Once upon a time, Eldrazi had been trapped in this place. So it felt rather odd, sauntering around the capital of Ulnter, passing under the castle gates like any other citizen as opposed to being dragged in chains by two fed-up guards, laughing all the way.

Still, that had been a much faster and direct route to get an audience with the king, far more than the random weaving they were doing in and out of a crowded town square, trying to worm their way closer to the actual castle itself, and from there, its towers.

Centuries ago, it wouldn't have been much of a walk, he didn't think. He was decently sure that in his first life, it wasn't nearly this populated, nor as... built. Now though, the area bustled with life, with Demons heading to the market, two children wrestling in large, chipmunk forms in the centre of the street, and that wasn't even mentioning the inventions that filled the place. To their side, people rode on a moving staircase of metal and stone that raised them up to the town's second level sitting on a shelf on the castle wall. At their other, a stall featured a man showing off two gloves that flickered with lighting between his fingers as he spread his hands, demanding the highest bid. Somewhere within him, Gavin squirmed uncomfortably, and for once, Eldrazi didn't mind stepping back from all the action for him.

Their heart dropped a bit as he fell more in line with the others. It really has changed a lot 'ere since my last visit.

A soft whisper rose in the back of their skull. "Do you miss it?"

Hmm. Eldrazi considered it, then shrugged. No. Was never really partial to the town much anyways. I left it as soon as I was old enough, least 'til I came back to spy for 'em.

"Still," Gavin argued. "You must have family here, right, since they're Immortal? I could imagine you wanting to visit your mom, or someone."

My mother? Eldrazi furrowed their brows, everything else growing far away. But, no matter how much he pushed, hardly any faces came to mind. A fuzzy silhouette, the ghost of a smile, and someone... younger? Maybe a sibling? But that was so long ago, and none of it was tangible, in a way that pricked at their chest until he shoved it off with a shake of their head. Nah. My family's all dead. Besides... he trailed as one woman came to mind: a strong, confident one, wise well beyond her thirty years. Lyra was my mother, and I couldn't've asked for anyone better.

Which was the truth of the matter, and so when Weiss waved them out of the castle's bailey towards the keep itself, there was very little regret for Eldrazi to have. Especially when the mention of Lyra was enough to bring a smile to Gavin's face, one that Eldrazi let sit there while he fixed their hands on their hips, staring up at the structure.

"So, are we allowin' me t' knock the place down, or do we need to follow one of those 'plans' Selatan loves so very much?" he asked, glancing between the others. He desperately was hoping for the first as he let the question hang. It'd been quite a while since Gavin had allowed him into a full Demon form, and far longer since his city rampaging days. Besides, while the castle's front was blocked by a good number of Cearte, ready with their white robes and spears, there was no need to fight them for entry if there was nothing to enter.

"Haven't you caused enough trouble today?" Selatan asked.

Eldrazi only gave the sweetest of smiles. "Never."

He was given a deadened look in return before Selatan ignored him, instead glancing around and– after making sure none of the guards were watching– moving around to the castle's side. There were no soldiers there, but most likely that was due to the sheer lack of entrances available. Yet, here Selatan was, reaching to place his hand against the stone.

"Psst, Selatan." Talus scooted to the Demon's side to whisper, and Eldrazi watched the sandy brown colour drain out of his raspberry hair as he dropped the illusion. "You do know there's no door there, right?" He leaned closer to his ear. "It's just a wall."

"I know it's a wall!" Selatan retorted, clearly offended. "You see, when you're not recklessly throwing us in the middle of a group of Cearte, we can actually do things like sneak around and not constantly be in danger."

"Not that I would mind fighting a few Cearte right now." Aoife stopped as the others turned to look at her. She rocked back and forth innocently, hands clasped behind her back. "Hypothetically. Just in case. If all else fails, you know?"

"Right," Selatan agreed, putting his hand back on the wall. "If all else fails. Weiss, can you see if there are people behind here?"

The apothecary gave it a quick once-over, a sharp blue glow glinting behind the goggles over his mask. "No. There's a patrol a few hallways down of two guards, and more Cearte higher up, but this seems to be the kitchen."

"Perfect." Then Selatan closed his eyes, and Eldrazi could sense a shift in the air as the teen focused, feeling both an ancient strength, and endless warmth to his magik. A crack sounded, and the brick began to crumble under his touch, pieces roughly breaking off in dusty chunks until a hole started to form.

"Is it 'ard?" Eldrazi asked. It seemed to be, given the amount of concentration he was pouring into it, his shoulders shaking.

