Admiral Kaleta gave a subdued and professional smile as she met them at the entrance to her bustling command center. "Ladies, thank you for coming. Miss Ishiar, I must apologize for my previous treatment of you. Circumstances were quite different then, as I'm sure you can understand."

"Please get eaten by a swamp slug and die," Ishiar replied.

"An understandible sentiment. If you will follow me, we can discuss our mutual situation in a more secure location."

"Secure for whom?" Ishiar said.

"For all of us," Shannon said simply. "In a city of this size it can only be assumed that Aerothi has several agents, even after my purge."

"Purge, huh? Killing off all the agents *you* put here, I presume?" Cassandra said.

"Killing those who's allegiances did not change, yes," Shannon replied. "In any case, Aerothi's agents surely would have done the job if I hadn't. As part of my former command, their identities would have been easily compromised and they would have presented too much of a risk to leave alive."

"Surely."

As they spoke, Shannon led them to a conference room that was quite a departure from the Ironbelly castle from which she had formerly operated. This room had sleek lines, sophisticated and elegant technology, and an almost art-deco feel to it, utterly alien compared to the rough-hewn stone edges of the Ironbelly fortress in Eronmar.

The room would have had quite a dignified aura, were it not suddenly filled with the sound of Ralier swearing about trying to fit through the door. Before long Admiral Kaleta decided it would be more expedient to have her teleported into the room, which her command center was apparently more than capable of doing.

With the barrage of curses ended, she addressed the assembled party.

"Ladies, as I'm sure you are aware, Aerothi has been waging a campaign of domination against this world for some time now. This campaign has been ever more successful as time has gone by, and the rate at which she is conquering your world is accelerating with each passing day."

"What is she planning to do?" Annelique asked. "I know she plans to bring this world back to life to eat Mnokugura, but then what? This planet will be an even bigger problem."

"Her plan was, until recently, perfectly feasible. She has a stockpile of very sophisticated explosives, some of which are already in place. They are intended to destroy the vital organs of the monster this world becomes after it has devoured Mnokugura."

"Until recently? Why isn't it valid now?"

"First of all, now that I am in command of the opposing force, she my fail to conquer several key locations. More importantly, however, the Orchid Fane has learned from the enormous profits they reaped from Ripley and wish to see the same scenario unfold both here and on numerous other worlds. For this purpose, they intend to prevent Aerothi from killing this world after it's resurrection."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Most worlds hold many portals to both other worlds and other realms. When Ripley was devoured, escape from the space monster that engulfed it became impossible--at least through space travel or magical teleportation. Escape from the planet, however, was still possible through portals that had already been in place. Though most portals on the surface were quickly destroyed by Mnokugura's digestive tract, subterrainean portals remained that led to other realms; including a few that led to Orchid Fane holdings within Faneglut. The Orchid Fane was quick to recognize the significance of this and quickly fortified these portals even as they destroyed or buried every portal that led anywhere else. Once they controlled the only escape route, they allowed the survivors to pass through under two conditions: they could pay an exhorbitant fee in cash or they could vow to submit to slavery to the Orchid Fane for the rest of their mortal lives. They quickly emptied the coffers of the wealthy, desperate as they were to escape the rapidly digesting planet. Those who were not wealthy were willing to use every resource they had to keep from becoming Orchid slaves, giving them a large number of political favors, and those who had no alternative but slavery often submitted to it. As they were volunteering for slavery--albeit barely--this meant they were often far more skilled than those taken in a standard slave raid. Normally skilled and powerful individuals are too troublesome to enslave."

"Didn't anybody fight them?" Annelique said.

"In this case, the Orchid Fane proved too strong, both politically and militarily. The few factions that could have challenged them agreed not to do so in exchange for easier access to the portals. In addition, the Orchids wisely rigged the portals to destroy themselves if they lost control of them. Even if they were captured it would mean little to the Orchids; the attackers would emerge only to face the full might of the Orchid Fane on it's home territory."

"So the Orchids want to come in and cock up Aerothi's plans so they can milk all the planets Mnokugura eats?" Cassandra asked.

"Yes and no. It would be more appropriate to say they plan to ensure certain parts of Aerothi's plan succeed...they would be more than happy to see her resurrect this world. They simply have a strong interest in preventing it's death. To them, however, the survival of this world or Mnokugura would both be acceptable outcomes, and I would not be surprised if they ultimately hope for the survival of both. They are already building military staging grounds and resources for manipulating portals on the worlds that would be the first victims, regardless of which monster came for them."

Annelique felt slightly sick.

"They...they're going to destroy entire planets so they can make money?" she said weakly.

"Not all creatures are as benevolent as yours, my dear Angel. They are not interested in the death of any given planet; only the resources they can reap from it. They would let it die only after they had taken every possible resource they could from it--all of it's wealth, all of it's political power, and every individual with talent or skill. And, of course, the usual unskilled slave fodder for their day to day pleasure."

"I should start a betting pool on how many times this situation can get worse before the universe just blows up completely," Ishiar said. "For funsies, I'll say nine."

