Note: Hey, look, three chapters in one update! How's that for a record?

The bright dot amidst the darkness really intrigued him. Long did he stare at it, and finally he realized that it was an uninfected piece of land. He had no clue why it was not assimilated as the surrounding lands had been, but the Gravemind was ready to chalk it down to sloppiness, incompetence and a general lack of focus and foresight. He steered the ship over the place. Then he began his assault in the same way he began all other assaults. Infection pods rained down onto what he saw now was a city, and the infection forms emerged, to turn the ground into a writhing green carpet. The city was divided in two by formidable walls of heavy stone and impressive battlements, but walls have never stopped the Flood. Neither have walls ever stopped an airborne enemy. Very soon the outer city was plunged into complete and utter chaos as the pods wreaked havoc within it, smashing through buildings and crushing its inhabitants. Not five minutes from the start of the assault, there was only a handful of buildings that remained unscathed. Cries and moans filled the streets. Then the fires started.

There was resistance, of course. Unprepared for an aerial raid, they were mostly stationed along the wall. Some had guns. Others held swords. The latter were the ones to fall first. Overall, it barely counted as a fight. Their swords cut down a handful of infection forms, but there was a very good reason why the Gravemind sent them down in as large a group as was possible. The infection forms swarmed over the swordsmen and, for a second, they were barely visible under the sheer mass of the Flood. They struggled, of course, but for only a few seconds, then their lifeless corpse would drop to the ground. When they stood back up, their flesh was mottled, covered in unhealthy growths and bumps that shifted sickeningly. Then they would turn around to attack those whom they had fought alongside only moments before.

The defenders with guns were dispatched with such ease the Gravemind almost felt bad for them. They barely had time to reload their rifles before the Flood washed over them. They fared no better than their sword wielding comrades, nor were their struggles any more effective. With brutal efficiency, the bulk of the infection forms then turned away from the wall, to freely roam the outer city in search of new hosts.

It took but a few moments for the outer walls to fall. And it was when the few handfuls of resistance turned to retreat did they finally see how utterly doomed they had been right from the outset. For all along the top of the inner battlements raged a heated battle between his soldiers and their comrades, and, to the Gravemind, it certainly looked as though his soldiers were in no hurry to lose. And so the guards from the outer wall found themselves caught between the inner walls and his soldiers, and their last cries and pleas went unheeded by comrades who refused to open the inner gates to them.

It was fitting, therefore, that the bodies of those same guards were the first to join the fight in the inner city. With great leaps they were propelled over the wall to land heavily and gracelessly in front of their former comrades. Bullets pierced the bodies, and blades bit into their flesh, but, with mindless brutality, the bodies of the deceased guards brought vengeance upon their increasingly terrified comrades, swift justice for abandoning them to their fates. The Gravemind understood well the concept of revenge, and he allowed the guards theirs. The Gravemind was a considerate being.

It took the Flood no more time to annihilate the soldiers on the inner wall than it had taken the outer wall to fall. The citizens of the city, now gripped by complete terror, took different approaches to defending themselves from the invaders. There were those who barricaded their doors and locked their shutters, others took up arms and formed spontaneous bands of resistance. Yet others, interestingly enough, ran about in circles wailing in terror. The Gravemind spent a few moments wondering how that was supposed to assist in their defense, but was unable to understand. Finally gave up, and instead concentrated on the breaking down of doors, the breaking up of resistance, and the breaking of various bones and limbs.

The palace that was, obviously, located in the middle of the city was securely locked up. That did not bother the Gravemind. The mass of Flood crowded around the palace's formidable gates. Then they threw themselves at it, setting the heavy metal bound doors to shuddering. There were shouts from behind the door as the guards behind it readied themselves for an imminent breakthrough.

The Gravemind, however, did not bother himself too much with the doors. Certainly, he had the time, but the Gravemind was an impatient being at the best of times. With great leaps, his soldiers scaled the impressive walls. They clung to the side of the palace like grotesque imitations of insects. The walls of the building seemed almost to shift and pulsate as more of the soldiers leapt up to join the ranks already on the walls. The Flood scaled the walls with apparent ease, and from there they fanned out, and, one by one, the vast army disappeared from sight as they found openings with which to invade the doomed palace.

The interior was dimly lit, and the air was still, almost heavy. There were few people about, and that really crushed the Gravemind's hopes. He had expected more people to be about such a massive place. Nevertheless, one has to make the best of any situation, and so the Gravmind grudgingly sent a few of the infection forms to take over these few hosts.

The Flood swept through the whole palace, and, methodically, they took it over floor by floor. The guards, obviously, were slow to learn, and thus the top levels were devoid of any resistance. It was only when the Flood had cleared the top floors and came at the detachment of guards at the main gates that they realized their mistake. But by then it was too late. The palace, for the most part, had already fallen, and, with more of the Gravemind's soldiers pouring in from the outside, there was nothing the guards could do.

