar enough.  The toads seem really scared of you, and I can see why.  Once I get mom and dad back, maybe we can fight our way back through the crystal; if we can get a first aid kit and get to a hospital, then he should be okay.

Her head lowered to stare at the jungle floor with worry.  It’s a long way to a hospital, but if Quin takes me, then it should be really fast.  Of course, I’ll have to hide him once we get into town, but that’ll be fine.  Once we get back to civilization, everything will work out.

After a minute away from the camp, she was just about to reach her mom; she had chosen to move high in the trees to obscure the bright green fire licking across Quin’s bones.

She felt something change on the battlefield; her parents were still fine, and their guards seemed to scare off any wildlife that sensed them.  However, this development chilled her, dampening the fascination she felt about her surroundings.  Using Lesser Possession, she confirmed it.

The dulled senses of the Skeletal Toads seemed to be better than the Human Skeletons.  It wasn’t nearly as sharp as her own vision but gave her a decent understanding of the situation.  She stared at where the glowing crystal had been; her path home was gone.

No, no, no, no … this can’t be happening.  It actually broke … it’s gone.  Our world is … it’s gone.  This is all because of stupid humanitarian aid!  Stupid Venezuelan Revolution!  Kidnappers!  Damn toads!  Everything’s against me!  Why do I…

Her thoughts paused as three blunt objects struck her skeletal skull, throwing her possessed minion off balance.  She returned control to her minion, watching from its burning eyes.  Panic and loss were subdued by her Racial, leaving hate and malice.

The bitter taste she felt was mixed with the sweet flavor of vengeance with every wound her minions made upon the toads that had cursed her to this hostile, alien world, but to her frustration, her forces were quickly being decimated.  The only thing keeping her weak minions from collapsing under the toad’s superior forces was the initial surprise, human resistance, and the snake-woman.

The human captives were set free with her minions’ raid against the toad equipment areas, weapons being distributed among the prisoners.  Her new soldiers defended them while the humans collected themselves; they’d quickly utilized the opportunity, taking the chance to fight back.  They were no match physically to the toads, but they had numbers mixed with her skeletons.  There were a few men and women that ran at the first opportunity and would likely be killed by the surrounding wildlife, but most fought.

The serpent-woman’s face was a mask of fury as she ripped toads apart with her bare hands, slithering across the ground in strange patterns to strangle others, sprayed acidic fog from her mouth at those in reach, causing their skin to melt off their bones, and she manipulated the wet terrain, causing mud and water to throw her enemies off-balance before striking.

Tears stained the woman’s bloody eyes as she screamed her wrath.  “You took everything from me!  Turned me into a monster!  Killed my husband—my baby boys!”

She must be someone that’s changed, similar to me.  Although, I highly doubt they’re the ones that changed us.  They don’t seem to have that kind of power.

Elinor became more and more adept at killing the toad-people as she commanded her minions; her army kept the toads from organizing.  She spread the ranks and funneled the scattered creatures in specific directions to make them easy targets for the serpent’s wrath.  The freed humans were now doing their part, going for the toad’s legs, throats, and bellies.

However, order was returning to the toads; Boss was back, and it seemed like the fearful Priestess had regained her bearings after she’d left.  Between Valdar, Boss, and Nadraca, accompanied by their stronger followers, they were dismantling her horde, and it appeared like they were setting up a trap for the enraged woman.

Shit … I hoped Boss was trapped on the other side; this sucks.  Ironic, it takes something like this for them to join forces.  Still, they aren’t entirely united.

She’d reached her mother, but chose to stay high in the trees, telling Quin to keep a watchful eye out for threats.  Her desperation was fading, and reality setting in.  The priority was her parents, everything else could take a back seat, and her father’s group was catching up with her mother’s.

She listened to Boss, Valdar, and Nadraca talk as the minion she possessed fought a toad that didn’t seem to have the same combat skills as the warriors.  Boss’ group was joined by a short orange-toad and his attendants, wielding mauls; he appeared to be the leader of the fourth clan.  He wore a string of bead-like stones around his neck with three feathers tied to it.

Boss had another shield in hand, taken from the reserves inside his own encampment.  “What a disaster, Valdar.  This brings shame to the tribe.”

“Shame?”  The orange-toad chuckled.  His voice seemed as old as Valdar’s.  He eyed one of her Human Undead charging him, but it was quickly crushed by two of his guards holding thick black stone mauls.  “You’re still young for a warrior; are you aware that you took a full blow from a Quen’Talrat Elite Hunter, and lived to tell the tale?  They’ll be singing your name in the Songs of Remembrance.”