"I can provide you with several to begin your tally," Shannon said. "For one, Aerothi is hunting you because she believes you have the potential to stop her. Now the Orchid Fane has an excellent reason to do the same. Both forces have dispatched elite agents to contain, capture, or destroy you. In truth, Aerothi is the least of your problems. She did not confide this in you, but she sees you as a form of insurance in case she succeeds in the first stage of her plan but fails in the second. She commits only the resources that are necessary to keep you from interfering with the resurrection; now that she knows what you are she does not want you dead. The Orchid Fane, on the other hand, sees you as a direct and unequivocal threat to their interests. Their primary objective on this world is to ensure it is not killed after it is resurrected. That means they have only four targets, two of which are in this room."

"So is there anybody left on the planet who *isn't* our enemy?" Ishiar asked.

"Myself, for one, though I understand you consider that a mixed blessing. And I will acknowledge that my loyalties are contractual and not personal. There are also the allied armies. I am attempting to recruit others...the Blood Fane may not wish to see their rivals gain such an advantage, and the Night Fane has already appeared in small numbers, though their exact motivations are as yet unknown."

"Joy. Just what I wanted in my life. More demons," Ishiar muttered.

"Speaking of which, it may interest you that your former ally from Kikagonroth is currently in captivity in Eronmar."

"Ushan? She's alive?" Annelique gasped.

"No. I speak of Charlotte, the demon seer. Though as the subject of Ushan has been brought up, they have also captured someone they believe to be Ushan's daughter. Reportedly they received an egg from one of you," Shannon said as she glanced around, "that contained Ushan's unborn child."

"Received is an awfully cordial way of putting it," Ishiar said. "It would be more accurate to say that Rea beat the shit out of me and took it explicitly for the purpose of being a truly epic bitch."

"I must warn you with regards to Rea. If you have come to the conclusion that she is a bloodthirsty psychopath, that is not inaccurate. However, her level of sanity is not as you might expect it to be."

"Well, duh."

"I mean that in the sense that she should not have the level of self-control that she does. Her passions are strong enough to drive her to madness and she compensates by ruling her mind with an iron fist. She possesses great skill, an overwhelming need for vengeance, and the willpower to control it. She approaches her murderous designs with clinical efficiency rivaling my own. It is only when victory is easy enough that she need not even think about it that her heart begins to smolder and burn."

"So the fact that she was pissed at us just means she didn't even consider us a threat. Wonderful."

"On the contrary. You cracked her shell. Rea has not been the same since she returned from her last confrontation with you; her willpower and careful control have begun to falter in what are sometimes...quite dramatic ways."

"How dramatic?"

"Dramatic enough for me to have heard about them all the way from Eronmar."

"Well, are we gonna help each other? Are we gonna trust each other?" Annelique asked.

"Well, you're the empath, Annie, why don't you tell us?" Cassandra said. "Can we trust the lovely Admiral Kaleta? Or is she waving around a lovely bouquet of blatant lies?"

Annelique blushed. "Oh...um...well, she seems to mean what she has said so far. As far as I can tell."

"Good, then we'll be friends," Cassandra said. "Okay Shan, here's the deal. I've dealt with Orchids. They're great friends to have if you assume their only motivation for not screwing you is because they don't want to piss you off."

"Rather like yourself."

"Pretty much, yeah. But they've got their secret weaknesses just like everybody."

"I'm listening," Shannon said, an unexpected hint of genuine interest in her eyes.

"Actually, rather than try to explain it myself, I think I'll turn that over to my second in command. She understands this kind of thing rather...well."

Elvet stepped forward and quietly cleared her throat. "How much do you know about demons?" she asked.

"I am educated to a reasonable level of detail, and have access to more specific information, should it be required," Shannon replied.

"How well would you say you understand them?"

"Believing you understand the motives a demon is considered a highly foolish thing to do," Shannon replied.

"It can be..." Elvet said calmly. "But as with everything else, they are an open book to the right eyes. You merely need to know the true meaning of the words. There is a hidden side to every demoness; no secret script, hidden allegiance, or complex plot can explain it. Demonesses live lives of debasement, debauchery and treachery, partially because such things are in their nature. However, demonesses have more in common with other races than they would ever admit. In truth, they have many of the same needs that normal creatures do, such as desires for friendship, love, and even kindness, and their lifestyles isolate them from these things so completely that their need for them becomes all the stronger. Flesh Fane demonesses choose lust over love; thus, their need for love secretly begins to dominate their lives. That is why every society has it's own version of the old folk tale where the Flesh Fane demoness runs away with her slave lover. A Bone Fane demoness chooses destruction, chaos and mayhem; thus, her hidden self will yearn for stability and nurturing. That is why the few things she does show respect and loyalty to will be unquestionable and unswerving, and why they are truly willing to die to defend those who show them that same loyalty. For the Orchids, their facades, treachery and exploitation leave their lives utterly devoid of trust--taken to it's natural conclusion, their philosophy leaves them without a single soul in all the realms that they know they can depend on."

"And this can be turned to our advantage?" Shannon asked.

"It's the single best way to deal with demons, if you ask me," Cassandra said. "Don't offer them what they say they want; offer them what are afraid to admit they want. Orchids don't want profitable deals. They want deals that look profitable but, more importantly, give them a logical excuse to think they can actually trust the person."

"They would be that foolish?" Shannon said.

"That's just it. They won't--at least not willingly. You have to appeal to their sense of logic." Cassandra smiled. "If they think they have the upper hand, they'll just toy with you or screw you, and if they think you have the upper hand, they'll just be paranoid. You've got to use some finesse; make them believe that you could screw them *and* they could screw you. If backstabbing would cost more than it's worth for either party, they can respect you without fearing you--all you have to do is imply that you have the same attitude."

