Asura stared out at the street that lacked people. There were empty cars parked wildly as if they were left in a frenzy. Some had their doors open, while others had their windows shattered. As the group walked down the sidewalk, trash littered the concrete.
A wind blew and tossed the light trash, causing paper and cups to roll across the street. The eerie sight left Asura thinking about the zombie movies he used to watch in his realm. The silence was apocalyptic, leaving him on edge as he listened to the hissing wind blowing across the buildings.
"Well, ain't this a bit creepy."
The ogre looked around at the large buildings towering above. In one of the buildings to his left, a flash of color passed by a window.
"There's a person up there!"
Gabe looked up as well and responded,
"Yeah. There are a lot of people still in the city."
Asura was baffled by the thought. However, the thought shifted quickly as he remembered the crowded space outside the cathedral. "Is it better to be out here than suffocate inside the walls?" He asked himself.
The ogre watched every window intently as if he could catch a glimpse of the monster within the interior. As he looked at the buildings stacked beside one another, Asura thought of the hundreds of rooms within each structure. He asked the group with a fearful tone,
"So what's the plan? How are we gonna find this thing?"
Mel followed behind Asura with her eyes trained on her surroundings,
"Can you smell its quotidian mana?
"Hm, I thought I'd be happy the day you'd stop saying demon mana. However, after being treated like a dog and you asking if I can track this thing... I'm left somewhat bitter."
The ogre pursed his lips as he tilted his head.
"And no. I can't smell it. The city actually lacks... Anything. Smells too normal."
Asura began to inhale as deeply as he could. He sucked in air into his lungs through his nose, searching for a scent to track. However, it smelled like any typical dirty city. The pollution plagued the air, leaving his lungs slightly burnt. All he could smell was holy mana due to the Paladins following behind him.
Tristen channeled mana as he walked and spoke an incantation,
"All evil is revealed before Judex Divinum. Through Uriel are the wicked hunted and purged."
A golden orb of light burst into existence before the group. The sight was familiar to Asura as he gazed upon the illuminating orb. It was the same as Wain's incantation he cast when he first arrived.
"Oh! It's the tracker, dude!"
Asura smiled as if their problems were over. However, to his dismay, it disappeared as if its job was complete. The golden orb burst and the light dissipated before the five. Tristen nodded as if it confirmed his suspicions and told them,
"Like we thought, we can't track it. There isn't any... you called it quotidian mana?"
Asura's eyebrows rose as Tristen looked at him to answer his question,
"Yeah... It's called quotidian mana..."
Gabe let out a sigh as the group continued to walk through the city,
"The observation table doesn't work. The tracking incantation doesn't work. How are we supposed to find this thing?"
Rose, responsible for leading the group, was left with the same question in her lap as he studied the large city. However, it was not as large as Stoliagate. It was quite sizeable when it came to a search. Without a tracker, it was almost impossible to find its location unless it wanted to be found.
That is what she dreaded the most. If it wished to be found, then it was confident. If it was confident, they were at a disadvantage. It could show whenever it wanted and attack at any moment. Rose's eyes darted from window to window.
"Keep together and don't split off from one another."
Asura nodded for a moment before catching himself. "This is ridiculous..." He thought as he pondered what creature could remain in the city. "What the hell could it even be?" He rolled his eyes and scoffed at his past thoughts. "It can't be an apocalypse again... Unless Malachi is here. Then I mean that asshole could open a gate again."
The ogre looked at a flickering traffic light as they passed through an intersection onto another block. "What are the chances of that asshole being here?" The fire built up in his mouth, and he spat the white flames on the street. Gabe stared at the fire and was about to speak of its hazardous quality but stopped as the flame immediately extinguished.
"Huh."
Asura continued in thought as he looked around. "Is it a Knight of Orthos? A Vampire? A Minotaur? An actual dragon? Can't be an ogre... Can't be a giant... I guess it could be an elf or faerie, but I doubt it. They'd leave like tree shit everywhere." As Asura looked around, he searched for signs of evidence as to what the monster might be.
However, there were no claw marks. There was no rubble or destruction. The city seemed fine on the outside. Asura turned and asked with an eyebrow raised and a curious tone,
"What were the other attacks like? Did it leave anything around?"
Gabe stared at Asura for a moment as he recalled the bloodied scenes.
"It left bodies... Some were strangled, others hung by their intestines. Blood was spilled everywhere from their bodies... There were a few drained of their blood and left shriveled."
"Left shriveled? Did it look like someone drank it?"
Gabe thought for a moment and shook his head,
"There were no bite marks on the necks. We thought it was a vampire too."