They shifted their position to the left of the snake-woman, keeping their distance.  Her skeletons took up the woman’s defense, guarding her unprotected sides against assault.

Nadraca barked orders.  “Lacord, take the men and surround it with the enchanted vines.  Once Valdar and I lock its movements, rush in and tie it to the posts we’ve set up, and watch out for its breath, it’s getting stronger.  Teams three and four, cut a line between the creatures and the dead, separate them from the long one.”

“Yes, Priestess, but … why are we working with … them,” he pointed at the three other faction leaders.  “We can do this…”  he growled with unease, but Nadraca quickly interjected.

“Lacord,” she snapped.  “This is no time for petty feuds!  A Quen’Talrat Elite Hunter is out there … somewhere,” she muttered, looking up into the trees.  “You have not heard the tales from the Mother Superior; a single Elite Hunter was responsible for the deaths of two Nalvean generals—ten Seaweavers—ten, Lacord, and five hundred of their elite soldiers, in addition to hundreds more of our clan … In a single night!”

“I—I did not know, Priestess…”

Boss grunted, flexing his arms; they showed black spots and cuts.  “That thing would have snapped you in two, Lacord.  I’ve trained my whole life trying to live up to that standard … I have a long way to go.”

“Yes, but don’t sell yourself short,” Valdar hummed with interest.  “It may be many times weaker than when it was alive, but that is still in the realms of our mythical warriors.  We must be thankful it does not hold any of its original abilities … purple flames, shadow movement, and fur more durable than the strongest metal, to name a few.”

He stared around as squad leaders organized their troops, boxing in her forces, and using long-ranged weapons to weaken the humans while pelting the snake-woman.

Valdar’s tone was low, but just high enough that she could hear it.  “I took part in the last raids, during the end of the Fire Wars; we hunted every last one to extinction, but the Elites were of a class of their own.  It took the finest of every race, bound in parties of twenty to handle the beasts … while still sustaining casualties.  The combined efforts of all our clans; not only that, but the Nalveans, and the united might of eight other races to bring that terrifying kingdom down.”

He glanced around at the toads present, treating their wounded, repelling her minions’ attacks, and regrouping.  “Slow … too slow.  What a sorry state we are in; treaties lost, power and tradition squandered, and this generation is soft as clay.  Krava, did you send for the Xaria?”

The orange-toad chuckled darkly.  “Word has been sent to Dalria; it was wise to bring her along in case of trouble, and to have my men on standby.  If you hadn’t made a fit about her being present, then this might not have happened, Nadraca.”

“You cannot be serious,” she huffed.  “We all agreed to keep our forces to similar strength, and now I discover you kept one in the distance.  That’s dirty, old man, where is your pride in your word?”

“Pride, coming from a Clavex?”  Boss spat in disgust.

Nadraca’s face scrunched a little as she glanced at the progressing battle.  “Yes, well … some things are worth more than pride, and we could not spare any elite warriors for this venture … you were even a stretch.”

Boss grunted mirthlessly in response.

“In any case,” Krava muttered, “Dalria should be hunting them now.  She wished to rush to my defense, but I trusted in your judgment, Valdar.  If you think hunting those creatures is the key to finding the beast, then I’ll follow your lead.  You’ve earned that.  We cannot let this creature bring more Quen’Talrat back, much less something else long forgotten.”

“That is something I fear; all fascination aside,” Valdar’s tone was low as he glared at her skeletons.  “We may have brought the next great threat to our doorstep.  Let us hope that a Xaria can deal with it alone.”

“I know the strength of your Xaria more than most, Krava,” Boss stated.  “They rank among our race’s strongest, but does she know about that creature’s ability to revive?  We have not faced such foes in my knowledge of history.”

“Yes, the information you provided has been sent,” Krava replied.

“I just hope the title of Xaria is not just your talk of generations past,” Nadraca muttered.  “For all our clans’ sake.”

Elinor’s mind ran cold.  They sent some kind of elite warrior after my parents.  I should have been more subtle about their escape!  I guess it doesn’t matter that much since I’m with my mom.  Quin seems to have a larger sensing radius than my other minions, and he doesn’t sense anything really threatening nearby.

She told Quin to drop down to her mother as she canceled the possession, and he rushed to comply, silently dropping out of the trees with ease; she told her mother’s skeletal escort to halt.  There were three other women with her mother, and they screamed as Quin softly landed before them.

