It had been three long days sense she last laid eyes on the Hand of Sorrow and quite frankly, she was becoming annoyed with herself. Even though she had killed the dracopyre Salega had recently freed when the beast threw itself over the child to save her, Lady Darkness had been severely wounded by the unexpected holy mana in its talons. The droplets of golden mana had left long, deep gashes along her arms, legs, and back. When Salega and her partner had fled, the demoness chased after them, but every step made the creeping numbing feeling within grow and spread.

Lady Darkness, no matter how badly she had desired to, had fallen unconscious two hours later. And as a result, she had lost the heart of darkness, but more importantly, she had lost her sight on the one thing what would ensure her rank as Crescent Knight. Twilight veins pulsed through her, boiling beneath her skin as her palms clenched into such tight fists that her claws dug into her flesh. The dark rejuvenation spell cursing through her blood stream was in effect, but it could not heal severe wounds caused by holy magic quick enough to have Lady Darkness where she needed to be- back on her feet.

Her legs had been so worn that she couldn't walk, and the fact that she had forced herself for two hours straight in such a shape didn't help. Now she could only drag herself across the bone littered lands of Dori'ba, which she had pulled herself to all the way from the edge of the Grasslands, where she passed out and lost Salega's scent. Quinlan's remained, but the girl's had moved on and the Dark Knight followed it. She didn't care how badly wounded she was- nothing was more important than capturing that little brat and she could not, and would not, rest until she had her in her grasp.

Snarling at herself and the condition of her body, Lady Darkness hiked herself across the dead land around her, stopping once every ten minutes to check Salega's scent trail. You'll not escape me... Her mind howled as the power of her hatred fueled her being enough to drag herself across the earth though she could not feel any of her limbs. Even if you try.../ Clouds of black mist caressed her figure as she furiously pulled herself to her limit. Now that she was conscience enough to think, the only way to help her body heal itself faster was to feed. But where in the hell would she find prey in a place like this? Cursing herself and the bad hand in which Lady Luck had given her on this day, the demoness crawled towards a nearby, solitary tree which was dead where it stood. Using the trunk to pull herself to her feet, the Mistress of Torment laughed at herself when she was finally able to look around.

How ironic was it that she was torturing herself rather than someone else for the demoness called the Mistress of Torment? To her, the irony was hysterical, but that could not altar her current situation. A silhouette caught her eye in the distance just then, her laughter ceased. What or who could it be?

As the figure came closer, the cold face of a young man shown from the shadows of night. It took a moment for her mind to register who he was; she recognized him a few moments late, for he ran towards her, his face full of panic. "D-Dorian...?" Her voice was a seething hiss between her fangs, the rapture bore in her tone, dripping with poison. "My lady!" He called frantically towards her, by her side in seconds.

Dorian was once a human who kept an open management in the Land of the Dead; when Lady Darkness had first come to Dori'ba, he had been severely wounded and she had been famished... so she drank from him. The dark virus transmitted from her bite turned his mortal blood into demon blood. His transformation from mortal to demon had been a painful one, but it had not been without benefit. Dorian owed his life to her.

She reached outwards, taking hold of his arm with a trembling hand pulsing with her boiling blood. "What can I--" She cut him off, the tips of her ivory fangs visible behind her thin lips as she eyed his flesh. ”"Hush..." She didn't need to explain for she didn't have time. Thick fluid oozed into her mouth as her fangs sank into his flesh, the teeming sensation of life drowning out the sound of his yelp of surprise mingled with pain.

The black and gold wounds on her haggard figure begun to close as she drank deeply, taking every drop she might need. His figure trembled, his flesh growing even paler (if that was possible). When she released him, her wounds were almost completely non-existent, but they were still open. She left him with enough to regenerate himself, casting his arm away with a snicker. Perhaps Lady Luck was kind to her after all- she had sent Dorian to her aid.

Using him to steady herself, Lady Darkness patted him on the back, thanked him for his services, and shoved him out of the way. She had a job to do. Pausing briefly to check for her scent, Lady Darkness nearly became rabid as her senses went wild from Salega's scent. She was close, but best of all, she was alone. Just when she took another step, her leg caved beneath her and she fell to her knees in agony. Regardless if her wounds healed or not, the holy mana was still in her, and until she got it all out, her body was useless.

Furiously, she sank her fangs into her own flesh, growing rapidly irritable with the state the holy magic had left her in. Golden fluid filled her mouth; she spat it out in distain. This continued for at least 15 minutes, just when another shadowed figure caught her eye in the distance.

It was far too tall to be the small, frail looking child she was searching for, whoever or... whatever it/they were. The demoness spat out more of the dracopyre's strange mana than had pledged her through her once fully opened wounds, her figure seething with irritation and hatred as the shadow crept closer through the thickening gloom...

Dearest Quin,

I do sincerely apologize, but I fear that I cannot stay by your side any longer. Though you have helped me through so much, being with me will only put you in danger and that is one thing that I cannot allow myself to do. You had put yourself in danger the moment you met me; I'm sorry for being such a burden to you, Quinlan.

There was nothing else for her now that much was as clear as the gloom which surrounded the land of the dead. Her friend, the dracopyre without a name, had sacrificed himself to save her from Lady Darkness, a foul creature that served her future self. Lady Darkness, the demoness which had threatened to not only capture her, but to return her to the origin of her fears. The demoness, which had undoubtedly haunted countless others before her in the Land of Ea, who lead, or would lead hundreds, possibly thousands of sinners in the future, ensuring that Salega would not have a future.



Quinlan, an elf who had sworn to protect her after saving her from almost certain death, had been so kind to her, but he was digging his own grave by simply caring for her. All who were ever close to Salega Cesario fell victim to the uncharted evil inside of her and not even she could control it. It was a fate worse than death, for it caused not only her own agony, but the agony of those she had once loved. Her aunt, Mistress Eight, had been the first of millions to prove that. As much as she didn't wish to admit it, Quinlan would face the same fate as she did when her other self finally decided to make her vile presence known.



She had lost everything in a matter of seconds. Salega doubted that her friends would not be the last things she would loose, much to her dismay. Misfortune followed her like a storm to a lightning rod; monsters, demons, zombies- the whole nightmarish nine yards- where drawn to her because of the smell of her blood. They were also drawn to the darkness which encircled and left its mark on her. Evil may have made her, left its mark on her, may become her, but it did not rule her.
But what hurt the most was the simple fact that she had allowed herself to taste blood again, a substance she had vowed not to touch. It had been fresh and though it was metallic to the taste, Salega could not stop herself. The beast within thirsted for it, yearned and craved it in order to sustain her life force.

Quinlan of the Elves, you have been a blessing to me and I thank the gods that I met you. But it is here that this must end. I'll never forget you. Please... stay safe.

Love Always,
Salega Cesario