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Raist stepped out onto the concrete below what had been a loading dock. Once again he missed the small home that had been their safe haven on the edge of the New York waste and sighed. He had known that their stay in the comfortable place hadn't been destined for a long haul but he had hoped. In all actuality he had defied one of his core tenants by staying in one place so long. He felt tired of running and he had only been protecting her for three short years. He never could grow tired of seeing her or keeping her safe though but running was a definite pain in the ass. He strapped his pack down and helped Sasha step off of the concrete lip.

Raist had never been so close to a hound before yesterday he took in the sight of the strange animal yet again. He had studied scar as closely as he could without being offensive. He was slim and muscled and he obviously had some stranger, more alien roots mixed in with that of a large wolf. After a moment of trading a stern gaze with the old hound his escort stood up on his four gnarled legs and began walking away from the place they had used as shelter during a good portion of the day and walked among the ruined buildings around him. He had no choice but to follow. His mind said he was insane for trusting a strange hound but his instincts, which proved to be right more often than not, told him that this was the only way to keep his chosen safe. "So how will your other pack members react to you bringing a human deeper into their territory?"

"My pack follows my lead and orders and they would never harm a prophet. We were born and bred to protect the prophets and spiritual leaders of the old world. Long ago we were banished from this world by a great cataclysm, no matter the cause but the end result is this." The old hound stopped in his tracks and turned his head backward to regard the two walking behind him. "We are the only family you have in this insanity humans have made of the world. It is true our packs ran wild for a time but most of us have gathered our senses and returned to the old ways."

Scar paused for a moment, sniffed the air and walked across the overgrown and broken blacktop that used to serve as a street as he headed for a side street between two large buildings. He said little but answered any questions they had though he could think of few. "Where is the rest of your pack?"

"Hampering those who chase you." Was the simple but pointed reply. "You stayed too long in that place, grew too comfortable going in and out as you pleased. The prophet is being sought from all sides of the cube and if you stay in the center you will find yourselves trapped between the closing walls."

"I cannot refute that." Raist replied matter-of-factly. "I grew tired of running and desired a place to stay for a bit longer than a few nights. I can only call fault for that move, it wasn't my intention to endanger my chosen."

"I believe you, but you must think hard on every decision you make from here on out. If you thought that running was hard before, you will find that running now is going to be a constant tax on your resources." Scar turned down another alleyway and looked back at them as he continued walking. "Protector, she is indeed the last living prophet."

"I thought there were tribes of them in the wild Scar, what happened?" His voice was low but astonished at the news. He hadn't been able to believe it if he didn't feel the hound was telling him the truth.

"In the few short years you have been running they have been hunted down, used, and killed at the hands of the new factions of government." Scar huffed out a long sigh and shook his head, spreading his long violet mane out over his back. "We were too late to save what we thought was the last of them. By the time we found the village the inhabitants were already dead or taken."

"It is our belief that one of the old gods was shielding you from prying eyes, he revealed you to us just in time for us to arrive and get your to safety." Scar's ears perked up and flung forward simultaneously and he let out a low growl, crouching down to the concrete below his pads. "Trouble comes. One of the great tentacled beasts approaches, and it searches for a meal."

"A Crawfordsville monster?" Raist looked down at his rifle and back to Scar. "My weapons won't do much against that thing, we have to hide or get out of its way."

"Truth you speak." Scar paused for a moment then doubled back on their path and paused again. "Another comes, it is closer."

"What?" Raist lifted his weapon skyward and looked down both paths in the alley. Spying a nearby door he walked over and put his hand on the knob. Something deep inside of him gave him pause though. "Something isn't right."

"What? I sense nothing more than the beasts." Scar replied skeptically.

"Call it a warrior's instinct but is it normal for those creatures to hunt in packs?" He inspected the door and the area around them more carefully before closing his eyes and frowning in concentration. "I know something isn't right Scar, I can feel it."

"I trust your instincts as I would one of my own hounds but what choice do we have?"

Still unconvinced Raist ran his hand across the edge of the doorway and turned the handle, listening with his ear against the warped wood. Beyond it he heard a metallic stretching sound like a spring being loaded. With a slow move he put the handle back in place and shook his head at Scar, pointing at the knob. He got a nod from the hound and was happy that the intelligent creature understood. Turning to Sasha, who had been quiet the whole time, uncharacteristically took her by the hand and began leading them out of the alley the way they had been headed, figuring it would be better to go forward rather than back. He let Scar take the lead because this was his territory; he knew the seasoned hound would be able to navigate the twisting labyrinth of the former city faster than he could.

