"So, am I seeing shit, or is that a giant?" We had stopped in a grove of trees about ten miles from the capital last night. Early this morning, we moved as close as we could without being spotted. Right now, the truck is parked about a mile back in a shallow gully. Meanwhile here I am, perched in a treetop like some kind of overgrown squirrel.

Good thing I decided to scout this out before charging in. I would have hated to run straight into that fucker right off.

"You're not seeing things, Jim. That would be a giant." The giant has to be at least sixty feet tall, broad shouldered and overly muscled. It is giving me the impression of a wall of anger and hate as he stares at a man perched on the wall beside him. I guess that it would be considered lucky that he's behind the palace walls and not the city's walls. At least now I know that the fights not going to start until I get to the palace.

"He is wearing a collar, right?" It's hard to tell from this distance, but I think I can just make out a metallic band around his neck.

"It looks like it to me. If I was guessing, he is a recent capture from one of the northern borders. Giants and Goliaths both tend to stick to rockier locations if they have a choice." I nod my head as I strain my eyes to try and see more.

"So the King is so nervous he enslaved a giant to protect him? Well, at least he isn't underestimating me." I let out a dry humorless laugh at my own joke, Alexis just remains silent. I can feel something is bothering her, but I can't see what it might be. There is something about the city ahead that's bothering me too. I just can't put my finger on it.

"Jim, the people are gone." I nearly fall out of the tree at Alexis's words. Once I readjust myself, I start to stare at the city surrounding the palace harder.

"Are you sure?" Now that she pointed it out, I notice how empty the streets are. I strain my eyes to try and see the city. Alexis starts to speak again.

"There are maybe a hundred people inside the city. Houses, businesses, bars; everything is just empty. The people are gone, but there is a massive gathering of monsters under the palace." I'm about to open my mouth to speak when stabbing pain in my left eye forces me to clamp my mouth shut so I don't scream. My eyes clamp shut on their own and I keep them closed until the pain starts to fade.

I open my eyes again, and it's like there is a thin veil over the world in my left eye. The city below looks almost fuzzy around the edges, with dozens of light blue lights scattered around. When I focus on the palace, there are dozens of more blue lights, with a huge cluster of reddish orange lights under them.

"Jim, are you alright!?" I nod my head as I'm focusing on the city in front of me.

"I think Ava gave me a gift with my new eye. People wise, what would you say, maybe thirty in the city and the odd eighty or so in the palace?"

"About that, why?" I focus on the giant as I study the bluish light surrounding it.

"Because I think that I can see them, or part of them. When I look at the giant, there is a glow, or an aura around it. There are hundreds of reddish ones below the palace, but there are blue ones in the city." I shake my head as I close my eyes. Something about the glow is giving me a headache and I really don't want to deal with it right now. When I open my eyes again, I'm relieved to see that the veil has disappeared.

"It sounds like some kind of soul sight, or maybe something to see possible hidden threats." I shrug my shoulders as I start to slide out of the tree. When I hit the ground, I glance back at the road to Rathenk. A part of me wants to turn around and go back, to go and take my grovemates and run. I shake my head and reply to Alexis.

"Well, there is one way to find out." I bring my hands up and form a square in the air in front of me. "Appraisal!" The air between my hands shimmers as a pale blue box forms. I know Alexis is confused by what I'm doing. Evain explained that Appraisal was a skill that would only let me see the results of whatever I appraised. She also warned me that it was a rarity in this world. According to her, there are less than a hundred people who even know about this skill, and even less that can use it.

Name- James Marsterson

Age- 23

Level- 28

Strength- 1256

Agility- 1186

Int./Wis.- 328

Mana 3689

Skills-

Alltounges - 4

Parting Blast

Barrier - Max*

Sense Presence - 5

Lightning Step - 7

Battle Tempo - 8*

Piercing Blow - 5

Temporal Grace - 8

Imitate Spellwork - 3*

Basic Telepathy - 3

Silent Activation - 9

Mana Manipulator - 6

Familiar's Sight

Shockwave - 8*

Mana Leech - 4

Persevering Stance - 3*

Conceal Presence - 11

Sexual Stamina - 3

*Elemental Shields - 4

* Evasion - 2

*Elemental Waves - 3

Skill Breaker - @$%&÷!×#@*****

*Spellwork Thief - 2

*Unbroken

Meditation - 2

Appraisal - 3

Poison Resistance - 4

Lifestyle magics - 3

Blessing of LaMortan (Protection from instant death. One time use before needing replenished.)

Blessing of Evain (Protection against mental attacks, and mental manipulation. Unlimited uses available as Evain is your patron.)

Blessing of Ava (Aura sight. Bound to the left eye, able to use, as long as the eye is functioning.)

I let out a loud exhale as I twist my wrist to close the square. Besides the loss in mana from severing the bridge, my stats looked the same as they did in the ethereal plane. The Appraisal did confirm that it was a blessing from Ava. I will have to remember to thank her, if I survive this.

"Jim, what the fuck was that!?" I catch myself spinning to look for a threat at Alexis's shrill voice.

"What, I'm not seeing anything?"

"What was that blue screen in front of you?" I feel my heart rate slowing as it clicks in my head that Alexis could see my stats.

"It was an appraisal of my stats and skills. The question is, how did you see it? Evain said that it was highly unlikely that anyone besides me would be able to see it." While Alexis is quiet, I take the opportunity to make the trip back to the truck. I cross the mile back to the truck in just under a minute with a combination of lightning step and temporal grace.

Thank you, Evain, for helping me upgrade my skills. It would have been a pain in my ass to run back and forth between the truck without them.

