Smoke wafted through the cracked floor of the Festering Den.

In the center of the place where Rachneros, the Boss of the Delve, had once been spawned from Kaedmon's will, one creature now stood over the body of another.

Ethan, the Demon Hat, his Chimera form panting and sweating, covered with lacerations and bruises that [Skein of Typhos] was only now starting to heal, stood over the spot where he'd plunged his foe.

Ethan, Sys whispered. That's it…time's up.

Ethan opened his eyes and looked at the pitiable form of Artorious. The Angel was now little but broken limbs and charred flesh. His once silver eyes could barely even be seen, now. He'd thrown everything he had at him. Everything. Even though he knew that in killing Arty he'd be doing nothing more than playing into Kaedmon's grand game.

But if even all of that wasn't enough…

Sys, he whispered in his mind. Show me his Spirit Cores.

Silence.

Sys.

…

Artorious The Angel of Kaedmon

HP: 900/5000

…

Ethan – he's still –

"ARRRRRRRRRGH!"

With a roar that flayed the skin off of the Angel's face, Ethan began clawing at his opened chest, ripping out muscle, bone, entrails – anything his claws could find.

"JUST FUCKING DIE ALREADY!"

With every swipe he cut into the angel's inert body, all the while feeling the pent-up fury that had boiled inside of him the moment he'd figured out Arty's plot to cleanse Sanctum while he wasted time up in Lucent.

He clawed, scratched, rent the angel's body with all his strength, and obsessively kept checking his HP to see that he'd barely even made a dent in him.

Then a sound broke through the haze of his rage.

"Hahahahaha!"

Laughter emanating from the mouth of a man that should've been dead.

"You truly have learned nothing since our last duel, have you?" Artorious scoffed through burned lips. "Look at you – all that strength, all that frustration, all that rage, and nothing to do with it. Nothing at all!"

Ethan didn't stop. He couldn't. He kept on slicing away at every piece of Arty's insides, ignoring the smell that wafted up Revok's nostrils and even set the beast itself on edge.

And then, the hands of the angel flew to grip his claws. Grip, and twist, so much so that Ethan had to do everything he could not to scream.

"Turn everything against me," Artorious sneered. "All your little minions. All your powers. All your Hosts. Set the armies of darkness itself upon me. In the end, when the smoke clears, you will always see the same result."

Ethan felt his hands clench down on his claws. And with a gut-wrenching SNAP, he felt the Onixia nails of Revok splinter apart.

"Me, staring back at you."

Like a brazier being lit after an eternity of darkness, the holy light of Kaedmon shone in Artorious' eyes again. Ethan felt his entire form lifted into the air and then instantly repelled – pushed with enough force to send earthquakes shivering down the surface world. His body hit the very edge of Revok's lair and he felt the Chimera's internal organs react to the blunt trauma that had just been inflicted on them. He fell, his three heads lolling to the side.

One of them – the snake head of Typhos – began working overtime. Ethan felt the wounds from the blow slowly begin to heal. [Skein of Typhos] was now regenerating cells at a faster rate than before. He still had some fight in him. The angel hadn't won yet.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

And besides, he was still at a lower HP pool than he'd ever been at before. With just a little extra pressure –

CRACK!

A column of light descended on the angel from the hole Ethan had made above. Ethan heard the spiderling army on the upper floor send out a collective shriek of pain – the death throe of Rachneros' entire brood – as the light of Kaedmon came down to smite them from the heavens themselves.

The light ended on Artorious' form as the angel rose from the hole that should have been his grave. As the light hit him, Ethan saw his body become nothing but a shadow within the blinding column. Artorious stared back at him, impassively, while his every fractured limb, every broken wing, ever scratch and every bloody laceration slowly knit itself back together again.

Ethan's Appraisal flared automatically:

Balm of Krea (Grade S)

The radiant light of Kaedmon touches you, as it did the first savior of Argwyll.

Effect: ABSOLUTE [Restoration]

Sys, Ethan gawked. Are – are you seeing this shit?

…if anyone was going to cheat in a fight, it would be Kaedmon.

When the light died away, Ethan saw the Angel standing resplendent as ever, armor shining and hair flowing freely in the middle of the spider's nest.