Without warning he felt something slam into his shoulder and he was suddenly greeted by a face full of concrete and a scream from Sasha. His pack hit the wall with a thud and he winced. Stars danced before his eyes and he could see his gaze darkening but he refused to succumb, his chosen was in danger. Calling on what reserves were left after the blow he stood shakily and retrieved his rifle only to find Scar standing protectively in front of Sasha. An almost transparent shape shimmered and displaced light in front of them, the beast was like a jellyfish floating in the vast sea but larger, the size of a small car and with tendrils that could crush a man and sting him to death in an instant. Taking aim he carefully crept to the side of the many-armed beast and watched for it to make a move before firing. There was very little chance he could destroy it with ballistics but he could hurt it.

A tense moment passed leaving the creature hovering silently before them and Scar growling deep in his throat standing before Sasha who was pressed against a wall trying to keep out of the fray. As suddenly as he had been attacked one of the long tentacles shot out from the thing's gelatin-like torso toward Scar. Raist shifted his aim slightly to focus on the base of the tentacle's stalk and squeezed off a few rounds into the blob-like creature. While the bullets passed through with only a bit of resistance the creature squealed an unearthly wail and flung itself toward him. He knew it would attempt to grapple with him and pull him into its maw for digestion, a fate he wanted to avoid. He took a few quick steps backward and fired again, this time only grazing the bulbous central body of the monster. Instinct alone saved him as he heard a slight flutter by his ear. He ducked down quickly enough to feel another tendril swipe just above his head; he had forgotten another one of the creatures had been approaching.

"Scar, get her out of here I'll follow!" He shouted at the hound as he rolled forward and to the side to avoid the slapping appendages attempting to tangle him or hold him down. Unable to get to his feet in time he instead rolled along the concrete with his body extended outward. Once he felt he was a safe distance away from the two of them he found himself standing up near the wall. Silently wishing he had unpacked at least one of his prized finds he fired off a few more shots to ward the creatures off and scrambled toward his fallen pack with all haste.

He took a stinging slap against his lower back in return but reached it quick enough to fish a bundle out of one of the side pockets. Without waiting to see how close the two hungry monsters were he pulled a metal ring out of the center of the cloth-wrapped object and pitched it behind him, knowing he would only have a few precious seconds to leave the alley. He could feel the displacement of air at his back as he lugged the heavy pack behind him; he felt a wave of force hit him just as he turned the corner. Already hurt, it was enough to send him sailing through the air for a few feet and land on his heavily on his side, his backpack flying further still beyond him. Somewhere in the back of his mind his stubborn determination told him that he had to get up to protect Sasha but his limbs wouldn't respond to the call.

**

"Raist, can you hear me?" His ears were ringing and he felt as if he had kissed a dump truck face first. But he determined that the voice he was hearing was Sasha. Panic gripped him for a moment until he felt her hand on his chest pushing him back down onto something soft. "Take it easy, you're still hurt."

Her voice was fraught with concern but he could also hear a twinge of relief in it as well. He tried to open his mouth and talk but he couldn't find the words he needed. His head felt like a jumbled mess of pain and random thoughts. Taking a moment to compose himself he opened his eyes slowly and found her sitting over him with tears in her eyes. Painfully so he lifted a hand up and stroked her cheek softly. "Hey don't cry, I'm too stubborn to croak."

"I just want to hit you so bad!" She fumed at him through clenched teeth and a tense gaze. "You can't leave me!"

He couldn't say much more than that, his throat was dry and cracked. "How long have I been out?"

"Three days young paladin." A familiar voice to his right said in its gravely tone. "Next time you wish to use a last ditch effort make sure you have a better means of escape." With that the netherhound plodded away from the makeshift bed he was lying on. They were in some sort of structure and from his view with a huge chunk of the wall broken out he could see that they weren't far from the site of the explosion.

"We heard the explosion and turned around to come find you. Scar didn't want to turn back, he wanted to continue on and head for the pack's den. I made him come back." She sighed and looked down at the alley. "It didn't take long for junkers to arrive to rummage the scene. They took care of creatures for us and cleared out since there wasn't much to be had."

"You shouldn't have come back Sasha; you should have let him get you to safety sooner." He took her hand in his and smiled up at her shocked expression. "My life doesn't matter as much as yours."

"It does to me." She said in a small voice as she looked away from him and wrapped her arms around her torso. Off handedly he admired her resolve on the matter. "You're important to me and my survival depends on you Raist."