"Yes," Selatan clarified. "I'm trying to do hundreds of years of erosion accurately in less than a minute."

"Ya know," Eldrazi began. "It would've been a lot simpler t' let me knock the castle down. Just sayin'."

His tiger tail twitched in aggravation. "You just never know when to stop talking, do you?"

"Oh, I know when to. I simply ignore it."

With a fast and sudden crumble, the hole spread wide enough for everyone to comfortably make it through, save for Weiss and Aoife, who'd be forced to bend in half.

Selatan stepped back to admire it, brushing the last of the greyish powder from his hands. "One of these days, someone ought to stitch your mouth shut. Now for once, hush," he commanded, sticking his head through the hole to do a general sweep of the area, although it did seem to be an empty kitchen much like Weiss had said. Or a scullery, really, given that the only furniture to the room were washbins with dishes piled high and a few countertops with butchered fish.

The latter in particular caught his eye, and Eldrazi skipped over, trying his best to peer over the counter at it. Sure enough, there was an open, uncooked fillet, as if a servant girl had gotten halfway through cleaning it before realising she needed a better knife. Which was fine by him, and he peeled off a large, sinew-like strip before sticking it in their mouth.

"Eldrazi!" Aoife hissed, and he peeked over their shoulder. "Let's go!"

"Sure thin', lassie," he told her, but it wasn't until he'd taken one more piece that he followed them to the door. After all, it was rather fresh, about as oily and smooth down the throat as catching one straight from the river, so he was hardly about to turn it down just because some Cearte might stab him.

He was met with a glare as he pressed against Aoife's side, but she said nothing as they hovered behind Weiss' outstretched arm, letting him scan the next area: a long, arched hallway filled with flicking candles. Finally he nodded. "Clear."

With a spattering of footsteps, they cleared the hallway in instants, following its long, red carpet to the end, decorated only with a door leading to the final tower. Gingerly, Aoife put a hand on the knob, glancing at Weiss as the others gathered around one last time. "Is this one clear?"

He turned to it, and it seemed to Eldrazi that his analysis was taking longer to answer than usual. "...I'm not sure."

Selatan's head whipped to face him. "What do you mean, 'you're not sure'?"

"I-I can't see." Pausing, the man lifted his mask, and Eldrazi could see confusion slowly filling his face, then horror. But no matter how much he continued to squint, the blue glow only flickered faintly in his silver eyes before dying out completely. His teeth grit. "Merdait!"

"What?" Aoife asked, and Eldrazi could hear the footsteps in the distance growing closer, the guards no doubt circling the area again. "What's wrong?"

Weiss flashed her a quick smile, though it was about as thin as porcelain and seemingly just as ready to crack. "Our lovely Goddess just cut me off from her Will."

For some reason, the situation suddenly reminded Eldrazi of the day before, and he tried not to laugh at the apothecary clutching his mask with barely contained panic. "One could almost say that you, Weiss, have been flagged."

If looks could kill, Eldrazi would've had to start looking for another vessel with the glower Weiss was giving him. "This isn't funny! Now I can't see where Cearte are, or—"

The knob began to turn, voices sounding from the other side of the door.

"Soih!" Selatan cursed, and he spun to flee down the hallway in the opposite direction, the others in tow, but they were immediately blocked as two more Cearte rounded the corner.

They both stopped, seemingly more confused than worried, but the shock didn't last long before one woman's pointed ears dipped down, her pike lowering to Selatan's chest as she grunted. "What are you doing in the castle?"

"Committin' larceny!" Eldrazi piped up, waving a hand from the back with a grin.

"What?" the two Cearte thundered, but that was all Selatan needed to knock her pike off point, moving to strike her head with the flat of his blade.

She dodged though, the grey-haired girl next to her drawing a dagger to flank Selatan's side, left exposed from his swing. A hiss escaped him, and he quickly clamped a hand over the reddening wound as she yanked the blade away.

Immediately, violet flames burst to life around Aoife, trailing down her arms to ignite the poi in her hand, but she was stopped by the sound of a door unlocking behind them, the same one as before.

"We heard shouting?" A white robed man asked before spotting the five of them standing awkwardly in the centre of the hall, weapons at the ready.

"Oh."

A battle cry rang out, and six more Cearte charged from the door, swords raised to attack. Weiss instantly jumped back, throwing himself flat against the wall, but Eldrazi couldn't be bothered to care as he drew his knives, stepping forward. That just meant more for him.