"So in short, mutual fear leads to a twisted form trust," Shannon said.

"And there are many among the Orchids for whom the secret need for trust is..." Elvet hesitated, "...surprisingly strong."

"For example?" Shannon asked.

"S'not that easy, Shannon," Cassandra said with a smile. "I already handed you information worth a fortune. If you want actual names to go with it you're going to have to cough up some of that."

"As you wish," Shannon said. "In any case, I do have a plan that may protect you from the secret machinations of both the Orchids and Aerothi, though you would be trading one danger for another. Aerothi derives a great deal of power from her champions: Arake, Rea, and Leiasell. They form a powerful bulwark that can turn the tides of a battle quite efficiently. Those of you with fate marks gain power from death, is that not correct? Were you to fight on the front lines, your powers would grow very quickly, likely exceeding those of Rea, Arake and Leiasell before long. In addition, being in the midst of an army makes you much more difficult to assassinate or abduct without causing a disturbance, and those few agents skilled enough to do so could be easily foiled by the legendary Cassandra the Corsair."

"So how much am I getting paid on this deal?" Cassandra asked.

"WAIT," Ishiar said. "Front lines? Why do I suddenly get the feeling you want us dead and just don't want to go to the trouble?"

"Miss Ishiar, both Aerothi and the Orchids will be sending their most potent agents after you regardless. I offer an entire army to help ensure you survive those encounters."

"And how do we know we can trust you?"

"If you are serious in that question and willing to look beyond your personal disdain for a moment, you will find that my service record to my employers is impeccable. The end of my employment with Aerothi marks the first and only incident where my loyalty and ability to follow orders was not to a satisfactory standard in the eyes of my employers."

"And just who else have you worked for?"

"One of my aides can provide you with a thorough accounting."

"Lots of people, Ishiar," Cassandra said. "She's not as famous as me, of course, but she's a local celebrity, at least. Though I'm not as sure her previous employers would speak as highly of her as she claims."

"I expect you would be willing to overlook any such claims provided your own fee was adequate?"

"You expect correctly."

"I wouldn't," Ishiar said. "After spending an hour socializing with a Blackscale from the inside because of you, I'm not overlooking shit."

"You are free to decline my offer of aid," Shannon said. "Though I would not recommend it."

"I wouldn't figure you would."

"At least...think it over," Shannon said, frustration barely beginning to show from her carefully controlled eyes.

"Guys, she's right," Ralier suddenly said from the back of the room. "This mess is all over the planet. No matter where we go, people will be after us. And even if Shannon personally wants to get us killed, the fact is, the Meckis don't, and it's their army."

"An excellent point, and one worth considering," Shannon said. "Though technically it is not their army--they are merely financing my contract and represent the strongest political power within the alliance."

"Who else is in this alliance?" Ishiar asked.

"After the fall of Eronmar and Izael, the remaining viable forces consist of the Mecki Clan and their allies within the Allied Star Protectorate, the Velvet Flower clan, the Firebelly clan, and the Dire Star tribe."

"The what tribe?" Ralier asked.

"Dire Star. They were an unexpected boost to the alliance; though small, they have proven quite formidable. They have been surrounded by Aerothi's forces for six weeks and have lost only a small amount of territory. They are master hunters and trappers, akin to the Gorgunes, but with considerably greater ferocity. They were hesitant to take orders, but the loss of their tribemates has angered them enough that they have agreed to join us in order to take vengeance."

"And what does Aerothi have?" Ishiar asked.

"Everything else," Shannon said simply. "I was quick in dissecting the great powers of this world along political and military lines, allowing us to conquer each in turn while giving the others reason not to interfere."

"And how the hell did you pull that off?"

"Well, for one thing, she's the reason the Dire Star tribe already had defenses set up," Cassandra said. "She manipulated them into attacking the Ironbellies, which conveniently kept both of them out of the war long enough for her to conquer the Beastvine territories to the north. It helps that the Ironbellies were paranoid of the Beastvines and the Dire Stars to begin with, meaning they were more than happy that someone was taking care of the former while they fought the latter."

"You hold true to your reputation, Cassandra," Shannon said. "Few others had managed to deduce that I was involved."

"It's not like it was hard," Cassandra said. "The Ironbellies don't raid. Like, ever. They turtle or they bulldoze. That's it."

"What delightful colloquialisms you bring to the conversation. You are, of course, correct. The Ironbellies prefer stationary positions and brute force. It was their downfall in the end."

"And I'm guessing the so-called raiding party was a group of armed civilians you duped into walking into a Dire Star warcamp."

"I don't like this conversation," Annelique said. "Why would you do all that? Just for money?"

"I do whatever will be of most benefit to my clients," Shannon said.

"She isn't an angel either, Annie," Cassandra said with a wistful smile. "Hell, even the angels I know have started fighting dirty. I'm still not 100% convinced Klayer isn't out to get me."

"You are the least of her concerns," Shannon said. "I have been monitoring the Protectorate's activities in case they decided to intervene here on a larger scale. It is quite the reverse; they have had to pull resources away from this planet in order to defend their own. Unfortunately, I lost track of Klayer when my intelligence resources switched from Aerothi's to those of the allies. They are considerably less organized and considerably less effective, despite their technological advantages. But I will be changing that soon enough. In the meantime, I would be willing to provide an additional fee if you were to re-acquire her for me in the course of your activities--"

Suddenly the lights dropped, leaving the room dark. Within moments they had been replaced with red lights and alarm klaxons.

