573 CHPT 573: Shadows…. The End.

A Mother.

A nurturer. A caregiver. The one from whom you're brought into the world. The one many share their closest connection to from the genesis of life itself.

Your rock.

Your centerpiece.

Claude didn't have that. Not in a mother— she was gone for his entire life. And his Father. As great of a man as he was, he was busy. He was conflicted with the ghosts of his past that lurked— so much closer than Claude ever knew. Right at the back of his neck. Breath beats rising phantom hairs on his outer self. Rupturing and working beneath the gaze of his intuition.

Until they finally came out into the light. It was so…. So illuminating.

He had a mother.

He had that caregiver…. Nurturer… from where he was brought into the world. The world he fought the status quo of vehemently— trying to grow and learn and do it all right.

And all she could say after sixteen entire long bloody painful years was what she always said.

"You're still… so, so weak." Her tears salted the earth of his mind like the aftershock of an explosion.

He laughed.

Is that not hilarious?

Is life not so far beyond the bounds of serious reality it shouldn't even be considered as such?

To Claude it was.

Why would he take it serious?

The world was a comedy. An impossibly dark and gruesome comedy with the crux of its punchline hovering over his damaged head repeatedly.

Buzzing.

Flying.

Poking.

Proding.

Like gnats on shit.

That's what he was.

Dung at the bottom of an empty well.

But— like the bottom of a well, the only way was upward. And from his dark tunnel, a light shined with pure rainbow brilliance. So beautiful it was blinding.

Blinding to the madness that swirled around him in exchange for clarity at what stood before him.

He continued to laugh. Starting as odd unwanted giggling that evolved into bellowing cackles as he stared at them.

Ursula, Warren and Samuel crowded him, ducking and flinching at the chaos that swarmed them.

Tornadoes spun in the distance birthing wild desert storms full of blood and bone. Lightning strikes blasted the earth turning the terrain into still motion white-hot glass oceans. The temperature rose, feeling as if the sun was falling. Just enough as to not kill all the students.

"C-Claude….. this isn't good…. We need to get the hell out of here. Don't let this get to you. That woman isn't a mother to anyone! Don't let her do this to you….."

Claude's mind was impenetrable.

He was high on life.

He keeled over and fell down to one knee, laughing so hard tears fell from his eyes and he dry heaved in between inhales. His voice echoed and bounced off the tournament walls. His claws ripped through the sandstone platform like it was made of paper.

Reyla, Dolion and Samuel watched with the other Lupines in pure confusion and discomfort.

"Y—You…. PWAGAHAH…." Claude placed a hand over his mouth to stifle his laughter as he erupted into a coughing fit.

When he took his hand away black slime covered his palm. Steaming with shadowy essence….

"What the hell…" Warren whispered.

[20 Stat Points]

"Ursula do you have some way to access Rupont or his pack? We need to go. Now."

"They're all with Maris…. I don't know… I don't…"

He continued to cough and laugh as he foamed at the mouth with a foul black essence.

It infected his entire being. Causing his tears to bathe in shadow. His ears to leak with it. His nose ran with it as shadowy limbs exploded from his back like beings risen from the dead. Dark winds spun at his feet. Green fire crackled from his chest and mouth. His transformation bloomed with the rising beasts from his very skin into some multi-limbed incongruous horror.

DING!

[Severe Mental Instability Will have Adverse Effects on Skills and Abilities!]

Despite the storms and chaos looming. Vultures surrounded Ra Stadium joined by massive scaled Pterodactyls. Frosty, Diamondback and Loba led Hounds, Lizards and Felines of all shapes and sizes through the hallways, scurrying around the interior of Ra Stadium, feeding on the Wild Magic and changing.

They joined him in mock laughter as heroes battled Lupines and students sought out cover.

"Mother…..he's lost it." Dolion commented.

Claude raised a hand to point at them, "None of you are laughing….. the dreams aren't real. You're not smiling... This is…. Amazing."

It was like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

They could bleed.

They could die.

His tormentors could be tormented.

"Come here!"

Claude's arm flew out for Reyla. Malevolence Tether snaking through the air towards her.

She sidestepped, causing the chain to wrap around Samuels neck.

With zero hesitation he yanked Samuel across the tournament grounds, moving so violently his friends surrounding him dove for cover as he caught the enemy Lupine and bit down on his head.

Samuel raged.

The storms picked up in intensity. Ronin's eyes held him from somewhere.

Samuel moved his arms to attempt to rip out Claudes eyes, but the shadowy limbs protruding from his back caught them, holding them in place as wooden spikes rose up from the earth and skewered his limbs.

SHLCK!

"ACCCCKKKK!" Samuel screamed a torrent of purple flames.

"I'll kill y—"

CRNCH!

[+600 EXP]

Claude bit down on Samuels skull until it gave. Brain tissue, blood and skull fragments filled his maw as he stared into Reyla's eyes.

Her face twisted from discomfort to offense as Claude tossed Samuel. Uneven in transformation and unstable as all hell.

