Normally the realm of war was alive with the sounds of battle. Steel would meet steel. Fists would be thrown and kicks delivered. None of it was lethal. That would go against the tenets of Ares. Even so, battle was her lifeblood. So her followers would do battle every day to earn her favor and honor her.

The dark reddish realm was quiet today. Her followers had left the center of it alone. It was as if they were being driven away by something. In the center was the reason. It was the house of Ares. One could easily mistake it for a villain's lair. It was a large, stone castle. Spikes, spears, and other blades stuck out from it. Usually equally equipped gargoyles would be on standby as well. They, like the rest of Ares followers, were gone. It was bear of any living things.

This was the scene that Eros, the goddess of love, flew into. She was a beautiful woman with long flowing pink hair. Her shapely form was covered in a toga. Said toga had the sides of her thighs exposed and her large bosom pushed against the front. Her orange eyes looked with concern at the empty fortress. She touched down. Her angelic white wings fluttering to a stop. She couldn't help but look around once more. Even if she had flown all the way here, it was so disheartening to see the area so empty.

"Oh dear," Eros muttered to herself, "It's worse than I thought."

She almost jumped out of her toga when she heard some metal being smashed. She frowned and shook her head slightly. It wasn't being smashed. Someone was making a sword. She had come to know those sounds given her constant visits to this realm. Ares must be inside. She could sense her but sometimes you could be mistaken in a god's realm. Their essence was everywhere so you could get confused.

She pushed open the door and started to make her way inside. The castle was just as empty as the outside. It was cold and dark. So unlike the bright and cheerful it normally was. It made her skin crawl. It felt like the same atmosphere Hel had whenever she went through a goth phase. Currently she was in a peppy phase so that was better.

That's when she entered the 'smithy' room. It wasn't unknown for gods to dabble in things outside of their realm. While Ares was the goddess of war, she rarely made her own weapons. That was usually left to the smithing gods. So to see Ares banging on what should be a sword was unusual. Before she could speak however, Ares howled in fury. She threw the barely put together slab of metal against the wall.

Eros let out a squeak of fear. Ares perked up at that and turned around. Once she saw who it was, she let out a sigh. A hand went up to her mottled hair and stroked through it.

"Ares?" Eros spoke up quietly.

"Why are you here, Eros?" Ares said, "Can't you tell I'm busy."

"I was worried about you," Eros said, "I heard about your confrontation with The Fallen God."

Ares snorted, "Nothing happened. She got away with messing with my realm. Big deal."

Eros frowned, "Got away?"

"I didn't punch her," Ares shouted, her body shaking in rage. "I didn't pummel her into the ground. I didn't gut her and put her head on a pike. I just threatened to sick you on her."

"Well sparing her of such a fate was rather kind of you," Eros said, "You have grown a sharper mind over these years. Acting so brash would have cost you dearly."

"Yeah…" Ares said. Her voice getting softer, "My mind is sharp but…" She sat down. Her arms drooping at her sides, "But it feels like everything else has dulled."

Eros narrowed her eyes, "Is this why you're angry? That you didn't get to punch the Fallen?"

"Yes," Ares slammed a fist onto the armrest, "War is my territory. She interfered and because of it, more people died than necessary. She deserved to pay! Yet," she stared at her hands, "I did nothing. I did fucking nothing!"

"Gods shouldn't fight," Eros said, taking a few steps closer to her friend. "Our conflicts should remain as nothing more than words. Physical battles cause nothing but harm to ourselves and the world. You know this. You choosing not to fight her shows your maturity."

Ares was silent for a moment, "She didn't take me seriously. Me. The god of war. She was basically laughing in my face after interfering with my domain. I couldn't do a damn thing to stop her. Not a thing. She walked all over me."

"I'm sure she knows your strength-"

"She does," Ares interrupted her, "I'm being truthful. I couldn't stop the spell she was casting. It was literally unbreakable. That's never happened to me before. The Fallen couldn't do that to me in the past. I could break her in two without a second thought. Yet now…" She looked up at Eros with sorrowful eyes, "Am I weak?"

Eros knelt before her friend and put her hand on hers. She gripped it, "You aren't weak. You're one of the strongest gods in the pantheon."

Ares chuckled mirthlessly, "In the last age. These last few centuries have been a time of peace. There's not much use for a god of war during all of that. I'm not going to count all the little squabbles the humans do as wars. They barely last a few months before they get tired."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Eros asked, "We all wished for a world without such wanton death. You were one of the most vocal about such a thing."