And so he dipped forward, throwing the first strike at the man who had spoken before. He seemed to be Human, ears rounded and no semblance of a connection to the gods to his name, but Eldrazi had to respect how skilled he was with a sword as he blocked blow after blow. The Cearte then threw a swipe at his head, which Eldrazi dodged only to feel a searing pain in their leg.

A strangled cry left their lips, and he glanced down to find the man's sword wedged deep in their calf, the meat cleanly butchered almost to the bone. It burned, in a way that made their nerves tingle and thoughts unwind, and he would've laughed, but it wasn't his leg to offer, and as a choking cry echoed in the back of their mind, there was only one thing for Eldrazi to do.

Taking a deep breath, he felt for the bond, yanking until Gavin wouldn't have to feel the pain. He wouldn't feel anything at all as Eldrazi dashed forward, slashing his knife against the man's arm. It wasn't a deep cut, he was sorry to say, but then again, that was what poison was for, and he could tell it was doing its work as the man's breathing quickly became laboured.

"Look out!"

Eldrazi almost didn't hear Aoife's warning in time, but he did see the shadows of the room twitch, one candle winking out, then another, then another...

A patch of darkness on the floor lifted, a liquid form pulling out of it until Talus stood as a silhouette in front of the group, raising his claws. At first, nothing happened, but then Eldrazi saw the shadows beneath their feet growing deeper, the ground starting to sink, and frantically, he leapt out of it.

The sound of falling screams rose up behind him, and Eldrazi turned, half expecting to find the entire group submerged, but instead just two guards fell through. Still, as small as it was, Talus was panting at his side. His dark form flickered like a candle in the rain, and Eldrazi assumed that whatever boost of power he'd had during their first mission had worn off by now, leaving him only able to feebly block the Cearte's swords as he threw up tendrils of black.

But he didn't have much time to be concerned about Talus. Blood still dripped warm and sticky down their leg, and as the other Cearte moved closer, Eldrazi felt their tongue grow numb, Gavin borrowing it to taste the air around them. The horde of six had dropped to four now, but that wasn't counting the two behind them, which tasted close actually, a cool, sharp tone of metal and sweat leering over their shoulder...

The flavour shaped into a girl and a dagger, which sunk into their neck.

With a yelp, Eldrazi spun, spots dancing across their vision in time with each electric pulse, and he grabbed at the girl's wrist, wrenching it out. Her dark eyes widened, mousey tail raising in fear behind her as he glared.

"Who said you could touch my 'Uman?"

Her eyes closed as he wrestled the blade from her hand, and he could feel her reaching for her god's Will, a heavy, pressing feeling on his conscious, but he wasn't having that. Instead, he dug into his own magik, shoving the wild feeling forth. It sunk in like a fog, enveloping the girl's meek energy, making it almost spark in the way that it twitched under his touch. Fur raced up and down her arms, but he simply seized her Will tighter, pricking at it until it was like a chip of soap. The more the girl grabbed for it, the slipperier it became, never allowing her control. Not while Eldrazi intended to mess with it, anyway.

Only then did she tremble in true panic, her voice dropping to a whisper. "W-what are you doing to me?"

He smirked. "The same that I do to anythin' else." The knife was raised, and he aimed the butt of it for the girl's temple. "I 'ave fun."

The end slammed into her skull with a crunch, and she fell to the ground, motionless. Not that she would die; Eldrazi made sure he hadn't hit hard enough for that, but there were too many enemies to keep track of, and while the two wounds he'd accrued were already starting to close, Gavin didn't need to return to a completely sore body tomorrow. Poor lad dealt with that enough as it was.

An almost inhumane cry tore Eldrazi back to the matter at hand, and he glanced around to find Aoife dealing with the pike-wielding girl from before. Burn marks covered the Cearte's bloody clothes, and a circle of fire wound around Aoife like vines of amethyst as she spun her poi, preparing for another strike. The girl, however, was backing up, the earthy flavour of Demon magik filling the air once more as she swiped a foot on the ground behind her like a bull prepped to charge.

Or perhaps he should've said a boar, because that was what was rapidly filling the hallway as the girl shifted, brown hair covering her body and tucks extending from her lips. Like most Demons forms, she was huge, fifteen or so feet tall, only growing taller as she reared up on her back legs to stampede forward. The ground shook wildly under Eldrazi's feet, and, chest tightening, he bolted down the hallway.

