Cortist clenched his fists tightly, drawing in a breath as he prepared to yell his name. However, his voice caught in his throat before the sound ever formed. A shiver ran down his spine, the words clumped together like mud in his mouth, and a penetrating grasp of ice clutched tightly around his heart, threatening to squeeze the very life from it should he dare continue. A terrible feeling came over the panther, as he realized what disobeying his master would mean. If Cortist ever spoke anything deemed forbidden, his life would be taken from him immediately. Death let out a pleased, mocking sentence.

"Why do you hesitate, my child? Do you not want your freedom? Are you perhaps content merely being my puppet after all? I applied that restriction only moments ago... Can the young, prodigal mage of Alora really be bested so easily? Are you such an obedient cub? Let's test that... Kneel."

Cortist's knee slammed to the ground below sharply, his body moving on its own as he vainly struggled to stop the action. Death spoke again.

"Not enough. Place your head in the dirt, show me how much you truly want to serve me."

Cortist's forehead hit the ground roughly, sending sharp waves of pain through his skull as a cry shot from his maw. Death wasn't through making his point, pressing the panther further.

"Now purr for your master, like a good kitten."

A wave of shame overtook the big cat as he was humiliated so easily, his throat betraying him as a low rumble echoed forth, purring as if he were enjoying such treatment. Death amusingly gave the feline a final order.

"Hold your breath."

Cortist felt his lungs seize instantly, stopping his purring and stealing away his air as he struggled to defy the god. The young mage was held there mercilessly for a moment, his arms trembling as he wondered when he would black out before the voice finally spoke into the darkness once more.

"You may breathe."

Cortist immediately sucked in air, gasping as he choked in a breath of life. The panther panted in place for a moment before Death spoke to him again.

"You certainly seem like a puppet to me, or did you believe breaking your word to a god was so easily done?"

Cortist was feeling defeated, he was feeling hopeless, he was alone, he was trapped, and he was silently sobbing in that darkness, his head still firmly ordered against the ground below him. Death took on a mock tone of affection when he spoke again.

"Shhh. It's alright, little kitten. Most of your kind cry when they realize how futile it is to fight me. Just remember this the next time defiance crosses your mind. I wonder what the shield bearer would think to be reunited with his brother at last, only for his best friend to tell him how much he hated him, how much he had always hated him... I could order you to first crush his heart with your words, then with your magic... Better yet... What would your fiancée think when her beloved abruptly cut off their engagement? I wonder how many tears she would cry when you tell her you have taken a prettier, more worthy bride. That she was merely a useful toy that actually believed a noble son of Alora could ever truly love a common born like her..."

Cortist was reaching new levels of panic as the god made his threats. The panther whimpered, finally accepting his circumstances as he spoke in a broken voice.

"Enough... That is enough... I am yours. I know this... Please, do not bring them pain... I will be obedient, just please don't hurt them... Please don't make me hurt them." Cortist's voice was cracking, his heart aching all over again in both his loneliness and his helplessness. Death spoke at last.

"Then you may rise, my child."

Cortist felt the power of the first commands give at last, returning his control to him. The mage did not move from his spot, feeling far too defeated. He would simply lay there, in the darkness, never wanting to upset such a cruel master again, too afraid of being forced to harm someone he loved.

Cortist Venatus curled into a ball after his inconsequential attempt to fight back and went silent for over an hour. The only reason it was not longer was because a light came to his vision as the sword demon returned, opening up a fresh scar into the stark brightness of the outside world. The panther finally sat up, silently praying this demon would take him from this place once more.

The demon took two steps in and disappeared down to two glowing, yellow orbs as the light snuffed away behind him. The eyes bobbed as if the creature were turning his head up, listening closely to something the panther did not hear. After a moment like that, the demon looked back towards the mage, stepping closer to the beast. Cortist nervously waited as the monster approached, not certain if this was a good or a bad thing yet. The raspy, strained voice of the demon called down to the young panther.

"Come. We must guide them."

Cortist stared at the golden wisps the monster had for eyes a moment longer before he replied, his frustration showing.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, but you're probably getting used to that at this point... Fine, anywhere, is better than here."

The orbs simply stared back at the cub for a moment, trying to relay some meaning lost to the panther. Finally, the demon did reply.

"You should not fight our master. He is not the enemy."

The mage scoffed at such words, feeling he had never faced a greater enemy.

"Did our kind and benevolent god force you to say that? Or did you come up with it on your own when you attacked my home?"

The orbs shook slowly from side to side as the creature answered.

"No, although he could force us to lie... Ask him yourself. Death does not lie when he speaks to his children. Death has no need... As far as collecting my debts, I have no apologies for you or your tyrant..."

Cortist simply shuddered as he stood, not wanting to hear his master's voice again for as long as he could help it. A familiar icy grasp fell around his wrist, and the demon turned, walking the mage behind him just as before, stopping to open a new portal after a few paces. Cortist looked through the rift with a bit of surprise, already coming up with another question for the demon.

"Here again?"

The demon turned, his obsidian clad frame now illuminated by the light from the scar.

"Yes. We need to prepare for our visitors. They were supposed to avoid the forest, but the Earthwyrm disrupted that when it called the fiends... Now, we have to get them through this thicket without waking the mountain. The sword is not ready."

Cortist nearly jumped out of his hide as those words registered to him. The demon was finally answering him... But more importantly...

"Wait, so when you said `We must guide them,' You meant... Aster?"

The monster nodded once, keeping its gaze focused on the panther as it confirmed as much.

"Correct. I told you, our master is not the enemy... He is merely a destination at the end... He is trying to end all of this at last. He's allowing me to speak with you more clearly now. I may be able to tell you some of what you wish to know, but not all. You will have to call on him once more before too long. You will have to accept your role in this now. You will have to learn to trust, only then will you learn all you need to."

Cortist sighed loudly as a headache started forming behind his eyes. It seemed the answers were still cryptic, but better than such silence. He didn't trust this demon after what it had done at the arena, and he certainly didn't trust the god of death whatsoever... But knowing he could keep an eye on things himself did make him feel a bit better. He asked something that had been eating away at his mind. Something that struck him as out of place.

"So who are you? You're not just a greater demon... Your eyes are wrong. They should be red. You're also shaped too much like beastmen... like humans. It's like you're only wearing armor, no deformities... And that sword? It has powers that aren't your own, doesn't it? Your kind doesn't usually use weapons like that."

The demon stared off for a moment, as if asking permission. He finally answered the young panther after his short pause.

"He will not let me say... Speaking our old names holds some degree of power over the dead... But he will let me show you."

The demon stepped through the scar, returning to where the panther had last camped in the forest. Cortist followed him through after, ecstatic to finally get some answers, and for a shred of conversation. As the young mage stepped through, the portal into the void disappeared behind him.

The panther quickly recognized his previous setting and turned to the demon, his next question catching in his throat as he laid eyes on the monster once more.

There, among the brush, in the late afternoon sun cascading over the tree line of the dense forest, the demon stood. The fiery wisps of golden yellow burning where his eyes should be was flaring with an intensity that matched the sunshine itself.

Cortist suddenly realized who else had such breathtaking golden colors strewn into his eyes... Cortist wondered how he hadn't seen it before. It was so obvious to him then. The golden Peacekeeper's shield raised before the demon erased any further doubt, regardless of how unsettling it was to the young mage.

This thing was Aster's birth father. This demon was what was left of King Calium Aureus. This human had made quite an interesting pact with death.

***

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