This was a waste of Sybil’s time. Cries of panic had echoed through the alleyways near the restaurant, and Sybil was once again battling the call to rush out there and start a fight. Yet here she was. Stuck eating breakfast and ordered not to go anywhere. She leaned over the edge of the railing, hoping to find some clue on the streets below as to what was going on.

Duxton sipped his tea. “Sit down, Sybil. If there truly was an emergency, someone would be up to let us know. Relax until that happens.”

“But there are already people fleeing from- Hey!” Sybil leaned so far forward that her shoes were barely scratching the ground. “Zaniyah! No, wait! Zaniyah! I’m up here! Look the other way! … Not there! The other other way! Upward!”

The sounds of scraping could be heard as Zaniyah ran up the side of the wall and scrambled to get a grip on the railing. She pulled herself up and over and gave Sybil a big hug. The others present only got a polite nod.

“Oh hey there, Sybil. Do you know what’s going on?”

“I was hoping you did.” A roar rumbled through the air. “What was that?” Zaniyah appeared puzzled by the question. “... Y-you didn’t hear that?” Sybil’s eyes went wide at the implication. “Oh no…”

“... Oh no!” Zaniyah caught on quickly. “Another would-be? “ She tapped her foot against the ground. “Wait, do you think it’s going to be the same one? Vex did say he wasn’t sure if his warding was going to last through the winter.”

Sybil didn’t want to think about it. “If it’s the same one, then it might try to come after me. It might even try to go after Vex since he was the one who warded it last time...” She shook her head. “We can’t stay here. We need to move.”

"What are you two on about?" Duxton stood up and his eyes darted between the two of them. "Why are both of you so panicked about this would-be? Is that the massive tainted beast you claimed to have fought on the way here? Someone would have spotted it such a large creature entering the core and this city has guards that are more than capable of handling it. Sit back and enjoy the show."

“I need to evacuate,” whispered Beat to Shaw, who nodded in return. He walked over and put a hand on Duxton’s shoulder. “Sir. We need to leave.”

Duxton pulled his shoulder free and shook his head. “Denied. I doubt that danger will come here, and danger is why I have you two.” But both Bead and Shaw were more serious looking than usual. It was enough to give the prince pause. “... Sybil. We should leave. The freak can come to, but we must depart immediately.”

Shaw took a step forward and looked down at Duxton. “Beat will escort you to safety. The three of us will be staying here as a distraction.”

Once more, Duxton shook his head in disagreement. “If you think I am going to agree to something like that-”

Shaw quickly put a hand up to Duxton’s ear and his eyes rolled into the back of his head as he lost consciousness. The prince fell forward into his arms. Beat presented his back, and Shaw helped lift up Duxton so Beat could carry him.

“He’s heavier than he looks,” grumbled Beat.

“He’s been eating too many sweets to compensate for his loss of blood iron. We’ll beat the fat out of him once we return to Braytons. Our task will be quick. We will join you at the hotel shortly.” He helped Beat clamor up to the roof of the building. The rooftops would be quicker than the panic-filled streets at the moment. Shaw then turned and stared at the pair of women. “... What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Zaniyah reached over and grasped onto Sybil’s hand. “He just totally knocked out Prince Duxton. Please tell me I’m not the only one who saw that.”

Sybil tightened her grip around Zaniyah’s. “I did notice that they tend not to listen to him but I didn’t think they would ever take it that far... He is going to be so mad when he wakes up.”

Shaw couldn’t bring himself to care. “He is in no condition to defend himself at the moment. My liege can be as disappointed as he wants with me, but it matters not. What matters is that you two are going to give me the information I need... You fought this before. What does it look like?”

A blast of wind carried a thick fog of miasma through the streets. The three covered their faces, coughing at the scent that it brought with it. As the fog swirled about, it formed into a giant hand that cracked the walls of the next building over.

The would-be's hand pulled its body into existence. Almost like a man or an ape, but with a badger's head. There were scars and patches of missing fur, injuries that it had incurred during the last battle. But the eyes were the most prominent features, bloodshot and nearly bulging out of its head.