As their tongue flicked from their mouth, Eldrazi could tell he wasn't the only one running. The others were right behind, the fighting paused as the other Cearte fled from being trampled by the Demon girl. Talus reached the tower door first, claws fumbling with the doorknob until he flung it open with a bang. Past that were steps, and Eldrazi bounded towards them. He didn't slow down, not when he passed under the doorway, not even when their heart pounded in their ears and their lungs ached for air. For now, there was only tearing up the tower steps.

He could hear Selatan behind them, shouting something, but he couldn't make it out over the deafening crash. It was instinct that made him shoot a glance behind him, and he watched the rounded wall of the tower concave as the Boar Demon slammed into it, bricks shooting inwards. She couldn't fit through the doorway in that form, but that fact offered very little comfort as he saw her hooves back up in preparation to do it again.

"She's trying to collapse the tower with us in it!" Weiss cried, and despite everything, Eldrazi couldn't help but pout as he continued up the steps.

"I specifically called knockin' down the place first! Why does she get to do it?"

"Is that really your problem? Not the fact that we're in it?" Aoife shouted, although her voice sounded laboured, and as she passed him Eldrazi noticed her own face dripping blood.

He would've responded, but there was a sudden yank in his chest, Gavin tugging at the bond. "We're close. I can feel it."

The end of the steps was in sight now, and Eldrazi moved up the last one to land on a drastically slanted floor, his tail angling to help him maintain his balance. His eyes glanced around the room, finding a great many items stacked high, from spears to axes to even vases, but sure enough, laid on a table with a fuschia cloth, was the hilt of a sword, practically humming with magik. It was Gavin who made him jump for it, even as the energy clawed at their head and burned at their hands. The boy clutched at it, admiring the strange, iridescent metal inlaid with violet gems to form a bird-like shape. That was as much detail as he could gather before the magik bit too sharply, and he hastily shoved it into the pouch on their belt. Still, it came with a sigh of relief. It was one step closer to being done.

"Eldrazi!"

He didn't know how he'd missed hearing the Cearte behind them, but Weiss' warning hardly mattered as a heavy force slammed into their hip, and the pain sprung forth. It raced up their spine, hot and webbing like lightning. Blood spurted from their side, a choked cry escaping their lips as he crumpled in on himself, turning to look. Behind him, a brown-haired Cearte was holding a bloodied blade, flicking it to send droplets to the floor.

"Drop the Relic," he demanded, but Eldrazi only shook their head.

"Sorry, we need it," he managed to get out, although it was difficult, his vision darkening. The world shook again, and it was hard to tell if it was from the blood loss or the tower being rammed into once more. All he knew was that Selatan was too busy fending off another Cearte with his blade, Aoife and Talus were fighting back to back as flashes of light and shadow, stopping more from entering through the door, and the man was lifting his sword one final time to slash Eldrazi through with no one to help.

Vaeloc.

Then there came the sound of shattering glass, and Eldrazi looked up to find Weiss holding a broken jar above the Cearte's head, the black, gooey contents oozing out.

The man turned, clearly unamused as he tried to shake shards from his hair. "Was that supposed to kill me?"

"No," Weiss answered breathlessly, and Eldrazi could tell he was struggling to keep his voice steady. "But they might."

"They?"

It was then that the ooze spread, freshly freed leeches all too happy to dig into the man's face and eyes as he jolted, trying to wrench them away with pained screams. He stumbled back, crashing into a table behind him, and Eldrazi felt a gloved hand grab at theirs to tug them away.

Each yank pulled at the wound at their hip, but there was little Eldrazi could do besides press their fingers to stop the fast leaking of blood. It'd heal. He knew it'd heal, but he wished their body considered it vital enough to make it more of a priority than the aching pain within their neck. The deadly ones always mended faster.

But there was no way to change the wretched way his healing worked, just like he couldn't change the way Weiss was frantically scanning the room, no doubt grabbing again and again for magik that refused to come to his aid with how much he'd already used that day. A cry echoed on their right, and they turned to find Aoife swinging her poi into the chest of the last Cearte. The girl fell to match the others, and perhaps Eldrazi would've felt relieved if the tilt to the floor didn't rapidly shoot to the side.

More crumbling filled the air, followed by a final crack. It was followed by screams, some from below, but mainly from those around him as Aoife and Talus ran back to a set of stairs that was rapidly falling apart. An empty feeling of suspense consumed the air, cupping them softly... and then it broke. The floor dropped out, bricks tumbled from above, and Eldraz's stomach clenched as the tower finally collapsed.