"I promised to protect you as long as I live and I will do so in any way possible." He felt drained from all the talking, so once she had given him some water he closed his eyes to again and fell back into a blissfully dreamless sleep.

**

After the fourth day of recovery he had convinced them that he was well enough to move on. His aching limbs and throbbing head made him regret that decision but he trudged on beside them stoically. Even through the pain he was carrying the heavy backpack because he knew Sasha could barely lift or drag it. Each step caused the oval-shaped wound on his back to flare up again when the rough material of his shirt rubbed against it, apparently Crawfordsville monsters could sting though clothing.

More often than usual he found himself heaving for breath and begging them to stop for a moment so he could rest. Sasha kept a concerned eye on him while Scar kept his eyes on their surroundings. He cursed himself for a fool for holding them up further. Their current break was taking longer than usual; he took a deep breath and stood up to shoulder the pack before Sasha could protest again. "Let's go."

"No, you're not fully rested yet. Your skin is ashen and you look as if you're ready to fall over from exhaustion." Sasha put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'll be alright, trust me." He tossed the pack back over his shoulders and started after Scar who had only paused when Sasha had protested. Following close behind he kept Sasha in front so she wouldn't be able to see him struggling. He attempted to compose himself every time she turned around to try to deflect her concern, Raist could tell it wasn't working.

The remainder of the day found them deeper within the heart of the pack's territory and further in than he had ever gone looking for supplies or shelter. The tall buildings around them were oppressive and awe inspiring at the same time. He found himself dizzy every time he tried to look at up at the top of them.

As daylight began to wane he noticed that Scar made no move to stop for the night, growing concerned he approached while Sasha pulled some food and water from the pack. "What's the trouble?"

"I'll be frank with you paladin, we are being followed." He flicked his eyes to the right once and scraped out a few lines in the dirt in front of him with one of his paws. "This many males, all human as far as I can tell, they stick to the shadows. I have not seen their like in our territory before though; they seem different from most humans. They have a peculiar odor which I find offensive."

"Mutates, how far is the den?" Raist asked while attempting to keep a passive look on his face the whole time.

"Not far but I am hesitant to lead these miscreants to our home, it is not as well guarded as I would like right now. Our only focus is protecting the prophet so we left the hounds too old, young, or sick at the den." Scar looked up at him and shook his head lightly. "I fear this is our problem for now."

"I agree, we've already brought enough trouble upon you." Raist said with a slight incline of his head. For a moment he pondered the situation and sighed, running a hand through his hair. "We need to find high ground, something defensible, mutates rarely travel in small numbers. Our best bet is the building next to us. It seems to be structurally sound at first glance so it should survive a few stray bullets."

"I trust your judgment then, you lead the way." Scar walked toward an oblivious Sasha and herded her toward the building while Raist came up behind her. Stairs were not much of a challenge for Scar but they would be tough to fight on.

The building he had picked was completely open on the first floor near where they had been, apparently the front of it had been blown off and scattered in the street. A set of stairs led to the second and third floor which had seen enough damage to leave it open but with enough cover to keep them from full view. In the large open area amongst ruined office furniture Raist felt uneasy. "Sometimes I wish that everyone who wants to kill us would just step out into the open and fight fair."

"Life is never that easy." Sasha quipped in to their surprise. "What?"

"You've been uncharacteristically silent today, that's all." Raist walked over to her and took her hand with his free hand while the other aimed the rifle up at the ceiling. "I was hoping we could stay there longer."

"So was I." She smiled a little and looked out of the window. "So what's following us?"

"You heard?" He replied sheepishly.

"Of course I did, you two rumble so loud the dead could hear you." She laughed quietly and took another cautious look out of the rubble.

"Mutates I think, all males. Scar was only able to see four total but they always travel in large numbers, you know that as well as I." Raist set his rifle down on a desk next to him and sat down on the concrete floor. "I'll take first watch."

"I admire your bravery and toughness young paladin but you are in no shape to take watch. If you would indulge me the night is my time." Without waiting for argument Scar jumped up on a desk and hunkered down with a view of not only the outside but the stairwell and the two of them as well. "Sleep, I shall wake you when I tire."

Raist was about to protest anyway but he knew Scar was right, he was still suffering from his wounds and it was obvious when he finally set down the pack and lay down on the concrete. Sasha watched him for a few minutes and determined he was sleeping soundly if not a bit uncomfortably.

