“How fucking dare you task me with cleaning up the mess your spawn will make, can’t you take some responsibility for your own fuck up!” Mateo yells.

  The avatar of Dios simply stares down at the ground rubbing its shoulder.

  “Have you ever had any children of your own?” She questions.

  “No,” Mateo replies.

  “Then how could you possibly know how it would feel to extinguish their life, to snuff out your own spawn, even if it is a monster,” Dios replies gritting her teeth.

  “Piss off dragon lady, I’ll stop your son, but don’t expect any sympathy from me you horrid bitch,” Mateo states.

  “Yeah, you suck dragon lady!” Natalia yells.

  “The seal lies wherein the Apostle Tesha is imprisoned, though I warn you, her form may seem, alien to you,” Dios states before her avatar disappears.

  “Mateo, are you ok?” A small voice asks.

  Mateo peers down to find that Jade has found her way to his side. The small goblin girl has come far in their travels and after over a year together has advanced greatly.

  “We need to venture southwest and find Tesha, she is near the seal that will unleash the child of Dios,” Mateo replies.

  “I didn’t ask what we needed to do, I asked if you were ok,” Jade states moving closer to him her green eyes expectant of an embrace.

  Mateo leans down pulling the small green skinned girl into a gentle hug with a sigh.

  “I’m not sure what being ok means anymore, sometimes I feel like tomorrow is just a more fucked up today that hasn’t happened yet,” Mateo says.

  “I felt that way too, for a long time, but then you brought me Terror and I felt emotions I thought goblins couldn’t feel, I felt love, I felt hope, I felt like I wasn’t just born to murder and rape people, I had something to live for, I found a family,” she looks up at him her jade eyes glistening, “you have me, if you need someone to talk to, you can talk to me.”

  Mateo pats her head rising to his feet.

  “Thanks Jade, that’s more supportive than Natalia has been,” Mateo replies.

  “Excuse me, must I reiterate that I can bring you back to life with my kisses,” Natalia snipes angrily.

  “Yeah, but maybe I’m better off dead.”

  Natalia gasps, and Mateo holds out his hands as she floats gently into them laying her head back the rear of her hand resting on her forehead as she expires dramatically.

  “You wound me, I’ve no reason to go on without your love,” Natalia cries in a fit of drama.

  “Oh no, what happened to Natalia?” Jade cries.

  “I’ve been stricken by heartbreak, I’m afraid, I’ll die if I’m not fed snacks,” Natalia says her voice strained with weakness.

  Mateo pulls out a small jar containing a crushed powder that is sweet like sugar. He pours some of it on Natalia and she grabs at the granules trying to gather them as fast as she can.

  “What the hell are you doing, you can’t just waste sweet salt rock like this!” Natalia protests.

  “I’m pouring sugar on you, it seems to be bringing you back from the edge of death,” Mateo replies.

  Jade giggles gleefully watching Natalia roll around in Mateo’s hand trying to salvage as much sweet salt rock as she can. A familiar, but small voice echoes through the air.

  “We should head southwest toward Gravenshallows where Tesha is being held.”

  Mercedes joins Mateo and Jade a very serious look on her face.

  “We are being led, I don’t like being led, but we don’t have much choice, I have discussed this with master Garren, and if he is needed he will appear, bar that, we must travel to Gravenshallows and stop the Hellbent from breaking the seal of Revelatio,” Mercedes states.

  “We should rest for today and head out in the morning, I’ve dealt with enough bullshit for one moonfall,” Mateo replies.

  Before they separate Mateo takes a quick glance at the smiling goblin girl Jade. Born to be a savage in a dog-eat-dog world and she just wants to experience love.

  “Thanks Natalia,” Mateo says placing her on his shoulder next to Rayo.

  “I could feel your unease when she said it,” Natalia says pouting.

  “All this time seeing her smile and interact with Terror and the others like she’s just a normal girl, I completely forgot what she grew up with, the tribulations and trauma of her past, wouldn’t have had anything to say to that if you hadn’t intervened,” Mateo says patting her pixie form on the head.