And his HP…

Artorious The Angel of Kaedmon

HP: 5000/5000

"Oh, come the FUCK ON!"

Artorious chuckled at his words.

"You are watching inevitability, Archon," he said. "No matter what feeble skills you may have, you are facing the champion of He who made them all. And He wishes you to know despair before you die."

From behind his back, Artorious lifted his arms and showed what were now shining in his hands: two pristine new blades, just as deadly as he one he'd been forced to drop upstairs.

"SERIOUSLY?!"

The Angel squared his shoulders, a flicker of joy spreading across his restored features.

"You've had plenty of fun playing around in the muck."

The light of a vengeful God flickered on the surface of his blades.

"Now, it's my turn."

…

"I can't let you do that, Fauna."

When Fauna turned around, her voice turned to ash inside her throat.

The Drytchlings under Malak's control saw it before it happened. They rushed towards the group, but they were too late. They, just like the rest of them, fell under the spell.

Klax and Mara were on the ground, prone. Both of them had a burning green light in their eyes – like they'd been struck deaf and dumb by a force that had come from within their own bodies.

In their eyes were twisted looks of horror, and before Fauna and Tara could fly to do anything to help, they felt the dark tendrils of Oneiromancer magic around them, gripping their minds in a vice and forcing them to obey a single command: down.

Fauna hit the ground in the next moment, grimacing in pain. She tried to resist the hold of the magic, and found that she could at least do more than the rest of her companions in this moment: she could at least raise her face to meet the eyes of the one who had just subdued them all.

Standing above her was Lamphrey, her staff glowing with vile green energy.

"…traitor."

The word tumbled out as Fauna met the glowering eyes of the Tialax.

Beside her, she heard the groans of her companions as they struggled. Malak and the Drytchlings were completely spellbound, eyes aglow with the corrupted green of Lamphrey's magic. Klax was mere inches from the lizardwoman's legs, one claw suspended in the air as it had tried to sweep the staff from her grip.

"I am sorry," she said again, breaking eye contact and walking past them all. "But you cannot aid the Archon in this time. And I know that my words will not dissuade you."

"What…are you talking about?! We have to help him! Or…"

Fauna watched as Lamphrey's shoulders sagged slightly. But she did not speak again immediately. Instead, everyone heard the sound of the portal chamber thrumming with life.

In the next instant, the Festering Den's portal glowed with brilliant light – light that spewed out the Archon and blasted him right into another portal at the far end of the crumbling chamber.

The angel came out next – looking virtually untouched – and launched himself after Ethan.

Fauna felt Mara stir beside her. With what must have been a gargantuan effort, the little Hopla forced out her right hand.

"M-Mr Ethan!"

Lamphrey did not turn at the young girl's cry. Instead, she marched to the front of the group. And there, she waited.

"L-Lamphrey," Fauna spat. "You…can't…hold us…forever!"

"Nor do I have to, Fauna," the Tialax replied. "Only until the time comes."

Fauna wanted to laugh at the complete insanity of this moment. Now, she was beginning to piece it all together. All this time, the Tialax had been doing what she could to serve the fate she saw that was destined for them – probably in dreams that were sent to her by Kaedmon himself. After all, what was 'fate' if not Kaedmon's Law?

And all this inane talk about 'the true enemy'…that was just her way of saying that Ethan was destined to die, here. That's all.

"Let me guess," Fauna croaked. "This is all for the best, right? This is just the way things have to be?"

Again, Lamphrey's shoulders seemed to sink. It was as if, right now, the weight she'd borne all this time was now its heaviest.

"Who are we to decide what is 'best'?" she whispered. "All we are – you, I, and everyone else in this broken world – are actors on a stage. We have our roles. We have our parts to play. We choose to either reject them or to embrace them. That is all. And this – this is my part, Fauna."

Fauna scrambled on the ground. She knew how this was going to play out.

"He's going to die," she muttered. Then – louder: "Did you hear me? Your Archon is going to die, and the legacy of your sisters will have meant nothing, if you don't let us move, now!"

Lamphrey said nothing. She did not move a muscle.

"Don't you even care!?" Fauna screamed.

And Lamphrey, clutching her staff tighter than she ever had before, finally gave a direct answer:

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

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