"I was afraid of this..." Shannon put her hand to her earpiece. There was a voice coming from it, but it was too quiet and muffled to make out.

When it stopped, Shannon simply said "How many?"

"How many what?" Annelique asked.

"And how much do I get for shooting them down?" Cassandra asked. "We can negotiate a bulk rate if you'd like," she said with a wolfish smile.

"If you don't mind," Shannon said with an annoyed look, still focusing on her earpiece. "Very well. I will be there shortly."

There was a dull rumble and a subtle shudder went through the floor.

"Though I should point out I do not hunt fellow Crescents, so if that's who Aerothi hired, I will have to sit this one out," Cassandra said.

"Zadiian raiders and Demataurs," Shannon said. "The Zadiians I had expected...but the Demataurs were not affable to offers from either side. It seems Aerothi is willing to expend far more resources on striking Ecilix than I had expected."

"Well, it IS your headquarters," Ishiar said.

"And the single most heavily defended city short Crucia or the ASP core worlds," Cassandra said. "Assuming Mnokugura hasn't eaten them."

"If you'll excuse me..." Shannon said. "I am needed in the command center." She quickly trotted out of the room, turning to Cassandra as she reached the door. "Regarding your involvement in the defense of this city, consider the standard bounties doubled if it remains viable, or halved if it is captured or damaged beyond usability. In any case, if you are willing to accept my offer of aid, consult captain Sceers."

"Sceers, huh? I know her," Cassandra said. "That might make things easier. Or harder, depending on what parts she remembers. Elvet, what's your reading?"

Elvet closed her eyes for a moment. "There are many ships. Too many for me to track from here."

"Dark angels have radar?" Ishiar asked facetiously.

"I can commune with the Starslicer," Elvet said. "But from this distance I cannot direct her senses well enough to make sense of this...maelstrom."

"Bring her down to the closest hole in this 'burg. We can handle Zadiians."

******

Twenty minutes later, the group was standing atop the Starslicer's deck, listening to Cassandra muse to herself. "When I said we could handle Zadiians, I meant, you know, a *believable* number of them."

Literally thousands of ships were swarming above them. The Ecilix defense force was staggering in size, it's frigates and capital ships numbering in the hundreds, but they were mere islands hanging amidst a frothing sea of Zadiian raiders and Demataur assault ships.

The vast majority were Zadiian; silver-grey ships with hulls resembling two crescents stacked crosswise. They filled the sky with storms of green blaster bolts and they used long cable guns and nets to board or distract the defenders. The sheer number of cables being fired made the sky look like a shroud woven by an insane spider.

The lumbering Demataur ships were few compared to the swift Zadiian raiders, but they were enormous. They, too, seemed to favor boarding, but rather than clamping onto an enemy ship and then landing on it as the Zadiians did, they shot out enormously thick cables and dragged enemy vessels to them. Those that proved to strong to pull were pulverized with devastating energy cannons while the cables held them in range.

"Head's up!" Cassandra yelled as she swerved to avoid a small destroyer and the two dozen boarding cables that were attached to it. It was being dragged out of the sky by a dozen Zadiian ships. As they watched, the Zadiians used their cables to fling the entire ship towards Ecilix. There was a tremendous rumbling as it struck one of the towers and a shuddering bang as the tower began to fall in a cloud of jagged steel and flame.

"Well, they're not joking around, are they?" Cassandra said, not bothering to comment on the fact that her gunners had already shot down two of the offending Zadiian ships while they were ascending back towards the main battle. "Well, let's see how much money we can pull out of this, shall we?"

"What is going on!?" Annelique yelled.

"You see those silver ships? Those are Zadiian raiders. They're pirates, kinda like me, except I don't suck at it. Those big ones that look like bricks are Demataurs. They're not so much pirates as marauders. The only thing we're really missing are the Xebbebbas. They're more like pillagers."

"Explain how those are different?"

"One eats you as soon as they catch you, one waits until they're hungry, and one sells you to someone else," Cassandra said.

"And which one is which?"

"Does it matter!?" Ishiar yelled. "All I want to know is how to kill them!"

"The usual ways," Cassandra casually called back over the din of battle. "I prefer to humiliate them to death."

"How do you humiliate someone to death!?" Annelique asked.

"Well, in my case, all it takes is them trying to actually fight me," Cassandra said with a shrug. "Oh, you'll wanna duck around now..."

The ship rolled hard, practically knocking everyone off their feet as a gigantic bolt of seething, magma-like energy soared just above the Starslicer. It looked to be bigger than the ship itself, and Annelique could feel it's heat burning her through her clothes even though it was dozens of yards away.

"Those are bad, in case you were wondering," Cassandra said. "Demataur Magma Pulsars. Colloquially referred to as 'Buttfuckers.' Because that's what they do to your ship if you're dumb enough to let them hit you."

"I don't think those guys have much choice!" Ishiar said, pointing upwards at the huge capital ships that were being hammered to pieces.

"That's why intelligent captains pick fast ships over tanks. Speaking of which, duck again."

There was a surge of heat--even worse than the first one--and Annelique felt her head slamming painfully against something. Jumping to her feet, she realized it was the deck railing; they had been hit, and the impact had knocked her all the way across the ship in an instant. Miraculously, the struck side of the Starslicer was smoldering, but intact.