“Hey, quit it,” Elinor snapped as Quin lowered his body, unfolding his hands to allow her to sit on his bony fingers.

The women quickly snapped their mouths shut, but they couldn’t stop their quivers.  They each had some kind of injury, from bruises to cuts, but none of them were serious enough to hinder movement.

“Honey,” her mother swallowed nervously, stepping forward to run her fingers through her hair.  “What—happened?  Your hair, and—these skeletons?”  she asked, looking over at the flaming rat on her shoulder.

Elinor shook her head, letting out a soft sigh as she pulled her mother’s hands down to her lap.  The three other women couldn’t help but look up at the burning two-headed Undead gorilla monster; she’d seen the red-haired woman on their bus.  “I don’t know, mom; I was kidnapped by two men looking to extort you for money, but then—all those lights appeared in the sky, and I changed into this.”

“Kidnapped … What about your father?”

“I have my minions bringing dad here; he should be here in the next several minutes.  They’re having to be careful carrying him; he’s badly injured, but I was able to do some basic first aid on him, dressing his wounds with some of his shirt and pants.”

Her mother looked down at her lap with worry.  “I don’t know what kind of diseases are here … we’ll probably need to cauterize his wounds.  What about those toads?”  she asked, looking back up at her before glancing at Quin.

“I don’t know; the crystal brought them to our world, but—it shattered.  I don’t think we can go back.”

One of the black-haired women collapsed to her knees.  “What … we can’t—we can’t go back?”  she bawled in Spanish.

The other two followed her action, crying into their muddy hands.

Her mother took a shuddering breath before breaking away from her and kneeling beside the women.  “Hey—we’ll find a way to get through this, okay?  Just be strong, but—we need to be quiet.  They could still be out there.”

Looking around the jungle, Elinor hummed darkly.  “The toads sent some kind of elite warrior after us.  They called it a Xaria; they’re putting their hopes in her to kill me since I’m a threat.  I’m like a Necromancer now, I can…”  She paused, breath catching in her lungs.  “No,” she gasped.

“What…”

Quin’s free hand gently wrapped around her body before launching back into the trees, rushing toward her father; her hair whipped past her cheeks, tickling her ears as they dashed through the jungle, foregoing stealth.  She’d lost contact with both his skeletal guards at almost the same time.

No, no, no, no!  They didn’t even sense any life nearby; did she destroy them from a distance?  There’s no way she knows about their ability to detect life; I’m a complete mystery to these toads.  Was she just being cautious?  She must be nearby then.  If I can deal with her, then the toads will have nothing left to chase us with, but please … please be okay!

It took Quin forty-five seconds to reach her father; he dropped her beside her father’s motionless body.  Quin didn’t sense anything resembling the toad-people within a forty-foot radius.  Her heart was about to break when Quin recognized life inside her father’s body.

“You’re alive!”  she cried.

Quin set her down on command, moving to circle them protectively as she knelt beside her father.  She bit her lip as Quin’s Minor Life Detection analyzed the area; her father’s life force was draining quickly.

She searched his body, looking for what was causing the issue.  The bleeding in his side was under control, but there was a new wound that she hadn’t noticed before; a small puncture wound to his chest dribbled a small pool of blood.  Rubbing her hand next to it, she found a sharp black thorn poking through the hole.

“This wasn’t … it must have been her, but why?  Isn’t she going after me?  Why kill my dad?  It’s not fair!  I just wanted to leave!  Why hunt us?  I don’t understand!  Why us?”  Her jaw locked as Emotional Loss quelled her grief and terror, leaving loathing and rage.

He’s going to die.  She killed him.  There’s nothing I can do to save his life.  If we were in America, then he’d live, but here … if I remove the thorn, he dies.  If I leave him, he dies.  I can’t make a healer yet, can I … yes, I can; I can ascend a Basic Unit to the Clergy Class.  I must have enough points from killing the toads and assisting the snake-woman in killing them!  I just need a suitable candidate.  One of the units around mom … yes!

Elinor looked to the side and saw her broken skeletal toads; both of their skulls were crushed.  The dagger that one of them carried was still gripped in its lifeless hand.  She took the knife, skeletal fingers still attached, and commanded Quin to pick her up.  He carefully lifted her dad in his free hand before hurrying back to the site.

Her minion’s response was instant, gently picking them both up and moving through the dense foliage toward her mother, but her heart skipped a beat when she felt the thread to both Human Undead and rat cut.

