Leaping out of the rubble of a now decimated ball, Alsop had tried to think positively, but his eyes were engraved with the horrors he had seen prior. His mind was at constant unrest that faltered him from focusing on his imperative goal to find Maxwell. It was clear though, after a deep breath, that the horrors would not dare to leave him. His mouth was instantly concealed by his pale stricken hand as he gazed off in awe. Up in the once serene skyline, a dark smoke prevailingly engulfed the clouds. Such smoke had come from the burning houses and corpses of a tarnished city of ruin. Fires scorching the wood of the foundations of houses, and incinerated souls of once lively people were all that remained in the heart of the beauty, Bournington.

Alsop's heart had plunged into fear, and then into terrible, terrible guilt. He was short for time to mourn, as a group of cultists were quickly stampeding near to him. The alleyways may have seemed a fine hiding spot for him to pass through, but his stomach was compelled to sickness as the paths were wretched with the smell of roasted bodies. His eyes averted the mess in the hopes that he could not be shadowed with guilt that was not in his hands to begin with. But his eyes soon shot with sincere guilt as his thoughts had trailed onto something dear to him, something externally bonded to him. Was Mary safe?

The question scorched into his mind and it sent a burning belch to his empty stomach. His question had quickly been answered once he arrived at a row of trashed cottages, that lay all utterly destroyed in unison. An atrocious attempt at arson had happened, and it was successful enough to leave only a pile of debris, of which blood and bricks blended grimly. The site had left Alsop melancholy as he caressed a pressed flower within his blazer. But again, he had no time to mourn as a gentle touch loomed over him with golden genteel.

"I know, it's all gone but we need to go and help, Alsop." The voice had instantly gushed a tear of relief from Alsop.

"Mary. I thought you were gone." Said Alsop, his face burrowing towards her chest.

"No, I'm here." Mary smiled at the hopeless sight of Alsop. "I'll always be here." She said.

"You're carrying your bow?" Alsop looked up at her.

"Yes, we must help. It's our duty, Alsop. What did you expect?" Asked Mary with her eyes upwards, an angelic aperture to her soft face.

"I should be fighting for you." Said Alsop, gripping his fists.

"Ah, Alsop. My white knight, my gentle white knight, white knighting me." Said Mary lightly, her hands lifting her husband.

"Well, is there anything wrong in me wanting to protect the love of my life so much?" Asked Alsop.

"No, not at all!" Mary laughed. "It just helps me keep going." She added softly.

As the two had moved through the streets, their conversation had quickly ceased. A grim reminder incited the merry couple with a direct sense of seriousness again. Alsop paused, as he caught his eye on a young girl brazen across the ground. She was small, innocent and vulnerable, but she had a sweet face of good perfection - before. Her features were gone now. A fire had torn the body into a mangled mess of murky blood. The work of cultists, no doubt. Mary had avoided the sight in the hopes of remaining somewhat unaware, but this was not possible for anyone. Vicious smoke circled up the nostrils of anyone nearby, and it enflamed the tissue with the touch of torched bodies. A howl from a street or two away, likely from the roaring atmosphere of the invading cultists, had echoed across the narrow maze of Bournington. This was simply unsettling.

Alsop was particularly afraid and clutched Mary's hand tightly; he looked up to her azure eyes, which were downcast, but they had a flare of positivity still inside them. The sight of such bravery had piqued Alsop's nervy mind.

"How? How are you not scared right now?" Mumbled Alsop painfully, his strength had begun to break down.

"Alsop...?" Mary looked to him with heartbreak. "You can cry, you've seen a lot today haven't you?" She had clasped his hands.

"No, I can't. I can't, not yet. Not now." Alsop swallowed his words slowly. "Just tell me, my love. How are you so calm?" He asked, but his ears were captured by a thundering roar in the sky.

"Later, my love. I think Maxwell is here now." Said Mary, with her eyes darted to the flying force of the Guardian of Wind.

"No, Mary! I'm not calm myself, why can't you tell me now?" Alsop surprisingly pleaded, his words burning into Mary's mind.

"Alsop!" Mary scolded him. "I will tell you later, but for now." After a second glance, she had given Alsop a short, calming kiss of bliss.

"Whuh, why did you do that?" Red-faced, Alsop replied.

"It seems like we both needed it." Smiled Mary, turning to greet the arrival of Maxwell and Annette.

"Alsop! It's good to see you are well." Said Maxwell with relief, his arms held out for a gracious hug.

Alsop clung to him like a child.

"It's good to see you too Maxwell, the city needs help." Said Alsop.

"You think? Get yourself and Mary to the Eastern Hillside, it is the safest place to be. I have brought Annette over to help the injured, once you're there too." Said Maxwell.

