Debauchery of a Soul-Eating Wraith

Killing Donan, a Larnak Captain, was quite the big deal in current stakes. It was a feat no one else at the scene had achieved quite yet. Not even the Renan Captains.

There was a tonal shift after that.

Somehow, close enough to see Donan's lifeless body fall to the ground or not, the Larnak Knights were faced with their imminent loss. They were faced with the realization that they were only delaying the inevitable.

Some looked at their fallen comrades in despair. The zeal to fight was gone. They never had a chance and that was only becoming more apparent the more of their men fell and yet, they struggled to say the two words that might have caused a ceasefire. The two words being; We Surrender.

The Larnak forces, like a tortoise retreating into its shell, pulled back and spilled into the Larnak Estate grounds. They looked upon it as some form of sanctuary but their despair remained when their foes followed them in.

'Will it never end?' They wondered in unison.

Tired of being massacred at practically every turn, they sought respite. Alas, none of their foes were ready to give them that. Gryon, Carleine, and Ember remained with the Stygian and Renan Knights, and with Donan dead, Gillert joined them.

After Evian acknowledged her presence with a smile she was delighted to see, Daria stood to the side and once again observed with an almost callous detachment.

Evian though kept at it.

With an insatiable hunger to eat Souls and stack up his Soul Points, he still shot out Eldritch arrows at unsuspecting Elite Larnak Knights. Although weaker than his Whiro Barbed Spear Spell, Evian relied more on the Eldritch Arrow spell since it did not require a cooldown. He could spam the spell as much as he wanted as long as he had a healthy reserve.

Some of the targets had the good sense to keep up a protective layer of Spiritual energy around their bodies at all times and as for the ones that didn't, the Arrows assassinated them and reaped their Souls for Evian's delectable satisfaction but they were merely a side dish.

Evian had more poaching in his sights and opportunity arrived when a Renan Captain had been so dominant in his battle that he had inflicted his Larnak Captain opponent with multiple injuries and forced him to his knees where he looked too weak to go on.

With a grin, Evian gripped his Spear tighter and charged it with Eldritch energy to the point where the entire weapon exuded the deathly chill.

He swung and the Eldritch energy charged in the shape of a scythe with a force strong enough to slam the weakened Larnak Captain off his knees and into the wall of the Larnak Estate.

*BANG!*

"Nghh..."

Groaning mostly in surprise at a move he had not expected from an opponent he was not facing directly, the Captain's legs shook due to his weakness. His eyes widened when Evian used Wraithic Phasing to cover the distance between them just so he could stab his spear through his shoulder.

"Arrrrrggggghhhhh!" he yelled not only due to the pain of the stab but also the infiltration of Eldritch energy into his body. The Deathly numbing felt like an omen telling him Death was creeping close. He believed.

He could still see Donan's limp bloody body on the ground, dead courtesy of the very Spear currently stabbed into his dominant shoulder.

His entire arm was inflicted with the pain and sword-wielding became a chore.

He raised his weapon-free hand and grabbed the shaft of Evian's Spear, overpowering the inferior strength that wielded the Spear enough to pull the Spearhead out of his shoulder, before pulling it aside enough to throw off Evian's equilibrium.

The Renan Captain who had been responsible for the heated combat that resulted in the weakening of Evian's most recent potential Soul-Eating Victim, had his mouth gaped in surprise.

Their directive, whether officially stated or not, was to follow Evian's lead but the Renan man still felt it was scummy for Evian to poach his kill. Of course, like the shameless hungry Wraith he was, Evian paid the look he got no heed as he balanced his stance and began unleashing his admittedly limited arsenal of spells.

The Larnak Captain, weak as he was, remained in a Martial Order above Evian's, and apart from the strength advantage he had and tried to make full use of, he also fought with renewed vigor against an Opponent he believed he could handle. He saw this as an opportunity to boost his confidence following his debilitating loss to an opponent on his level in a war where the stakes were at an intense high.

With swift action, the Captain smacked aside Evian's spells but due to an already weakened stance courtesy of his slightly shaky legs, the force behind the spells still pushed him back and pressed his back to the wall.