"I do want a world without it," Ares said, "I love fighting but I just can't stand seeing all that… carnage. That's all I was good for. Getting more and more people killed. I wanted to change the world to be better."

"And we did."

"Yes, but now look at me." Ares said, "I can't even stand up to that bitch in her high tower. I feel weaker than I've ever been before. What can I do to change it? I have no idea."

"I think this is more on her then you," Eros huffed, "She has been growing stronger over time."

"I still should be able to punt her when I feel like it," Ares said. "She should know her place. I'm the god of war. She's just the god of pleasure."

"Yes and we'll deal with her together," Eros said, "This isn't anything new," Eros flashed her a kind smile, "Say, why don't we go out. Just the two of us. Like we used to back in the day. Just hang around a little human town in her disguises. We don't have to be a god for a while. Let's have some fun."

Ares stared at her for a moment. Then she got up and walked over to the anvil she was using to build her weapon. She stared at it for a moment before she shouted a primal war cry and smashed her fist down onto it. The godly metal bent but did not break. She huffed and her arm's slumped, "It should have shattered into a million pieces, yet it still stands."

"Ares," Eros's heart started to ache as she said her friend's name.

"I have to train," Ares said, "I have to… do something. I can't let our world slip from my fingers. I… I don't want to be left behind."

Eros walked over to her. Ares was prepared for a lot of things. A slap. A hug. A scolding. What she didn't expect was for Eros to grab her cheeks and pull on them.

"Stop saying such stupid things," Eros scowled, "You're the god of war and my friend." Then she let go of her cheeks. Before Ares could rub her now sore cheeks, Eros moved forward and grabbed her ear, "We are having a girl's night out and you are going to relax."

"But-"

"But nothing!" Eros said, "A god you may be, but you are a maiden at heart. For our sake, you need to keep yourself together. You'll never find a man with that attitude."

Ares blushed as she was led by her ear, "W-Well you don't have one either."

"As a goddess of love I"m content with watching others find their soulmate," Eros said, "You are another story. So why don't we go see if there are any cute guys in the human kingdoms, hmm~"

"Eros!"


Dwarven holds were known to be impregnable. Some dwarven cities were built overground, but most of those have gone unused or are simply occupied by meager populations of normal and monsterized dwarves. The rest were often built into the sides of mountains so there was only ever one way inside. These were the ones any conqueror feared to come across. Of course there were secret openings but they were almost impossible for anyone except a dwarf to find. So your best bet was either hope to find a dwarf that knew an opening or bust in through the front door. The front door was often the only choice given how stubborn dwarves were. They'd rather die than tell a secret.

Which for the human army besieging the dwarven hold, was unfortunate. They had executed the few dwarves they had captured not that long ago because they wouldn't say anything. Well, apart from cursing their names. Dwarves were very creative with their swear words. The king had enough of them and their heads were taken off their shoulders. It did little else but make the king happy for a little while. Now they just had to deal with the dwarven walls.

Tall and imposing, they were made of the finest metals. Refined by dwarven hands and magic, nothing could break them. The walls in this city, known as Karan Zar, held firm for generations. Even back in the days of the previous demon lords, the walls held firm. The dwarves were sure they would hold firm for many days to come.

"Push them off the walls! Not one damn human makes it over the walls or you'll be walking armless home!"

They'd make sure of that.

The grounds in front of the wall were filled with human bodies. A good number were far away, shot down by cannon or arrows. Their corpses mangled. Limbs and body parts spread all over the place. Many of the bodies were unrecognizable. Not even their loved ones could tell them apart. Thousands lay like that, yet still thousands more human soldiers marched on the walls. Some of the cannons were still firing. Their large rounds cut swaths of human soldiers down or blow up a portion if an explosive round was used. Most of them had gone silent the moment the enemy was at the wall. Here they used guns and arrows to cut down soldiers that were trying desperately to scale it.

Ladders. Magic sprung ropes and cables. Even a few wind mages tried to boost up men and supplies up to the wall. They were trying to throw everything at the dwarves. Unfortunately for them, dwarven engineering and tenacity prevented them from getting a foothold. Dwarves fired down on the invaders with rifles or bows. Either worked given how tightly packed the humans were, even though they kept coming regardless.

Dreevan Katradge was one such dwarf firing down on the humans. He'd been shooting for hours now. He'd have gotten bored if they hadn't kept firing back. Thankfully most of their arrows missed the mark. Although a few, probably enchanted, made it up to the walls. One such unlucky dwarf received an arrow right through his eye socket. The dwarf fell to the ground, dead. His corpse was carried away. Dreevan shivered slightly. This was his first battle. He wasn't exactly prepared to see all this death. He was just fortunate that few of the deaths were dwarven.