"So if those are your skills, what the hell is going on with them?" I pause as I take one last look over the truck to make sure everything is in place. In the bed of the truck, four large tanks are fused to the frame. Each tank is empty, but soon are going to be filled with a special surprise for the King. Now that I know the city is mostly empty, I don't feel bad about my plan.

"What do you mean?" Since everything seems ready, I start gearing up. My mag pouches and blades are quickly secured to my armor, along with the void pouch for the grenades Alexis made for me.

"I've seen skills before. It's one of the things dungeons can do that most intelligent beings can't. What the hell are the stars beside some? What's going on with the one called skill breaker?" I let out a long sigh before I answer her, not sure where to start to explain.

"Basically the stars mean the skill leveled up to the point where it can split off. Or that it's a skill that branched off from one that leveled up. Skill breaker is not supposed to be available to me, so it's corrupted. Or at least that's how it was explained to me. LaMortan, he let me grab it so that I can make my passive skills more effective. When it's active, my passive skills can be invoked as active and basically double in effectiveness." As I'm counting up my magazines, I come to the realization that I need more.

"Any chance you can make me some more magazines before we start our assault? I'd rather not have to try and finger fuck more rounds into my mags while running." Alexis feels like she is halfway freaking out through the bridge between us.

"We are going to talk about this later, but yeah I can do that. Seriously though, how broken are your skills?" A glow starts in the seat of the truck, and when it fades two magazines are sitting in the seat. One is for the M1a, while the other matches my Beretta.

"Uh, Alexis, I need more than just two more." I pick them up and there is a weird rune inlaid on the baseplate of each of them.

"Not really, they are enchanted with the same magic as a void bag. They are basically thousand round drums in stick mag form." I weigh the mags in my hand, not feeling any difference in the weight from a standard one.

"Will they work like the regular ones?" The last thing I need is either of them jamming up on me while I'm in a fight.

"I've tested them over and over. It took a while to get right, but I swear they are just as reliable as your regular ones." I shrug my shoulder as I drop my regular magazines from my weapons and load the void mags.

"Good enough for me, I guess." I take one last look around while trying not to convince myself to run.

You're wasting time, Marsterson. It's time to go. I know the longer I wait, the harder this is going to be.

"So are you ready to go then?" I nod my head as I open the door to my truck.

"As soon as you fill the tanks, I guess I'm ready." I hear the tanks start to fill as the springs on the truck squeak from the weight. I check the leads coming from the tank into the cab one more time. The wire seems solid, and the switch doesn't have any play in it.

Homeland security would have a field day with this. I catch myself about to say something cliché and just stop myself.

"Ok, even I know you almost said something there. What was it?" I chuckle quietly as I lean back against the truck.

"I was thinking about all those action movies I've watched. The hero always seems to say some cheesy one liner right before the big fight. Then I had to stop myself from doing the same thing." Alexis laughs quietly as I shift my rifle around again.

"What were you going to say?" I shrug my shoulders as I dig my keys from my pocket.

"It was a toss up between two lines really. I was either going to say, let's see if the giant turns into a windmill, or once more into the breach. Pretty stupid, huh?" Alexis is quiet for a long time before she answers.

"The breach one wouldn't really make sense, and you don't look like how I picture Don Quixote. So, are you ready to go now?" I take one last long look at the sky before nodding.

"Yeah, let's go before I lose my nerve." It really is a beautiful day.

Tamer Pavor's pov.

This is the easiest money I've made in a long time. I catch myself grinning like a simpleton as I lean against the stone of the palace wall. Earn my coin, avoid getting collared by the King and I ain't got to do shit. Yep, life is good. My eyes travel up to the giant currently turning its head slowly back and forth.

I didn't realize when I bought the brute a month ago just how useful it would be. At first it was just simple uses; travel, load bearing, and holding monsters while I worked my tamer magic. Then there was the day I ran into the King's men as I was passing through.

They took one look at the giant and told me to report to the palace. I was already on my way to sell my group of monsters so it wasn't like it was out of the way. As soon as the King saw the brute carrying me, he placed me on retainer. Now here I am, just enjoying my freedom and easy money.

"Any sign of the mercenary?" I have to stop myself from scowling at the voice behind me. As easy as this job is, it's not without a general pain in the ass. This one is in the form of an annoying little shit named Falin.

"Seriously, do you think anyone is dumb enough to show up here? Use your head, dumbass!" I don't even bother turning around. Instead, I stare at the almost empty city on the other side of the palace walls. Falin showed up two days ago. He's some guard of a local Baron, and a major pain in the ass. The rumor is he is the illegitimate son of the Baron and that's why he is kept around. All I know is he never shuts up and is always asking one stupid question after another.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." I'm hoping he will take the hint and leave after that, but luck is not on my side. Instead, he leans against the wall beside me, exhaling loudly as he looks up at the giant behind me.

"Still, it would be an exciting time if he did. I might finally get to see your giant do something besides stand in one spot all day." His voice has a light almost humorous tone to it, like he is lost in some daydream. It makes me snort in a barely hidden laugh. "What?" I shake my head as I finally turn to look at him.

"You ever seen a giant fight?" When he shakes his head no, I nod to the brute. "They don't fight. They destroy anything they hit. If the mercenary is stupid enough to come here, the dumbass there will turn him into so much red paste. By the time you can look over, it will all be done." Falin's face seems to fall for a second, then he smiles broadly at me.

"So what you're saying is I need to stay close to you!"

Oh fucking Gods dammit!

"No! I'm saying you need to mind your own business and stay away from me before I make him squish you!" The yell escapes my lips before I can stop myself. Great, if he is the Baron's son you just made a powerful enemy. Falin looks confused for a second before his face splits into a wide grin.

"I forgot about your sense of humor, Pavor." Falin starts to chuckle quietly as I start to relax again.