"Scar, if that is your name, would you mind if I ask you a question?" She said after a few minutes of silence.

"It is as fine a name as any my dear, ask and you shall receive the answer if it is known to me." He lifted his head up to regard her as she walked over to sit on a desk next to him. "Speak child, tell me what ails you."

"You keep calling Raist a paladin, how did you know that? And how do you know me?" She said softly as to not wake Raist.

"I know him as a paladin because I can see his aura; he has a good heart and one of the purist souls I have seen. Which unfortunately for mankind is a rarity, but I digress. As for you my dear Sasha, you have always been known to us in the back of our minds. We had thought you dead honestly when we felt the last prophet fall. You were shielded by the forsaken one, his patron deity. It took us a full year to discern what the calling we felt in our souls was about and it drew us here to one of the most desolate wastes on the face of this planet." Scar looked away from her and did a sweep around the area before looking back. "

"Do you know how to interpret my visions and dreams?" She bit her lip softly and looked over to Raist for a moment then back to Scar.

"As wise as I am I do not know how to sort and filter through the images a prophet receives. I was afraid of this." He sighed softly and did another visual sweep of the area. "You are the last of your kind, there were very few even among the prophets that knew how to interpret the visions that are granted, sometimes forced upon you."

"Then how am I supposed to know what it all means?" She closed her eyes for a moment trying to blink back the tears she felt at the edges of her eyes. "I can't sort through it all and sometimes I feel like I'm going insane, like I don't know what is real or fake."

"Bear with it as those before you have borne it. Each generation sees the birth of new prophets. There was a legend among them though of another event of devastating calamity. It was said that all shall fall and one shall be born from the ruins to guide the next generation into their own. It was said that she would face great challenges along her journey and with all things, the future is never quite as certain as we would like." He motioned toward Raist and nudged her side with his broad head. "Go young one, sleep and comfort your paladin. He is injured badly but your presence seems to bolster his resolve. Through the coming times he will need you at his side to guide him and steer him along the right path."

"Is there anything you can do to help him?" She said softly as she looked over at the pained look on Raist's face.

"Me? No my dear, my abilities lie in the shadow. Yours are built along the tenants of the light; you can aid him where I am powerless." He felt it was too soon for her to use her abilities in such a manner but a test would not be uncalled for at her current age, even without training. "You are very young though, and inexperienced. It's best that you not try just yet."

"Try what? You must tell me!" She whispered fiercely. "If I can ease his suffering in any way please let me know, he has been nothing but kind to me."

"I don't know, from my view he seems to have taken advantage of your innocence." Though Scar felt differently about it within himself he had be sure, it was his duty to protect her.

"No!" She covered her mouth and looked over to Raist then back to Scar and lowered her voice considerably before continuing. "No, it's not true. I wanted him as much as he wanted me. I feel that I love him Scar."

"There is something more." He said without prompting from her.

"Yes, here is." She sighed and looked directly into his vaguely disturbing eyes. "You have to swear not to say anything."

"On my word as your protector." He inclined his head and bit down on his own foreleg as a sign of submission.

"I had a vision a while ago. It involved me, you, and Raist. Just like this but a little more unclear. We had to endure something harsh and face something evil. I don't know the details they escape me." She paused for a moment and ran her hand across her flat stomach. "I was with child."

"Truly?" He said, his ears perking up at the news. "Then the line shall not be broken, that news is good."

"There's something else though, something dark lurking in the back of my mind. I can feel it; I just can't put my hands on it. Something deep inside will force me to make a decision right or wrong ether way the consequences are dire." She sighed again and stood up, walking over to Raist and putting a hand on his forehead. His mood immediately brightened and his face washed away from pain and torment to neutrality and maybe a bit of a smile. She closed her eyes and leaned herself against his pained form and kissed his cheek, lying down next to him not long after to attempt to join him in sleep. Her mind was filled with questions and queries that she needed answered but for some reason she couldn't grasp it all in one hand. "Something is changing, I can feel it."

**

A cruel-faced man with hawk-like features and dusky brown skin stood at the edge of a ruined building. His tall body and thin frame made him out to be a scrawny, defenseless little man. He carried himself with an aura of confidence that betrayed everything his strange stature might hint at. He was dressed in a suit and tie with his hair slicked back behind his ears touching the collar of his white shirt.

