As the priestess slowly edged toward the forest, flashbacks raced through her mind of Marie’s terrifying, seldom-seen weapon. A long golden staff whose tip sprouted into various branch-like appendages. From the tip of each branch grew impossible fruit-shaped rubies that would jingle with each step. It was not something used physically like her scythe or Lucia’s flail and that what’s made it all the more frightening. Zulema shuddered, struggling to bury the memories of the few times she’s seen it in action. What Marie had forced enemies to endure at her hand… Even Zula had had her limits. All from simply plucking the staff’s crystalline fruit and—

  “This had better not be one of your tests, Derleth. Or I will grow an icicle so large inside of your mouth that it impales your disgusting alien brain—”

  Clink clink clink.

  Again, there was the sound of a jingling that wasn’t meant to be there. Any notion of it being an auditory hallucination was dwindling.

  “Could Marie really be…?” she mumbled to herself. Was she finally about to earn her reprieve from Derleth’s demented plan? The Scarlet priestess took off into a sprint toward the forest where the sound was coming from. Surely with their combined might they would be able to end the terror of this eldritch abomination and vanquish another impeding threat to Lady Macha’s reign. Throwing all caution to the wind, Zula yelled out, “Marie! Is that you, Sister Marie? Do not be alarmed! It’s me! Zulie! I was captured and have barely managed to eke out a living in this forsaken mountain! I—”

  The priestess’s cry was cut short by a sudden gust that had appeared to slice a swath right through the snow directly in front of her, along with some of the surrounding branches.

  Zulema had stopped in her tracks, just barely dodging whatever it was that had tried to cleave her. Had her luck run out by Derleth returning just in time to stop her timely escape? If so, then where was he? The priestess surveyed the area around her, but could see nothing but a wasteland of frozen trees that stretched on for miles. The familiar chiming had abruptly stopped earlier and all she could hear was the howling sound of a blizzard picking up. Perhaps in her despair she had only heard what she had wished to and that whatever strange attack had assaulted her had only been a trap set up by her captor to prevent her from running away. His threats had rarely ever seemed empty. As she slowly slunk back towards the entrance of the base clearing, she had somehow managed to trip over a root sticking up from the snow, causing her to tumble to the ground. She could feel herself lose the energy to get back up and instead further buried her face in the slush. Zulema’s dwindling hope had edged dangerously close to empty and she found it increasingly difficult to keep believing that rescue would be coming after so long.

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  “Zulie?”

  Zula’s head shot straight up at the familiar call of her name. She turned and saw a red-headed woman standing behind her, wearing a black habit and robe and with eyes hidden behind a gray blindfold. Zulema flipped over almost immediately and sat up, not sure if she was imagining things or not. She replied an in uncharacteristically meek manner, “By the mad maidens’ moons… M-Marie? Is that truly you?”

  The fiery-haired priestess knelt down with an outstretched arm, gesturing for Zule to take her hand. Pulling her up to her feet, she looked her up and down before embracing her. “Zulie! I knew I would find you! Do you know how sick with worry I was about you?!”

  “Marie, I can’t believe you’re actually here! I missed you so much.” Zulema broke the hug and looked closely at the blindfolded woman. “Tell me, were they able to rescue Lucy?”

  “Sister Lucia is fine, dear. She’s all patched up now and is waiting to meet you again!”

  “Oh, thank madness! I knew Lady Macha had to have been watching over us. Shit! I almost forgot! I have an urgent warning I must deliver to the church about a potential bad actor in our midst. He kidnapped me and has been trying to extort me for information for days! We must act quickly before he returns!”

  “Oh my, that sounds positively frightening. Hmm, perhaps we should engage him together then?”

  “We can’t! That thing is not human! He’s beyond even an E-class, I don’t know of any designation for him, but we definitely cannot fight him alone. We must return to the Church and form a battalion! Get the entire Malachian army down here!”

  “You’re awfully eager to return, aren’t you Sister? Tell me, if he is such a threat, then how is you’ve able to survive in these harsh conditions for so long? Much less have had the opportunity to slip from his sight long enough to escape? I find it remarkably unbelievable.”

  “W-What are you saying? That monster kept me alive to do his bidding! He took my eye! He even took my thaumaturgy! I’ve lost my connection to Lady Macha! I can no longer feel her presence!”

  “Oh dear, it seems like the rumors were true then.” Marie’s face slowly sunk into a frown. An expression that seemed to send a chill down Zula’s spine. “You’ve been corrupted by him. Made an apostate. A Dromomaniac.”

  “No! What are you saying?! No! You think I wanted this?! Are you insane?”

  “Yes, and quite frankly, I’m afraid that you no longer are. My poor, dear girl. I could wish no worse a fate on someone.”

  “Marie, please! Let us return. Just let me explain to them and grovel before Lady Macha. I assure you she will forgive me. She will find another path for one so remorseful as I. I promise to atone for this injustice. But more importantly than that, we must warn them about this threat!”

  “Tsk tsk tsk. You wish to return and, what? Corrupt more of our fellow sisters? Worry not, I will deliver news of this threat and if you truly, truly wish to atone, Sister Zulema… There is but only one way.” The priestess reached deep into her sleeve and produced a large knife. “You must kill yourself.”