Thank the Gods he's an idiot. As I'm turning back around, Falin slaps my shoulder before he leans against the wall beside me. I'm about to try and make him leave again when an unfamiliar sound makes me turn around.

"What?" Falin looks confused and starts looking around too.

"It's nothing, I just thought I heard a clinking noise." I glance up at the giant behind me, who is currently staring down at me. "Keep it up. I'll make you pluck your own eye out and eat it!" It stares at me a second longer before raising its head and looking over the city. I stare at it a second longer, and there almost looks like there is something off about his collar. Then when I shake my head it all seems normal.

Huh, that was weird. Falin sighs as he leans back against the wall. Fuck, he's going to say something again isn't he?

"It's just so fucking quiet around here. I can't even go get a drink because all the taverns are closed. Oh well, being this quiet is kind of nice sometimes." I feel my back stiffen as my head turns to look at him.

"You did not just say that!" This guy is a fucking idiot! Falin turns to look at me with a confused expression on his face. Before I can speak, I hear a loud horn blowing from the other side of the city.

"What's that!?" Falin is turning to look back over the city as he speaks.

"What do you think it is? It's the alarm for when he arrived!" My eyes are straining as I try to see what is going on. Whoever let the city planner let buildings be taller than the palace was an idiot. From the wall at the edge of the city, there is a huge explosion. The fire and smoke rises high into the air, pulling my attention.

"You, brute, pick that up!" I'm pointing to the siege weapon beside me on the walkway, a huge ballista. The giant takes a second before picking up the giant crossbow looking siege weapon.

"Be ready to fire that thing if he makes it this far." The giant nods his head as he shoulders the weapon. The siege weapon looks like a standard crossbow in its hands, the ten foot spear like a normal sized bolt. There is a loud thumping rhythm getting closer, almost drowning out a growling roar of some kind. I don't recognize the rhythm, but the other sound is how the mercenary's vehicle is supposed to sound.

Between the buildings on the empty street I can just make out something getting closer. The metal vehicle is painted black, but doesn't quite match up to the description I was given. Instead of two box-like objects in the back, there are four rounded tank looking things.

"Fucking shoot that thing!" There is a twang as the ballista fires followed by a whoosh of the bolt flying through the air. The vehicle shifts to the left seconds before the bolt strikes it.

"Fuck! Reload you stupid brute!" I'm turning back to face the giant when the ballista falls on top of me. "What?" The air is driven from my lungs as the heavy siege weapon pins me to the ground.

"The fuck are you doing? Lift this thing off of me!" It's taking everything I have to keep the ballista from crushing my chest. Falin kneels next to me and starts to pull on the ballista as I push. The giant tilts his head as he looks down at me, then reaches up to his neck.

"You idiot, you can't ignore me dammit!" Of course, that is what he does as his fingers wrap around the heavy metal collar on its neck. The giant starts to turn around as it's fingers pull on the collar. It has barely taken a step when the collar falls to the ground, a light cloud of dust rising up into my vision as it does.

The giant continues to move away as Falin and I manage to shift the ballista off me. It's already reached the opposing palace wall by the time I struggle to my feet. As it jumps over the wall, it begins to run away, quickly covering the ground.

"How did he break his collar?" Falin is dusting me off while he stares after the running giant.

"No idea, now where is that vehicle?" I can hear the roar of it getting closer, but I can't see it. The giant may have escaped, but it's not important right now. The roar sounds like it's going to clear the last row of buildings before the palace wall any second. When I lean over the wall, the sight of the open gates to the palace greet me.

"Hey, close the fucking gates!" When the two guards at the gate don't move, I look around for something to get their attention. While I'm still looking, a broken piece of brick flies past me to hit the nearest guard. I turn my head and see Falin pulling back his arm with another broken stone.

"What?" He pauses and stares at the guards, so I turn my head to look. The guard he hit has slid to the ground, a widening pool of blood spreads out behind him.

"They're dead. We need to close the gate!" Falin falls in behind me as we race down the stairs to the ground level. We are almost to the courtyard when I see a group of men coming down the stairs on the other side of the courtyard. When the leading man hits the bottom of the steps, he pauses and looks down.

The explosion causes me to fall backwards, knocking Falin to the ground too. We slide down the rest of the stairs, just stopping with my head on the last step. Falin goes to push himself up and my eyes just catch something stretched across the ground past the steps.

"Stop!" To his credit he freezes instantly, shifting on top of me to look where I'm pointing. A thin dark colored piece of string stretches out from the edge of a cart, to the frame wall beside the steps.

"What is that?" I shake my head as I shove Falin off me and up the steps.

"I don't know, just don't fucking touch it!" I carefully get to my feet and step over the rope before racing to the gate. When I reach the controls to shut the gate, I throw myself against the wheel. Falin throws his weight in behind mine as the wheel starts to turn. As if in slow motion, the gate begins to close inch by inch. It's almost closed when I see the black monstrosity of a vehicle come past the buildings.

"Faster!" It's going to be close if we get the gate shut or not before it gets here. The giant wheel is meant to be spun by four to five people, not two. Part of me is impressed that we managed to turn it as fast as we did. Just as I'm starting to get desperate, the wheel starts turning faster. I look over and another person joins us by turning the wheel.

"He's not stopping, get clear!" Before I can move away, the black vehicle crashes into the gates. The force of it striking causes the wheel to spin the opposite direction, throwing me backwards.

The courtyard is full of yells and cursing when I struggle back to my feet. Falin is trying to pull me up, his left hand pressed against his bleeding skull. More and more men are pouring into the courtyard and moving to surround the vehicle. There is a loud hissing sound and steam rising up from the front of it, and a loud ticking sound coming from the same place.

"What the fuck is going on!?" Falin looks confused as he helps me keep from swaying.

