Godly Claw growled, raced ahead then dove into the pack. The obese witch’s spell fought against her for a moment but the cultist’s will was lower than Shadows Fade’s and the Spirit Wolf passed through. She then went for the weakest cultist to sew panic among the herd; her blue razor teeth sank into a child’s stomach and tore intestines free from his flesh.
As planned, the cultists scattered, panicking. Shadows Fade cut down those who raced towards her, slicing through throats and guts. Two of them had unusual magical scents, a heady yet familiar aroma that promised dark pleasures; she chased after them in particular and made sure they got no further, whatever they were.
The warrior realised her death toll had risen to double figures for today but gave it no more thought than that; these weren’t people. People don’t give in to the Old Gods.
The destruction of what had counted for her left flank got the obese witch’s attention; she hissed at them and started to gather her powers for an assault.
“Defend my back,” Shadows Fade thought to Godly Claw.
The Spirit Wolf raced out of the cultist’s sphere, passing through the defensive spell with ease this time, and stood ready behind the warrior. It was a shame to lose the advantage of being in their ranks but they would fight better together, back-to-back.
Free to concentrate ahead of her, Shadows Fade roared a challenge and ran at the gross cultist. An artefact lodged in the witch’s nipple like a thorn finally answered her prayers and frighteningly-potent magic appeared around her arm. It formed a whip and she screeched as she lashed out, the dark energy crackling as it came.
Shadows Fade’s tattoos couldn’t deflect magic fed by an artefact that powerful. So she ducked, the power passing over her dark hair by an inch. The whip snapped back at her instantly, surprising Shadows Fade. She dropped to the floor to avoid losing her shoulder. It wouldn’t let up either; the warrior rolled over twice to avoid more assaults and then pushed herself into the air to avoid a sweep.
An elder male cultist tried to take this opportunity to finish Shadows Fade, peeling off from the crowd losing the fight against Dust. Her strength tattoo flared as she propelled herself into the air and land back on her feet. When standing, she knocked the opportunist into the incoming whip with her shoulder. The dark magic passed right through him, separating both his arm and his lower half from the rest of his body. His flesh fell in a sad, quivering pile.
Behind her, Godly Claw ripped apart someone else who tried to sneak up on her. Shadows Fade smiled.
The whip came at her in this moment of distraction. She flipped back, losing an inch of hair to the destruction, and landed so close to Godly Claw that her calf touched the wolf’s soft fur.
That fat mess of a witch waved the magic above her head, laughed and said “You stupid red-flesh whore, I will destroy you and then fuck your corpse until nothing is left.”
Shadows Fade growled. She’d never understood why her people were called red but it was a term of hatred and the venom raised her ire.
Godly Claw was then hit by dark magic and it ripped through the warrior too, sending a howl of agony through her head. Shadows Fade risked a glance behind her and saw the Spirit Wolf on her haunches, the blue of her flesh momentarily black. She would have intervened but the obese witch attacked, forcing her to throw herself aside to avoid being cut in two.
Shadows Fade had to get in close to finish this. Diving forward, she avoided a shoulder-height lash and scrambled into the magical barrier, her tattoos overcoming the magic with a moment of uncomfortable static. The witch screamed again and tried to cut her down but it was harder to control something whip-like at close range; Shadows Fade didn’t need to throw herself around to avoid the frantic counter-attacks. So she advanced with ease and menace, inevitable as death.
The witch stepped back, tried to keep the distance between them. She was no fighter, though, wasn’t aware of her surroundings, and slipped on the stream of mucus dripping from the altar Penelope still touched herself upon. Her great form fell with a crash, the whip flailing and cutting down two of her order.
Shadows Fade dived forward and fell upon the fallen mass. She grabbed the tooth in that immense breast, the artefact tingling with indignation at being touched by the follower of another god, and ripped it out. The witch screamed and the dark whip around her arm faded.
“You bitch, I will destroy you! I will crush your-”
Shadows Fade thrust her knives into the witch’s head, killing her instantly. When she took the blades back out, the witch’s blood poured out onto the floor. Given the size of her, there would be a lot.
Standing, she took in the battlefield. The cultists were dead, the last of them killed by Dust or Godly Claw whilst the warrior finished her own opponent; dozens of corpses spread across the chamber to make a killing floor. She noticed for the first time what the Wanting Man’s gun had done to these people; their wounds were burned solid and they had died with agony racking their faces. It was a worse death than Godly Claw could visit upon someone.
Speaking of the Spirit Wolf, much of her flank was missing and the left side of her head was black from the horrible magic that had racked them both. She asked whether Godly Claw was okay and got a brave response. If Shadows Fade was any judge, it would take her at least a week to recover.
The Soulless roared, a deep tone that shook the chamber and broke the moment of peace. It stood up, whole again, and dropped the protection around it. “That Which Sins must have planned this. She must have. Nonetheless, you will pay, Wanted Man. You will pay. YOU WILL PAY!”
“Look after Penelope,” Dust said. He faced the Soulless, his weapon smoking, knowing that the biggest danger was still to come. “Keep her safe until I can see to her.”
“I will,” Shadows Fade replied.
The Soulless stepped forward, clicked its knuckles. “Try while you can. I will deal with you shortly, Indian. First, though, I’ll break your god’s champion.”