No!

Quin picked up his pace, causing her dad to groan.  Her panic was rising.

She’s there!  Why?  I’m over here!  Why?  Why?  Why?  She bypassed me to attack my parents; she had to hear Quin rushing through the jungle to my dad, but she skipped us?

The screams of the women around her mother made her teeth grind.

If you hurt her…

Gravity slammed against her chest as they broke through the undergrowth, Quin skipping to a halt.  Her wide eyes darted around, assessing the scene as Quin’s Minor Life Detection fed back information.

Five life signatures stood in front of her, four women, and one toad.  Dalria was dark orange with lightly glowing blue spots pattering her skin, and she wore a vest with multiple odd weapons and pouches attached.  She was leaner than most of the other toads she’d seen; other than that, she didn’t seem any different.

She held a black serrated knife to her mother’s neck, staring at Elinor as she emerged from the foliage.  Two of the women had already started running, leaving her mother and the red-haired woman behind.

Dalria’s tongue shot out, poking inside a pouch at her side.  She brought it out and shot her tongue out twice, both times quick as lightning; the women dropped to the ground with light gasps, unmoving, and Quin’s ability told her that their life was quickly fading.

The black thorn in my dad’s heart; how does she know human hearts are a fatal point for us?

“Honey, don’t worry…” her mother gasped as Dalria tightened her grip around her chest, and the knife drew a sliver of blood from her neck, wet tongue sliding across her lips.

“Shh.  It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.  Elinor, I presume.”  Dalria’s tone was more succulent than she anticipated.  “I was told you understand our language.  Ah,” she tightened her grip again, making her mother cough a little, drawing more blood, “no moving.  I understand this creature is important to you.”

Elinor’s teeth ground together as Quin’s double heads let out a threatening growl that vibrated the air.  “All we want is to leave; why are you doing this?”

Dalria made a few popping sounds in her throat.  “Interesting, so the Elder was right; you do hold emotion.  He’s sharp, that one.”  Elinor grimaced, glancing at her dying father, which caused the toad to hum.  “Regrettably, that one didn’t serve as a good hostage; it’s as good as dead.”

Her mother didn’t seem to be able to talk without the sharp knife digging into her throat, but her pleading eyes told Elinor that she wanted her to run; she would not abandon her mother.  The red-haired woman swallowed nervously, sitting on her butt in the mud; her fearful eyes darted between the dying women, Elinor, and the toad.

“Y-you understand them?”  she asked, voice quivering.  “Why—why are they doing this?”

“Hmm,” Dalria’s eyes shifted to the woman.  “Tell it to shut-up.”

“Okay … hey, she said to not talk; got it?”  The woman tensed, nodding frantically.  Turning back to the toad, she asked, “Just let me heal my dad, okay?  I can heal him, and then we’ll go back with you.  We’ll…”

“Oh.  Your father, eh?” Her mouth seemed to curve.

Shit!  Why’d I tell her that?  I’m stupid!

“I see; so, this must be your mother, and can both your parents raise the dead, too?”

Elinor shook her head.  “N-no, they can’t.  I’m the only one that can raise the dead.”  

Realizing her communication link would be severed if all the toad-people under her control died, she instructed two of her remaining five to run into the forest; however, she made one of them pause as a thought struck her, and she directed it to return to battle.

If all my toads are destroyed, then I won’t be able to talk to … wait, all of them … how long until Call of the Empress runs out … twenty seconds.  Shit!  Ten minutes are already up?  They’re just about to launch their trap on the snake-woman too.  At least the toad-person I raised is still up, as long as it’s alive, then I can talk to them.

The Skeletal Toad managed to make it into the jungle, and she told it to leap up the trees and find cover.

It’s too dangerous to have it come to me; it could lead back a horde of toads from the camp.  At least Dalria seems reasonable.

“Why is that?”  Dalria asked with a fascinated tone.  “Why is it that you cannot die, but they can?  Aren’t they the same as you, and why are you afraid of them dying if you can bring back the dead?  Does it not return the lost one, and they’re simple puppets?”

I don’t know why she’s looking for answers; maybe I can bargain with her.

“What do you want?”  Elinor asked, shifting a little in Quin’s secure grip.

“Me?”  Dalria asked innocently.  “I’m just following orders,” she chuckled, “but the Elders do want some information.  Are there more like you?”

She resisted a curse as Call of the Empress ended, and what remained of her undead horde collapsed.  “Not that I’m aware of.  I only just started bringing the dead back to life; it happened when the cracks in the sky appeared, and the crystal showed up.”

