The mana burned, twisting and thickening where it touched–attempting to consume my limb.

Bind! Shackle! Chain! Ground the bird. Remove it's wings! Bi-

Ding!

Golden threads sprouted from my throne accompanying the chime bell. Around my soul a faint golden light suffused the world, tinting everything in it's luster.

A pulse from its end shot down its body, inflating the bands around my arms like giant balloons. My claws found purchase amidst its meat and sank deep. Strips of tar-like flesh melted away and turned to dust as the golden light reached its inner walls.

In the outside world I heard commotion as well as felt a metal boot slam into my back.

The mana–the curse–tried to retreat. A wounded animal, realizing its mouth was too small for its prey. I grabbed more of the thick substance and wound it around my forearm, dragging it back.

No you don't. You came into my soul attempting to bind me. You don't get to run just because I have claws!

Its flesh started to tear, splitting apart into threads that unwound. I gathered more in my arms and forced them back but then it started to pull away.

No!

More golden threads rose from my throne and latched on. Below me my familiars released their cries, joining me in my anger but stayed on their pedestals.

This was mine to handle and I was done playing around.

I pulled. At first the thing stretched, its mass mostly unmoved. Then I pulled harder and faster. Again, thrice over. Where I released the threads bound it tight, crushing the strands together until it resembled a bulbous orb tethered at the end of black rope.

The more I pulled the wrongness over my skin and inside my soul ebbed away–replaced by the authoritative golden light.

Soon I reached the end, nearing a hazy wall of black from where the thread stretched into nothingness. The curse mana writhed, quivering in my grip as the watermelon-sized ball dangled against my boot.

Anger rose, the gremlin grinned and inserted a thought into my head. As if in approval, knowledge flowed in from somewhere else, information I didn't and shouldn't have known.

The gold threads gathered in my palm and encased my claws in a glove of silk and steel.

Peter's skill–the curse–was a contract between souls. His mana sprouted from the metaphysical, taking place from inside his body and inside his very being. The skill he used to bind me, added another layer, stemming from him as the source.

What if I twisted the skill, changed the contract and rewrote it? My fingers twitched but that wasn't satisfiable.

I shook my head.

What if I grabbed hold and followed the skill back to its source. I hadn't projected my consciousness onto someone else before but then again I did say the tournament was for experimenting.

I reached for the wall and stopped.

What the fuck am I thinking? That would be stupid. You know nothing about souls, Cyrus. He could have total control of you in there. No, focus.

I lifted the contained mana inside the thread-ball and held it up. Knowledge flirted at the outskirts and I threaded my own mana into my palm. Two strings became four and turned into sharpened twine. I turned the ball in my hand and the golden threads retracted in a spot barely larger than a quarter.

It'd be enough.

My mana slammed into the opening and dived deep into the tar-like mass. It latched on in an effort to consume and escape through the opening but more of my mana flowed in, drowning it.

I didn't have a skill about writing contracts, and I barely knew anything about curses. However, I had made small contracts before–oaths to be exact.

The curse's nature bit at my mana but I crushed it beneath me and forced it flat, laying it bare. I wasn't adept or trained to mess with Peter's skill, but I only needed to change one line.

Who the curse was supposed to target.

I used my mana to reweave the skill and force the change. It hissed in my ear, attempting to run away but I had total control. When I finished I retracted my mana and willed the golden threads to release.

Slowly the bundle of tar flopped downward before it twitched to life. Then, in a blink, the threads pulled out of the wall and away from my body. In the outside world, I heard a scream of agony and I smirked.

Looking down to my familiars I gave them a thumbs-up and willed myself back to my body.

"What's happening?! You said this was going to be easy. That we had him if we activated the artifact!" Blondie shouted.

I kept still but looked up to see the noble staring at something behind me in fear. His hand held a dagger that pinned my arm to the ground but his fingers shook the hilt.

"Calm yourself. Whatever is Peter's issue, that felkin is bound. We'll ask what happened after he finishes tiering up," Helmet-head ordered.

Felkin? My earrings are still in, that means they got through the illusion somehow.

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At least the barrier around us prevented the crowd from seeing inside the arena. Didn't need all the other noble assholes to know what I was.

I flexed my arms and found that they had left me unbound, not even bothering to throw on some rope or metal chains. Idiots.

"How can you say that? Look at him! The ascension waste is retracting! His veins are black. We can't even be sure he'll survive!" Blondie exclaimed.

"I said we'll handle it. For now, keep an eye on the felkin. This'll all be for nothing if we cannot bind his mana. Our houses may accept our failure but the others will not. I don't need to remind you what happens to those who disappoint the families."

Blondie gnashed his teeth but turned his anger into pounding the sand beside me. His hand continued to tremble, sending irritating flashes of pain into my arm.

Time to fix that.

My free hand shot toward Blondie's ankles. To his credit, a skill activated and he launched to his feet, but not before I managed to claw a cut against his leg.

"He's awake!" he screamed.

I grabbed the dagger and pulled it out before I stood up. Inside my chest, mana thrummed to my will and split into three threads. Áine appeared and landed atop my shoulder, sending her mana down my arm.

I cracked my neck and looked around, finding my spear beside me unmoved.

"You really are idiots. All the talk about not making the same mistake. You couldn't even take away my weapon?" I kicked the spear into my hand and gave it a twirl. "Peacocks with useless feathers."

"How did you escape?!" Blondie demanded.

I cocked my head. "Hey, to confirm something real quick. You weren't lying about the people outside being unable to see into the barrier? Or was that all a bluff?"

Helmet-head stepped forward, his shield raised and sword pointed my way. "We told the truth. If you are expecting the arena master to intervene, she won't. Neither will the Lightcrests you harbor with. You are strong, but I can feel your mana weakened. If you agree to toss away your weapons and be bound, we will keep the injuries to a minimum."

