Fates of Grenora: Return of the Night

The boots got louder, this time it was coming from the way they came. Torches lit the passage as whatever was marching towards them came their way. The passage walls amplified the shrieks and guttural growls.

"I'm going to die here," Anton began panicking, "Doing something I never wanted to do!" He continued, "I gotta get out of here," He scampered up and ran off back the way they came regardless of what would happen.

Roars of whatever was behind them and Anton's screams traveled back not a moment sooner. Aldrin looked at Gryph, who was looking at the bodies of Phaendral and Elliot before finally meeting Aldrin's eyes. Fear, terror, and anger danced in the Behemoth's eyes that Aldrin knew all too well.

Aldrin picked up the [Key Orb] and did the only thing to do in a moment like this. He looked for any place or indent that would fit the [Key Orb] comfortably. Gryph caught on and started the other wall across from Aldrin. A deep, mischievous laugh rattled through the minds of Gryph and Aldrin, making them wince in pain.

"I respect those who in the face of death still cling to life. Come, I await to greet thee." Said a voice so deep it spoke to their greatest fear.

The wall that Gryph inspected moved with a rumbling shift, giving access to a large stone door that held the lock fitting the [Key Orb]. Aldrin was the first to notice as the pounding in his head died down. Stumbling over, Aldrin barely managed to grab Gryph off the ground before he inserted the [Key Orb], making the stone door open inwards to reveal a shimmering white portal.

Aldrin pushed Gryph through first before he looked behind briefly, catching a glimpse using Identify of what was coming for them.

It was burnt orange with lizard scales that covered a human-like face. Its eyes were pure black with teeth that could easily shred through bone, and small black horns dotted around its bald scaled head. It glared at Aldrin and Gryph before it smirked and brandished its jagged-edged, glowing red blade.

Aldrin's skin crawled as the Demon looked at him and through him. Aldrin knew it would relish using his bones as a snack before whatever feeling wiggled its way up Aldrin's spine stopped and he could move again.

Immediately, Aldrin turned around and jumped through the portal. Passing through the veil, feeling eyes everywhere on his skin before they disappeared altogether. Heat was the next thing that greeted Aldrin, followed by blood-curdling screams of agony off in the distance that gave him goosebumps.

He looked around what he assumed to be a vast Hellscape. Lava falls dripped into lakes of lava that had other Demons bathing in it, glaring at him menacingly. The heat in the atmosphere had turned everything extremely hot, as the colors in the sky ranged from bright red to the darkest orange. Gas vents erupted, releasing what must have been toxic vapors. Beyond the vapor-filled area, a mountain ridge was visible, and a storm of red lightning crackled around its peaks.

"Like my realm?" The deep voice that saved them said.

Aldrin didn't want to turn around as his body and mind instinctively knew only death awaited him if he did.

"Where is my friend?" Aldrin stuttered out.

"Not brave enough to turn around and ask me directly after I saved you? And not even a thank you? My, I am disappointed. I think I have been away from the Mortal Planes too long," the deep voice mockingly said.

A taloned scaled black hand with pulsing veins of lava rested itself on Aldrin's shoulder in a death grip, giving the warning of instant death if he moved wrong. Whether he wanted to or not, the hand gently forced Aldrin to turn around.

"There, that's much better," The voice said.

Aldrin came face to face with a chiseled chest of a burnt orange color. Peering upwards into the glowing orange eyes that held the torture of a thousand souls within them was the only thing Aldrin saw first. Both of its hands ended in shiny black talons while the arms were scaled black with pulsing veins of lava that led into its torso. Its legs were normal besides also being black scaled with magma veins. The Demon had a nose that was just two slits, much like a snake. Deadly curved horns that grew out of the side of his head pointed upwards, with thin lips that barely covered his needle-like teeth.

"Go on, Identify me child," The Demon taunted with a smile that promised pain.

Aldrin fought against his rational mind, telling him to run versus listening to the sweet lulling voice of the Demon before him.

"Are you going to kill me?" Aldrin whimpered.

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"Is that what I asked you to do?" The Demon's smile grew wider.

Aldrin used Identify, horrified by the slew of notifications that came to greet him when he did.

Aldrin lost all color to him that made the Demon laugh uproariously with glee.

"Now, this is what I have missed from mortals! The fear that I give them!" Kilinos bellowed out to his audience, getting shrieks and roars of demonic laughter in return. "Bring the rest to me," Kilinos smiled viciously.

Aldrin heard four loud thumps behind him, one of which he could tell was alive because of the struggling grunts. Kilinos continued to eye Aldrin with interest as he watched three bodies and one alive being dragged by Hydra Demon Lancers. It was a momentous day for Kilinos. All his planning and subtle shifts in the mortal plane have finally brought him to this moment.

"Now normally I wouldn't particularly care to concern myself with the likes of you and your kind, but I couldn't let you leave knowing what you saw either," Kilinos shared.

"It's a trade secret that I am sure your Gods didn't share! Or did one escape and live?" Kilinos teased, letting out a deep menacing laugh.

