Page 3823

“Well, well, well!” came the familiar intonations of the Mad Demon. “Looks like ol’ Morgy here is the only one in the know! But that’s nothing new, now is it? You guys are always playing catch-up, aren’tcha?”

“What nonsense are you spewing now?” said Dozer.

“He’s not after your pet lizard, Dozy. Weren’t you paying attention? He’s clearly after Germal. Just like I am, as it so happens! What a coinkidink, eh?!”

“Hmph.” Dozer looked between the two of them as Koh debated trying to circumvent him and resume attacking. “Why the sudden turn? By my recollection, he has been the Liar’s stalwart companion for near a century already.”

“Why, you ask? Because, like me, he understands that it’s the right thing to do!”

“You cannot possibly be attempting to moralize at me, Nibas. You, of all people.”

“Look, I’m tryin’ somethin’ new. Maybe I’ve undergone something of a change, myself! Maybe I’m a new man!”

“If only that were possible,” came another voice from the left, this one feminine, belonging to the empress Sai-hee. And along with it, the whirling storm around them began to dampen, somewhat. Not in fury, but merely in noise. As though they had been put into a protective bubble, of sorts, with less need to speak in such intense voices. “More likely, this is yet another of your obnoxious games. You know nothing of Man-Eater’s motivations, do you? You’re merely spinning yarns again.”

Morgunov clutched his chest. “My darling Saya! Say it isn’t so! You don’t really view me that way, do you?!”

She made no response.

Koh couldn’t help turning and growling at Morgunov.

“Whoa there, buddy. What’s your problem now, huh?”

In spite of everything, a part of Koh had actually begun to hope that the Mad Demon knew enough of the true circumstances here, that he would be able to articulate Koh’s position for him. But the more he listened to the man speak, the less likely that was seeming.

And it was rather irritating, to say the least.

Morgunov chortled as he looked over the others. “Honestly, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m actually on the dog’s side now!”

“How could that possibly be?” said the empress. “You are making even less than usual, Nibas.”

“I know, right?! I feel like I should be holding a bigger grudge, considering he just got done biting me in the face seventeen times, but sometimes, I guess that’s just how the cookie crumbles!”

Koh very much wanted to make it eighteen.

Page 3822

The other hand was proving elusive, though. Gohvis was trying to keep it away from him.

Annoying. Not much time until the missing hand regrew. Needed to be quick or try something else.

Spikes next. From all over Gohvis’ body. They skewered Koh in dozens of places, which wasn’t itself a problem, but they stunted his movement. Held him in place. Made it even harder to reach the evading hand.

Fine.

Koh’s eyes burned with black fire as he summoned the power of the Darklight directly. It filled his mind and soul like never before. Much more than anticipated. He’d only wanted to spit out a beam of dark energy, as he’d seen Kallmakk do countless times now, but what came forth instead was more like an explosion.

And at point-blank range, it tore through the Scourge’s body, spikes and all, sending the man toppling backwards in the air, head over tail. Ettol took some of the hit, too, but it still wasn’t enough.

Koh saw his chance. He dove after them, gunning for the hand again.

Then someone else got in the way.

Someone unmovable. Someone who stopped him cold with a firm grip on his bloodied snout.

“I must kindly ask you to stop this now,” said Dozer in two voices. The chaos of the hurricane and churning seas was finally converging back in on them, loud as could be, and yet his voice was still perfectly clear to Koh’s ears.

The voice of an emperor. One who intended to be heard.

It was enough, at least, to give Koh pause. Make him reassess. Must this man also be his opponent? Was there not some way to reach an understanding? While Koh could not speak, he could still pass information along, such as to the Outerdark Patrol. They understood his intentions.

So he tried again. With his aura. Attempting to make his intent known. He meant Dozer and Gohvis no harm. Only Ettol. Only Germal.

Fighting had again broken out all around them, however. A true mess. Koh could not entirely discern who was fighting whom. Abolish and the Vanguard, of course, but the Patrol was in there, too, apparently clashing with them both.

Unfortunate, but sadly expected.

“I know you can understand me, wolf,” said Dozer. “You have intelligence. I see it in your eyes. What is your quarrel with my son?”