"Yes, okay." Alsop registered his commanding words.

"What about you Max? Where will you be going?" Asked Annette, after consoling Mary.

"I'll still have an eye over you three, but I'm going to try and clean up the streets. They're rough and need tending to, so others can help." Said Maxwell, his feet no longer on the ground.

"We should be fine, the heroic knight, Alsop Dusseldorf is at hand!" Said Alsop, his body turned to a creative stance, like that of a statue.

"Hmph, goodbye." Said Maxwell as he had seen enough and left them. "Where does he get that energy from?" He wondered in thought.

With the introduction of another person, Alsop had a greater challenge ahead of him. The roads of Bournington were nicely aesthetic but they lacked structure; the city lacked connections between the various zones of the area. Carrying more people was now a hassle, as it would be easier to draw unwanted attention. And attention did come crawling, as several surprises from cultists came around each turn of an alley.

Alsop sufficed well through the first few sets of sin cultists as he glided with his blade carrying a sense of confidence. After all, his duty now was to protect his beloved wife and her friend. The three had pursued the myriad of roads with his newfound haste but Annette began to fall faint with her strength ailing her. Wrapping her arm around her neck, Mary had gently supported her body, but Annette was fast becoming weak and fragile, like a drying flower.

"Alsop, my love. I think it's best if we take a break." Requested Mary.

"No, no, no! We have to go forwards, I'm just slightly tired from the healing Isaac made me do, that's all." Exclaimed Annette.

"If we take a break, you will regain some strength. Your healing can begin to restore too." Suggested Mary.

"No, I'm fine. I promise a break isn't necessary. Continue Alsop, please." Annette's eyes were foolishly childish as she had said this, she was in an obvious struggle but letting down Mary would be a worse struggle for her.

"Very well. We'll move on." Said Alsop with uncertainty.

Ahead of the three, a street swayed back and forth with sin cultists scattered across the stone brick floor - Alsop was the one pushing the three forward, but this road seemed a particularly tricky task for him. His eyes surveyed the rickety movements of the cultists, they were floating about the floor and checking for any living bodies. Of course, there were no bodies with a heartbeat. They were all restful ashes now. This sight was enough for Alsop to rush forwards to the challenging threat ahead of him, as he disregarded a more cautious, thoughtful approach.

A swing, a slash, a swipe. Alsop had opened with a lightning set of feet and this did, at the very least, offer him the advantage of surprise. His ice-blue sword had begun to plough a plethora of punishing waves along the road, all causing a devastating onslaught of rampage. Several of the cultists had now witnessed a glimpse of their life leave them as a single swing shattered them in two, but Alsop's load of work was quickly growing - it had gained attention from others nearby. And soon, the street was swarming with an army of cultists, all moving slowly towards the single white knight, Alsop Dusseldorf. The posse was insistent to infest the street with themselves, and they had ravaged red eyes that pulsed at the sight of something they fiercely abhorred.

Alsop was overwhelmed at the sight. There were so, so many. He had blanked with a white face of stone.

"Alsop? Alsop! I'm too exhausted to help. Don't get yourself hurt, please." Said Annette, mustering up a few words of energy.

"I - Mary, I don't know..." Trembled Alsop as he looked to his wife for knowledge, for power, for aid.

"I can't leave her side, my love. I will cover you from here with my bow, but you must go." Said Mary, her eyes were filled with guilt at the demand, but it had to be said - Alsop was, like many would be, a frightened fool.

"Yes, okay, yes. Stay safe, Mary, my love." Said Alsop, his stance now ready. Ready to embrace a challenge.

His eyes blackened, his heartbeat quickened and his breathing deepened as he searched inside himself for power of any kind. He had found it, deep within a pool of black that had been bulging in his light blue sword. The spirit gifted to him by Caspian Cull was all he needed to prevail. His mind was now lunar, having been surged with a satisfying sense of limitless power within his confident hands. His blade had changed to a scale of power beyond either Alsop or the spirit. This blade could now create a punishing potential to wipe a small group to oblivion.

Alsop and the spirit had now intertwined.

Pounded into paradise, Alsop had given the cultists a punishing plummet into purgatory, as all it took to kill them was a fine incision diagonally across their torso. Few cries came out as the perfection of his life-ending cuts was impeccable to the highest quality. His stamina had increased, his awareness had sharpened, but most saliently his will to kill had bolstered upwards. His boost in stamina was useful very briefly when he first ran into the group to obliterate them, but now it was dangerously useless. Running in with little thought meant that he was easily more susceptible to cuts and bruises. And this was something that feared a nearby Maxwell, as he could only just barely capture what Alsop was doing.

