Side Story: Blood Hunt (Part Five)

A funny aspect about the Gods of Orvonia was that while "They" were unique, the Authorities "They" held weren't strictly the same. Take Sol and Xerxes for instance. Both held Authority over Fire, but different Aspects. Sol's Fire represented light, worship and warmth, while Xerxes' flames showcased a darker side: destruction, conquest and war.

Another example would be Polydorus and Calypso: the former was the rage and impunity of the seas, while the latter represented the gentleness and beauty. Dendron and Gaia, Consus and Ingrid, Daemon and Jester, Fallacy and Weaver...the majority of Gods shared an Authority, dividing its meaning between "Them".

Aenrys and Navruavati were no exception to this rule, allowing the Vampires and Devils to use the power of both Gods freely. So when Harold Kismet fed the Branch of Degeneration with his own blood, he was calling on the powers of both Evil Gods. And the effect was instant.

Growing at an extraordinary rate, the Branch consumed Kismet's entire arm and spread out, transforming into a pitch black tree that oozed black liquid and caused feelings of degenerate madness to bubble up in Kulkiri. Squeezing his eyes shut, he desperately fled backwards, hearing the Vampires in front scream virally before they were consumed by the still-multiplying branches. The Harvest Church's Artefact met the Vampire's in the middle, deep green branches intercepting black ones.

The Branch of Degeneration had no consideration for its allies, consuming the Vampires eagerly and draining their blood. Aryll was forced to retreat as multiple spear-like branches nearly claimed her life, and the brothers had dove back into the shadows. Yet there immateriality did not protect them for long: the branches dove after them, slipping into the shadows like they were a pool. After several seconds, Johan and Erich burst pit and scrambled away as the branches followed them persistently.

Himmel's flames manged to halt the advance for several moments, before he was overwhelmed. Victoria's Poison was completely ineffective, likely due to the Branch's nature of being Cursed, so she was forced to scramble away once Himmel was overwhelmed. Menes was furiously batting away the vines that got too close, his Vampire opponent standing propped up by a black branch, surprise plain on his face. His death in such a manner had been unexpected, clearly.

Sensing the tides turning against them, Ruby and Anne stepped up. The blind Seer began chanting as white light gathered on her staff, while the Priestess touched the ground with both hands and caused a mudslide (but of concrete) to surge forward and smash through the entanglement. Return to Roots continued to spawn more vines of its own, feeding of Isabelle's Mana at an exorbitant rate but repaying the price fairly. The Branch of Degeneration was unable to advance past a certain point, and everyone had managed to hold on.

Finished her chanting, a flash of determination settled in Ruby's eyes as she pointed her staff right at Kismet's heart. Just like before, a concentrated beam of gentle white light shot out, shearing through any branches in the way and clearing a path as it went. Unfortunately, the attack was too telegraphed to work. Kismet merely released a smaller beam of Nether and neutralised Ruby's attack in mid-air. But that wasn't the end of it.

Walls of stone and dirt rose on both sides of the cleared path, stopping the vines and branches from reclaiming it. Using this path, Aryll went forth six wind blades, while Himmel summoned three flaming spears. Ruby fired of multiple bullets of light in quick succession that were weaker but just as fast. The team of three were well used to fighting together, and reacted in tandem to the opening given to them.

It certainly started their target, as Kismet shot out waves of Nether in a flurry, his attacks containing no grace or finesse, settling for pure overwhelming power. But it filled that criteria well, since the two side's met and the Vampire's won out. The Nether dissolved the Mana on impact, and even carried on to slash Aryll across the stomach. The damage was minimal since she stepped back at the last second, by Kulkiri could smell the blood seeping out. But the trio weren't the only combatants in this fight. Shadows surged forth and lashed at Kismet like angry tentacles, while the ground by his feet shook and began to sink down. 

Directing some of the Branch's power to himself, the number of vines contesting Isabelle was unavoidably reduced, allowing Return to Roots to advance further and join the fray. Ignoring her wound, Aryll continued to fire concentrated blasts of Mana, as did Himmel and Ruby. Victoria changed her Poison to include acidic properties and flung it at Kismet as a puddle, forcing the Vampire to cover his body in vines and reduce his mobility. This revealed a weakness of his though: for whatever reason, ever since the start of the fight, the Vampire Viscount had not moved from his spot. Kulkiri peered behind him and saw some sort of diagram painted with blood on the floor, most of the runes foreign to him but several were common: the runes for summoning, expansion, anchoring and Aenrys Divine Symbol. 