"I dont fucking know?" Near the truck, some asshole in blue armor is yelling for everyone to make a ring around the vehicle. As the men start to slowly move to surround the vehicle, a weird grunting sound comes from inside it.

"Why does that sound so familiar?" Falin is tilting his head as I'm struggling to place the sound too.

"Fucking goblins!" The memory of where I know the sound from clicks as the door to the truck bursts open. From the open door, four goblins charge out, swinging their short swords and axes wildly.

Normally four goblins wouldn't be any kind of challenge for the number of men in the courtyard. However, they came tumbling out and most of the men froze out of shock. Three men are laying on the ground bleeding out before anyone moves to react. When the rest of the men finally react, the goblins go down in seconds. There is an awkward silence after the goblins die. It's only broken by the sounds of men panting and the weird ticking from the truck.

"What the fuck was that!?" I'm about to tell Falin that I have no idea when someone else yells.

"There's still one in the truck!" I turn my head to look in the open door. Sitting on the seat is a smallish goblin, smiling broadly as it stares at the men outside. Its fingers are gripping something red that is sticking on the inside of the roof. The goblin opens its mouth, and I can just hear it say something in common before it flips the thing in its hands.

"Fuck off!" The sound of a goblin speaking a human language is shocking. My mind doesn't want to comprehend what it just heard. Before it gets the chance to catch up, there is a clicking sound from the bed of the truck. Then the whole world goes white, followed by black.

Jim's point of view

I cut the flow of mana to the barrier as I look over the destruction caused by Alexis and me. When we realized the city was mostly empty, it made me feel a lot better about my plan. What few people who were still in the blast zone, I actually moved before the truck came along. Most of them were more than happy to leave, apparently the King is becoming less and less popular.

"Suicidal goblins, there is just something wrong with that sentence." I shake my head as I make my way around the remains of the palace wall. Ammonia nitrate and high octane fuel, ANFO for short, or otherwise known as what was in those tanks.

Have to admit, I wasn't expecting that big of a boom. I'm glad that I freed the giant while I could, even if I did almost get caught talking to him when his handler turned around.

"I told you, the goblins are bound to me, so I can resurrect them anytime. There is something about goblins that when they can't stay dead, they like to die in interesting ways. They have their own little bragging rights and awards they give each other. You just gave those five bragging rights for at least the next year." I shake my head as I look around at the destruction I caused again.

I really hope the people in the palace were soldiers employed by the king, not innocent serving staff. The palace wall on the south side is just gone, along with about a fifth of the palace. Outside the palace walls, the closest buildings have all collapsed, and a fire is starting to spread. A thick cloud of black smoke is starting to roll over the city slowly as the fire burns. Hell, it ought to make it a little easier to move around without being seen.

"You ready for part two?" Alexis starts to pull harder on my mana, and I feel a tingling start over my skin. "I guess so, huh." I feel my mouth pull itself up into a grin as Alexis continues to expand her influence.

"Jim, twenty more seconds and my territory will be encompassing the whole palace, but there is a problem." From somewhere in the palace, I hear a loud banging noise start.

"Is the problem related to that noise?"

"Kinda. Get me inside somewhere quiet and I'll explain. This might have gotten easier, or harder. I'm not sure yet." I'm already moving through the rubble of the collapsed palace as Alexis speaks. I have to shift my rifle around to my chest to slip under a collapsed section of wall. When I straighten myself up, I notice that the hall I'm in is completely empty of people. There is just a statue fallen over on its side, its face looking up at me.

"Sorry bub, nothing personal you know." I do my best to ignore the fact that I just apologized to a statue, as I start to check the doorway.

"Jim, this is as good a place as any." I nod my head as I slip Alexis's chain over my head. Alexis starts to glow gently as her core floats off the chain and out of my grip.

"Someone has gathered a horde of monsters in the dungeons beneath the place. When your truck blew, it killed several of their tamers. So now about a third of them are not bound and are causing issues. I'm going to try to contract as many as I can, and as quickly as I can." I move over to the doorway as Alexis's core begins to spin slowly in the air.

"So do you have this under control then?" The hall seems to be empty, and it's confusing me with all the noise I'm starting to hear. Why the fuck does this hall dead-end? Who the fuck designed this place?

"Yeah… I think I have it. Sever the bridge between us and go do your thing. I'll do my best to help you out, and make sure no one escapes." I nod my head as I start to slip into the hall. I'm planning on giving her a few more minutes of siphoning mana off of me.

"Jim." I turn around to look at Alexis's core when she speaks.

"Yeah?" The light inside her core flashes dimly for a few seconds.

"Goodluck." I smile back at her as I start creeping down the hall again. The noises from inside the palace are starting to get louder, and there is a loud crashing sound every few seconds now.

Guess I really fucked up someone's day. Mana Manipulator! The bridge between Alexis and I is severed in an instant. For the first time since I came here, I'm truly alone. No time to think on that, Marsterson. It's time to handle your business.

Conceal Presence! Battle Tempo! Sense Presence! As I feel my skills activate, I start to run down the hall. I'm counting on my Conceal Presence to hide me, and my Sense Presence to warn me of anyone nearby. Even with all of the mana coursing through my body, I can feel my heart rate climbing.

A group of four soldiers is about to come around the corner ahead of me. I slide to a stop, dropping to one knee as I do. The first three men around the corner never slow, unaware that I am even there. When the last of the four clear the corner, I cut loose with my rifle. They never have a chance to slow or change direction before they hit the ground.

Not exactly a fair fight. I ignore the little voice speaking in my head as I start to run again. If I start to think about that, it's going to slow me down, and the name of the game is speed right now. Get in and get as deep as I can before I'm overrun. Take out the King and any military men I see, then hopefully escape.