"Well, dammit," Cassandra said.

Annelique laid against the deck for a moment, painfully rubbing her head as she looked up the gruesome spectacle. Many of the larger and less agile defenders were suffering badly, but a number of extremely agile fightercraft were blasting through the sky, raking the Zadiians and the Demataurs with vicious-looking vulcan cannons and a variety of other weapons. The Starslicer was soon in the middle of this maelstrom once again, it's deck gunners blasting the weapons clusters on the Zadiian ships with clinical precision. The massive cannon at the Starslicer's aft, on the other hand, was taking it's shots at the Demataurs, shaking the deck every time that it fired.

Annelique was about to stand up when a huge metal claw struck the railing beside her, trailing a cable that was several inches thick--one of the Zadiians' boarding cables. She yelped as she reflexively dodged away from it, then looked up at the uncomfortably close Zadiian vessel that had fired it. It was almost on top of them--maybe a hundred feet above them.

Cassandra didn't seem to pay it much notice; she simply rolled the ship slightly until the boarding cable touched the Starslicer's jet-black sails. The section that touched the sail vanished into oblivion, instantly sending the boarding cable swinging uselessly off into the distance. Several more cables were hitting the ship, however, and not all of them were from above where the ship's sails could sever them. All of the cables Annelique could see were blasted off by the deck crew, but somehow she still felt like they had missed something.

The grappling claws made a very distinct noise when they struck the ship. Looking at the number of severed cables, she quickly went through her memory of the cable attacks and counted the number of impacts she heard, comparing it to the number of severed cables she saw. She quickly realized they had been hit by a lot more cables than she had seen.

She ran over and grabbed one of the loose cables, using it as a tether to help her keep up with the much faster Starslicer as she jumped into the air and flew a short distance away from it. The second she got a clear view of the ship's hull, she saw at least ten intact boarding cables attached to it's underside. There were creatures climbing up the cables. They looked vaguely humanoid, but had pale blue skin and strange, vertical slits in their abdomens. All of them seemed to be armored so that these slits remained exposed.

Annelique half-flew and half-pulled her own way back to the deck. Before she could even say anything, Cassandra was yelling down to her.

"How many?"

"Uh...ten?" Annelique called back.

"Climbing or cranking?"

"...What?"

"Climbing the cables or cranking their ship towards ours?"

"Climbing the cables!"

"Any Demataurs?"

"Um..."

"Blue with slits or big with gigantic shoulder-arms?"

"Uh...blue with slits!"

"Okay." Cassandra motioned for another of her crew to take over the piloting station, drawing her sword as she did so. "Prepare for things to get mildly interesting."

"On the scale of interesting," Ishiar said, "how interesting was our shot through Mnokugura's brood zone?"

"Too interesting."

"And mildly interesting would be?"

"At least two of you will live. If you don't screw up," Cassandra replied before looking over at Annelique. "Oh, and angel, you might want to be, you know, NOT unarmed."

Annelique looked around and realized she had forgotten to replace her weapons--all she had was the robe Elvet had given her after she had been eaten by the space monster.

"I don't suppose you have a spare."

"Not on me, and our walking arsenal didn't make it through the last battle, but if you head below deck you should find some in the armory." She tossed a small crystal to her. "This'll unlock it. Take what you need, but don't go crazy."

There was a sudden yell and the clanging of metal on metal. Annelique turned just as the first of the Zadiians vaulted over the railing, already being attacked by the deck crew.

"And you might want to hurry," Cassandra said.

Annelique didn't need any further encouraging. Heading through the double doors that led below deck, she ran around a few corridors, trying to remember where the armory was. She had seen it before, but had never given it much thought, and she knew it was hidden behind an ordinary wall. It took a bit of searching, a bit of backtracking and a few incorrect guesses, but she finally found it. Waving the crystal in front of the false wall, she caused a metal door to swing open that looked more like the entrance to a vault than anything else. Indeed, a vault it was, albeit a small one. On one side were several racks of firearms; rifles, pistols, energy weapons, and even a few heavy weapons including a machinegun and a rocket launcher. Annelique had no idea how to use most of them, aside from the basic concept of "point at bad guy, pull trigger, and hope that makes you win." On the other side were weapons she was more comfortable with; swords, spears, knives, crossbows, and a dozen others. Aside from a six-strong set of impeccably crafted sabres and crossbows, every single weapon was unique. Most of them bore runes or other signs of enchantment and a few were even glowing. She started reaching for a glowing longsword, but stopped herself--every member of the deck crew had a sabre identical to the ones that were hanging next to her. And if she had learned one thing in her time aboard the Starslicer, it was that the crew knew their stuff. If they weren't using any of these weapons, maybe the sabres were actually more powerful. She bit her lower lip for a moment, then shrugged and grabbed one, strapping it to her waist.

As she turned to leave, she gave out a surprised yelp. Winny was all of an inch behind her, an impatient look on her face.

Annelique blushed in embarassment. "Don't sneak up on me like that!" She took a deep breath. "What was your name again?"

"Winny," she replied. "Excuse me," she said as she tried to move past Annelique into the cramped confines of the vault. Surprisingly, she was successful--the small girl was unusually agile.