With a small grunt of effort, Evian stabbed his Spear towards the Captain's chest, only to groan when his opponent sidestepped and his weapon stabbed into the wall instead. The blowback impacted his arm with an intense numbing and before he could recover from that, a fist connected to the side of his face.

*BAM*

The Captain followed up with an upward kick and Evian had not yet recovered from the blow to the face when he felt an intense pain in his stomach that caused him to double over, sure that his ribs were fractured but the Captain was not yet done;

He transferred his sword from his right hand (dominant hand with an injured shoulder) to his left and made an upward swing that was so aggressive, it was bound to slice Evian's head in two.

Daria's arms fall from beneath her breasts, her movement circle steered in her readiness to intervene but ultimately, there was no need.

Evian, alerted by his senses and moved by his reflexes angled his head to the side so the upward slash only cut a gash across his cheek.

The Captain's swing with his left arm was already not as smooth or balanced as it would have been with his right and not making a momentum-stopping contact with Evian's head threw him even more off course.

Evian rose, raised his Spear, and swung it at the Captain's neck.

The Captain's eyes widened in imminent terror,

'Damn... Well, I'll just move out of the way-- SHIT!'

His exhaustion from his previous battle and an injury, gained from Evian's weapon, finally set in and his body succumbed.

His knees shook and buckled.

'Healing potion!' he thought with a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe he might be able to avoid Donan's fate.

Alas, it was too late.

His hand had just dipped into his spatial pouch and touched the tip of the potion's cork when the bloody silver spearhead of Evian's weapon flashed right before it made contact.

*Sksh*

A wide wound appeared. The Captain gurgled, he struggled to cling to life but it was futile.

*Thud*

He crumbled to the ground and his soul pulled free, looking confused at his loss right before his confusion turned to horror that his journey was set to end in Evian's Soul-eating maw.

The Thousand Soul Points had barely added to Evian's counter when a yell came from within the Estate grounds.

Everyone had heard the *Gong* sounds from within the Estate grounds undoubtedly for a battle they could not see but they had paid it no mind seeing as they were in intense situations themselves. But this yell... No one could ignore.

It struck hard in the ears of any and everyone within the immediate space outside the Estate.

A yell that shook the grounds.

A yell born of insidious intentions... Masked in false worry.

•••

Disappointed and resigned to the fact that Evian would not be present to witness her upcoming performance, Yvette took her eyes off the distressed Larnak Knights filling the Estate grounds and returned her sights to the battle of Sixth Order Territorial Lords right before her.

She stepped towards them, cautiously, beware of the shockwaves their blows caused, the intensity of their released pressure that would, no doubt, smack her in the face should she get too close despite being in the Fifth Order herself.

Lord Averill Stygian discarded the use of the Stygian Gong. He believed the effects of the previous attacks, which Herbert was no doubt still feeling was enough to capitalize on with his large sword.

He wasn't wrong.

Herbert's head was ringing, his mind muddled and his battle instincts dulled but still he fought with intensity.

*Clang*

*Clang*

*Clang*

*Bam*

*Bam*

*Bam*

Weapon against weapon... Blow for blow... Both Lords gave as much as they received and then, Yvette saw a chance to make good on her promised involvement.

Averill Stygian's sword came down for a strike, Herbert raised his spear for a Parry, and Yvette drew on every bit of Spiritual energy she had, making use of her ability to accurately control it, and instilled it all into her voice... Letting it ring out in a thunderous capacity.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

If the ears of all those outside the Estate could be struck, you can imagine how affected Herbert was by his Wife's scream.

He looked over thinking she was distressed only to see she was now only a foot from him. She resisted his pressure, grabbed his arm, and pulled it to the side just enough to leave him open to attack.

Averill couldn't have stopped his sword swing even if he wanted to and he didn't want to.

His sword struck, slicing so deep, that it appeared like an attempt to cleave the Larnak Lord in two.

Herbert was confused.

If he didn't know any better, he would have guessed he had just been sabotaged by his wife.

In that moment, as death came close and Herbert found his grip on life slipping away, Yvette wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him clarity with a whispered message meant for his ears only,

"Good riddance, You neglectful Bastard!"

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