“You will not dare to challenge me again...” Its voice boomed loudly enough for all to hear.

Zaniyah unhitched her axe from her back and held it in front of her. “I guess you can say it looks like that? Not all that impressive, if you ask me.”

Sybil took a step back. “Less sass, just fly!” She kicked off her slippers and started to run towards Shaw. “Launch me!”

Bending low, Shaw formed his shield in front of him at an angle. Sybil scrambled up it and Shaw forced her upward as she jumped. The hand of the would-be swooped underneath her, nearly snagging through the layers of her skirt, and she landed with a tumble against a nearby rooftop. Springing to a stand, she continued to run along the rooftops and towards the core entrance.

Shaw and Zaniyah were right behind her. Their superior speed allowed them to catch up and Shaw was able to move just as fast as Zaniyah was. They flanked Sybil, with Shaw on her left and Zaniyah on her right.

“The report stated that Tuton was the one that warded the creature away before, correct?” Shaw glanced behind him. The would-be had already dissipated again. A thick wall of fog was now giving him chase. “Will he also be heading to where we’re going?”

The two girls tossed each other a glance. “I mean, it’s fine.” Zaniyah remembered how stiff and reluctant Veximarl was to fight before. “It’s completely fine. I mean… We’re not going to die a miserable death or anything.” Shaw squinted at her response.

“Vex will pull through! He’ll know to go to the core! Have faith in him!” The air was nearly knocked out of Sybil’s gut as Shaw caught her around the stomach. Zaniyah pulled ahead as Shaw jumped back and a hand slammed down between the pair. “T-thanks,” Sybil wheezed out.

Shaw swung her over his shoulder, and Sybil adjusted herself so she was braced properly against his back. "Even without your shoes, you are moving too slowly. I'm carrying you until we reach our destination."

Veximarl would know exactly where Sybil would be heading, she was sure of it. He seemed to sense the would-be before and he would know it was after her this time as well. Sybil knew that Veximarl wasn't weak. She hoped that he knew that as well, at least enough to be able to pull himself together and ward off this monster once more. Her belief in him should be enough.

But was he really all that much better than he was when they ran into the beast before?

The papers that had been in Veximarl's shaking hands scattered across the floor. Had he misheard something? He knelt and started to put them together again as he shook his head. There was no way he heard it correctly… That booming would-be voice. Merely his imagine. He must be more stressed than he thought.

"I told you that a surgeon will need assistance in delivering the baby. Are you capable of handling that?" Kurtis Highland repeated in a louder tone.

“Ah, yes.” Veximarl bobbled his head as he set the papers down on the nearby table. “Even with a surgeon, I don’t believe it wise for me to be the one to handle the procedure.”

Doctor Highland disagreed. "You're the only one that we have here that is capable of warding away miasma sickness without medicine. For the sake of the child, you should be on hand to ensure his health." They both looked towards the sound of running and caught sight of Gwyn skidding around the corner. "Miss Hewitt, this is a hospital!"

She was clutching a sword to her chest. "Vex! Tainted beasts are flying above the streets and I believe I heard a would-be!"

The color faded from Veximarl’s face. “... Sir.” He looked over at the director.

Gritting his teeth, the director considered his options. “You specialize in fighting those creatures, correct?” Veximarl nodded. “Head outside and attempt to make contact with your supervisor for further orders. I am going to raise the alarm and send out clerics to locate any wounded. Tell your knights to keep an eye out for my doctors.”

Veximarl was visibly shaken, but he also knew that he couldn’t afford to break down here. “Yes, sir.” He headed down the hall while Gwyn followed after him. She was awkwardly attempting to pass the sword over.

“Are you going to be alright to go out there? Last time something like this happened-”

Turning on his heel, he grasped Gwyn about the small of her back. He gave a tug to her as his other hand reached for the back of her head, holding her in place as he forced a passionate kiss upon her. She froze up, staring at him in shock as he pulled away and straightened his clothes.