"Um...does Cassandra know you're doing this?" Annelique said as Winny grabbed one of the crossbows, all of which looked entirely too big for her. It was the same kind the deck crew used, and the same kind she had in her hands when Annelique had first seen her.

"I'm guessing she wants me to fight," Winny said. "You wouldn't leave me to defend myself with nothing but my bare hands? Even she's not that mean."

Annelique couldn't really argue with that, though she was slightly disturbed by the fact that Winny seemed to be helping herself to a small arsenal--a pistol, several daggers, another much smaller pistol, another much larger pistol, and another dagger...most alarmingly, she was hiding most of this stuff underneath her dress just as fast as she was taking it. When she was done, the only visible weapons were the largest pistol, the largest dagger, and the crossbow (which, considering it was half her height, would be a terrifying feat to conceal).

"Do you know how to use all that stuff?" Annelique asked incredulously. "And do you really need it? I mean, that much?"

"Come on, look at me!" Winny said. "I'm like half your size, and you're not that big. I need all the firepower I can get."

"You're not *half* my size, Winny. You're only about a head shorter."

"And I probably weigh less than this gun," Winny said.

"Are you sure you can even fire that?"

"Look, do you want to talk to me all day or are you actually going to go out there and help your friends not die?"

"Ohmygosh!" Annelique jumped out of the vault. "Thank you! I almost forgot!"

"Don't mention it," Winny said as she hopped out and waved the crystal in front of the door, causing it to slowly swing shut again.

"Where did you get that!?"

"You set it down on one of the racks," Winny said as she tossed it back to her, already jogging down the hallway.

Annelique didn't remember setting it down, but then, she didn't remember what she did do with it, so it was possible...but unlikely. "Winny, are you a thief?" she called after her.

"No, seriously, you put it down!" Winny said, vanishing around the corner.

Annelique held the crystal in her hand for a moment. Suddenly she did vaguely remember putting it down as she reached for the sabre.

That didn't mean Winny wasn't a thief, but...well, that thought would have to wait. Annelique headed as quickly as she could back towards the battles, not bothering to stop when she realized Winny had gone in the opposite direction. She burst through the doors to the main deck and beheld an unsettling level of carnage. Ishiar, Kaboom, and Ralier were alongside Cassandra and her deck crew, battling dozens of Zadiians. Though they were outnumbered at least three to one, none of them seemed to be having any trouble. In fact, Ishiar and Cassandra seemed to be on the offensive, cutting down Zadiians faster than they could climb onto the ship.

Her mind suddenly drifted back to her first real battle--something that had been practically blocked out of her memory. When she invaded the Ironbelly fortress, sprinting through dozens of monsters and soldiers, making every move with calculated precision, exactly as Klayer had taught her to do. She remembered the terror she felt, knowing that Aerothi had eaten Sudvana and that every second she spent fighting was one second closer to being too late. She remembered being bogged down by the sheer number of enemies, trying to fly away through the top of the corridor only to be pierced by a dozen arrows and raked to the ground by a dozen merciless harpies. Her memory became more and more blurry, just as her thoughts had back then. She remembered firing off a wave of magic, blasting her enemies back. Dozens of monsters died as she switched her attention from sprinting to actually fighting. Their blood soaked her robes. Many of them fled. A huge naga with a gigantic polearm fought her--she remembered the pain of her lightning and the heavy blade of her weapon, and remembered palpable relief as she heard the creature's death scream. But the creature's attacks had already taken a grave toll. Even as it fell she was crumpling, leaning against the hilt of her own sword and begging her body to get up. She begged even as her head hit the stone floor. She begged even as she thought she had died.

When she woke up, she thought she was in some sort of hell. There was blood everywhere--sprayed on the walls, the floor, the cieling, caked into her clothing, all over her hands. Her neck and tongue burned. She had awoken to the sound of her own screaming, and she could not think of a reason to stop. She had failed; she had come to save the life of her soulmate and she had failed.

Then she realized someone's arms were around her, and she looked up. A second soulmate was looking down at her.

That soulmate was in front of her now, cutting down these strange aliens in a way that was eerily similar to that memory. Ishiar was moving much faster than she usually did; her strikes so forceful that many knocked her targets clean off their feet. For a time Annelique could only stand there mesmerized by the spectacle, and she realized--almost with alarm--that she was killing more Zadiians than Cassandra. Cassandra was clearly the more skilled, and her strikes were almost always either aimed at critical points or poised to disarm or destabilize her foe for an easier kill. Ishiar seemed to be doing just as well just by hacking away at the Zadiians like a mad woman, running from one enemy to another, practically ignoring their attacks. When one of them struck her, she simply turned and killed them.

She thought of the death all around her, and of the things Eternity and Charlotte had told her. Was it beginning? Was the death toll on their world rising? Was this the fate marks' power?

Strangely, though Cassandra saw Annelique, she said nothing of the fact that she was simply standing there watching. She barely even noticed when she felt a powerful set of hands clamp themselves around the backs of shoulders, yanking her off her feet and pulling her between a set of cold, wet lips that were quickly followed by the warm--and disturbingly familiar--embrace of an alien esophagus. She barely snapped out of it when she slopped into the pit of a Zadiian's stomach, realizing she had let it catch her from behind without even swinging the sword that was still clutched in her hand.