"It's falling! It's falling!" Talus yelled, though it was hard to hear his breathy voice over the crashing around them. "What do we do?"

"Window!" Aoife shouted, and she didn't need to explain much more than that. She stumbled, feet leaving the ground entirely, and it was a desperate grab for Selatan as fire surged along her arms and legs. Talus dissipated, shooting to Selatan's backpack, and as the teens' fingers touched, Aoife flung them to the window ledge. The Demon seized, staring in horror at the drop below, but with a yell Aoife shoved him out, and they were gone, leaving Weiss... and Eldrazi.

The apothecary glanced down, and suddenly Eldrazi found the lanky man tearing off his coat and tying it around his waist before promptly scooping them up like a child. Terror surged through Eldrazi's nerves, but it wasn't his as Gavin clawed at the bond, grabbing for their tongue. "Weiss! Don't do it! Don't you dare jump!"

But the Eunsi ignored him, spreading his black wings behind them, the window coming closer and closer. Air rushed at their face as Weiss burst from it, and the feeling of the drop fully took hold. The ground surged up, and Eldrazi's vision dropped to black as Gavin forced their eyes shut.

Then the sound of flapping kicked in, and the upward gusts switched to a soft, simple wind. Their eyes opened, and curious, Gavin moved their head to cast one last look behind them.

In the distance, the debris was settling, a castle once made up of four points down to three and a now-crumbled mess on the ground. The air rumbled again, and Eldrazi turned the castle wall that circled the capitol's edge, now directly below them. A small amount of sadness tightened their chest, making Eldrazi flinch as the boy continued to survey it all, wincing as he tried his hardest to listen to the screams before they faded away.

Gavin wasn't taking it well. It wasn't a large emotion, but Eldrazi was too tired to fix it the usual way as he leaned further into Weiss' arms, sliding their eyes closed.

Ya know Gav, this would be the second time I wrecked this place.

"...Is that when you supposedly ate a house?" he asked, and Eldrazi was pleased that he'd picked up on the distraction.

That it is! You see, the king was trying very 'ard to get me to pay off my debts, we got into a bit o' a scuffle, and lo! I become my full Demon form, and I fling my tail into the wall, knockin' it to the ground. Then I slithered into the town, watched the tiny people run to evacuate, and scooped up a 'ouse in my jaw and swallowed it whole!

"That sounds disgusting," Gavin replied, and yet for as put-off as the words were, the boy was starting to smile, even as he rolled their eyes to a clouded sky. "Why would you ever do that?"

He smirked. Perhaps I wanted a delicious brick-fast.

That made Gavin burst out snickering, and as Eldrazi felt it shake their chest, he made sure to withhold the pain in their neck so the boy could continue to laugh. He needed that. To laugh.

With a gentle sigh, Eldrazi let their gaze trail outward to where, a few feet away, Aoife held Selatan under the arms, furls of flames curling beneath her feet to keep them aloft. It left a trail like stepping stones of violet flame behind them, streaking ash across the Dusty sky. Eldrazi watched them thoughtfully, relaxing more and more as Weiss' flight switched to a smooth glide.

Gavin was happy. Of course, he had been a couple times over the past few days, but in laying here, laughing, looking fondly at the others floating in the horizon instead of continuing to watch and resent the destruction left in their wake...

"Are you actually goin' to throw away the plan?"

"... I'm considering it."

Maybe he would do it then. Eldrazi could only hope as they closed their eyes one last time. The boy'd gone through enough trouble, and Eldrazi supposed that was partly on him, for getting as bored and reckless as he did, but perhaps that was all coming to an end. They'd move on from this, get the last Relic, and Gavin could finally have freedom as he saw it. He could move on, find friends, love, perhaps even grow a family and quietly live out the last half of his life.

It was strange, how the very idea of peace made Eldrazi shudder. How wrong it felt, imagining a simple life, waking up, working, following routine, sleeping all to rise and repeat it all the next day, and the next, on and on. Forever. His breathing quickened. For all their avoidance of prisons, that was what Human life was in the end, wasn't it?

But that was a backwards thought, wasn't it? That what the boy saw as freedom was in turn his own entrapment. Selfish too, now that Eldrazi was considering it. With how much Gavin had suffered, he deserved to be happy.

And so, with a deep, rattling breath, Eldrazi slowed their heart. Because there was no sense in panicking. This was what Gavin wanted, and thus, this was what they were doing. It didn't matter how much the idea of monotony terrified him to his core. It didn't matter whether he wanted it or not. If it was for Gavin, he'd do it.

Anything.