He fired again. Then he pulled the lever to his rifle to eject the cartridge. The rifles they were using were a newer brand. Some of the dwarves in the deep had gotten ahold of some gremlin designs and made them fit for dwarves. He was thankful. The old flintlocks were harder and slower to manage. He reached into his pouch and scowled. He only had three shots left. He pulled one out and slid it into the chamber. Then he pushed the lever forward and up. He gave it a good smack on the side as well. It had jammed a few times today. Some dwarves had to get new rifles entirely. They were new designs after all. It's why a good number of dwarves stuck with a good bow and arrow. Dreevan idly wondered if he'd grab one of those himself once he spent all his ammunition. He doubted he'd get anymore with how the battle was going.

"Damn bastards don't know when to quit," an older dwarf grumbled as he pulled out another arrow for his bow. Compared to Dreevan's own short, reddish brown beard, this older dwarf had to curl his long silver beard around his neck so it didn't drag on the ground. The older dwarf looked over at him, "Why'd you pick one of those new fangle guns? Stuff like that'll break on you, sonny boy."

"Oh please," Dreevan rolled his eyes, "You're just jealous that you didn't get one."

"Ha," the older dwarf guffawed, "I've seen those things break all day. You should have stuck to this," he stuck out his bow and arrow, "Or a trusty dwarvish flintlock. At least they're simple to use."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Dreevan said as he took up aim again. He had to admit, he was lucky to have one of these. There were only a handful of them about and this whole battle was a testing phase for them. He only got one because his uncle was on the King's Council.

He glanced over at a couple of dwarves trying to hack away at a hooked ladder. Most of the ladders were simple and easy to push, but it seemed the humans had a few made of sterner stuff. He glanced over to his other side and saw some dwarves start to pour large buckets of molten metal over the side. He grimaced as he heard the screams of pain. That wasn't a pretty death.

Suddenly, up from the ladder swung a sword. The dwarves were luckily able to dodge it and jump backwards. One human warrior made to climb over, screaming something about 'die monsters'. Dreevan huffed and turned his rifle to fire. Nothing happened. He glanced down at his gun before smacking it. It jammed again. Of all the damn times. Before the human could make it over, an arrow pierced his head. The body fell backwards. Dreevan looked over at the older dwarf.

He huffed and said, "See? This is what I'm talking about. It fails you when you need it."

"Alright, I get it." Dreevan glared at the old man. He wouldn't listen to him. He liked the rifle well enough but maybe he'd stick with a flintlock or something for a while till they iron these guys out. Course flintlocks had their own issues but he was used to those. He fiddled with his rifle, trying to fix it. It shouldn't be too hard.

"Hopefully they don't magic something up," the old dwarf said, "Gods I hate magic."

"They can't do anything," Dreevan said and patted the floor, "This wall was made with the strongest material and had a good number of Elementals bless it during construction. Not to mention we set up a few magic dampeners on the walls. Remember how they even had a hero shoot at it and it did nothing?"

The old dwarf chuckled, "Course I do."

"Then they can't bring it down or magic something on it," Dreevan smirked.

Most large forts and cities implemented magic dampeners into their walls. As the title suggests, it dampens magic-based attacks against the constructs. On top of that, they had in-built features that made teleporting over the walls impossible. While it didn't stop every magic attack, the last feature was a given as long as they worked properly.

"Say, never got your name."

"Just call me Skiev," the dwarf said. He turned and started to fire his bow again, "Now get back to shooting."

"Once I get this damn-"

He was interrupted. Suddenly, before anyone could speak, a flash of light blinded them. He used his arm to shield his eyes from it. Several thumping sounds were heard, accompanied by grunting. Dreevan unshielded his eyes to see a large group of humans not far from his position. Easily over two dozen of them. They seemed to be getting to their feet, as though they had fallen onto the ground.

Most of the humans were wearing simple armor pieces for infantry. However, one of them stood out. He wore a purple suit with a yellow flower in the front pocket. Orange stripes covered his arms and legs. A wooden wand was held in his right hand. The man grinned. He motioned his wand toward two nearby dwarves. A purple hue surrounded the wand and then the dwarves. With a simple flick, the dwarves were thrown over the side of the wall. They screamed all the way down to their deaths.

A nearby dwarf that had gotten his barings came charging at him with an axe. The human, now seen as the mage of the group, simply turned his wand and fired a purple beam of energy. It crashed straight through the dwarf's chest, leaving behind a huge hole. The dwarf fell down dead.