Strangely, she could still see outside. The front of the Zadiian's belly was translucent; with a start, Annelique realized she was enfolded in some sort of translucent membrane that was now hanging halfway out of the Zadiian's body. That must have been what the large slit in it's midsection was for; she could see it's edges on either side of her now, and their now-generous width had made it simple for Annelique to slither into it without requiring any significant stretching on the Zadiian's part.

She could only come to the conclusion that this was the Zadiian's equivalent of a stomach; it was certainly wet enough, though it wasn't as hot as she was used to. In fact, it felt a bit clammy. Her rear was beginning to tingle painfully, however, implying that it was not lacking in digestive capacity.

Even so, she was still mesmerized by the battle, blurred by the slimy alien skin in front of her. It was almost as though she was seeing through the eyes of the Zadiian that had swallowed her--she could see her sword swinging out in front of her as she attacked and watched as the imposing figures of Cassandra's crew fought it. Though they were little more than humanoid blobs, she could still effortlessly pick out Ishiar and Cassandra from the other warriors simply because the way they fought was so pronounced. She imagined the Zadiian was staying away from them on purpose--a very wise decision on it's part, even if it was holding it's own against everyone else.

A thick glob of something--feeling like a half-dried string of glue--fell onto her head and against her face. It bore the same tingling sting as the bottom of the Zadiian's stomach. Apparently they concentrated their stomach acids...concentrated them so much that they weren't even liquid. Ironically, it didn't hurt nearly as much as the space crustacean that had eaten her not long before. Or perhaps it only seemed that way...

These thoughts were detached and distant, almost as though they belonged to someone else on the other side of the planet. Even as the Zadiian's adrenaline sent streamers and blobs of digestive juice into it's belly, trying to restore it's strength by digesting Annelique, she remained almost motionless. The pain barely even registered, right up until it was consuming half of Annelique's body. She felt no weaker for it. It wasn't until the greenish ooze started to obstruct her vision that she paid it any heed. The Zadiian had suddenly vaulted over the ship's railing, causing it's stomach acids to momentarily turn themselves upside down in a frothing wave, and it was now climbing back down toward's it's own ship. It wasn't until then that Annelique really seemed to realize she was being digested.

She wasn't sure what the anatomy of a Zadiian was, so she wasn't sure about the easiest escape route. She wasn't even sure if this thing had intestines, so she decided to leave the way she came in. She dug her feet into the bottom of it's stomach, braced her fists against the entrance to it's throat, and pushed up with her legs--fully expecting to fail like she always had when she tried to escape from something.

Instead, she simply stood up, the Zadiian's body seeming to easily--yet violently--part around her like water. Though it offered no resistance, she could feel it twitching and spasming as though something was terribly wrong; indeed it was, from it's perspective, but Annelique was surprised that muscles that reactive would be so easy to push through.

Looking down at herself, she realized she was a wreck--her robes were slimy rags clinging to her wet body and the orange-red strings of the creature's stomach acids clung to her like a sparse mesh, gooey bits of viscous bile still oozing down from them as they drooped down her body.

She also realized she had left her sword in the Zadiian's stomach-sack.

She felt like she was making a big mistake, but she chanced slithering back in a ways so she could retrieve it. The whole time she felt the creature's throat muscles spasming and contracting around her, trying to force her downward. While it was harder the second time, she still managed to stand back up without too much trouble.

As she assessed herself again, still amazed that she made it out, she realized something even more shocking.

Her skin was pristine.

Brushing the goobery slime off of her arm, she realized it had the same healthy, angelic glow that it had when she was a newborn. Granted, she had only been in it's stomach for a little while--probably not long enough to have been digested--but definately long enough to have lost a substantial amount of flesh. But apart from the lingering sting of the acid that still clung to her, she could sense no damage.

Clenching the sword between her teeth and ignoring the sour taste of digestive juice it carried, she started climbing up the Zadiian's boarding cable back towards the Starslicer, ignoring the Zadiian who's belly she had just left. She didn't bother to look back, and for whatever reason, it no longer seemed interested in pursuing her.

She crawled slowly over the deck railing to find the situation similar to what it had been, except that the Zadiian's numbers were gradually thinning. Even when Annelique did enter the fray, her mind remained on the disturbing power she was seeing--first Ishiar's, and now her own. And it made her nervous that even though her mind was on something else completely, she too had no problem fighting the Zadiians. It was not for lack of skill or strength on their part; indeed, they seemed battle-hardened, well-armed, and quite surprised and frustrated at the fact that they were losing. By the time they started retreating Annelique was practically in a trance, too afraid to think about what had just happened but utterly unable to think about anything else. She was only vaguely aware of the deck being cleared, the crew taking their normal gunnery positions and rejoining the battle for the airspace above Ecilix. Time passed--she just stood there. She heard several deafening booms and soon the battle was framed by enormous vertical pillars of smoke. She watched as gigantic missiles--each the size of a tall pine tree--sailed through the air from some distant sea-based fleet and struck the Demataur ships, blowing entire sections of them apart. She watched as Cassandra was almost hit by a sniper on a small flying skiff, which they utterly overkilled with the aft artillery gun simply for satisfaction's sake. But it all seemed so distant now--like it was just part of a play, or a ballroom dance to usher in the beginning of the end of the world.

But her dance was missing a partner; their play was missing a character.

Sudvana was dead.

Where was that power going now?

******

Liliandra was rather surprised to hear the heavy metal groaning of the cell being opened. None of Aerothi's lieutenants were here--in fact, no one of importance at all. Simply a guard who had walked in with some papers and opened the cell.