There is a low rumbling from outside the palace, and I smile at the sound. Alexis is building the walls of her new dungeon, and cutting off any means for the King to escape. She explained the rules to me on the way here. She couldn't make it where there was no way out of her dungeon, but she could make it so there was just one.

So the plan was to enclose the palace and surrounding area with her dungeons walls. Then she will set up a mana disruption barrier that will block any kind of escape spells. She explained that it would stop most quick spells, but the right one could still punch through. So I need to find and kill the King before he can escape by magical means.

I asked how she was going to block the regular entrance to her dungeon which made her laugh. Her plan was simple, but effective in its own way. She was planting the manticore and stone troll in front of the exit, along with every orc she could summon. There is technically an exit, just not a viable one that way. That way it does fall in line with the rules, while at the same time not allowing anyone to escape.

"Should have asked Alexis where he was before I took off." I'm making my way through the third floor at a dead run. Since I left Alexis, I haven't stopped moving for more than a few seconds. So far, I've dealt with five groups of soldiers, and more monsters than I want to think about. Somehow, they keep showing up ahead and behind me. It's almost like there is a passage I'm not seeing through this place that they are using.

"Alexis, if you can hear me I need some direction!" There is a dim glow ahead of me before a small chest pops into existence. "Course now it's back to chests."

I take a split second to check the hall before kneeling to open the wooden chest. Inside is a rolled up piece of parchment, tied off with a black piece of string. When I unroll it, there is a map of part of the palace, complete with a big red X, and a collapsed southern side. The top of the map has the words fourth floor written on it.

"Thanks, Alexis." I start to fold the map when I see a set of blocky words printed on the back.

Be careful, he's not alone. I nod my head as I tuck the map away in my armor. It's not like I expected him to be alone, he's too much of a coward for that. I'm about to stand up when something makes me pause. I tilt to my head as I try and figure out what it is.

"Fuck!" I bring my rifle up in both hands, barely stopping the blade of the sword before it impaled me. The man holding it looks confused, or at least from what I see, he seems to be. Most of his face is hidden behind a black wrap of some kind, only his eyes are visible. Before he has a chance to recover, I slam the butt of my rifle into his face, knocking him back.

"Got to admit, I didn't think anyone here could sneak up on me." The man doesn't respond as he just climbs to his feet before dropping into a fighting stance. I take a split second to check my rifle. Aside from a deep cut on the foregrip, it seems to be fine.

"Yeah, sorry no time. You know how it is; places to go, Kings to kill." He starts to move forward when I swing the barrel of my rifle around. His eyes look shocked when the round catches him in the stomach.

"No time for that shit right now." The stairs should be just up ahead, and I need to get a move on. I take the stairs three at a time, climbing to the fourth floor in no time. When I'm getting close to the marked room, I start to slow my pace, peeking around the last corner before just charging in.

"Five men behind a barricade, and monsters in front. Are they even trying?" The monsters are a weird mix; a handful of Gray wolves with two orcs, and some kind of humanoid female with wings and a beak. "Harpy, maybe?" I shake my head as I realize I'm getting distracted.

Keep yourself centered, remember what LaMortan taught you. Long term use of Battle Tempo puts your mind under a strain. In the ethereal plane I didn't really notice, but LaMortan warned me it could make my mind wander.

No point risking anything right now. Just make it quick and clean, deal with the mess after. Temporal Grace! Lightning Step! I slip my rifle behind my back as I cross the distance in the hall. Temporal Grace will cancel itself out the moment I attack, so I'm building myself a delay. I'm past the barricade and behind another corner before anyone realized I was there. There is a quiet clatter followed by a confused grunt.

"Hey, what's this?" I can't help but smile as the mental clock in my head reaches one. The sound of four grenades going off in the enclosed hall is almost deafening. Unlike my rifle and pistol, Alexis hadn't enchanted the grenades to be quieter. I'm not even sure if that would have worked anyway.

When I peak around the corner again, only the harpy is still standing. Its wings are tattered and torn around the edges, but it's still moving well. Thankfully, it's moving in the opposite direction as me.

Hell, if it can shake off the grenades blast like that, would my rifle do shit to it? When it's almost around the corner I came from, I step back out into the hall. The harpy glances at me, but doesn't stop walking away. Maybe it's wings are too torn to fly. I ignore that for now and walk up to the doors it had been guarding. As I get closer to the door, I have to be careful of my footing. The combination of bodies and blood is making the floor slick.

There was a day and time this would bother me. What happened to that? I push those thoughts down as I focus on the door, and what's behind it. It's hard to tell for sure, but it feels like there are over forty people inside. A few of them seem to disappear when I try to focus on them.

Some kind of conceal presence skill, so more than forty most likely. Just have to make sure that I get the King, and anyone in a uniform. Not seeing any reason to waste anymore time, I ready my rifle. I know the door is barricaded, and I know they heard the explosion outside. I wonder if they think that they can keep me out?

"Piercing Blow! Shockwave!" The two skills shouldn't stack, but they do, thanks to Skill Breaker. The shockwave doesn't just stop at the door. It penetrates and shatters its structure. My left boot crashes into the door right behind the shockwave. The door can't handle the impact and shatters on contact with my boot, blowing bits of wood and iron into the room.

Wind Shield! Evasion! Persevering Stance! Mana Leech! Lightning Step! The room seems to blur even to me as I move around it. I'm halfway through the room before I feel my mana taking a huge hit. Something huge has struck my shield, draining a giant portion of my mana to push it away.

I had used the Wind Shield spell for just that reason. It formed a cocoon of high-powered winds around me. The Wind Shield had the added effect of activating magical attacks on impact, unlike the Barrier, which let them pass through.