"My lord the prophet and her traveling companions have stopped for the night, shall we move in?" The grotesque monstrosity of a man before him disgusted him even though he himself was a mutate as well. He was one of their most revered, a holy figure among the disfigured masses. Born to two mutates and possessing an unearthly charisma he was instantly boosted to a position of high authority from a young age, seen as a gift from the scarred god. He sighed softly and ran his fingers though his long raven-black hair and looked out over the battlefield before him. "Not yet, they are in a position to cause significant damage to my followers, purge. Tell the boys to observe for now."

"Yes high lord."

"Oh and one more thing." He said in a sinister and low tone. "If any of you so much as break a hair on the prophet's head I will feed you to the scarred one myself."

He smiled as the puny little bloated runt blanched and scurried away to carry the information from their supreme leader. "Oh yes little money maker, you will be mine."

**

In the morning Raist woke up to the soft light of dawn filtering through the cracks and crevices of the ruined concrete wall. Metal spikes jutted between the blocks like some sort of skeleton holding up the building by its last thread. A thin ray of light blinded him momentarily so he turned away to have his eyes fall upon Sasha. He smiled down at her and brushed a strand of her white hair from her eyes. He felt better, amazingly so. The pain in his back was definitely at a manageable level and the ringing in his ears had ceased among other things. He looked around to find Scar and found the knowledgeable hound staring at him from the stairwell, without a word he ducked down below eye level and descended the stairs.

He felt odd having the desire to make love to her in the middle of a ruined, and dangerous, city but something had a hold of him. He kissed her lips gently and was rewarded with a soft grunt and a kiss back followed by her beautiful eyes popping open in surprise. "Well, you seem to be feeling better."

"You have no clue." Without warning he pounced on top of her and pinned her body down playfully resting his arms on top of hers to keep her on the ground. Her giggle was musical to him, so feeling the okay from her he leaned forward and kissed her neck gently while rubbing his body against hers. He heard a groan by his ear and rose up to rid her of the offending shirt covering her ample breasts; the dark-colored and worn garment was cast aside quickly letting her top half shimmer in the growing morning light. His hands touched her sides and he traced his fingers across the slight feeling of her ribs and down to the line of her jeans. She laughed once at the ticklish sensation but he quickly shifted his fingers and began trailing them up across her flat stomach and on upward. His mouth found her nipple easily and he suckled at the little rigid protrusion using his hands to knead both of them with care. He shifted his lips over and kissed the other, nipping at it with his teeth as an afterthought.

His hand traveled slowly between her ample chest and out of the cleft toward her belt line, the jeans and panties beneath were just as easy to remove and he took her legs in his hands and kissed her ankle gingerly. Working his fingers with ease he sluggishly dropped them down and trailed his mouth behind them leaving a thousand little kisses in their wake. Before he even got to her thighs he heard her yelp softly and felt the warmth between her legs growing stronger. "Do you want me?"

"Please, I need you." She pleaded with him with her eyes half open and her mouth hanging just slightly agape.

"Beg me." He said softly as he slid his tongue in an agonizingly unhurried pace across the warmth and wetness of her womanhood. He teased and probed at the folds of her velvety flesh and spread her open gently with his fingers. He felt her squirm and shudder again and he smiled. "Tell me what you want."

"Make love to me please!" She begged with a desperate tone to her voice. Her body was twisting and moving on its own begging for him to continue on.

Without warning he freed himself from his pants and rose up and thrust himself inside of her all the way, her cry of pleasure urged him on and he laid his body down on top of her. He felt her breasts pressing against his chest and kissed her face and neck softly. Her taste was still on his lips as he kissed her lips deeply and used his hips to move himself up and down against the bucking of her hips. He felt her insides grasping and clawing at him like a caged animal seeking escape and it was all he could do to stop himself from finishing too quickly. With his hands he lifted her up and sat back, putting her square down on his lap and never pulling himself from inside of her. She took up the rhythm as if it were second nature to her, thrusting her hips against him like a woman driven mad. He reached up behind her and bit down on his own finger, hoping the pain would prolong the pleasure for both of them. His free hand grasped at her ass and urged her onward and he felt her breath on his neck over the shirt he wore.

Her teeth broke skin on his neck not long after and he cried out in pain and pleasure at the same time, his own biting of his finger forgotten he put both of his hands on the cheeks of her ass and forced her upward faster and faster, his peak building more with every thrust. With his hands around her waist he stood up shakily and bounced her unabatedly on his manhood. She cried out softly as he thrust against her and he felt her hips beginning to undulate and writhe of their own accord. It was beyond his control to pull out and at this moment he didn't care, he pushed himself deep inside of her and began draining himself as hard as he ever had. Sinking to his knees he kissed her full on the lips again and tasted his own blood on her tongue. She continued to thrust against him involuntarily as if her body wanted every drop of his thick love. "I feel much better."