"Hm. So the blood was just missing?"
"Yes. Strangely, they were separated from the crowd, and their corpses were clean."
"That's... weird. I don't know of any monster race that does that shit."
Asura combed through what he could remember about each race, but as he reached the veil that clouded his mind, a headache grabbed hold of his skull.
"I'm thinkin' it's a shadow or a vampire. Although, I don't know of a pale trench-coated shadow, so it's probably a vampire."
Mel caught Asura's attention by nudging his back with her hand and asked in a questioning tone,
"Could it be related to Valentine?"
Asura was surprised by Mel's mention of the strip club owner they visited previously. Although he shook his head as he answered,
"Nah. Valentine doesn't drink human blood like that. They have a deal with your good ol' temple. So do most of the vampires... There aren't many of them that'd go rogue."
Tristen cast a curious look at the two who spoke of a vampire as if they were acquaintances,
"But there are a few?"
"I doubt they'd even do this, though. If you piss off the Succubi King, she'd kill them in a heartbeat."
Asura rubbed his forehead as the headache grew and pressure began to squeeze the front of his skull. Tristen replied as he strolled through the street, kicking debris from his path,
"Maybe he doesn't know."
Without hesitation, Asura instinctively responded while walking, lost in thought,
"She."
"What?"
"The king is a she. Her name's Venus."
Tristen opened his mouth as if he were going to continue but stopped as he looked at the ogre, who stared adamantly back at him.
"Uh-"
Asura interrupted him as he exclaimed to the group,
"It's not a vampire."
The ogre crossed his arms defiantly as Gabe asked,
"How do you know?"
"I can't see any of them betrayin' Venus. They worship her like a god. Well, except Aphrodite, but she's just a bitch."
Mel rolled her eyes as the ogre continued to ramble on,
"Then what is it? You're just going to keep going in circles."
"How the fuck would I know? You guys forget I'm just a monster tagging along. I don't give a shit about what happens. I'm just tryin' to help by thinkin'."
"Well, it isn't helping much."
Asura and Mel cast annoyed looks at one another. The two prepared for a sibling fight and shoulder-checked one another as they walked. Before they could fight, Gabe let out a sigh and tried to get between them as he stated,
"Well, let's visit one of the scenes to get some clues. One of the places is up ahead."
Just as they were about to move forward, Tristen's phone rang. The sudden blast of his ringtone startled Asura. As the phone rang out, the four watched closely while he took the call. Tristen answered,
"Lady Aliza?"
The call only lasted a few seconds before he hung up. His eyes widened as he looked at the four,
"It's at A Sin's Den Casino..."
Tristen urgently began to race away, yelling at the four to follow as he ran down the street. Without question, the four followed behind. Their hearts started to race as they sprinted after Tristen, who led the way. Gabe's stomach twisted in a knot as fear and adrenaline mixed within his body.
Asura smiled wickedly as he raced towards his next opponent. He was eager to fight the monster that hid its identity. "Let's see who the hell you are, mister nobody." He thought as he channeled mana into his arms. "Ain't nobody got the skills to best an ogre with holy mana."
As the five raced through the street, they entered an intersection, and Tristen took a left turn. However, as the four followed, they immediately came to a halt as they watched Tristen abruptly stop. Before any of the group could ask for the reason, an older male's voice cried out as it raced away,
"HELP! ITS HERE! HELP ME!"
The man covered his face as he ran through the street, slamming into the buildings and bus stop before him. The five watched momentarily, but Gabe swiftly tried to cross the street to help the distressed man. However, his brother grabbed his shoulder, preventing him from crossing further.
"What?"
Gabe asked his brother but stopped as Tristen stated,
"He's already dead."
Gabe glanced at the three black tally marks above the man's head. Suddenly, the man dropped to the ground, his hands dropping to his sides. Instead of eyes, there were only empty holes where his hands had been. His gut spilled open as his body slammed against the ground.
The blood splattering could be heard from across the street. As the five watched the man's final moments, they were left stunned. Asura turned to watch as dozens more fled from a large flashing building down the road. Their screams cried out in distress just like the man's.
"Definitely not a vampire."
The ogre continued his pursuit, leaving the group behind. However, they quickly snapped out of their daze and followed after Asura. Gabe's stomach sank further, and the nausea began to make his head spin as he prepared for the worst.
A large neon sign came into view as Asura drew close to the large black and red building. Its words read, "A Sin's Den," with its motto underneath, "The place to bet it all." Asura laughed as he watched the people flee from its front doors.
"Of course, the monster is here..."
