In a panic, Ira was awoken by screaming.
'What is going on!?'
The young girl looked all around her, Astheneia's cohort surrounding something—or someone.
Quickly, she began to sprint over.
The growing crowd proved to be quite the challenge to navigate through. Yet she managed.
A loud thud could be heard. Adonis in all his uncanny beauty looming over the battered Astheneia.
"Why the hell would you put yourself in danger like that! Do you know what would have happened if you got injured like Ansil!? You would be dead, Astheneia!"
Ira did not know what had happened—but she had assumed Astheneia had done something reckless.
Finally, she began to gaze all around the golden desert, but nothing caught her eye. Soon, she noticed the corpse of an abomination, and then another, then some more...
All around her, a myriad of corpses stretched on. Who could have done this?
It was obvious. It was Astheneia—she had slain the myriad of Strayed abominations of all kinds of classes.
Ira audibly gasped, her mouth agape. "What the-!"
The sight was one of astonishment and a whiff of fear. No mundane Awakened person could accomplish such a feat—then again, Astheneia was not your typical Awakened.
The giant brunette had slain a Strayed Tyrant while hindered, so the feat of killing a myriad of Strayed abominations was not too outlandish if it was Astheneia who was behind it.
A question arose in Ira's mind:
'How was I not infected by the parasites of the Man-Eaters? Could it be because they lacked a fleshy exterior—protected by their exoskeletons they were made immune to the parasites?'
That was most likely the case; or else she would already be dead by now.
Setting her gaze down at her bag that held the worm abomination's flesh, she considered secretly tossing it out.
'No... Perhaps I will need it in the future..'
Glancing up, she pried beyond the flesh and body of Adonis as she occasionally did to see the Will of the Awakened cohort.
This time however, something was wrong. His will, which had previously been pristine and controlled, was now violent; embers of red and black tainted the white Will.
'How can this be!? When did he become corrupted!?'
The Trial of the Mind, The Reverberant had won the mental battle inside Adonis's head and took control of his body. In doing so, he was corrupted..
The consequence for failing the trial of Body and Mind, was corruption. Not only that, but if the being successfully managed to best you, they would descend deeper onto the path of Profanity.
If Adonis had successfully managed to overcome the Reverberant, he would have become a Crested—but now, the abomination that had usurped his mind had claimed the reward, becoming a Fallen Beast.
No one noticed—no one knew—except for Ira.
She could tell Astheneia, but the burden of killing her own comrade could possibly send Astheneia over the edge, resulting in her also becoming a Corrupted herself, truly dooming Ira and the rest.
She knew that the Reverberant inside Astheneia's head had been constantly taunting her about the death of her soldier, chipping away at her sanity; she did not need more to deal with.
'But then how.. must I kill the Fallen Beast by my lonesome?! Is that even possible!? A Dormant Beast, killing a Fallen Beast; impossible—impossible it is!'
Could she poison him with the flesh of the worm abomination? Could she possibly strike him down while he was weak and injured from fighting? Neither seemed plausible.
What could she do? A mere Fallen Demon had destroyed an entire lesser fort a decade ago, so what reasonable damage could a mundane girl with supernatural powers do!?
The answer was simple really; she would poison his rations with the worm meat over the next few nights, and slit his throat while he slept.
Suddenly, Astheneia's voice ruined her plans.
"We will not rest at night, we will march on until we encounter the Dune Lord and slay it—only then will we rest."
The giant brunette had no idea that a Fallen Beast was before her at that very moment, and how her words had ruined the young girl's plan to kill it.
Astheneia ordered her cohort to begin traveling the golden desert; obeying her orders, they swiftly began their perilous march onwards.
Climbing onto the mighty steed, Ira whispered something into Astheneia's ear.
"Adonis... He... He failed in becoming a Crested; he is a Corrupted now. I do not know how to kill him, so I am requesting your help... strike him down while he is distracted by the beasts before he can strike you down, Astheneia.."
The young woman did not question Ira on whether her claims were true, only reluctantly nodding her head.
A deep grimace appeared on her face, marking the start of her sorrowful mood once more.
"I do not know if I can kill a Fallen Beast without help, Ira. Do you have a plan to weaken... It."
Ira nodded her head, whispering back to Astheneia. "I know I should not have.. but at least it is coming to use now. I hid a chunk of the Worm Abomination's flesh in my bag, poison him—it, with the meat."
◇
The sun began to set, and Astheneia had ordered her cohort to rest and eat for a moment.
Quickly, the young girl handed Astheneia the worm meat.
Rather than tainting Adonis's rations, she poisoned his drink. Instead of allowing her men to pick up their rations separately, she called on them individually under the false reason that "some of you have been eating more than is allowed".
She called Adonis forward, handing the being its rations and pouch of tainted water, Astheneia and Ira themselves pretending to remain calm, which was no easy feat.
They were standing in the presence of a Fallen Beast, a creature of unfathomable power, after all.
Neither Astheneia nor Ira stared at Adonis, avoiding drawing suspicion—rather, the giant brunette began to converse with her cohort.
"Alright, men! Prepare for combat! We shall slaughter these abominations and make it through the night; there will be losses, but we must push onwards in the name of our fallen comrades!"
The sun finally began to fall beyond the horizon, Astheneia and Ira tense—not due to the abominations that lurked beneath the sand during the day, but because of their plan to kill Adonis.
Snarling beasts began to appear one by one, each hungry for Awakened flesh, and maybe a side of Dormant flesh.
They held the desire of destruction in their milky white eyes. Fangs as sharp as swords showed themselves to Ira and the rest, saliva dripping out of their maws and onto the golden sand underneath them. Occasionally they swung back and forth as they awakened from their slumber.
Ira had already picked out her target—a Strayed Fiend, a foe of immense power, something she had never dared to fight before.
But this time, she was not completely inexperienced and did not possess only a whiff of mist. Commanding her mist to appear, the mass completely covered her body, before seeping into it once again—but not back into a dormant state as previously, rather to enhance the young girl's body.
She darted forward in a powerful lunge, far past all the other Strayed creatures alike.
Astheneia commenced the battle by demonstrating her immense power—a single swing from her rapier separated head from body.
Her knife reflected no light from the starless twilight night, already eluding her half blind opponent. It had no idea she possessed a weapon, and she would use that to her advantage.
She swung lightning quick and as heavy as the burdens the beared, splitting hide and muscle alike
The abomination did not lie idly, bellowing out in pain, and soon splitting the air with the ferocious might of a Strayed Fiend.
None of the beast's savage and ruthless attacks managed to graze Ira, but the ferocious speed at which they moved left her stunned and at times nearly unable to react.
'How am I supposed to kill this thing!?'
It swung again; this time, however, she was not given the graceful ability to dodge.
The air whistled with her doom, and so she needed a way to live.