Kulkiri's heart palpitated at the thought that Kismet was attempting to summon Aenrys "Himself" before the rational part admonished himself. Such an act would require a Sovereign at the very least, which Kismet was worlds apart from. However, whatever came through that summoning portal would be intimately connected with the God of Degeneration and that would be very bad indeed. Anne and Isabelle seemed to agree, because the sinkhole beneath Kismet's feet shifted away to the ground behind him. Realising his circle had been discovered, the Vampire let out an angry roar and exploded in wine-red Nether, cancelling all influences on the area around him and neutralising the attacks. Gripping the Branch of Degeneration even more tightly, he grit his teeth as a large amount of blood was visibly extracted and sucked in, causing the Branch to vibrate wildly and the vines to shake erratically as a thick black miasma began seeping out of it, one that caused Kulkiri to go weak at the knees just watching. 

Kismet had unleashed the full Curse.

Sensing the danger, Return to Roots let out a shrill shriek and began shining like sun. Pure and radiant green light burst out, counteracting the dark miasma and stopping it from advancing. Seeing this, Kulkiri narrowed his eyes behind the mask. He hadn't been informed the Artefact possessed sentience. Then again, it wasn't like he needed to know, and neither could he have demanded that information. As an Artefact belonging to the Church of Harvest, what right did he, a lowly Adventurer, have to purview it? 

In any case, Return to Roots indeed possessed Divine qualities, because the Branch of Degeneration failed to break through. Kismet withdraw all support for the exterior vines, instead building a wall of thorns to block off himself and the ritual behind him. No longer restrained, everyone burst forward and began hacking away at the barrier with Mana infused weapons. Victoria and Himmel played a special role here, as the man's flames and the woman's poison melted through the branches despite their high Rank. It seemed only the main part of the Branch was immune to standard attacks, and its "offspring" possessed no such invulnerability. 

After only a minute, gaps that allowed them to see beyond the wall had appeared. Kismet had taken a spot inside the circle and was chanting as he dripped blood on the cardinal points of the diagram. The circle was glowing a soft black light now too, which was concerning for sure. Sensing their approach, Kismet looked over with a grim expression, looking between the circle and the Divine Artefact consuming his arm. With a resigned sigh, he raised his other arm, and chopped off the one attached to the Branch. Falling with a shower of blood, his arm twitched several times before falling still. The Branch reacted like an angry animal, hissing and squirming frantically as its life source was cut off. Picking up his severed arm, he dropped it in the centre of the circle and resumed chanting. 

"Move!" shouted Isabelle and she thrust Return to Roots into the gap in the wall, causing it to tremble and then explode into fragments as green and vibrant weeds took its place, growing in the blink of an eye. This barrier parted at the Priestess' behest, allowing them to rush in. Blades of darkness and Nether attempted to hold them at the gap though, smashing against Menes (the first to enter) like a sledgehammer and sensing him flying backwards. Not even looking at them, Kismet continued to try and overwhelm the group with sheer power. If it was them when they entered, he likely would have succeeded, but some of the group was no longer the same as before. Isabelle took a deep breath as a determined look settled in her eyes, her green hair growing longer and more tangled. Raising her hand, she grasped her shoulder with the other and planted her feet steadily against the ground.

"Oh Mother Earth, bless this filial child with your Grace, your overflowing Love and Bounty of Nectar, your Warmth and Compassion...grant this child of yours with your Strength!"

Kulkiri felt the air pressure change as his ears popped, Isabelle's entire body being dyed green as her hair fluttered upwards. A beam of green light, thicker than Menes' body, shot out of her palm and through the gap in the wall, breaking through the waves of Nether and Darkness Mana. Kulkiri could sense vague markings of Divinity in that attack, and it seemed Kismet could too. Desperately spinning around, he threw up his remaining arm to try and block, but that was a mistake. In the ensuing explosion, only the Vampire's scream of pain could be heard, followed by a strange zooming sound. When the light dyed down, Kismet was gone.

"He escaped via Teleportation" Anne explained bitterly, cradling a collapsed Isabelle. The other Priestess was back to normal, though she was abnormally pale and her breathing weak. Turning his attention to the ritual, Kulkiri saw the markings had been scorched, with the Branch of Degeneration being reduced to ash. Still, his instincts warned him against approaching just yet, as tiny flickers of blackness could be seen dancing on the ash. A Curse capable of killing a Legendary was quite tenacious. 

"The ashes will need sealing or purification" Aryll stated, eying them wearily. Anne nodded in agreement as she looked at her sister. "The Archbishop will handle that. If it was a different Secret God, we would seal the ashes and use them for our own needs later, but nothing of the God of Degeneration's can be used safely. We'll have to cremate them."

Sheathing his blades and rubbing his forehead, Kulkiri's thoughts briefly wondered to Endyr, Sheva and Arnold. The other two hadn't made it back, and he was slightly annoyed at their absence. With two more Grandmasters, things would have gone a lot easier. Still, nobody had died and all the Vampires had been eliminated (or most of them anyways). The stragglers would be dealt with later, or had already escaped with Kismet. What exactly the Vampire Viscount had been planning was still unclear, but the Divine Artefact and Summoning Ritual pointed to nothing good. They had just saved a lot of lives today.

Despite everything, the thought warmed his heart slightly.