  She smiles but then turns away her raven wings shuttering as she rubs her shoulder.

  “You didn’t mean that about my kisses did you, that maybe you were better off dead?”

  “No Natalia, I love your kisses, they are like the emotional equivalent of ‘if you die I’m going to kill you’, I think you even shook me last time,” Mateo replies.

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  Natalia’s mood doesn’t change to one of amusement. For the first time ever, Natalia turns toward Mateo with a stern expression. One desiring the resolution of an internal conflict.

  “Mateo, do you feel like you need me?”

  Celestial quest added: Lady Starbreaker- Your pixie is distraught for unknown and undiscovered reasons. To continue this quest you can select one of two dialogue options. You have the option to ignore this quest, if you’re a jackass, and your trust rank with your pixie will decrease.

  Starbreaker: answer :)/ abandon :(

  Mateo: answer

  Starbreaker: A- Yes, without you I’ll die B- Ofcourse I need you Natalia, you’re my best friend and the best pixie ever

  Mateo: Ofcourse I need you Natalia, you’re my best friend.

  Natalia: you didn’t put the last part.

  Mateo: you’re my first pixie, who am I comparing you too?

  Natalia: there is only one sun in this realm, and there is only one Natalia in this realm, I am your sun Mateo.

  Mateo: not convinced.

  Natalia: I hooked you up with that sexy vampire elf, even if you have your differences now, you can’t deny that I am the best wingman you will ever have.

  Mateo:…

  Mateo: You’re the best pixie ever.

  Natalia: who’s the best pixie ever?

  Mateo: Lady Starbreaker is the best pixie ever.

  Quest Lady Starbreaker- You have gained trust from your pixie. Your trust level has increased to ‘more than platonic but less than intimate’.

  “Natalia, what the hell is this quest?” Mateo asks aloud.

  “Don’t worry about that second part, or the first part either,” Natalia says with a mischievous smile.

  “You know what, let’s just rest.”

  The moon rises and falls before the daystar regains territory over the sky. Mateo wakes joining his companions by the stables at the gate to Heroldin. A portal opens up and Rick joins them.

  “Oh great, now the godsdamn portals work,” Mateo complains.

  Rick seems flustered and tired as he exits the portal. Dark bags hang under his eyes as if he hasn’t had a good night’s rest in days. Mateo approaches him placing a hand on his shoulder as the portal closes.

  “Rick, are you ok?” Mateo asks.

  He lets off an audible sigh.

  “That damned sky nympho has to be the horniest creature I’ve met, bar the dragons if legend is to be believed, she just wakes up in the midst of the moonlight with an insatiable appetite, it was fun at first, but by the gods a man needs his rest, especially a man as beautiful as me,” Rick complains.

  “If you rejoin the party then you can rest in my void palace, make yourself a room if you can’t find a comfortable one, Natalia can help you if you need assistance, and Sapphire will probably be glad to make you a meal,” Mateo pauses for a moment, “you should probably stay away from the arachnid, I’m not sure how she is with self proclaimed beautiful men.”

  “I’ll help him get settled in,” Beatrice says joining their reunion.

  “We need to talk,” Mateo interjects.

  “Not the time Mateo, we can talk later.”

  “Fine.”

  “I’ll be joining you, two healers is better for an expedition, and Stitches can run DPS if her healing isn’t needed, her scythe and her abominations are good for that,” a nervous voice says.

  “Silvia, you’re feeling better?” Mateo asks.

  “Yes, we should hurry, if they’re hurting Tesha then I don’t want her to suffer any longer than necessary,” Silvia replies.

  Mateo and his expedition meet at the wagons. Mateo’s wagon is from a dark wood adorned with golden runes. The trim is lined with obsidian, and the windows are made from a jade-colored glass. Julia and Bolt draw his wagon.

  Silvia steps up to a wagon crafted from ivory bone and accented with violet steel that Mateo hasn’t seen before. It is drawn by two large K-9 creatures that Anastasia identifies as Spice and Wolfe.

