Chapter 354: A Greater Fury
Lilith's head snapped up. "Above!"
Out of the swirling snow, fuzzy shapes stood against the white of the storm, lunging towards them.
They were covered in dark carapace, with wings shaped like scythes and curved forelegs.
Insects, easily the size of a full grown man, hurtled toward the barrier, eyes glowing a cold blue, wings buzzing at an unnatural pitch.
Ren tightened the field.
"Hold!" He barked, and the bubble shimmered brighter as the insects hit it.
The resonance caught them, slowing their descent, but didn't stop them entirely. Their weight and momentum pressed in like cannonballs. One cracked its leg against the outer edge of the dome, screeching in curiosity.
If this were another place, Ren would've exploded the dome, sending them flying, but doing that here would expose them to the cutting winds. Besides, he already had someone to take care of this for him.
Lilith moved.
Her knife flew from her fingers, slicing the air. The moment it breached the bubble, it was caught in the outer layer of Ren's Push.
The field didn't stop it. It amplified it, pushing it outwards.
The knife rocketed forward with more speed and power, drilling into the insect's skull and erupting out the other side in a spray of ichor.
The insect dropped dead immediately.
Lilith's knives speared through the air, passing through the dome around them in similar fashion, and taking out the insects pressing against it.
There was a muffled screech as another one came from the side.
Lilith threw again. Another kill.
She pivoted, her arms blurring, knives flying from her hands. The moment they passed through the edge of the barrier, they sped up, slicing through carapace, wings, and eyes, reaping death.
Thorn stayed close, his arms up and ready, but the worst case scenario never happened. Lilith moved around the confines of the barrier, handling the insects.
In a minute, it was quiet around them, save for the now familiar howls of the wind.
They continued on their journey, and of course, more attacks came. Sporadic, but vicious.
The creatures lunged in from the storm, only to be killed by Lilith's knives, even before they could touch the barrier.
After what felt like another few hours, the wind began to weaken.
The snow lightened.
Then, just as suddenly as it had come, the storm vanished.
They emerged from the blizzard into silence, the howls of the wind gone like it had never existed.
It was night now. The jungle, the lava, the endless snow, everything lay behind them.
Before them was a vast clearing, ringed on all sides by the swirling blizzard they'd just walked out of. It encircled them like a cage of ice, but within the clearing, the sky was clear.
Above, a full moon hung high, casting a silver glow across the snow-blanketed ground. Stars twinkled in the dark canvas beyond.
And at the center of the clearing hovered a glowing ball of golden energy.
It shimmered gently in midair, about the size of a clenched fist, shedding soft warmth that made the night feel almost serene.
Ren exhaled.
"There it is." He whispered. "The Divine Gift."
They stood still, their boots planted in the snow, hearts racing from the climb.
And then came the voice. An amused female voice.
"Well, well, well." It said. "What a surprise."
The trio turned as one, eyes locking on a figure walking out of the blizzard, thirty meters away from them.
"Seems like our prediction wasn't quite perfect, sisters. We have company."
A woman stood there, blindfolded, her long coat fluttering slightly in the breeze. Behind her, two more figures moved into view, equally beautiful, equally blindfolded.
Ren took a step forward, a dark expression covering his face. "The Furies."
Now that they were in front of him, the memories came rushing back. The Furies had been designed as the main boss of the Divine Gift storyline of the game.
He couldn't remember the names of the other two Furies, but he knew the name of the leader, the one in the middle. Morgan.
Morgan took a step forward, her blindfolded gaze fixed squarely on Ren. Though her eyes were covered, her expression carried the sharp calm of someone utterly confident in her advantage.
"I would suggest," she said, her voice light and filled with amusement, "that you turn around. That Divine Gift is ours. You've done well to make it this far, but this is where your journey ends."
Ren stepped in front of Lilith and Thorn, standing tall. "I might've considered it, but the moment I heard your voice, the urge died."
"You sound like someone asking to be punched in the face, and I don't like listening to people who sound like that." He smirked. "We'll be going for the Divine Gift. You're welcome to try and stop us."
Morgan's smile twitched. "I wasn't offering you a choice. Turn around and walk away… or you'll lose more than just your lives."
Thorn scoffed. "You talk like you've already won."
Morgan's voice dropped. "I've already seen it. You should've run while you had the chance."
There was no more talking after that.
The Furies moved.
Morgan surged forward in a blur of speed, headed straight for Ren, while the second angled toward Thorn. The third darted low, aiming directly for Lilith.
Lilith didn't wait.
She surged forward, meetingher charge head-on, knives already flashing in her hands.
Their bodies collided, and Lilith knives flashed in the air as she slashed and spun. But the Fury was ready.
She moved like water, every twist of her hips or angle of her head one step ahead of Lilith's attacks. It was as if she was reading Lilith's mind, dodging before Lilith even made the decision to attack.
Lilith threw one of her knives at the Fury's head in surprise, but the woman merely tilted her head to the side, her claws darting out and catching Lilith off-guard.
The claws descended in a wicked arc, tearing across Lilith's chest, and slicing clean through her clothes.
But that was all.
The claws failed to dig into flesh. Lilith's Soul Dominion shimmered faintly, protecting her like a second skin.
The Fury blinked in surprise, but it was too late.
Lilith's hand lashed out and seized her wrist.
"Bad idea." Lilith murmured, her voice filled with fury.
With a twist and a crack, the Fury's wrist snapped backward, bone shattering from Lilith's grip.
A shrill scream split the air as the woman reeled, trying to pull away.
Lilith let go, letting her leap backward, but not before the damage had been done. The Fury clutched her broken arm to her chest, teeth bared in pain.
Across the clearing, Ren and Thorn were faced with battles of their own, but Lilith wasn't watching them.
She didn't need to.
She trusted them.
Her eyes stayed on the woman before her, still crouched and cradling her ruined wrist.
Lilith took a step forward, her lips curling into a grin.
"You have no idea," she said, her voice dropping to a purr, "how badly I've needed this."
Her fingers flexed around her knives.
"All the running. The hiding. The plans. The stress. And then some arrogant little bitch decides to flirt with my husband."
Her voice trembled with barely restrained emotion. "Do you know how long I've been holding that in?"
The Fury's eyes widened behind the blindfold, taking a cautious step back.
Lilith laughed.
A low, dangerous sound.
"Perfect. Now I get to let it all out."
And with that, she lunged.