The hybrid woman smirked a devilish grin, and with that grin came a slow and disturbing shift to Alabaster's real killer. A man that, to Shane's shock and surprise, looked almost exactly like him. The same medium-length, wavy white hair, lean and toned build, face, legs, everything. It was like looking in a mirror, albeit one that laughed at you and killed your friends.

Was it just Shane's imagination, or did this Cain look more….handsome? He couldn't quite put his finger on it. Something was different, almost better in a way.

"We haven't met, you and I, but I've met all of you," he said while jabbing a finger toward Shane.

"Listen here, asshole, I don't give a fu—"

"Hush now, child," said Cain with a dismissive flick of his wrist. "I'm not just a Cain; I'm THEE Cain. Cain Prime, if you will. The original you in the flesh."

While Cain Prime executed a flawless bow, Shane took the opportunity to dash in and kick the man's extended head like a soccer ball. Serves you right, Shane thought as his foot connected with the….air? The Cain, or Cain Prime as he referred to himself, was gone. Shane's foot continued climbing as the momentum caused him to lose balance and fall on his ass.

Cain Prime reappeared, nearly in the same position he had been before the kick attempt.

"You're one of the craftier Shane's, aren't you? What would our parents think about how you've been behaving today?" Cain's unbearable snickering left Shane gritting his teeth.

He just mentioned my—our father. What Cain Prime said made Shane recall the flashback of the cloaked man in the sewer who said something similar to the previous Shane. Long before that Shane became the Cain he fought over a week ago.

"Master, who is this attractive man?" the spider on his shoulder asked.

"It's me, Sharlot. Except, I think he's the first "me" to have entered this world," Shane's grim tone left Sharlot without a response.

Shane quickly stood, dusted off his rear, and pointed at his mirror image.

"You're one to talk! Spying on everyone from the shadows; pretty toothless stuff for me to do. Oh, and let's not forget that being the first of us also means you were the first to fail! So, thaaank you for neglecting to give your successors the tools to succeed where you COULDN'T!!" Shane's sarcastic words were biting in their ferocity.

Cain Prime's face twisted and changed for a moment, the sly smile replaced with something far more unhinged and ugly. Shane watched him lift one foot, and suddenly the man's face was inches away from his own. He wore that same disturbing smile from before with large, bloodshot eyes that looked nearly dead.

"Out of all the Shane's I've met—and later controlled as Cains—you're one of the few who managed to get under my skin a teensy, tiny bit. Interesting. Very interesting."

Shane was furious, but he wanted answers before he let his spells and feats do the talking for him. He took a few steps back as Cain Prime continued unblinking eye contact with him.

"Before you answer for Alabaster's death, tell me, why go through the charade of needing saving," Shane motioned at Cain Prime's feminine attire. "And why were you a female hybrid?"

Cain Prime laughed. An empty, hollow sound filled the chamber, bouncing and echoing off the stone walls. Quite suddenly, his laughs ceased, and that creepy smile returned.

"Being the superior version of ourselves, I took it upon myself to explore the interests you've long since buried. One of them being roleplaying!"

Shane sighed heavily, with Cain Prime's explanation only fueling his frustration.

"So let me get this straight…you found all of this," Shane said while motioning to the room as a whole, "appropriate as a roleplaying opportunity?!" He hoped Cain Prime properly sensed how incredulous and angry he felt.

"There's no reason to get your panties in a wad, Shane. It's not my fault you were too scared of what other people would think. Hahahaha…." His laugh again echoed through the empty chamber, sending Shane over the edge.

"I've heard enough. You're dead."

Shane's outrage and frustration merged and crystallized, making him feel collected, calm even. It wasn't enough to help him notice Sharlot had already jumped off his shoulder and grew to max size. He was already reaching for his claymore as fast as his body and agility would allow—she was just that much more agile than him.

"Take those words back, you imposter!!" Her usually mentally projected voice now filled the room, overlapping and overpowering Cain Prime's haunted laughter.

Sharlot was immediately upon Cain with several legs already in motion. To Shane's eyes, she might have been a match for Cain Prime's speed, judging by the small craters on the floor from where she pushed off from. All the while, Cain Prime's laughing increased in its intensity.

The giant arachnid thrust her hairy limbs toward the copycat of her master. She attacked a dozen times every second. Yet, Cain Prime would disappear and reappear between thrusts, making him appear as a flickering blur. How can anyone be that fast! Shane thought with a hopeless irritation.

"Where did you find this firecracker, Shane? My, my, I'm impressed!" Cain Prime casually asked in between self-satisfied chuckling.

Shane had nothing to say to him, not anymore.

It occurred to him that when Shane, the original, became corrupted, it must not have worked entirely in the same way it did with the twentieth Shane. Leaving the first Cain of Endless Veil sane but warped in ways that made future Shane's lives, and the lives of the NPCs, very likely miserable.

When Sharlot observed her multi-limbed stabs weren't connecting, she changed tactics and jumped high into the air with a spin. As she twirled, she let loose several large sheets of web and hundreds of her spiderling babies simultaneously. Cain Prime stopped flickering and simply stood still while smiling at Shane. Layers of sticky web and hundreds of Sharlot's spawn swarmed over him, with the web and baby spiders stopping just short of where Shane stood.

The icing on the damage cake came when Sharlot dropped to the floor and continued her multiple limb assault. Shane noticed something was wrong when no damage numbers appeared—even with the webbing inhibiting movement and hundreds of her spawn entering through its holes.

This guy is seriously on another level. He's toying with us, and If I let it go on much longer, he could kill Sharlot! Shane's mind entered a relaxed flow state as it raced for a solution. He opened his menu and inspected his various feats and spells, hoping an errant detail in one of them would help. Seconds passed, Sharlot's attacks were still ineffective, and he was not a single inch closer to a solution.

He opened his stat screen and scrolled down until he could see his list of current modifiers applied from the gear he wore.

Applied Modifiers From Gear:

Crusader's: Receive an overshield based on 10% of max HP while summons are active Overshield starts recharging 10 seconds after taking damage and recharges to full within 3 seconds Fire Enchant: Boosts Fire Spells by 30% and takes less damage from burns Sharing: Summons take 25% of the damage inflicted on you Destroyer: Single target spells acquire moderate area-of-effect properties Sharp: +25% more damage on weapon Confusion: has a 30% chance apply [Confusion] to any opponent hit Empowering: +3 To All Attributes Scholar: +15 Mana Bandit: 10% chance to steal an item with any physical attack Enigmatic: Physical Attacks have a 10% chance of inflicting a random negative status effect Retribution: Increases all damage done by up to 50% based on missing HP Healthy: Increases HP by 10% Restful: + Maximum Fatigue Combined Mitigation: +25% To Physical and Magical Defense on the Item

Yes, the modifiers he had built up over the past couple of weeks were undeniably powerful. He didn't think they were up to snuff. Not compared to the multiple layers of Sharlot's combo attacks, and even those were useless.

Shane quickly scrolled past the modifier portion of his stats. It was then he finally glimpsed a potential answer.