The throne room was one of the last places that remained untouched when the Gravemind was through with the attack. His soldiers gathered about the doors that were lined with more gold than the Gravemind had ever seen in one place. Then again, that was not saying much, as the Gravemind had not seen a lot of gold in his existence. Gold, however, was of no use in the reinforcement of a door, nor did it help much when his soldiers started throwing themselves at the obstacle. With a sharp crack, the wood around the middle of the double doors splintered and snapped. There were a few more cracks and loud noises and, with surprising suddenness, the doors flew open.

The inside of the throne room was more elaborate than the doors had suggested. It was more of an ostentatious display than a place where work gets done, with smooth marble floors and massive sweeping pillars and arches. The buttresses were elaborately designed, and crystals of varying hues and colors served as a window high the wall at the far end of the room, turning the sunlight streaming in to shimmering, a myriad of rainbows that danced and flickered in the still air. The walls glimmered with precious jewels and gold, all laid out in such a way as to reflect the most light.

'Flamboyant,' the Gravemind observed shortly, before marching his children into the room.

Sitting on an elaborate throne, looking incredibly bored was a woman. Her flowing robes and many jewelry were as heavy and exaggerated as the look she fixed the Flood with as they amassed before her.

The Gravemind, however, decided to ignore her expression as more of his soldiers swarmed into the levels of the building that were under the ground, until they came to a place that, according to what had until only recently been the defenders, was the dungeon. The cells were mostly occupied, and the occupants reacted differently to the arrival of the Flood. Some clutched eagerly at the bars of their cells, some cowered against the back walls, others just sat staring indifferently at his soldiers. They all screamed as the infection forms took over their bodies, however. Then the soldiers came to the very back of the dungeon. There stood a very thick door, secured by dozens of chains and locks. A few combat forms gathered around it, and soon the door was sent flying off its hinges to land a few feet away, and his soldiers moved into the room. Before them was a gate, and that too was quickly ripped apart.

A man was tied to the wall of the cell. He was battered and bruised, and there was a nasty gash on one side of his face. Despite his injuries, however, there was a very intense and defiant look to the expression he gave the Flood as they swarmed outside the destroyed gate. The chains that restrained him were formidable, but the combat forms had no problems reducing them. The man stared at them for a long while, then, in a voice that was strangely resonant for someone who has been locked in a dungeon, he asked, 'Who are you?'

The Gravemind grunted. 'We are the Flood. Join your voices with mine, and sing victory everlasting.'

The woman fixed his soldiers with a cold stare. 'You slaughtered my soldiers, and now you are offering an alliance?'

'Are you saying you'll help me?' the man asked.

'Yes,' the Gravemind said to the both of them. It was obvious who was going to be easier to deal with.

'Why should I help you?' the woman questioned.

'Why would creatures like you help me?' asked the man.

'Because the alternatives are a lot messier,' replied the Gravemind.

The man nodded slowly. 'Help me with these chains.'

The woman, however, continued to fix the Flood with a cold, suspicious stare. The Gravemind shrugged. He no longer needed her.

'What can you do for me, if I were to accept your help?' the woman asked haughtily.

'There's no longer any need for that.' The Gravemind chuckled. 'The man in your dungeon says to kill you.'

The woman's eyes widened momentarily, then her lips twisted into a cruel snarl as she pieced together what he was saying. She stood, but it was already too late. Almost as one, the Flood in her throne room leapt at her, and she screamed once, then they were upon her and she fell silent.

Under the watchful eye of his Flood escort, the man walked away from the overrun palace and into the devastated city. The party was silent as they went along the destroyed streets past ruined houses. Occasionally, a former inhabitant shambled past, and the man carefully averted his eyes from their twisted forms.

'Fire and light,' the man was saying as they made their way out of the city gates. 'Nothing else stops them as well.'

There was a thoughtful silence as the Gravemind considered the information. 'Anything else?'

'This is just speculation, but I think that the darkness that covers everything is alive.'

'Alive?'

'Maybe that's not the right word. But it acts differently from the shadows. Maybe that's because the Crawler wants it to act that way, but I don't think so. The Crawler is very single minded. It would throw everything at an enemy if it could.' Then the man stopped to look at the soldier walking beside him. 'I've told you everything I know on the Crawler that you do not already know.'

'Indeed, you have done so.'

'Then I expect you to fulfill your end of the bargain,' the man said in the tone of a man expecting resistance.

The Gravemind shrugged. 'You can go.'

'Good.' With that, the man left, striding away into the darkness, with flames curling around his fingertips.

The Gravemind grunted in satisfaction. Things were all falling into place.