I rushed downstairs with Thalia but only an empty tavern greeted us. There was no sign of the doppelganger, the soft groans coming from upstairs and the storm outside were the only sounds I could hear. Thalia suddenly grabbed my shirt and tugged just as I was about to look elsewhere, “Wait! They might already be killing people! We need to go back and help them.” She said with determination and tired pulling me back.

I snort and pull away from her, “Those people are none of my concern, and I need to find the doppelganger before he can change his face again. By now, he must have noticed the ledger was missing.” I growl and grab her instead, trying to drag her downstairs into the cell block. She fought back, trying to get away to go upstairs, “Let go of me! They are going to kill Clary too!” I stopped at that one. Though I didn’t have much lingering attachment to that cat girl, it still left a bad feeling in my gut.

With a groan, I glared at her before letting her go, “Fine!” Her eyes shone at my agreement and a bright smile lit up on her face for the first time, “Who knew you had some decency.” She mumbled as I pushed her with a snort, “Hurry up!”

Reaching the hall, I glanced at the first door and kicked it down. What greeted me were two men, hunched over and gripping their midsections. Their faces were slowly turning bright red, small blisters coming out while yellow foam dripped from their lips. Their expressions were miserable, the agony they were going through was as clear as day. They kept scratching themselves to the bone. Cursing, I dragged Thalia away from them and went straight to her room.

Seeing the door was wide open made me hurry. As soon as I entered, a fierce wind hit my face. The boarded up window was wide open, the rain drenching the room. I couldn’t see any sign of Clary until a small whimper came from under the bed, “Clary?!” Thalia shouted and reached under. Clary was looking terrible, her hair was a big knot on the top of her head, her whole body drenched in water and grime from the blood. I glanced around in confusion, “What the hell happened?”

She shivered from the cold, “When you two went to that other room, I broke the window and hid under the bed, just in case. My intuition told me there would be trouble. Not long after, a group of people burst in. They probably thought I tried to escape so they didn’t stay long. Thank the Gods I trusted my gut.” She was exasperated as she rubbed her face. Staring at her for a second, I glanced at the blood stains, diluted on the floorboards, “Was there a fight?” I ask, pointing a finger on the clear stains that weren’t there before.

She tossed her hands up with a scowl, “I don’t know! Maybe they were hurt by the others, I can hear them still fighting.” Pointing out, I noticed she was right. I could hear shouts and furniture breaking from a couple of rooms. Shaking my head, I furrowed my brow at the smell of blood coming of her, most likely because of the rain gathered on the floor. As I was about to head out, the door on the opposite end broke down, two men struggling against each other.

Cursing, I saw one of them was holding a dagger while the other one struggled beneath him. The weaponless man was red in the face, minor blisters forming on his hands and neck. It was clear his condition wasn’t as bad as the first ones I saw. Figuring I might as well help him out, I kicked the one on top before pinning him down with my knee. His eyes widened as he swung the blade at my abdomen. Grabbing his wrist, I snapped it and glared at him, “Where is the doppelganger?!”

Struggling under my weight, his other hand moved down, taking out some kind of pebble. Lifting a brow, I broke that wrist as well. The brown pearl fell from his grasp, clicking as it bounced a few times before shattering. The last thing the man did was grin at me before blood leaked from the side of his lips. He choked on his blood as I moved away from him. Damn fanatics.

Warning bells suddenly went off in my mind as I realized there was a sour stench in the air. My eyes widened when I sensed a shimmer of mana filling the room, spreading from the pellet. Cursing, I covered my face and pushed Thalia away from the door. It was, without a doubt, the poison. Why that man had such a thing was unknown, but it meant the others might have it as well. I’m pretty sure I inhaled some. Worry gripped me. I knew my blood destroyed poison, but this one was extremely magical in nature. Too much of my mana was being used to keep my body stable, there was no way I could fight it completely.

Grabbing Thalia violently, I glared at her, “Did you breathe in the poison?!” I hissed. Her eyes widened as Clary walked over and stepped on my foot. Growling, I felt rage simmer in my belly, “Stop manhandling her! We were far enough away! Just stop overreacting!” She shouted. The man stood up from the floor, panting as he lifted the door from the floor and pushed it up to seal the room, “We need to find the healer!” He shouted. Rolling my eyes, I scowled at him, “No healer will help you with that.”