“If I manage to survive this, Miss Hewitt, will you do me the honor of allowing me to address you as Gwyn from now on?”

"T-that was always an option. You didn't have to..." She bit into her lip, then thrust the sword against his chest.

“Apologies. The shock of the situation made me act out in an impulsive and repulsive manner.”

“I will ignore your actions this time, but be assured that I will make a complaint to Lady Till if it happens again.”

Veximarl took the sword. "Of course." He made a small series of nods. "Your vines will prove useful in sealing off any windows or corridors. You should stay at the hospital and follow Lord Highland's orders."

“Of course,” she replied.

“Good luck.”

“... To you as well.”

He fetched his spear and made his way out of the hospital. Veximarl then found himself hesitating when he came face to face with the crowds. If he were to use his staff to summon something for him to ride, he would no doubt cause further panic. For now, he chose to press through and be thankful that the people who saw him holding weapons chose to get out of his way.

“Vex!”

Veximarl looked over and saw Alton hopping up and down while waving his hands “Alton!” He made his way to the squire and they both moved into an alley. “Where are the others? Are they near?”

“Chi should already be near the core, Zaniyah ran ahead, and I came here to fetch the sword.” He held out his hand and Veximarl passed it over. “Chi messaged me to say that the Braytons squires are to meet near the core entrance.” Grasping onto the scabbard firmly, Alton yanked on the hilt... It wouldn’t budge. He kept giving it forceful tugs while Veximarl spoke up.

“I’m concerned that the would-be is back. We need to get the sword to Sybil and see if she’s capable of kil- … What are you doing?” He watched as Alton put the scabbard between his knees so that he would have more leverage to pull the falchion loose.

Alton growled. “If we can activate this damn thing, we might be able to bring the would-be to us instead of trying to figure out where Sybil is. She’s stupid enough to go chasing after the thing, so we can use it to bring both of them here Or even better, my stupid family will leave her alone if they find out someone else can use it.”

Putting his hand to his chin, Veximarl thought about it. “... This doesn’t appear to be a plan which you have placed a lot of thought into.”

“Do you have a better idea?!” Alton held the sword upside down and began to shake it vigorously. Nothing seemed to be working.

“No.” Veximarl gestured for Alton to point the hilt towards him. “Let us attempt it together. We might be able to manage it then.”

Alton did as he was asked and both men braced themselves as they gave it a mighty pull. The falchion was wretched loose and both of them tumbled backward. Veximarl kept a tight grip on the blade as he fell onto his backside. He let out a hiss as he stood back up and rubbed at his bruised tailbone.

“Apologies, I hadn’t expected it to break free so eas… Alton?”

Alton was still tumbling backward, frozen mid-air as though time had stopped. He had let go of the scabbard, which was now floating above him. Veximarl walked a circle around the squire and let out a nervous squeak as he came face to face with a man glaring at him. It was an intimidating figure with a crown upon his head.

Cadogan Fogbloom’s form was only partially complete. He was mostly rotten and partially mummified in appearance. His single remaining eye followed Veximarl as he took a few wary steps backward, and another squeak escaped the necromancer as he turned around to see the woman he had backed into.

Alessia reached up and popped her jaw back into place. “Oooh, I like this... I like this a lot,” she cooed. “Much better than that white stuff we’re made out of when that girl uses us. And my head is so much clearer!” She spun around in a circle. “I feel as though I can do anything!”

Veximarl looked around and noticed that two others had joined them. There was a teen not that much younger than himself with a young girl hiding behind him. Both were equally rotten in appearance.

“... What is going on?” Veximarl asked as the air around him became all the more frigid. He blinked and suddenly he was somewhere entirely new... No. Not new at all. This was the swamp… A village that he had not been to in a very long time. There was screaming in the distance, and nearby, he could hear a woman singing.

“W-what is happening?” He twirled around, feeling very much frightened. Something hidden in his mind was beginning to haunt him. An ill memory that he had suppressed a long time ago and he wished with everything he had to be away from this place.