Smiling broadly he brushed his lips across hers and rolled over onto his side. Her body was still close to him, he liked that. He had wanted her for such a long time it just felt strange that he had finally gotten to be with her. Raist stood up and stretched out to his full height then moved to gather himself up and continue on for the day. He paused when he noticed she was lingering on the blanket they had used as a bed the night before. "What is it?"

"I want you to train me Raist, you and Scar." She stood up and pulled her clothing on slowly, looking him in the eye the whole time. "I know you were a ranger, I remember you telling me when you pulled me out of the burning building. I want you to teach me how to survive in the wastes, I want to contribute because I feel like a burden."

"Well you're a fair shot so the rest shouldn't be hard." He smiled and put a hand on her cheek gently. Part of him wanted to deny her any further training; it was hard to keep your innocence when you were trained to withstand the harsh wilderness. Life was hardly fair or innocent in any sense of the word though. He would have to think of it as her rite of passage. "One thing to do is keep an eye on how Scar and I move, what we say, and how we act."

"For instance, we're being followed by a band of mutates." He said it almost quietly, as if they'd hear him.

"What?" She said in a harsh whisper, she looked around nervously as if expecting the mutates to jump out of the shadows and converge on them instantly.

"Come, follow me and I'll show you." He crouched down low and made his way over to a large gap in the concrete-and-metal ribcage in front of them. Once she followed the same way he looked around for a moment and spotted his quarry. Once he had a good idea where the target was he guided her eyes to a nearby building. "Now, tell me what you see when you're looking at the building."

"I see concrete, metal, and glass. Ruins." She replied with a questioning tone to her voice. "What of it?"

"Look closer, don't pay attention to the building, you're looking for something that's not a part of the building, something that's not supposed to be there." He waited for a moment, when he heard no forthcoming answer he peered around the corner again this time with her looking over his shoulder. "Look down on the first floor and watch the pillar on the inside of the lobby of that building. Tell me what you see."

"I see," She paused and gave a start after a moment of staring. "There's a man down there. I almost can't see him; it looks like he's painted himself the same color of the concrete."

"He's a skin; he can blend in to his surroundings like a chameleon. The only time you can see them is when you're up close or if they move." He gave her a smile and a nod as they both crept back to their belongings to begin packing for the trip out. "You're catching on quick; I would have never spotted that in my first session."

"I have a good teacher." She smiled at him as they worked methodically to pick up the remains of their small camp. It didn't take long to pack the blanket up and have a small meal but as they finished Scar crested the stairs and hurried toward them. "Is something wrong?"

"A single male comes, he seems unarmed but he smells of mutate." Scar looked back at the stairwell and growled low. "He approaches."

"I have come to speak with you if you will." A haughty but slightly high pitched male voice called from the bottom of the stairs. "I promise you I have come to parlay, will you hear me out?"

"I do not trust this man." Scar said softly as he watched the open stairwell nervously. "Your decision Raist, do we hear him out?"

"It couldn't hurt." He retrieved his rifle from a nearby desk and leveled it at the stairwell. "Speak then, I'm listening."

After a moment he heard hard-soled shoes clicking on the hard concrete steps, far from prudent in a setting such as this a thin but tall man stepped over the rim of the stairs wearing a business suit with his long black hair pulled back behind his head. Raist was taken aback at first to see a corp out here in the sprawl dressed like he was, seeing the man was prepared to continue approaching he motioned for the man to stop with his rifle. "That's far enough speak, and for your sake don't make any sudden moves."

"Right, straight down to business then, I like that. We have come for the prophet; it's as simple as that. If you'd be willing to hand her over we can guarantee she will not be harmed." The man stood there mutely for a moment.

"That's it? You come here to demand I relinquish her?" Raist laughed loudly at the man and shook his head. "No, it's as simple as that."

"You may accompany her if you'd like but the bottom line is that we will take her peaceably or we'll tear your limbs off before her very eyes and take her by force." The man's voice was low and sinister as he continued on. "I don't know who the two of you are but you're most definitely in my way and I don't pass around barriers. I demolish them."

"More approach." Scar whispered loud enough for only them to hear.