Growling in frustration, the man’s eyes became blood shot, “Not for me you fool! If they kill Benjamin we’re all screwed, he’s the only healer in the guild right now! If he dies, we’ll all die before that storm can pass!” I pointed a finger at Clary, “She can heal.” The man looked at her with expectation, clawing the blisters that formed on his neck, “Really!?”

Clary seemed awkward as she sighed, “Actually, I’m not really a full-fledged healer yet. I can’t do anything about poison and my mana is currently too depleted to help with lethal wounds.” I scowled, “Why is your mana depleted?!” Scratching her head, she sighed, “I used it to help me break the window, and I don’t have many offensive capabilities and had to use raw mana to help me bust it.”

“Atko!” I heard a shout come from down the hall. Mortier and Ha’Luk were running over, a group of guild members behind them. They were drenched in blood as they stopped to look at the poisoned man. Neither were out of breath as they looked at me with worry, “Did you catch any of them alive? There should be 20 enemies and a doppelganger wearing Gorin’s skin. Have you seen him?” I asked in quick sequence. Mortier put his spear on his shoulder, “Haven’t seen him and, no, we didn’t have the luxury to keep them alive. They took out some kind of pills and released poisonous gas or something.”

“How many?” I ask with a frown. Ha’Luk grunted, “Only one of them had it but it was enough to afflict the whole room. We killed three of them and one suicided. I think a few people died already because of the poison, the others are being murdered. We gathered around 30 survivors and want to send them downstairs. The cellar might be okay to hide them while we handle the enemies.”

Thinking for a second, I gave a nod, “Good idea, but we need to make sure no moles go down. I need these two to go down as well, they’re in the way.” Though I received glares from the girls, they didn’t protest. Mortier, glanced back and gestured to the survivors before looking at me quizzically, “You said there was a doppelganger?”

Nodding, I moved aside and carefully watched the sick people go downstairs, “Yeah.”

“Shit.” He mumbled, “I fucking hate Devils...”

Without looking away from the people passing by, I frowned, “Do you know anything about them?”

He grunted, “Just that they’re fucked in the head. The ones that are free usually turn into pure monsters, addicted to changing shapes and absorbing knowledge. Those that are bound usually follow their masters with pure reverence because they have identity issues. The master gives them an identity to cling to so their addictions lessen.”

Finding that very interesting, I spotted a nervous looking man. Seeing he stood out too much, I grabbed him and slammed him against the wall, “Where is the doppelganger!?” I hissed at him. Panicking, the man attempted to chant a spell. I slammed him again, knocking the air out of his lungs and interrupting his spell. He moaned in pain, “I don’t know. He should be with the others!” Seeing he was useless, I broke his neck. Glaring at Thalia and Clary, I hissed, “Cellar, now!”

Not objecting, they followed along as we made our way down. The cellar was on the other end of the bar, past the kitchen. Glancing around the cooking area, I grimaced when I saw an elderly lady and young man were butchered and strung up on meat hooks in the food storage. The corpses were frozen with magic, showing they were dead for a while. They most likely did it to prevent rotting, otherwise, the stench would have spread to the tavern.

Seeing the pots had some residue of the stew that was served for lunch, I sniffed it carefully and coughed. The sour stench was hidden well under the spices, but a good enough nose would catch it. Cursing, I also noticed an identical pot that had regular stew. They really were selective with who to poison this way, those poisonous marbles were most likely a failsafe. Shaking my head, we lowered ourselves into the cellar through the trapdoor.

It was very moist and cold down here, but surprisingly, everything was dry. The torches lit the room that held large and small barrels. Crates with supplies were everywhere, making the whole place a bit maze like. It wasn’t that big of a space though. The poisoned people were being treated by the healer who had already broken out into a sweat from using so much mana. So far, he was only able to treat the symptoms but said the poison was most likely based on an Aqua Serpent’s venom. The symptoms corresponded with its effects somewhat, but the yellow foam in the more severe cases indicated a strong infection was being caused in their internal organs.