West corner of the room, hidden in the shadows. My rifle swings around to track the seemingly empty spot in the room. Right before I fire, the assassin moves, not that it does them any good. My first shot missed by inches, but my second causes their body to jerk wildly. The third and fourth causes them to fall to the ground still.

A man in heavy looking plate mail charges at me, sword raised above his head. Lightning Step, of course, already faded out at that point. I'm faced with the choice of falling backwards or countering. My body moves on its own, bringing my rifle around to block the blow. The force of the blow knocks me backwards, nearly ripping my rifle from my hands.

A quick glance down reveals my rifle is fucked. The sword bit deep into the action. I flip the harness over my head as the man circles me slowly. He doesn't advance as I toss my rifle away, or when I draw my own sword.

"My name is General Vargain Baldo…" I don't give him a chance to finish before I move.

Lightning Step! Before he can finish his sentence, I've crossed the distance. My sword is buried in his chest as his eyes start to go blank. His voice goes quiet as he finishes his name.

"Kin, Vargain Balfokin." He looks down to his chest, where the hilt of my sword rests. "How?" I let his body slide off my blade as I look around the rest of the room. There are maybe fifteen people left in the room, not counting the King and I.

"Anyone besides him that wants to leave, now is the time." I point the tip of my sword at the King who is cowering behind a pair of guards. When no one starts to move, I shrug my shoulders.

"Ok then, you can all die with him." I'm starting to get tired. I need to end this quickly. My mana pool is recovering, but even with Mana Leech on, I'm using more than I'm gaining.

Lightning Step! I cross the rest of the room in one motion, my sword swinging in a tight arc the whole way. When I cut the flow of mana to my skill, I'm standing in front of the King's two guards.

"Don't just stand there, kill him!" The King looks like he is about to piss himself as I stare down at him. He turns to look at both his guards before screaming again. "What are you waiting for!?" I take a half second to reach out my left hand and prod either guard. Both of them seem to fall to the ground in slow motion.

"Wait, you don't have to do this. We can make a deal, I can give you anything you want." King Marcel is backing away slowly, his hands raised above his chest. "You want money? I can get you money. Women? I'll get you all the women you could ever want. Whatever you want, I'll get it for you!" I don't say a word as I stalk forward, closing the distance between us.

"Please, what do you want!?" I don't bother to answer as I bring the sword down in a clean arc. The blade passes through the King's body like it's not there, embedding the tip of the blade into the floor.

"All I want is you to die, you son of a bitch." I can feel a laugh starting in the back of my throat. So I do my best to choke it down before it escapes. The last thing I need to do is have a mental breakdown right now. I'm looking around the room as I'm calming down. Something doesn't feel right here, and I can't put my finger on it.

I'm starting to turn when something hits me in the chest. The air is driven from my lungs as I'm thrown back against the wall. My chest feels like it's on fire. When I look down, blood is pouring from where my heart is.

Fuck, need to move! My body doesn't want to respond as a man seems to melt out of the shadows. He looks familiar, why?

"Are you still alive? Strange." The man kneels down beside me, sticking his index finger into my chest. I bite back a scream as my body pulls away from the intrusion.

"Fuck you!" He laughs at my outburst, standing as he stares down at me.

"I'm actually amazed. No one has ever lived through that attack before, and your wound seems to be healing on its own. Not that it matters, the poison on my blade will handle you soon enough. I have to say, you caused me more trouble than I was expecting. Now, I'm going to have to start all over again, thanks to you." He kicks me in the ribs, shoving my body back with the force of the blow.

"I don't know what kind of barrier you put around the palace, but it won't do any good. I'd stay to help you die, but I really must get going." I'm struggling to reach him as he turns away, finally able to remember where I saw him before.

It was in the pool where Azeghial showed me the possible future. This was the man that made me kill Shiva and Thea. His name is on the tip of my tongue, but I don't need to know it. I need to kill him too. My body barely wants to move, but I force it to anyway. I claw my way forward across the floor to where he is digging through the King's robes.

"Simon!" My throat feels raw as I yell at the man. He turns slowly, eyeing me with what I can only describe as amusement. In his right hand, he holds the blood soaked knife he stabbed me with. In his left is a small golden box a little bigger than a football.

"You are still alive? You must have a very high resistance skill to poisons, not that it will do you any good." He smiles at me as he waves the golden box at me. "Now, I really do need to go. Do try not to die too quickly. The poison coursing through you is extremely painful from what I understand. It would be a shame for you to pass too quickly."

"Kill you!" My hand is almost to his boot when he kicks it away, laughing as he does.

"You? Kill me? Oh, you are a funny one hero! You barely managed to slow my plans down." He stows the box in a pouch on his belt as he steps away from me.

"I do need to thank you for getting rid of that idiot Marcel for me. Yes, I may be starting over with my plans…" He pats the pouch holding the box as he smiles down at me. "but is it not better to start over with an army already formed." He laughs as he walks out of the room, not even bothering to look back at me again.

My muscles are burning as I try to follow him. I can't get to my feet, my chest feels like it's filled with molten steel. I'm almost to the door when my strength gives out and I collapse. Each breath is a struggle, and my eyes are losing focus.

Dammit! So close, don't stop now, dammit! No matter how hard I try to push, I can't make my body move. As I lay there, gasping for breath, I hear a quiet set of footsteps coming my direction.

Great, I'm fucking done now. A toddler could try to kill me right now and I wouldn't be able to raise a hand to stop them. I should have swept the whole building before I came here. If my arm would fucking work, I could at least kill this fucking bastard. A quiet laugh reaches my ears as the sound of footsteps disappears.

"Is that any way to speak about an old friend?" The pain in my body is gone in an instant at the same time a strong set of arms pulls me upright. When they lean me against the wall, I'm greeted by the sight of LaMortan squatting down beside me.