Alsop had now diminished several dozens of cultists, brashly bursting through them thunderously and his eyes finally caught a sudden, sinister grimace of realism, as he noticed a long line of cultists behind a larger group. The larger group would be easy to clear, but the wall of cultists behind was not dangerous to him. They were dangerous to Mary and Annette. These cultists did not carry a sword, nor did they have a feral attitude to them that would make them want to use their teeth or fingers to kill. These cultists had a sharp, deadly set of arrows and a bow of considerable range to them.

It seemed they were preparing for an attack though, and this preparation would take time. So, Alsop also had time to take them down, after dealing with the rest of the cultists. But a cruel crush conceded. Toppled to the ground gravely and flown away from danger, Alsop was pushed by Maxwell.

"Alsop! You need to calm down! Look at yourself, you're going to get yourself killed." Said Maxwell, his eyes caught for concern.

"What? No, no! I don't care, I have to protect them!" Exclaimed Alsop, his eyes sparkled black with fear.

"I get that, but you're being too wild. Wait here." Said Maxwell as he finally escaped the glaring eyes of Alsop.

"I need to help, no way I'll wait." Said Alsop as he rushed alongside him with fury.

But Maxwell paused. And Alsop soon stopped too. A bow quivered, and the sound of an angel falling swept the streets. A few arrows had passed by Alsop and Maxwell, but they were not from Mary.

"M – Mary?" Muttered Alsop miserably as he turned with rigid despair.

"I – I – Als...just hold on." Remarked Maxwell as he blasted off, but it was not registered by Alsop.

Hesitant at first, Alsop ran. He ran. He ran to his wife, who he had left behind to protect. She had been hit by two arrows, one narrowly missed her throat and only left a tear on her skin. The other had punctured the left side of her chest. Aside her pool of blood, Annette was crying uncontrollably with the wails of a weeping widow. This invited more cultists, but Maxwell was now well within a mood that caused calamity willingly. Maxwell was instinctively blocked out by Alsop though, as he finally laid down by his wife's side.

"Mary, oh Mary..." He cried, at first uncertain of her future, but his eyes then tenaciously turned to Annette with hope. "You can heal her, right? You can help her, surely?"

She frustratedly shook her head, she had no healing left to offer the chance of a second life for her beloved friend. Compared to the gushing faces of Alsop and Annette, Mary had a round smile like a sunflower which was softly planted on Alsop's lap. She brought her hand up to capture his face, to caress the pained aperture of his face, to lighten his dark-stained countenance.

"Anne, are you okay?" Mary whimpered out. "I pushed her and..." She tried to add.

"Yes, she's fine. You will be fine too, we just need to move you." Alsop interrupted her.

"No Alsop, let me have my last moments be here, with you." Said Mary.

"No Mary, I can't. Please, don't leave me. Not you Mary." Alsop cried out.

"I'll always be with you in here...Alsop." Mary shuddered in pain, her hand circling against Alsop's chest, carefully touching his pressed flower. "So, hold onto mine." She pulled his hand to the pressed flower near her chest, her heartbeat had been fading.

"But...I've failed you. How are you not angry with me? How is it, you're so calm?" Alsop called out with self-hatred.

"Alsop." Mary cupped his face with her hand. "My calmness, my composure. It all comes from you. Your efforts, your strength, your heart, your love. I love you." She said, her eyes gracefully closing with a twinkle of water to them.

"I love you too." Said Alsop.

Somebody grabbed his shoulder sympathetically, but Alsop was gone with Mary in essence, he had drifted to a state of decay that made him utter no words, no expressions, no emotions. Maxwell had clearly punished the cultists as their blood polished the road. He now attended Mary's passing away next to Annette, who was awfully mute this whole time. Her tears were still an ongoing process, but her voice compelled no words.

"I'm sorry Alsop, I should have intervened sooner." Maxwell briefly said.

"Is the area clear?" Asked Alsop.

"Yes." Confirmed Maxwell.

"Then, some time, please." Said Alsop.

"Of course." Replied Maxwell.

"Wait." Said Annette, sternly.

"Yes, Anne...!" Yelled Maxwell as his turn to view her ended up with him receiving a vicious smack to the cheek.

"Why? Why couldn't you have just taken them all down before they fired?" Annette choked up through an array of tears, whilst quickly clinging to him for comfort.

"I don't know. I really don't know." Replied Maxwell, his eyes glancing between his blood-red hands and Alsop's clean knight wear.

"Max, if you don't know...then leave. Please. It's hurting me, and Alsop." Said Annette.

Maxwell obeyed her submissively and decided not to resist her in any way. She had smacked him, but he accepted the favour, as he swallowed a sincere taste of regret.