The mage turned to his fellow humans, "I need time. Buy it for me and kill these wretched monsters."

The human soldiers gave out a warcry and were on the dwarves. Most of them were still trying to get their bearings, so several dwarves were cut down before they could properly defend themselves. Dreevan hated himself at that moment. He didn't think to bring any close range weapons. He glanced over at his elder. He had dropped his bow and arrow and pulled out a pair of small hatchets from his belt.

"I thought you said we didn't have to worry about this stuff," Skiev growled.

"They must have found a crack in the barrier," Dreevan pointed his rifle and fired, killing one man.

The humans were getting closer. Skiev uses one hatchet to block a soldier's sword. He swung his other arm and embedded the axe into the side of her skull. He pulled the axe out of the dead soldier's head before confronting another attacker.

All the while Dreevan pulled back the lever. He quickly put in another round. He only had two left. He was thankful the last one worked just fine. He guessed he must have hit it into place just right. He pushed the lever forward and took aim. Before he could fire, a dwarf's body was thrown into him. He fell to the ground, groaning as he pushed off the body. He looked forward to see that Skiev was on his back. He was holding a human's spear with both hands as the enemy tried to push it into his chest.

Dreevan pulled his arms forward and gasped. His gun was gone. He desperately looked forward and saw it a couple of meters away. The young dwarf had to hurry. He pushed himself to his feet and raced forward.

A human soldier jumped in front of him and swung his sword. Dreevan had to jump back. He didn't have any weapons on him. Only his fists. That didn't do him any good so he dodged the next two strikes.

"Die, monster!" The human shouted.

"I'm a dwarf," he shouted back, "Not a monster."

Thankfully another dwarf charged in. The human soldier turned to fight him. This gave Dreevan the opportunity to run around. He quickly snatched up his rifle and turned. The gun blared as the shot hit its mark. The human soldier pulled away from Skiev, looking down at their chest in shock before passing over.

Skiev turned to look at him. He glared and shook his fist, "I had him!"

"Course you did," Dreevan laughed, "Why don't you admit this has its uses?"

"I'll admit it when I'm dead," Skiev stood up. He grabbed a dead dwarf's sword and stood at the ready.

Unfortunately for them, they wouldn't get a chance. The remaining few dwarves, as they hadn't received proper reinforcements yet, were held up in the air. The human mage gripped his wand tightly. Humans tended to need something to focus their magic through, though some could do so with only their hands. He sneered at the dwarves.

"Accursed monsters," the mage said with disdain, "Know your place and die like the vermin you are."

"We keep telling you lot," Dreevan shouted, "We aren't monsters. Aint got that corruption or anything."

"We aint even kicked a human's butt in centuries," Skiev said.

"No corruption," the mage said, "Yet you are not human either. You disgustingly mock the human form with your visage. You take what is rightfully ours. Riches, land, the very air you breath belong to us. How dare you think yourselves worthy of what this world has to offer. We humans are the true masters of this world. None other are dignified enough to inherit it. The Chief God made us to rule over this world. As a proud mage of the great kingdom of Marseille, no, as a human, I will rid this world of your disgusting presence. Farewell-"

The mage never knew what happened until he felt something grab his head. The only sounds that could have been heard were a wing flap and something clawing on the stone. The reptilian hand was light blue and large enough to grip his head all around. The figure the hand belonged to was two heads taller then the man. She had draconic arms and legs, ending with large blade like claws. Two wings sprouted from her back as twisted horns arose from her head. Dreevan had to admit, she was beautiful for her king. Strong but shapely body. A pretty face highlighted by her black hair.

The mage didn't seem to be captivated by it. He paled as the hand brought his face to hers, "Dr-Dra-Dra-"

"I fucking hated hearing you talk," the woman snarled, "Blab, blab, blab. If you're going to kill someone, just fucking do it. Don't go on your 'human supremacy' bullshit."

"Dragon!" The mage called out in panic. He raised his wand and shot her in the chest.

The dragon woman only had on a green dress shirt and short pants. The blast did nothing except tear a hole in the shirt. She didn't even flinch. She just narrowed her eyes.

"I paid for that," she snarled, "Any last words?"

"You can't do this!" The mage said in terror, "I'm too important to die!"

"Seen plenty of people like you pass on," the dragon said, "No one will miss another one."

"You damned animal," the mage snapped, "All your kind knows how to do is fuck. You taint our world with your presence. Why don't you do everyone a favor and-"

She crushed his skull as easily as one would a grape. Her grip loosened and the body hit the ground. She waved her hand slightly to let the blood and brain matter splatter on the ground.