Raist had figured the slimy-looking though unscarred man would try something funny after getting a good look at his demeanor and hearing what little he had to say. Needing to hear nothing further he raised his rifle and took aim on the tall man. "You're overstepping the bounds of our peaceful parlay."

"Dear boy I never said it would be peaceful." Without warning the man raised his arms in front of them palms out and curled his fingers into talon-like shapes. He chuckled darkly to himself.

Raist felt like he needed to pull the trigger but he couldn't move, his body wouldn't respond to his call no matter what he tried. Anger welled up within him and he felt as if he could scream if his mouth would move. His eyes focused on the dark man as he attempted to resist.

"Never trust anyone that makes their living in the wastes dear boy, we all have a tendency to be survivors and we're not above cheating to get what we want." He grunted low and turned his head to face the stairwell. "Hurry up and restrain them you dolts! The young man is much stronger than he appears to be."

Ten grotesquely deformed humans came walking or limping up the stairs, each as disgustingly disfigured as the one before it. Most had small defects of the skin or limbs but Raist found them displeasing to the eye. He was even less pleased as they put their hands on him. Two large disgusting monstrosities held him by the stairwell; four remained behind him on the stairs themselves holding rifles and pistols. Two of the remaining ones each approached Scar and Sasha. The only females of the group, bare to the waist and almost as grotesque as the males of the group bound Sasha's hands behind her.

Raist watched helplessly as his arms were moved behind his body and he felt a plastic zip tie being secured around his wrists. He instantly began losing feeling in his hands from the tightness of the plastic. Once he was searched and stripped of his knife and rifle he felt himself able to move again, though he was bound tight. He looked over and saw two of the female mutates restraining Sasha similarly though they were definitely being more gentle. Scar on the other hand had been shoved over and his four legs bound together with an old hemp rope. "Don't you touch her, don't lay a damn hand on her!"

"Or what little soldier boy?" The hawk-nosed man said boldy as he approached and put his hand on Raist's cheek. "What will you do?"

He felt rage building up within him, a dark red anger the color of dried blood. The sight of the disgusting humanoids swarming about them and eyeing Sasha as if she were a piece of meat put him on the edge of madness. He was going to fail; he was going to let his chosen come to harm. He had no words to reply to the dark man. He watched the tall man in the dark suit walk over toward Scar and kick him in the face, leaving a trail of blood coming out of the hound's nose. He quickly scurried out of biting range and laughed. Raist watched as he approached Sasha too, and once again his blood began to boil. "Don't touch her."

"You keep saying that, but you have yet to tell me what you're going to do about it. Your impotent threats don't scare me." He paused for a moment to admire the prophet's beauty. "It is nice to finally meet you Sasha, my name is Darien Riggs and I am the leader of this rag-tag band of mutates."

"Let them go, you have me." Sasha pleaded to him in her soft voice. She was obviously scared from the look on her face. She had also stopped struggling when he was addressing her. "I'll go quietly but you have to let them go."

"Sasha no!" Raist said suddenly as he struggled against the two hulking mutates that held him fast. His struggles seemed futile indeed compared to their strength. All of his rage was focused in his chest and he felt like his heart was going to burst and flop on the ground at any moment. "You can't have her!"

"Dear boy I have already won." The man known as Darien said in his silky smooth but slimy voice. He twirled toward Raist and laughed lightly. "Take this mongrel away and make sure he gets what he deserves, the dog too. They at least have the insight to believe that I never meant to let anyone go."

"NO!" Raist yelled loudly as he felt himself being pulled away from Sasha.

"Don't worry young one, I'll make sure she's taken care of. Slayn, Mara, will you two ladies please relieve her of her clothing?" He shot a glance at the struggling man in his ragged uniform and grinned evilly. "My employer doesn't require her unspoiled, just alive."

If there was something beyond rage that was what he was feeling at the moment, his throat tightened and he pulled against the two mutates with all of his might. The two bulky mutates stopped dead in their tracks and strained against him as a surge of adrenaline hit his body. This man was going to hurt Sasha, defile her, and take her away from him. He felt himself whispering hoarsely against his straining throat. "Karn god of the forsaken few, I call upon you now! I have not been the most devout of followers but I have been faithful to your tenants. Take my life if you must but spare my chosen, her life is more important than mine. I love her; I would sacrifice all I have for her."

For a moment everyone in the room seemed to slow down to a crawl. Sasha felt revulsion at the thought of the disgusting man touching her and even worse yet they were going to kill both Scar and Raist. She felt tears sliding down her cheeks until a soft whisper hit her ears. It was faint but soothing and almost unintelligible; it was Raist whispering to his god. She wanted to tell him to stop, to save himself but his prayer moved something inside of her. All at once a bright light began to wash the room around her and she saw Scar's ears perk up and his head pivot just enough to see Raist's form being lead away.

