It didn’t take long for Gary, Garath, Bill, and Handsome to mop up the small group of magically enhanced raccoons, though Gary’s involvement was limited to the single Shield Bash. When the last of the odd quadrupeds fell lifeless to the ground, Garath closed his eyes and bathed in the sweet power as the Experience Points flowed into him.
Begin combat log:
[you have been awarded 432 Experience Points for slaying Level 7 Racer]
[you have been awarded 432 Experience Points for slaying Level 7 Racer]
[you have been awarded 432 Experience Points for slaying Level 7 Racer]
[you have been awarded 370 Experience Points for slaying Level 6 Racer]
[you have been awarded 638 Experience Points for slaying Level 9 Racer Assailant]
End combat log.
He opened his eyes to Gary looking down at him like he was some kind of monster, knuckles white around the leather grip of his shield. Garath was confused. Why would Gary be afraid of him? He turned his head to see if there was an enemy he’d missed or something. Behind him, Bill was gnawing happily on a femur that he must have ripped off of one of the dispatched Racers while Handsome tore through hair, skin, and muscle with both gnarled hands to get at the pack leader’s heart. Then Garath understood Gary’s expression. He briefly considered dismissing his summoned demons for Gary’s sake, but ultimately decided against it. As far as he was concerned, Bill had earned every bit of the bone hanging out of his mouth and Handsome gained power from eating the hearts of monsters. No, he wasn’t going to slow his own progression, or that of his demons, just to save Gary from a little discomfort.
Gary continued staring, his expression turning from fear to genuine concern. “Are you feeling okay?”
Still in his adorable, fluffy white form, Garath looked back flat-faced at the bearded man. *I’m great. You don’t look so good though, honestly. Why don’t you head back to HQ? I’ll go check out the World Boss and let you know if it’s anything we need to worry about.*
Gary stayed silent for a long time.
*Something else on your mind, Gary?* Garath was getting frustrated with the judgmental ginger.
Gary’s face took on a still-worried, but speculative expression, as if he were trying to decide whether or not to tell Garath something. He unequipped his shield and sighed.
“No,” he said, looking down at the little white cat. “I guess not. Make sure to let somebody know if you need help, Garath. Nobody made it through The Culling without some scars, body or mind. That’s all I wanted to say. And if you need an ear to vent to, I’ve got a couple of good ones.”
The bearded man waited briefly for a response. When he saw he wasn’t going to get one, he nodded at Garath and took his leave. As he walked away, Garath found himself tempted to take the several thousand Experience Points he would get from killing the Armoron with his back turned. Gary couldn’t stop him and, being over a mile from HQ, nobody would know what he’d done. He could tell everyone the Racers got him. That’s when it hit Garath like a wrecking-ball-sized dragon cock to the face. The Tainted Soul effects had crept up on him in the time since he’d left the egg’s resting place atop the cliff. He hadn’t even noticed.
Quickly, Garath shifted out of the House Cat form that had racked up more soul taint than Britneys at a frat house for white trash bash. Once he was back in his natural form, Garath accessed his Items panel and retrieved his Refilling Pouch of Concentrated Crystillium. Even after downing the cloyingly sweet blue liquid and shifting into a less tainted form, the hunger for more power still tickled the back of his consciousness.
Closer to being in his right mind, Garath looked around at the gore-soaked street, and understood why Gary reacted the way he did. Five abnormally large raccoons lay motionless, still bleeding. They looked smaller now that he wasn’t seeing them from a cat’s eye level. They were still larger than any racoon he’d ever seen, but appeared much less menacing than he had perceived them to be only a few minutes before. Guilt stabbed him like a knife through the heart as he looked at the lifeless trash pandas lying dismembered all around him. With their fluffy tails and non-discriminating taste in food, raccoons had always been one of Garath’s favorite animals. Seeing them now, Garath couldn’t believe that he had just killed these creatures without a second thought, all for a few hundred Experience Points. A chilling reminder that he needed to keep himself in check.
With great effort to pull himself together, Garath reminded himself why he was there. He looked to the sky and located the column of smoke that would guide him to his destination, then turned to his minions.. He turned back to check on his summoned demons before they made their way to the World Boss.
“Handsome, stop that! Are you freaking kidding me?” he said aloud with both arms held out wide. The gruesome little demon was working his way through the ribs of a third Racer, blood dripping down his chin and onto blue-tinted skin stretched tight over a too-full belly. “How are you supposed to fly if you eat all that? I’m going to have to carry you to the World Boss!”
Handsome stopped what he was doing just as he got a grip on the third heart and was pulling it from the Racer’s chest cavity. The Flayer looked up at his summoner. Confused innocence looked comically out of place on his hideous face. For a moment, the Necrologist and his demon just held eye contact. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, Handsome raised