"What are you doing here?" I take the brief respite from pain to fill my lungs as much as I can.

"I am the God of death. Did you think I would leave you to be gathered by the lesser reapers?" I lean my head back against the wall as my mind struggles to process what he just said. "I have to admit, I didn't expect you to just lay down and die like this. I thought you were a fighter, or I wouldn't have wasted my time on you." I struggle to laugh. Whatever he did, the pain is starting to creep back into my chest.

"Wasn't exactly my idea to die here." My voice sounds raspy to my ears, like a three pack a day smoker after twenty years. LaMortan shakes his head as he moves around to sit next to me.

"I don't know, you are just laying down to die." He bumps my shoulder with his as he settles into a more comfortable position. "Since you're dying, I guess you don't care what happens to your women either." I struggle to turn my head to look at him.

"What are you talking about?" LaMortan shrugs his shoulders as he leans back against the wall.

"Do you really think Simon is going to let them go free after what you did to him? Thea, Shiva, Mynas, Vaunea, Sarge, hell even Tarril and En'Las are all going to die because of you." LaMortan waves his hand in the air and a golden goblet appears in his hand. He takes a long drink from it before offering it to me. I barely manage to shake my head no as my head rolls forward.

"I tried." Even to my ears, it sounds like an excuse. LaMortan laughs as he takes another drink before the goblet disappears.

"To quote your father's favorite movie, Trying don't get it done!." I can't help but chuckle at the quote, knowing exactly where it came from.

"So what, now you're John Wayne?" LaMortan chuckles as he lifts my head back up to look at him.

"Are you giving up James, or are you going to fight?" I feel something inside me shift as he is speaking to me.

"What?" LaMortan grins at me, shaking his head.

"No, this is all you. All I did was block the pain for a few minutes. It's up to you if you're going to lay down and die, or stand up and fight." I nod my head as I force myself to my knees. I can feel the poison inside me, inching farther and farther into my body. I need some way to pull it out, to rid my body of it. The hole in my chest is almost closed completely, but blood is still pouring out of it.

Cleanse! I force the tips of my fingers on both hands into the hole in my chest, feeling the skin tear as I do. A roar of pain escapes my lips as my blood feels like it's boiling in my veins. I don't know if this is going to work or not, but I remember what Evain taught me about this spell.

It removes anything contamination from your body. Sweat, dirt, grime, juices or anything that shouldn't be there. I'm hoping that it will work the same way on the poison in my system. For a split second, I can't move from the pain. Cleanse is supposed to be used on the outside of the body, not the inside. I'm really not sure what it is going to do to me in the long run.

The poison in my system feels like it's slowing. The pain of it working its way through my body is starting to come back as I push more mana into the spell. I grit my teeth and try not to yell as I feel its spread slow, more and more, before it stops. I redouble my effort, pushing more mana into myself. The poison starts to slowly move again. This time, back the way it came.

I can feel something hot dripping down my chest that's not blood. When my head drops down there is a dark black ichor seeping out around my fingers. As the poison is drawn from my body, more and more of the black substance leaks out of my chest. Finally, I can feel the last of it leave my system as the wound on my chest starts to leak bright red blood.

"Gold job James, but you're still bleeding." I nod my head as my left hand falls to my side. Lifestyle magic, the same way Thea started the fire our first night together. The same way she produced the water that would have put it out. It's going to suck, but I know it's the only way to stop my bleeding right now. I press my right hand against my chest, feeling the blood leak through my fingers.

"Fire!" A scream escapes my lips as the smell of burnt flesh reaches my nose. When I cut the flow of magic, the bleeding stops. There is a raw looking burn across my chest, and my armor is smouldering.

"Good job, James. Now what are you going to do?" LaMortan is standing beside me, my sword held in his hand. He spins it and offers it to me by the hilt as I stand. I take a second to rip the burned sections of my armor free. It obviously doesn't do me any good against Simon, but I try to keep as much as I can in one piece. When I take my sword from him, I notice the end of my Beretta is crimped, so I toss it aside too.

"I'm going to protect the women I love. What did you expect me to do?" LaMortan smiles at me as he bows at the waist. I start to turn and walk out the door when LaMortan speaks again.

"I expected nothing from you, hero. You are not mine to claim unless you die. I will offer you a gift should you succeed." I pause and turn my head back to him.

"What kind of gift are you talking about?" One thing he taught me through training was to always be wary of a free gift. His usually led to me being stabbed, or cut.

"I stoke my hearth with evil souls, and Simon's soul is as evil as they come. Bring me his soul to stoke my fire, and I'll make sure you are suitably rewarded. Evain forbade me from telling you how, but I know it's something you want." He smiles at me before waving me away.

"Go on now, hero. Simon is heading to the roof. If you run, you should catch him." Then LaMortan is gone, as if he was never there.

"Always have to do the heavy lifting myself, don't I?" I take off at a dead run, pushing myself to move as fast as I can. I know that I can't let Simon escape, and I need to destroy that box he took too.

On the ethereal plane.

"You know that is going to land you in trouble LaMortan." Evain is staring down into the pool of murky water as LaMortan walks up. He shrugs his shoulders as he wraps one arm around Evain's waist.

"Maybe, but we both know you couldn't interfere. Besides, I didn't do anything but block his pain for a few moments. The rest was all him. That doesn't quite qualify as interference, now does it?" Evain shakes her head as her eyes stay focused on the images below her.

"I hope not, but the others will judge it, you know." LaMortan laughs, throwing his head back as he does.

"Fuck them stuck up bastards! I'm the God of death. What are they going to do, kill me?" If Evain had taken her eyes away from the pool for a split second, she might have seen the worry in LaMortan's eyes. She never did though, her focus is glued on her hero on the world below.