He was right. Even with the curse expelled, I could still only faintly feel the link to Sturmrorex. Mana flowed into my palm but I couldn't summon electricity nor control the wind.

I snorted and extended my spear at Blondie's head.. "No thanks, you already told me what I needed to know."

He took an involuntary step back before realizing what he did and stomped in place. His sword ignited in cherry-red flames that dripped onto the sand.

"And that is?" Helmet-head asked, hesitating.

In response, I pulled the trigger and allowed the mana to connect to the skill wisps floating at the ready. At the same time, I deactivated Spirit Lord's Invocation and pulled what looked like a grey fragment of light into my chest. Sturmrorex's weight settled in and dropped my inward focus.

Two forms emerged before me, one taking to the sky while another dropped low to the ground. Helmet-head raised his shield and drew stones to surround him and blondie. For his part, more of the enchantments inscribed into Blondie's weapon activated and the flames around his sword lengthened several feet as it grew in size.

Zharia screeched and ignited her feather's becoming a ball of angry gold. Correction–a very angry ball of golden fury.

At my feet, a puddle of blood materialized and separated into four distinctive heads. The hound-like hydra tasted the air and snapped toward Blondie's direction.

"Shall we burn them to ash, Master?!" Zharia screeched.

"Devour? Play? Chew! Fight!" Zagreus' heads said together.

I leaned forward and grinned. "Go wild."

Zharia darted for Helmet-head and dived against his shoulder. His shield rose to intercept but she pulled back, releasing a wave of flames from her wings. Blondie attempted to swipe at her but her talons scraped against the metal and came away with a chunk of the red fire in her grip.

The noble stared in disbelief before Zagreus leaped forward, crashing into his chest.

"Blood! Mine! Devour! More!" Zagreus cheered.

His tail hammered into Blondie's leg, sending his attempt to stand crashing into the sand.

"Get away from me!" he screamed.

His sword slashed into Zagreus' chest, splitting him down the middle. My anger briefly flared at the look of triumph in the stupid noble's face but my familiar had it handled. His body clamped around the blade and flowed together, locking in place. Zharia rushed over and landed atop the metal, pulling in the flames and short-circuiting the enchantment.

"Wha-"

Four heads found purchase, as did a massive claw. One bit into his shoulder, the second against his arm. The third honed in on a cut against his leg and sank their fangs deep as the fourth grabbed a foot.

"Aagh! Let go! Let go!"

"No! No. No! No!" Dark green liquid shot down the four necks and down into Zagreus' fangs. Blondie's protests turned into high pitch screams while my familiar bit down harder. "Tasty, blood! Let's wrestle more!"

Without his sword, Blondie summoned flames into his hand and sent it against my familiar but whatever damage he took, Zagreus rebuilt. Mana drained from the link and I could feel it strain, still affected by the lingering aftereffect of the curse.

Soon the pale skin of the noble turned disgusting shades of brown and black. It spread from the wounds and within seconds turned his head an entirely differen't shade. Blondie's attacks grew weaker and his arms dropped to his side.

"N–noo. L-l-let goooo," he said weakly.

Zagreus' body grew larger and Blondie's eyes fluttered shut. The flames sputtered out and his mana went inert as Zagreus lifted him into the air.

"Don't kill him. Need him alive before I get accused of something stupid."

"Okay! He's not that tasty!" Zagreus hissed.

The dark green streamed out of Blondie, escaping from his orifices. Once the poison had been removed, Zagreus gave him a shake and the blackened flesh where he bit mushed apart, tearing from Blondie's body. The noble rolled to a stop and Zagreus spat out the gross remains.

"Áine heal him. Keep him just alive enough where he won't die." I ordered.

She flew off my shoulder and landed beside the unconscious man. Her disgust prevented her from landing on him, but she still sent a kick against his side for good measure. Thankfully, her skill activated and healing mana stopped the bleeding.

Turning back to Helmet-head, Zagreus stalked closer, circling him while Zharia unleashed balls of fire against his front. The sands around them burned in the aftermath, creating a hellscape pinning the noble in.

"How can you have three familiars? Who is sponsoring you?" He demanded.

I shrugged and gave my spear a twirl, threading mana into another skill. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"You're an anomaly. With this much power, you have no reason to be in this tournament–not for the rewards. Who sent you?! The houses are angry but they would be willing to talk if your master is willing to pay reparations."

My eye twitched. "Counter offer. Go fuck yourself."

"Very well. You have left me no choice."

Helmet-head raised his hand and a shiny orange pill appeared above his head. He caught it between a gap in his helmet and knocked it back.

Oh? What now?

His shield slipped but his mana exploded in power. His skin turned dark brown mixed with shades of grey and yellow. In his hand, the runes inside his shield flared and expanded the stone barrier by several feet. Steam wafted off his skin and he tossed aside his sword.

Helmet-head crouched and smacked his hand against the ground sending a massive surge into the sand. As he stood, black stone rose from his palm and streamed into a long shaft supporting a halberd's edge larger than his head. Around his body the stones fitted together and his form grew three feet in size, becoming a towering hulk with glowing yellow veins reminiscent of magma.

From the mana alone, he stood far above any other noble, showing even more than most of Broken Tower, barring Teddy.

His voice crackled with barely constrained static. "It could have been easy. Now I will have to break you before we bind your mana. Come, and meet your fate."

I whistled. "No thanks. I have a better idea."

Mana pushed into the skillwisp and touched the link between my familiars. A roar built in my throat and pushed past my lips. It blasted sand away from my body and released a wave of pearlescent mana into the air.

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