A distant howling poked at his brain but he ignored it as he summoned his Dominance Spear.

The Lupines behind Reyla and Dolion dropped to their knees.

Claude fought off a child-like giggle and prepared to say the words that would bring forth Fenrir's rag—

He hacked up another mouthful of black shadowy slime.

A phantom Wolf head emerged from his shoulder, snarling madly as he fell down on his knee.

Reyla's claws extended from her naked fingers. "Dolio—"

Before anything more could happen, Ursula transformed, using her mass to shield Claude.

In a blur something divebombed onto the scene. Many something's.

Hundreds, even. All rallied behind one Queen….

She stood beside Ursula, laying her blade over Claude as he coughed and shivered. Something crossed between a samurai sword, claymore and hunting knife. Its silver surface moved like water.

Her skin was pure black…. Smooth to the human eyes. But the muscle was hard. Dense. Stretched and strapped over every long bone and thick joint. She was almost as tall as Ursula who was already over seven feet.

But what she lacked in height, she made up for in width with giant bat-like wings.

She had eyes as blue as the ocean. Dark brown hair moving as if that's where she was. Swimming in the deep. She was hauntingly beautiful. The hints of Lupine sat comfortably in her canine fangs, raised heels, lengthened nose and sharp ears. But everywhere else, the Red Queen remained. Back from the dead.

Rupont stood beside her, facing the storm behind them. Full confidence in his leader. Full confidence in their defense.

"We are leaving. If you follow us, I'll bleed you dry and turn you all into slaves." Maris spoke from three distinct voices all at the same time. The air quivered around her mouth, distorting her face as she spoke into a blurring collage of different features.

"And who are you?" Reyla questioned as her eyes were stuck on the behemoth structure that rose up behind them and cast shadows onto the tournament floor.

Maris didn't respond as she crouched over Claude and the others huddled in. He'd long since stopped laughing and was in an impossibly deep state of unconsciousness. Ursula raged at the sight of him.

"I SAID WHO ARE Y—"

"Shut the hell up!" Ursula threw an ice axe straight into Reyla's face.

It shattered, not even breaking skin despite her putting everything into the blow. All Reyla did was take a step backward with a snarl, watching as a portal opened beneath their feet and swallowed them all.

VWOOMP!

***

"Got em…." Cassidy commented as he gazed through a long-rage crossbow scope with Sloane at his side, bleeding from the nose while knitting her magical threads on a rooftop.

Another portal opened beyond the massive building edge, over a few hundred foot drop. Down to a floor where rail-riders zoomed by beneath massive Sky-Ships.

"Shit!" Sloane cursed.

"They're fine….. I think." Cassidy said as Vampires, Avian beasts and Lupines's alike spilled out of the portal in broad daylight.

"WOAHHH!" Warren screeched before Ursula grabbed hold of him as she hung into Maris' leg with her other hand. Isaac came next, held up by Rupont.

Maris' wingbeats gave off a very unique sound as she hovered.

"Claude isn't well. Ronin and the others won't be…. Occupied for very long." Maris turned to watch Ra Stadium in the distance.

A massive liquid wall reflected the Sunlands brilliance from above, highlighting the massive sea creatures and beasts of the nile as they spilled out onto the heroes feet mid-battle.

"Is that….. the Nile river?" Sloane suddenly asked.

"Some of it. My sword wasn't enough." Maris shrugged.

Sloane blinked twice, "Ok…. I'll take us somewhere safe. From there we can move under the rada—"

"No." Maris interrupted, "You're exhausted. I'll fly."

Before Sloane could answer her and the Vampires took off.

Below, Claude's pack followed. In the far distance, the horde moved with them. Dotting hilltops and ruffling pods of forestry.

Silence— the winds. The sky.

It felt like peace. But a new war was brought to the forefront. Even Maris knew that in her newborn state full of fresh urges and hunger.

They couldn't go back to school. They couldn't just walk into Guild Halls for work.

They were their own faction now. And they needed to expand.

Maris looked down at Claude as she held him. To her surprise he was awake. Human skinned again.

Watching the sky.

"Bloody hell…. It's so much clearer in person…. I almost forgot."

Ursula and Warren looked up at him as they hung from Maris' legs.

Maris felt her spine tingle, "Who are you?"

Claude blinked and looked to Maris. Differently than before.

"Of course. My apologies—"

"Tell me now." Maris commanded.

"Rupont was right. You do fit the role so well."

Maris held his gaze.

"…..Claude isn't well. Not at all. Too much in too little time. I made a promise to him. I said I wouldn't let him loose his mind. So, I stepped in. My name is, Arne. Claude's going away for a while…."

"H— How long?"

"As long as he needs."

The others had no choice but to sit with the sudden hilarity of Claude's mental break causing an identity switch as they flew west. They'd have all the time to ask questions when they landed. When they were safe. They had a kingdom to build.

Maybe it would be there when Claude returned. A similar question must've been posed when Remus entered his own trauma slumber. What a parallel.

Two sleeping kings.

One racial war.

Infinite endings.

All in due time…..