Once the situation calmed down a bit and the screams upstairs ceased, I figured it was a good time to go and search for the doppelganger. Maybe take care of a few more infiltrators. However, I really wasn’t comfortable leaving Thalia here unguarded. Despite the fact that both Mortier and Ha’Luk were here, one misstep and we both die. I didn’t know how to go about this, the situation escalated too far. I was going to have to take her with me.

I didn’t notice I was staring at her until she spoke anxiously, “What is it?”

Frowning, I sighed, “You can use magic, right?” She hesitated but nodded, “Yes, I’m a wind mage and an archer, but I also know a few other minor spells from different schools.”

“You need to come with me. Stay on guard and be ready to react.” I said calmly, giving her no room to refuse. Walking around the barrel, I was suddenly startled when I came across a hanging body. Seeing the dead man’s face, I recognized him as Hobbs, the kitchen assistant. Damn, he wasn’t kidding when he said he would follow his family to death. Before Thalia could see it, I pushed her in the other direction. I really didn’t need any more drama today.

“Wait!” Clary shouted just as I opened the hatch, “I want to come too! If anything happens, I might be able to help out.” She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes, “Am I just a booty call to you?! I’m not useless damn it! You’ve been leaving me out and I want to help this time.” She said with determination. Rolling my eyes, I gestured Thalia to go up, “No. I’m not a damn babysitter. Stay here with everyone else and don’t make a ruckus.” Ignoring her protests, I went out immediately after Thalia and shut the cellar door. I had an agreement with the two from the camp, they’d stay here while I handled the issue. I was surprised they had that much confidence in my abilities.

The guild was eerily quiet right now, only the violent rumbles of the storm could be heard. As we headed to check the cell block, I felt my body heat up unnaturally. With a gasp, I stumbled and grabbed the bar counter to stabilize myself. Shit. Was the poison actually taking effect? The confirmation came in the form of my rampaging mana that was slowly disappearing. I had no idea where it was going, but my muscles gradually began to ache, the protective layer of mana was being shaved away.

“Are you okay?” Thalia asked with concern. Seeing her eyes widen with a gasp, I knew this wasn’t good, “You’re turning red?! The poison!” I took a deep breath and focused inwardly. My regeneration was working overtime to suppress the damage my own mana was inflicting on me, “Watch out!” Thalia suddenly screamed and waved her hand quickly. A burst of sharp wind flew past me and cut open the large man approaching with a risen cleaver.

Cursing, I dodged to the side and pushed my hand through the open wound to finish him off. The smell of his blood on my hands made me bewildered. It smelled good. An itch started on my lower back, making me hiss in realization. Though the poison was doing minimum damage to me, it had an adverse effect. The symptoms paralleled too much with my shedding, fooling my body into an early change. This was bad. Once the hunger pangs began, there was high chance I just might kill everyone here. The storm outside was blocking everyone in.

I could feel I still had some time left, maybe a couple of hours before I lost my mind. I seriously didn’t want to end up killing myself because Thalia was the first snack on the menu. Inwardly groaning, I felt my mana slightly stabilize as the poison was consumed by my blood. Feeling the pain disappear for now, I sighed in relief and jumped over the counter. Rummaging around, I found a crossbow and a few bolts. Bingo. Tossing it over, I saw Thalia catch it skillfully but frowned at it, “I use a longbow.”

Not having time to debate with her, I grunted and led her down to the cell block. The rancid air of rotting flesh made me gag and Thaila directly retched on the side of the stairs. With teary eyes, she glared at me accusingly, “You just had to leave them to rot in the water...” She scowled, but carefully held her crossbow, ready to shoot at anything that moved. Scratching my chest, I felt my fever spike then lessen, tiny blisters forming on the surface of my skin.