“Lights in the sky?”  Dalria hummed thoughtfully.  “What do the cracks in the sky have to do with you getting that power—the crystals do not grant abilities?  All it indicates is an assault is imminent and gives us time to prepare a defense.  So, that answer sounds like a lise,” she made another popping sound in her throat before her blade seemed to vanish before returning to her mother’s throat.

Her mother cried out a moment later, tensing in Dalria’s arms, but the toad kept her mother firmly pressed against her body.  After a moment's study, she noticed a gash across her mother’s belly, light enough to not be serious, but deep enough to draw blood.

“Damn, you!”  Elinor seethed as her emotions flowed past Emotional Loss; her Skill was having a difficult time controlling her fear.  “I’m not lying; so, don’t hurt her!”

“Run … please,” her mother choked, but Dalria quickly returned the blade to her throat, cutting off her ability to speak.

“Hush, now, mommy,” Dalria huffed.  “Now, can you get rid of that towering brute at your back?  His growls are a bit annoying.”

Elinor glared at the toad.  “The moment I do that, then you’ll just kill my mom and try to kill me.  I’m not that stupid.”

“Mmh, a shame,” Dalria said with light humor.  “You know, I could just continue slicing your mother up until you decide to comply.  Even if that brute is pretty fast, I doubt it’s as fast as me,” her tone turned deadly.  “I gutted one of you before heading out, messy things you are, and there are so many ways to kill you.”

A thought seemed to strike the toad.  “Oh, I know!  Why don’t you release the brute, and I let you heal your father.  Sound good?”

“No,” Elinor sighed with frustration, “not good!  He’s the only reason why you’ve taken a hostage!”

“Seems you are somewhat intelligent,” she sighed.  “I suppose that’s how you were able to catch the Elders off-guard.  Hmm … What to do?”

Elinor glanced left at her father, still held protectively in Quin’s hand; his life force was reaching critically low.  Her lips pulled in as her panicked mind started to ebb past the dampening force of Emotional Loss.

I don’t even know if a newly ascended healer would be able to heal him at this rate.  This is taking too long, but … she’s got my mom’s life at knife’s point!  What can I do?  Is there anything I can resurrect close by … only rodent and dog-sized creatures, and I don’t feel like they’re anything like Quin.

“Well,” Dalria took a deep breath.  “I suppose we’ll have to do this the hard way; what a pain, but you’re supposed to be super weak.  If I take you out, then perhaps the brute falls, but it’s fine; it doesn’t have to.”  She stated brightly.

“Huh?”  Elinor’s eyes widened as the knife vanished from her sight.  Looking down at her mother’s chest, she saw the hilt, blade stuck between her mother’s ribs, piercing her heart.

Her mother choked as she twisted the blade, the sound of snapping bones assaulting her mind.  Blood bubbled through her mom’s mouth as Dalria slid the weapon out, leaving her to collapse in the mud.

“So that’s how you look when in shock,” Dalria commented before vanishing.

That was more than her Skill could take.  Gravity slammed against Elinor’s frail body as Quin pulled her back, and she heard the clang of metal on bone.  She blinked as Quin’s body became a whirlwind of activity, darting forward, it dropped her and her father beside her dying mother, positioning itself over them.

The sharp sounds of metal and bone ringing throughout the area for several seconds as sharp gusts of air pressure blew around them, Quin’s tails, arms, and legs a blur as it changed positions to defend them.  Trying to recover, Elinor got to her hands and knees, realizing several objects had penetrated her body and were in the process of being rejected.

Her world was falling apart.

She hit me … even with Quin defending me?

More objects continued to pelt her, biting through her clothes and skin, lodging into her bones and penetrating her body, but the only pain she felt was in her heart.  She dropped the knife, crawling to her mother’s side.  Her hands fumbled at her chest, trying to apply pressure to her mother’s wound, but there was too much blood; it pumped past her trembling fingers as her mother convulsed.

“No, this can’t be—this isn’t happening!  No, it can’t be … why?  Because I was taking too long?  What did I do wrong?  Why?”

The red-haired woman held her hand to her mouth, tears falling down her cheeks as she lay on her stomach, staring at Elinor’s dying mother.

Elinor looked up at Quin in desperation, but he was busy keeping them safe, body a blur.  After several more successful throws, Dalria appeared a few meters away, tapping her left cheek with the back of her blade.