Back with Jim once again.

How many fucking stairs is in this fucking place!? I didn't realize how low my mana reserves were when I started running. Now, I'm soaked in sweat and gasping for air as I struggle to climb the steps. My muscles are burning, but I refuse to slow down as I push myself harder.

Mana is charging slower than normal, I need to save it. I have to stop Simon. I'm not sure how I know Simon went this way, but I'm sure he did. It's like something is pulling me this direction, and I feel whatever it is getting closer.

Daylight is streaming in from the open door at the top of the stairs. I take a quick second to try and get my breathing under control as I slowly approach the doorway. When I reach the door, I strain my ears to hear what's going on on the other side.

"Where is my ride!? It is supposed to be here by now!" Simon is sounding agitated, which makes me smile.

More agitated he is, the less clear he will think. Now who the fuck is with him?

"I'm sorry sir, the tamer should have been here by now. I'm not sure what is taking him so long. He had several great recommendations. I can't understand what the problem is." Whoever it is, they sound nervous as hell. I get the feeling Simon doesn't handle people who fail him very well.

"This is unacceptable, I will not stand for this. I need to get out of this city and back to the backup location!" I take a second to feel out my mana levels. As far as I can tell, I'm ok for a few minutes of a fight. A prolonged battle is probably going to be more than I can handle. It takes a while for it to click why my mana is so low, but then my chest aches and I understand.

My body is burning through my mana to keep me in one piece and upright. No time to wait to heal. I need to go now. I wish that I had my rifle, or even my pistol with me right now. Should have asked Alexis for them,and some potions. I'm about to whisper a request to Alexis when the second man outside starts to yell.

"Sir, the griffin is here!" I tighten the grip on my sword as I start to move.

Fuck, no time now! When I hit the doorway, I'm blinded by the sun for a split second. As my eyes focus, they are drawn to the giant shadow moving towards the roof. The griffin is huge, easily twice the size of my truck. The front half of its body looks like a huge golden eagle with the rear of a lion. A man sits on the beast's back, a pair of leather reins in his hands.

Simon is turning to face me as the griffin is starting to land. I know there is only a few seconds to react, so I go with my instinct. My sword leaves my hand, flying through the air. Simon shifts out of the way almost faster than I can follow. Luckily for me, he wasn't my target. My blade flies straight, burying itself into the griffin's chest.

"Nooo!" I lean back, barely avoiding the blade as it swings at me wildly. My right hand goes to the small of my back, pulling one of the Arkansas toothpicks. The second man recovers from his wild swing, bringing his blade back around in a downward arc. I drop to the ground, rolling forward as I do and barely sliding under his second attack. When I come back to my feet, I reverse my grip on the blade, driving it into the base of the man's skull. There is a quiet gasp, then he drops, pulling my blade free from my hand.

"You are supposed to be dead!" Simon's face is screwed up in anger as he screams at me. I force a laugh from my throat as I draw my bowie knife from my shoulder.

"And you're supposed to be coving your sister's shift at the local whorehouse. I guess we are both disappointing people, huh." Simon starts to circle me slowly, so I do the same. We are both keeping our distance from each other, waiting for an opening. When Simon draws his own blade, I draw my second toothpick with my left hand.

"Do you really think you have a chance against me? You never saw my last attack coming." I grin as I change directions, making Simon stumble as he hurriedly matches my change.

"I know your type, Simon. You're a coward. Hell, when was the last time you were in a fair fight?" For all my talk, Simon's guard is perfect. Every move I make, he adjusts to intercept the attack that could follow. I may have spent a year in the ethereal plain training, but he is still on another level.

No time like the present. I know I can't waste anymore time if I'm going to end this. Lightning Step! I cross the distance between us faster than the eye can follow. As I'm passing, I thrust outward with my bowie, expecting the blade to strike flesh. Instead, I feel the jarring impact of metal on metal, and the burning sensation of my flesh being cut.

"Fuck!" Still gripping my toothpick in my left hand, I press my fist against the wound on my side. I can feel the burning sensation spreading out from the wound. The same feeling that spread from my chest when he first stabbed me.

"Did you really expect that to work on me?" Simon is smiling as we start to circle again, his eyes full of joy. "You are good, better than you were, I'll give you that. You are still no match for me. I've spent dozens of your lifetimes in combat. You can't hope to match me, much less beat me!"

The one encounter with him is telling me he is right. If I wasn't barely being held together, and re-poisoned, maybe I would have a chance. I should be panicking right now. Instead, I just feel calm. Simon tilts his head as I feel a smile tug at the edge of my lips.

"What are you smiling about?" I shrug my shoulders as I pull my hand away from my wound. Over Simon's shoulder I can see more griffins flying towards the palace. If they are reinforcements for him, I need to end this now.

"I just know you have already lost, that's why I'm smiling." Simon stiffens as I start to move, crossing the distance between us again.

Lightning Step! Temporal Grace! I know the backlash from using those two while so low on mana is going to be devastating. Right now, I just don't see a better option that ensures Simon dies. I feel Simon's blade dig into my side again as our bodies collide.

My arms wrap around him as I continue running, pushing as hard as I can. Simon seems to realize my plan a second too late. The two of us reach the edge of the roof, then pass over it. I let go of my Arkansas toothpick to make sure I have a hold of him. My right hand drives my bowie knife into his body, over and over again.

I can feel the world getting dark as we continue to fall. I keep a hold of Simon, even as his body goes limp in my arms. If I'm going to hit the ground, Simon is definitely hitting it first. Who knows, maybe he will cushion the blow enough for me to survive, but I doubt it.

I'm sorry, Thea. Sorry, Shiva. Then the world goes dark once again.