12th Anniversary on April 6th

Yep. Started writing this thing way back in the pre-historic days of 2013. And as is becoming tradition, I will be hanging out in the community discord on the 6th around noon PST in order to give rapid-fire answers to all your guys' questions.

Oh, and the new page for today will go up at noon again. Thanks for reading, as always.

Page 3821

The damage healed rapidly, bones repairing and realigning themselves, but it hardly mattered. This body was, in part, intangible now. The break in his neck felt more like a simple stretch than an actual injury. Koh was deterred not a bit.

But it was still a concern that the Scourge was even capable of inflicting such damage in the first place. And he knew from personal experience during their numerous sparring sessions that this man was yet capable of far more.

In truth, Koh had never once bested Gohvis.

But he had also never once unleashed the full breadth of his dormant power while under Ettol’s influence. And of course, he never before had the aid of a vengeful feldeath on his side, either.

So even though he had cause to hesitate, Koh did not. Without waiting even a beat, he dove headlong back toward his opponent.

‘Calm yourself!’ tried Gohvis. ‘If you harbor some grievance against Germal, then make it known! This fight is needless!’

Ignorance and foolishness. Koh had no time for it. He went for one of Gohvis’ hands, the one not holding Ettol’s upper body. He knew that the Scourge would work harder to keep that one away from him, so he wanted to take care of the free one first. Those punches were dangerous, after all, and with his other one filled, this hand was the only real concern.

Apart from the tail, that was, which barreled into his ribcage, breaking more bones. But Koh endured it this time, not letting himself get pushed back. His teeth found the hand and bit down with ravenous force, tasting fresh blood.

Again, the skin resisted. The bone, too. Refusing to be bitten cleanly through. He had to gnaw on it, which left more time for the tail to pummel him again in the torso.

And more, as well. Some kind of concussive force on his skull. An intense weight, trying to slow him down. A psychic attack, most likely.

Koh ignored it.

The hand came free. Down his throat it went. Taken care of. And he moved on to the other one, where Ettol was waiting. The tail was still lashing at him, but Kallmakk’s shadow was wrestling with it now, softening its blows, turning it around.

And there was fire, too. Red-orange flames from somewhere. Blazing heat all over his body.

Koh ignored that, too.

Next page at noon

Thanks for reading, everybody.

Page 3820

The Scourge’s hands began to pry the wolf’s mouth open. Koh tried to bite down even harder, to finish what he should have done already, but it was a struggle.

‘Man-Eater,’ came Gohvis’ telepathic voice, directly into Koh’s mind. ‘Release him now.’

Koh might have liked to argue with him, to tell him all manner of things, but he was no psychic. He could understand most languages, and he could read intentions from auras, but speaking--either normally or telepathically--was something of which he had never been capable.

A fact which he had once lamented. Why had his master not granted him the gift of speech? Why only the ability to comprehend the world but not partake more deeply into it?

But he was long past such questions. They served no purpose. He was how he was. No amount of agonizing over it would change that.

And there were other ways to communicate. Such as auras. Gohvis could read them, too. Koh would therefore be able to get some amount of his feelings and intent across. He just had to focus.

Calm the anger in his blood.

Which was not easy, certainly. But he tried. This was a long overdue reckoning. Perhaps the Scourge could understand.

‘Heed my will, Man-Eater. I am your master.’

Or perhaps not.

In fact, those words only served to reignite the fire in his heart. Gohvis was not his master. No being within this realm could rightly claim to be so.

Kallmakk’s fury resonated with his own. Dark tendrils boiled out of his back, all but asking for permission to lash out at Gohvis like a hundred gigantic whips.

Perhaps Koh shouldn’t have allowed it, but he did.

Apparently, that was more than enough of an answer for Gohvis. As the tendrils battered him, Gohvis growled in two voices, then bulked up visibly with a single great pulse. He ripped Ettol free from Koh’s mouth, leaving half the flesh behind.

But he got the cranium. The only part that mattered.

Koh mauled him. Smothered the Black Scourge in darkness, tooth, and claw.

This meat was much more durable. The skin resisted his dagger-sized teeth but not completely.

A punch came.

There was enough force behind it to break Koh’s neck and send him reeling backwards, away from the Scourge.

The blanket of darkness swirled and caught him in midair, steadying him.