Seeing there was nothing in the cells so I opened the office where I had left the corpses. Seeing the three corpses were nothing but bones, I froze. There was blood and bile everywhere, the whole office was one big, disgusting mess of gore. On the desk was a large, rotting lump of skin and meat. I stared in disbelief, understanding that the doppelganger had been here and actually eaten the corpses. Trying to figure out why he would do that, I recalled Gabrielle said they absorb memories as well, “Well fuck.” I muttered absentmindedly.

That doppelganger had eaten and shed all of them, just to learn what they revealed about the Earl. No wonder there was so much puke around, the bastard was most likely sick from it. Feeling mildly disgusted, I knew he wasn’t here anymore. Wherever he may be, it was likely he would be after Thalia. Figuring the Earl would have an indispensable tool if the doppelganger consumed Thalia, it occurred to me he would probably gain all her other memories.

Not dwelling on that thought, I turned to try my luck up in the rooms, “Will you stop that!” Thalia exclaimed suddenly, gaping at me in horror. It was then I realized I was unconsciously scratching my chest bloody, lacerating my own flesh. Cursing, I was already becoming numb to the pain which meant the change was progressing at a ridiculous rate. It was most likely because I overworked my body previously. Now that it combined with the right amount of stimuli, my body was going haywire.

We were basically running up to the rooms, Thalia barely keeping up with my fast pace. Surprisingly, she wasn’t out of breath as we climbed up the stairs and started scouring the rooms. Corpses laid everywhere, some died from the poison that rotted them from inside out, using their mana as fuel, while others had their throats cleanly slit. The place was disturbingly quiet, the enemies hiding someplace. Just as a lightning bolt struck outside, I thought I heard voices.

Gesturing Thalia to halt, I focused on my hearing and sensed a group of people at the far end of the hall, in one of the rooms. Moving slowly, we carefully approached as I tried to listen in, “Was that all of them?” A gruff voice asked, the sound of it making me think the man was tired, “No, around 30 people are missing, we lost 6 people in the resistance. The fact they might have grouped up could mean trouble for us, even if most of them were poisoned. Any word on Kasimir?” A female voice responded, sounding authoritative.

I could hear them shuffle inside at the question. Noticing one was coming to check the door, I quickly reacted and pulled Thalia in the room on the right. The door opened and closed soon after, “Last I heard, he said he had a plan to handle the demon. It would be best if we stayed away from him, I’ve seen how he played around with Helga, not to mention, we all saw Gabrielle’s corpse.” Hearing them talk about me and someone named Kasimir made me think that was the doppelganger’s real name or the one he usually went by.

Seeing not even his own people knew where the hell he was, I decided to listen in for a little while before breaking up their little get-together, “What do we do next then?” One of them asked, clearly at a loss on how to proceed with the stowaways who disappeared. Someone cleared their throat, “Paul said they were headed to the cellar, the only way in and out is through the hatch. How many marbles do we still have?”

“Are you insane!? For every marble we use the Association will send the bill. Those are for emergencies only! The Earl will have us all killed if we use them all, and to fill up the cellar, we’d need at least 5.” Someone groaned in annoyance, revealing the fact the marbles really were a failsafe, “They already used 3 of them! That’s 1500 gold each! The Elder made it clear, if they are used, we need to compensate the full amount. The 6 we have left are not to be used unless the situation truly becomes critical.” The same woman from before spoke, clearly upset about the exuberant sum a single marble costed. Even I was shocked at the price, the Earl was really going all out to secure his little kingdom.

Sighing, I figured my time was running short, I could feel mild hunger pangs start up. Glancing around the room, I saw a corpse on the bed. The woman was probably dead for only a couple of minutes, still fresh, the blood still vigorous and warm. The more I stared at it, the more my hunger acted up. Like a little, starving voice in the back of my mind. Before I knew it, I was in front of it, slowly reaching for that juicy thigh.

“Atkozott...” A soft whisper came from behind me, snapping me out of my daze. Shaking my head, I glanced back to see a very confused Thalia. She waved her hands to the left, gesturing that the people in the other room were getting ready to leave. Swallowing the saliva that had gathered in my mouth, I bit the inside of my cheek to focus. I knew that if I tasted blood, my appetite would fully awaken. I needed to be careful.