While Asura raced ahead, Gabe trailed behind as more people continued to leave. The sight of so many fleeing from the horrific place left him torn inside. "How can so many people be here? We warned them, " he thought as he watched each one exit. He felt a moment of relief as many of their heads were tally-less.
However, those who wore a tally above their head had not one, but three... followed by the black color, meaning he was powerless when trying to save them. The people held their bodies as if trying to keep themselves together. A woman wearing a large coat grabbed hold of Gabe as he raced toward the building, which caused him to stop.
There, she screamed in his face,
"HELP ME! PLEASE! I don't want to-"
The woman fell to the ground, and her lower half separated from the top. Her blood poured out onto the concrete, causing a dark pool to spread out at his feet. She had been cleaved in half but somehow kept herself together until then. He stared in shock, his mind whirling as he asked,
"How-"
Mel grabbed Gabe, dragging him behind her as she raced after Asura and the others who left him behind.
"She's already dead. We can't save her."
Gabe wanted to vomit from disgust, yet he restrained himself, aware of what lay ahead. He had to prepare for a confrontation. The Paladin tightened his jaw as they stepped through the front door.
The casino featured a variety of machines showcasing eye-catching displays aimed at enticing new customers. Their booming sounds filled the air with music as if inviting the next big winner. Beneath the machines lay a striking red carpet adorned with elegantly designed golden roses spread across its surface.
Asura sprinted through the expansive hall filled with vibrant colors, feeling overwhelmed. "How can anyone tolerate this?" he wondered, observing the crowd of people rushing by. The dull aspect of the scene was the haze created by indoor smokers, which cast a light-dampening shroud over the multitude of blinking lights.
He could not believe so many people had visited such a place. From what he saw online, you only lost money in these places and gained nothing in return. His lungs stung as he breathed in the air, and his eyes felt as if they were repeatedly pierced with rays of light.
"This place sucks-Are they still playing?"
Asura looked over to his side as he rushed past a crowd, finding a few people still in their chairs. The sight left Asura in awe, and he turned to look ahead. However, his face quickly twisted in disgust as a lake of blood appeared. Surrounding the center of the building was a group of machines, all drenched in the blood of its players.
Some machines featured lifeless players at their feet, while others still housed them in their seats. The bodies were slumped over with their hands still outstretched as if still in the act of playing. Their blood spilled out from their chests and face, pouring down onto the buttons and onto the floor beneath them.
As he continued toward the bloodied area, Asura tried to count the number of machines but found that there were too many. Behind every machine was another row, each containing the same destined players. The ogre's foot struck the wet ground as he entered the lake of blood, splattering and splashing up the crimson liquid below.
As he stepped into the first row of machines, a song started playing from the overhead speakers. The track featured a booming bass, guitar riffs, and rhythmic drums, embodying the soulful rock style as it commenced slowly.
"Oh, this love for pain, a twisted art. An in-flicted, bleeding heart! I can't help but tear apart! It's a masochistic dream! A twisted pleasure, wholly mine! The pain, a sweet and bitter wine!"
Asura slowed his running as he listened to the music. At first, the song was clear and concise, but as every line was uttered, static consumed the lyrics and drowned out the music. Its irritating noise only grew louder as he passed every row.
The ogre stared at the speakers, which roared louder with every step. Their hissing static left Asura wincing as they reached a painful decibel level. The ogre tried to cover his ears, but the sound persisted. Behind him, the group followed, but as they reached beside him, the same screeching tone hammered into their eardrums.
Asura pushed forward, biting his lip as he passed another four rows. Then, as he took his final step past the fifth, he entered an open area with four large new machines placed beside one another. The deafening tone ceased as he walked past, as if a magical barrier had been crossed.
He only felt relief momentarily before realizing something sat at the large machine to his left. A creature with long, skinny, and lanky limbs sat outstretched as if he were playing the game. Its black, raggedy trench coat covered its body, just like the description given by Aliza. Adorning its head were horns that twisted into a crown, with the tips of each poking out like thorns.
The sight left Asura with a looming dread, and he could not utter a word. He froze entirely as if paralyzed in its presence. Although it was sitting, the creature towered several feet above Asura. If it stood, it would stand above the old man.
However, what horrified Asura was its featureless face. It had no eyes or ears and lacked a mouth. No spot on its body grew hair, leaving it clean and smooth like chiseled marble. It was like a white sheet had been pulled tightly over a human skeleton.
The being let out a jester-like laugh, cackling horrifically. However, its face never moved, and static plagued the noise as if the being spoke from an old radio station. Its head slowly turned to Asura and acknowledged his presence as it asked,
"Hello. The name is Mr. Smiles. Nice to meet you."