Aldrin stood there silently, looking around for any hopes of escape, but he was greeted with diminishing hopes as all the demons present here were fourth and fifth Tier classes, with Kilinos being the only sixth Tier there. Gryph was soon thrown down next to Aldrin, his face bloody, with one eye swollen. His mouth looked like it had barbed wires sewn through it to keep him from speaking, and his armor was broken in various areas. It seemed like Gryph got the shit end of the Demon treatment. The three other bodies who he assumed were his teammates were then roughly dropped around Aldrin in a full circle, with Gryph to the left of him and the body of Elliot to the right of him. Aldrin could only assume the two thuds behind him were the bodies of Phaendral and Anton.

"I can see the gears of your mind turn," Kilinos said, bringing Aldrin out of his reverie. "So I am just going to cut straight to it," He continued, "I am going to enact a ritual which in turn will make you into a herald for me until you gain an equal footing in terms of power," He explained, clapping his hands together at the end.

"Fitting it would be a healer to end up the one being the taker of life," Kilinos teased again, making the smile that promised pain bloom again.

Aldrin's breath grew short and rapid as Kilinos took two steps back from him, raised his hand with his palm facing toward the red sky of the realm, and enacted a barrier. Aldrin looked around as pillars of flames so hot they were white erupted from the ground. Cowled hunched-back creatures emerged from those pillars of white flames, each carrying a staff that made Aldrin's skin want to crawl off and away from him.

"Begin," Kilinos commanded.

The chanting started low and held a primal edge to it that Aldrin desperately tried to cover his ears from. Blood flowed outward from the bodies of the three dead companions. Gryph started having a seizure as his one good eye rolled into the back of his head. Kilinos stood there as he let his Hadean Magistrate(s) do the heavy lifting.

Aldrin lost track of time as his consciousness grew hazy. He didn't know if what he was feeling was a severe case of vertigo or if this was what it felt like to die, as his whole body felt like it was doing flips. He felt his skin peeling away, revealing all of his flesh underneath. The pain that came after left him wishing he would die as a tendril of white flame bathed him and burnt away the rest of his flesh, only leaving his skeleton intact. He knew he should be dead, but something forced him to cling to life still.

Kilinos' booming laugh was the only thing that reminded Aldrin of where he was as the chanting grew louder and rapid. He felt his bony feet lift off the ground. The chanting grew into a crescendo, then the realm shook. Streaks of red lightning darted across the sky and the eyes that Aldrin felt when he passed through into this realm from the portal looked at him again. His mind, being unable to handle anymore, finally let his consciousness slip away.

He awoke to pins and needles running up and down his entire body as the ritual remade his bones. Then there was another round of mind numbing pain that sent him back into darkness. The next sensation he felt was the itching, awakening him to see flesh growing back onto his skeletal frame. Aldrin didn't know how much time had passed as he slipped in and out, but the last time he awoke, they sprawled him out on the rocky ground. Kilinos stood over him as he began to fully awake.

"Wakey wakey new brother!" Kilinos greeted Aldrin.

Groggily sitting himself up, bleary-eyed, and disoriented, he remembered where he was when he looked at Kilinos again. He tried to scoot himself backwards, fumbling with his limbs as they were not responding as they normally should.

"Don't worry, the grogginess you feel now should pass," Kilinos explained as he knelt down beside Aldrin.

"Now, to complete the ritual!" He clapped his hands and a small cup of thick, dark red liquid was brought forth from one witch.

Kneeling over Aldrin, the witch pushed the cup to Aldrin's mouth, making it slosh back and forth yet never spilling a drop. A nauseating burning feeling erupted from Aldrin's stomach as the tantalizing scent drifted upward into his nose. Aldrin's notification kept blinking, but he ignored it in favor of that sweet dark liquid. Ripping the cup out of the witch's hands, he voraciously chugged it down, noticing that the nauseating burning feeling subsided. Kilinos grinned and had another cup on hand, ready to go. Aldrin threw that cup away and raced for the second cup that another witch held out. The desire for the dark red liquid lasted for another five cups before Aldrin could regain his sanity, and the burning feeling in his stomach disappeared.

"I'm sure you'll find a way to manage that when the time comes or maybe you'll just cause unfettered destruction," Kilinos debated with himself.

"What did you do to me?" Aldrin asked hoarsely.

"Gave you a gift, so to speak," Kilinos got up to walk around in a circle around Aldrin. "Now that being said, here is what's gonna happen. You are going to check your system messages, you're gonna panic, probably pass out from the sudden shock, and then you'll wake up on the outside of this Dungeon with a quest from me and be on your way," Kilinos stated as he continued to walk around Aldrin with his hands clasped behind his back.

"What?" Aldrin sputtered.

Kilinos sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Just check your system messages," He finally said.

Aldrin focused on the blinking red dot in the corner of his vision that held his notifications.

"What?" Aldrin whispered, then he pulled up his status screen.

"What the fuck..." Wide eyed Aldrin said to himself.

"We have great things in store for you," Kilinos said as the change Aldrin went through finally caught up with him, lulling him to sleep.

Fear was the only thing that accompanied Aldrin to his slumber.