Well, no time like the present. No longer caring about stealth, I took a few steps back until I faced the wall connecting to their room. I gestured for her to use magic, “Block their exit.” I whispered and charged. Infusing mana into my forearms, I released a growl as I connected with the wall in full force. The wall of stone and wood broke with my collision, allowing me to burst into their room. Some jumped in shock while others prepared their weapons. Wide eyed, they regarded me before a woman with violet hair shouted, “Formation Razor!” Not caring what the hell that meant, I went straight for her. I recognized the voice as the one with authority. There were around 14 people in the room and it was cramped. The savage bloodlust awakened with my murderous intent, clouding my mind while my tail swung at the ones on the side who were trying to escape.

My tail connected with something, splattering blood of the two people that tried to leave through the door. I could see Thalia had listened to me. A barrier of wind was keeping the exit tightly sealed. The others had gotten into a semi-circular formation, blades pointed at up at the celling while the ones behind them held crossbows aimed at me. My eyes scanned the small, coherent group, locking with the violet-haired lady. Her expression was serious, the worry clear in her eyes. She was the center of the formation, holding an exquisite rapier.

Taking a step forward, she took the initiative to attack me. With a precise thrust, she aimed for my neck. Gliding to the side, I dodged and retaliated with a slash of my own. However, as I moved to counter, her pose changed. She did an elegant turn, her heel kicking me in the side and into the swords that lowered to greet me, awaiting to impale me. Hissing with a vicious sound, I twisted unnaturally, the blades cutting my sides instead of piercing me. Taking the liberty to cut off a few limbs, my claws and tail slashed in unison, skillfully bisecting three people. Screams sounded as their arms and legs splattered to the ground.

The woman made a frustrated sound and engaged again before I could completely ruin their formation. The rapier priced my ribs a few times in quick succession, before a she swung it horizontally in an attempt to once again slash my throat. Pissed off, I lifted my hand and grabbed the blade directly before snapping it in half. Her eyes widened but she quickly reacted. Letting go of her broken rapier, she took out two daggers, distanced herself and prepared a stance, “Shoot!” She shouted and ducked.

All the crossbows collectively fired. I knew I couldn’t dodge them all as I swayed left and right, taking hits into arms and legs instead of my torso. There was no time to dislodge the bolts that deeply planted into my flesh. The searing pain made my vison slowly turn red as I snarled. Without a care for their weapons, I jumped straight at the woman. My head connected with her midsection, making her wheeze and fly back. Unfortunately for her, the ones behind her didn’t have good reaction time. One of them lowered their sword almost on instinct, directly impaling her through the back, the blade exiting through her stomach.

Blood leaked from her lips as she gasped for breath. Not caring about her, I turned to the crossbow holders who dared shoot at me. Feeling my malice spike up a degree, I gave a vicious grin, “Formation Razor: Execute!” Someone from behind shouted. As if waking up, the whole lot reacted instantly, charging forward at me with blades at the ready. Seeing the only way out was back, I took a step and blocked the weapons with my tail and arms. Growling, I could feel them trying to overwhelm me, a few blades slashing my sides painfully.

Snickering in mockery, I pushed back with a roar. What happened next was a big red blur. With their formation broken, the vanguard quickly fell. Using my flexible body, I weaved in and out, limbs and blood flying everywhere, drenching the ceiling and the walls. By the time I came to, I was on top of one of the rangers, piercing the bolts I ripped out of my own body into his eye sockets. Riddled with wounds and having weapons lodged in my flesh left me with a bad feeling.

I stood up and swayed, a feeling of vertigo making me pant. My stomach rumbled furiously, demanding sustenance. The pain could no longer keep me focused, on the contrary, it made it worse. With a groan, I stared at the delicious looking piece of meat. Gritting my teeth, I forcefully kept myself at bay. I recalled the amount of meat I had to consume the first time. There was no doubt that the quantity would be far more this time. Even if I went on a rampage here, the odds were, there was not enough sustenance here. Especially considering a bunch were already corpses or poisoned. In the end, I just might end up braving that storm.

Taking a deep breath, I sat down into a pool of blood, not caring about my surroundings and entered meditation to get myself under control.