"You're being released," she said.

"Why?" Liliandra asked plainly.

"You wanna argue?" the guard said. "I guess whatever you did wasn't that bad. And we need the cell for somebody else."

Liliandra's gaze became distant for a moment. "As I recall, I did nothing."

"Then this shouldn't be that big of a surprise. Look, do I have to convince you? I don't want to try to entertain that thing while you drag your feet, alright?"

"Thing?" Liliandra asked.

The guard pointed towards the elaborate metal portal that lead out of the prison. What began as a cacaphony of growls and screams became a sight even more bestial--a creature with the body of a lion, the torso and head of a human, long, taloned arms like the legs of a harpy, and an enormous set of armored pincers that emerged from either side of it's lion-body. They resembled those of a gigantic scorpion and were bound together in front of her with a wrap of heavy iron chains. Similar chains bound another scorpion feature--that of an enormous stinger-tipped tail that emerged from it's hindquarters. As if that wasn't enough, an enormous, slavering maw ran across it's front, as though a lioness had bred with a kari. A mighty mane of orange-red hair ran along the creature's back all the way up to it's head. Despite all of her monstrous features, she clearly had the face of a woman; she might have even been pretty if not for the enraged snarl and the iron manacle that was clenched around her throat. At least six guards were holding onto the chains that bound it. The creature could not overcome that much muscle and iron, but it was clearly enraged at that fact and continued to try.

Liliandra smiled slightly. "By all means," she said as she stepped out of the cell. The guards dragged the thrashing beast towards the cell. They didn't bother to unchain it; they simply pulled out a set of large padlocks and interlocked the chains it was bound in with the manacles and chains that were built into the cell. A group of four guards started forcing the door shut, slowly cramming the creature inside. When it finally closed, they put another set of heavy padlocks around the chains and bound them to the bars. The creature was clearly too large for the cell; it was nearly bent in half, but it was still trying to break free, it's lion body scratching and scraping against the back wall as it's pincers relentlessly slammed against the bars on one side and it's human torso slammed against them on the other side.

"Might I have a moment to observe?" Liliandra asked.

"Knock yourself out," the guard said. "But whatever you do, don't mess with the chains. We had to pay half a mil for a huntress to bring this thing down, and if it gets out again, the chief will almost certainly throw you back in here--probably in the same cell with it." The guard stepped near the complex iron portal. "Just let the guards know when you want to leave." With that, the mechanisms and enchantments began ratcheting closed and the dungeon was sealed once more.

Liliandra watched the creature thrash impotently against the bars she had only recently been confined behind. It did not seem to tire; if anything, it's reddening face was accompanied by faster and faster smashes against the bars. Liliandra idly wondered if it was going to hurt itself.

"Do you expect to get out that way?" she said quietly.

The beast ignored her, chomping it's lion-maw violently but utterly uselessly--she couldn't even reach the bars with it, as her chained pincers were in the way.

"Can you speak?" Liliandra said.

If it could even hear her over the sound of it's own battle against the metal that was confining it, it made no indication.

"I believe you can," Liliandra said. "Who were you hunting that made you so important?"

Simply more chaotic bangs and clangs. The creature's only acknowledgement of her presence was a baleful glare from beneath blood-red eyes.

Liliandra sat down and crossed her legs. "I can wait," she said. "Under the circumstances, I'm sure you will expend your strength before I have expended mine." As she grinned, the slightest hint of her ethereal wings became visible, wafting behind her like streamers of shadow in a lazy ocean tide.

The creature banged against the bars again, but it's speed and enthusiasm were suddenly diminishing. Liliandra's stare was calm and strangely welcoming, as though she was alone in a forest watching the sun rise.

As the creature looked back at this, it's violent motions continually slowed until eventually it stopped completely, simply lying with it's body awkwardly contorted in it's cramped cell, it's eyes calm, but clearly frustrated.

"What is your name?" Liliandra asked.

It suddenly scowled at her.

She waited for a time until the scowl faded, then spoke again. "I am Liliandra," she said.

The creature looked down at her, it's gaze guarded and uncertain. But when it next opened it's mouth, it was neither a scream nor a growl that emanated from it.

"I am very hungry," it said gruffly. "You want be my friend, you bring somone. Or feed yourself to me. Then we be great friends."

"For a short time, yes," Liliandra said with a fae grin. "But then I'll be dead."

"You will be part of mighty Gehenna!" it replied. "Much better than dead. Much better than hunted by *weak* monsters."

"So you are Gehenna?" Liliandra said.

"I Gehenna!" it yelled proudly, it's lower maw roaring proudly with her.

"In some tongues, Gehenna means the end of the world," Liliandra said.

"Yes! I am end of all who fight me! I am end of all I hunt! When I hunt world, world end! Be glad I not hunt world yet!"

Liliandra looked at the chains that now bound her, a look of pity gracing her exotic features. The monster seemed to have momentarily forgotten that it had been defeated and caged.

There was something compelling about this creature. Something almost kindred about it's obviously complex heritage, and it's defiant confidence. Liliandra wasn't about to become her friend--not in the sense she had suggested, anyway--but she did not feel like leaving. Not yet.

She smiled broadly at the creature.

"Me glad you not hunt world..." she said. "Instead...tell Liliandra more about Gehenna."