  Mateo stares back at the bare trees that once were sprout with leaves of gold as he leaves Heroldin behind. After two days they reach the Rio’s River. A river named after the water sprite Rio who carved its path through the equatorial marshes to provide clean running water for its inhabitants. The once worried ruksha stand solemn raising their claws to their chests as Mateo and lady Theodin pass them. After quarreling with the hellbent the Ruksha have amassed their own warriors and soldiers to protect their lands and recognize their allies in passing.

  A week passes and they are near upon the southwestern settlement of Gravenshallows. The wagons come to a halt as a small contingent of Ruksha battle it out with a few hellbent scouting parties. One of the ruksha in particular catches Mateo’s interest.

  He’s a large man, maybe nine foot tall, dwarfing both Terror and Okami. His scales are a dull obsidian, and he is covered in brilliant feathers that glow when he attacks. Two curled horns adorn his head and a row of splines run down his back. His forearms are covered in armor that seem to rise so that he can fire organic quills from his body. His eyes glow a dark crimson and he interchanges between two scythes and a large, towering shield. He runs through his innumerable foes like cutting through leaves of grass.

  “Should we help that guy?” Mateo asks as the wagons come to a stop.

  “I don’t know, he seems fine on his own,” Natalia replies.

  “Terror think he has all the fun and we are stuck in wagon, Terror help,” Terror says jumping off the wagon and into the marsh.

  Just as it seems the Ruksha warrior has everything under control a sky portal opens up spewing out a few necrowyrms and what Ana states is a Necroskytitan.

  Necroskytitan- of the skybound beasts raised in the afterlife the Necroskytitan is most feared as it can launch a volley of sky bound and ground forces including undead apex Skymongers and Borgal zombies. Borgal zombies are land driven armless and wingless creatures that can terraport to their intended targets via land manipulation.

  “Terraport, what the hell is that?” Mateo asks.

  Okami appears to answer his question his snout adorned with the bifocals of a scholar.

  “Terraporting is much like teleporting, but instead of bending space you bend soil via land manipulation to transport yourself to a destination instantaneously, I know because this is an ability that Terror recently obtained,” Okami explains.

  Almost on cue Terror jumps into the air diving into the ground as if leaping into a portal. Several of the ruksha warriors fall as the brilliant feathered Ruksha struggles to hold his own. Many of the lesser soldiers fall back fleeing past Mateo and his expedition.

  Jade steps forward scribbling on her magic tome and several sketches of goblins perched upon hoaram appear before her riding into battle. Just as the main Ruksha warrior is to be driven back the sketched goblins and hoaram clash with the encroaching Wyrm’s.

  Terror flies upward from the ground as if leaping skyward from a body of water landing between the Ruksha warrior and his combatants.

  “By the swamp, who in the afterlife are you?” The Ruksha questions.

  “Terror, is Terror,” Terror says summoning two large hammers from his inventory.

  Terror tosses one of the hammers and it slams into a necrowyrm grounding it, he spins like a tornado felling everything in his path for a few hundred feet before slinging his second hammer into the Necroskytitan. The massive beast lets off a painful undead screech as it falls to the earth. Terror raises his hands and both hammers return to his palms as a crooked grin crosses his tusked lips.

  “A thousand nails for every hammer, and two thousand strikes for my foes, empires are built by the hammer, and so they fall by it,” Terror chants.

  Two thousand nails activated. Two thousand nails sends forth unto thy enemy two thousand piercing strikes. That’s a lot of nails, in a lot of coffins.

  The air is filled with large obsidian nails that rain down upon the undead. The hellbent shriek in agony as they are obliterated. Terror stows away his hammers seeming disappointed as Mateo approaches.

  “Good job Terror,” he states.

  “These ones weak, I need strong foe,” Terror replies.

  “Well, I’ll be fucked in a swamp, who in the nine whores of Galladon are you people?” The Ruksha asks.

  “I’m Mateo Ryusane, Battlemage,” Mateo says holding out his hand.

  “Za’Rexkla, Eldritch knight and Scion of the Zahdria clan,” the Ruksha replies gripping Mateo’s hand with his claw.