“How strange, you really do seem immortal.  I’ve struck you in so many places where your kind has shown to be vulnerable, but you don’t even cry out.  I’ve heard that even destroying your head will only temporarily stop you, and doesn’t necessarily get rid of your minions.  How would burning work, I wonder?”

“Why … we—we were still t-talking…” she mumbled, tears leaking out of her eyes, vision fixated on the blood flowing through her fingers as objects were ejected from her body; there was no way her new transformation could contain the horror filling her breast.

“Because you told me you were the only one of your kind.  Silly thing.  That was the one question I wanted answered; it’s all I needed to know,” she stated brightly.  “Now, I would have loved to know how to truly kill you, but I don’t expect that kind of information,” she giggled.  “That’s just a waste of our time.  I didn’t even think you’d get rid of the brute, but I needed to know if you were being truthful, and I think you were.  Such an honest thing.  A shame, really.”

Elinor looked up and felt her throat catch as she studied Quin; there were chips in his bones, and a few of the toad’s black thorns were sticking into his right thigh bone.

She can hurt Quin … How long can he last?  He can’t hurt her if he can’t catch her, and she’s … she’s just too fast.

“I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing a Quen’Talrat,” she mused with a soft sigh of regret.  “It would have been fun to see the real thing; an Elite Hunter … crazy.  Are you just pushing out all the things I shot into you?  Well … that’s kind of unnerving; a thing that can’t die.  I’ll just have to try other methods once the brute’s been disposed of.  Anyways, this imitation is fairly disappointing, to be honest, Elinor.  I expected more … oh, are they finally dead?”

Elinor’s blood ran cold as she looked down at her mother, eyes lifeless.  Not seconds after, her father’s life ended, and that was when she noticed the barb in his neck, blood oozing out of the wound.

“I suppose it’s for the best; best not to suffer, that is,” Dalria shook her head before vanishing again.  Quin launched into motion, continuing to defend her against the hail of projectiles.

Her Passives slowly reigning her emotions in a little, Elinor felt a pulse to do something she knew was likely a horrible idea, but what option did she have?

No, this can’t be the end!  It can’t be!  If I bring them back … I can make them strong, right?  The titles … What are the Royal Titles?  Royal Titles are given to the royal stewards of the Empress.  Are the royal stewards strong?  Are they special … they’re different from my standard units and are given certain perks that allow them to govern as the regent over their field.  So, they are the strongest.

I want to bring back my mom and dad!  I want them to be royal stewards!  I want my parents back!  I want them to be strong!  I want them to take care of me!  I need them!  I don’t care what it takes!  Bring them back!

Feeding her desires into their corpses, she felt her life energy plummet as green flames engulfed them, Quin continuing to block more projectiles from pelting them.

However, something was different with this rising; only specific parts of her mother and father’s bodies were being drowned in flames, and Elinor felt her energy reserves nearing dangerous levels.  If any more energy left her, she would be forced to release her body, and she’d be stuck inside her diamond sanctuary.

Her mother and father opened their eyes; her mother glowed with a ghostly orange light, while her father’s burned a haunting light blue, shining in the dark jungle.

The pelting rain of projectiles ceased as Dalria reappeared several paces beside her previous location.  “Well, Lydrima’s claw … you actually brought back your parents.  That’s disturbing … maybe I should finish this up...”

“Mom!”  Elinor cried, throwing her arms around her shoulders; the blood pumping out of her chest had ceased as her previous wounds were now closed.

Tiffany’s upper forearms, biceps, and some of her stomach and back were partially rotted, illuminating orange veins showing through, but most of her appearance hadn’t changed.  The same rotted spots were mirrored on her father’s body, but the color of his veins was blue.

“Mom?”  Tiffany whispered, fingers rising to press against Elinor’s back as her crown and veil dispersed into black flames.

The world seemed to fade as darkness clouded her vision, and a deep, infernal voice echoed in her mind.  “Most fascinating … a Life Bringer?”  Whatever this was, it was cold and shockingly numbed the ranging emotions inside her.

Elinor opened her eyes; she didn’t remember closing them.  Confused, she looked around at the endless abyss she floated in; whatever this was, it was not her mother or father, this was something sinister.  Worse, she was having a hard time even feeling her minions from inside this expanse, and that was when the unhallowed voice returned like embers flicking skin.

“You forged two new lives into this world.  Tell me about yourself, little Life Bringer.”

And that was when she noticed the dark presence surrounding her; she wasn’t in a void, but an endless expanse enclosed by this being.

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