"Close your eyes Sasha." Scar's gravelly voice held a reverent but dire tone. "Please close your eyes, you were not meant to see such as this."

Unable to comply she watched Raist's body glow and shimmer against a dark silhouette behind him, she could almost see a fatherly but grim man standing to his side with an approving look. To her amazement Raist's body began to change and morph. His clothing became thick bone-like armor laced with rivulets of running blood and the rifle in his hand bled together in a fluid motion to form a blackened metal blade with a blood-red gem in the hilt. His face distorted and his eyes were glowing blood red. She could hear a keening chorus of screams coming from nowhere and everywhere at the same time and his semi-long black hair streamed out behind him in an ethereal breeze that made her body shiver. He seemed to be drawing it in from all around them. The red and black skin of his face swirled like lava and his lips parted in a scream that tore her from the grip of the startled mutate women that were holding her captive. She felt fear but at the same time she felt safe, it was an odd clash of emotions that battled almost physically within her eyes.

"By all of the gods." Scar whispered in a low voice, bowing his head reverently and closing his eyes. "The forsaken lord has touched him personally."

"You will relinquish my chosen now." Raist's voice was deep and resonating sounding as if five people were screaming at once. She could see faces straining for release from the shadowy halo of power thrumming behind him. Her eyes could not leave him no matter what she tried.

Her knees buckled and she fell to the concrete looking at the touch of divinity before her eyes. She had heard tales when she was a little girl of devout worshippers gaining the boon of their god in times of great need but she had always thought they were just fanciful tales.

"Come any closer and I'll kill her myself!" Looking very small now against the Aspect of Karn taken form on the earth Darien grabbed Sasha by the hair and pulled her close to him. "Don't you dare move!"

"So be it." His voice trailed out to nothing and for a moment Sasha was convinced she was ether going to die or be taken away from them again but the man grabbing her hair suddenly put both of his hands on his throat. His eyes were bulging almost out of his skull and he was gasping for breath. The mutates next to him moved to grab his arms but as soon as their flesh touched his bone armor they melted into pools of quivering goop clinging to charred blackened skeletons. The four on the stairs immediately opened fire at his back, which seemed to be shielded by the spreading darkness behind him. The bullets disappeared into nothing.

With a deft swing of his muscled arm he swung his sword around in an arc and decapitated three of the mutates in a spray of blood with his sword lodged in the fourth deeply enough to pierce its heart and kill it instantly. Pulling the large blade from the lifeless body he swung it around and splattered the front half of the room in a slight spray of blood. No further words came from his mouth as he stepped into the room toward the two tall and lanky males standing on either side of Scar. The two of them and the female mutates all scurried away and hurled themselves through the gaps in the concrete and metal all the while gibbering madly. It was a short order to reach Darien who was writhing on the ground clawing at his neck as if trying to remove the object strangling him. "Darien Riggs, you have been brought to trial before the forsaken and found wanton. I sentence you to death and imprisonment within the shadow realm."

He watched as the frightened man held out his arms in supplication but he did not care, judgement had been passed. The man's body disappeared in a cloud of shadowy matter and was gone in seconds along with the black mist. Once the deed was done Raist's eyes fell on Sasha. Seeing her in fear of him was not a good feeling, indeed he was confused and unable to act on his own. He was a conduit for his god's divine wrath.

Sasha cried out in fright as the armored behemoth before her began to twist and deform and let out a scream of pain that sounded distinctively like Raist. It took only a short time for Raist to appear in its stead and fall to the floor in a heap covered in blood.

"Raist! Raist!" Sasha yelled as she attempted to free her hands from the plastic restraints. "Scar please help him!"

She heard a faint snapping sound and saw the zip tie fly off to the side and Scar dashed around the corner toward her. Once he had bitten through her restraints she rushed to Raist and brushed his hair from his face. For all the blood on his body none of it seemed to be his. Sasha was crying hard until she felt a paw on her thigh.

"My lady, we must make haste before someone else comes. There are beings drawn to such displays of power and your guardian is very weak from the ordeal." Scar motioned his head toward the backpack and continued. "Stuff the pack in that concrete rubble and push a stone in front of it. You will have to carry Raist as best you can. I know not when he will awaken but we have not the time to find out."