"Die? Was that what you were going to say?" She snorted, plumes of smoke coming out of her nostril. "I don't fancy doing that any time soon."

"Took you long enough," Skiev huffed. The dwarves had collected themselves once the magic was gone.

"You guys had things covered till now," she shrugged, "Thought you dwarves were made of sterner stuff. Guess I was wrong."

"Oh just go out there and breath fire or something," Skiev said as he pointed to the battle.

The she dragon rolled her eyes. She walked over to the edge and spread her wings, "You're lucky I'm getting paid for this or you'd be burning like a candle right now."

Without another word, she flapped her wings and took off. Dreevan watched her soar over the battlefield. Her movements were graceful yet powerful in motion. He felt someone slap him upside the head.

"Don't go gawking," Skiev said, "We don't need any dragon brats running around."

Dreevan blushed, "I wasn't thinking about that! I've just never seen a dragon before."

"Well hopefully it'll be the last," Skiev scoffed, "I wish our king didn't hire her but what can you do."

"She did save us," Dreevan said.

"Bah," Skiev threw up his hands, "We'd have thought of something."

Meanwhile, the dragon stopped in the middle of the battlefield. She grinned down at the humans present. Her claws flexed. She was old enough to remember when battles like these were commonplace. Nowadays it is rare to see so many fighting in one area. She usually just stayed in her mamono form most of the time, killing or burning a few idiots who didn't run. Now though, she'd get to cut loose.

"Hey assholes," she shouted down at them. Her grin widened as she noticed some of them recognized her species, "You've got the worst luck. Today Valeriena's come to play."

It was no secret that most mamono couldn't change into their old monster forms. Most wouldn't want to. They were ugly and rotten and reminded them of how they used to be. However, some of the more powerful mamono could change into their past forms for brief periods of times. Dragons were amongst this handful of mamono.

Valeriena's body sparked with energy. A huge burst of fire enveloped her. The humans watched as the fire grew and took shape. It grew and grew until the shape was big enough to look into the dwarvish hold over the wall. The fire immediately was put out and in its place was a giant, light blue dragon. Scales covered her whole form. Four powerful limbs smashed into the ground, causing many humans to fall onto their behinds. If they weren't crushed under her feet, that is.

The dragon reared back its head. Then it roared. The sound hit them at the core of their being, shaking it entirely. Everyone in that land remembered why they feared dragons so much.


King Norman of Marseille was not a handsome man. He was by all accounts rather ugly. Fattened by all the sweets and delights he could put in his mouth over the years. He was pudgy in all the wrong ways with a crooked nose and beady eyes. His blond hair was greasy. He always wore clothes filled with colors far too bright to look at. The many jewels didn't help. The myriad of colors and light made him a spectacle. That is if you could stand looking at it in the first place.

His advisor stood beside his desk. Thin and tall, he was the opposite of Norman in that respect. Not handsome in his own right. His mustache twirled far too much for many a liking of fashion.

"Where is my cheese," King Norman said as he gulped down another cup of wine, "I wanted it an hour ago."

"They will be here shortly," the advisor said for what was the tenth time, "The battle has kept everyone busy."

"Bah," the king scoffed, "It's because it's commoner filth that can't get anything done. Remind me to cut off someone's head for this slow service."

The advisor nodded, "Of course, Your Majesty."

The king huffed and turned to a figure in the tent. It was a young woman in light green clothes. They were form fitting and rather pretty. Like you would see in an old tale of a woodsman but far more noble. A hat with a red feather sat on her head, just over her reddish brown hair. Her yellowish eyes were beautiful if they weren't puffy from crying. Her mouth was gagged and her arms bound. The rope keeping her in place was magically enhanced so she wasn't going anywhere.

"I had one job for you," King Norman raised a fat finger, "One job. Bring that wall down. Did you do that? No! You messed up a simple job. You were blessed by our goddess. How could you not take down a dwarf wall? They couldn't build one as strong as a human one. They are savages yet they stopped a hero. Some hero you are."

"She is a disgrace," the advisor said.

King Norman nodded, "Yes. I can see why you're the last of your house. The rest of your family was far too weak to survive."

The woman muffled something. It was probably about how the king had them executed and their treasury stolen. All under the premise of them being 'traitors'.

The king smiled, "You should thank me for keeping you alive. I should have killed you with the rest of those bastards but I needed your talent. Seems I was mistaken." He leered at her and licked his lips, "But you can make it up to me tonight."

The former hero's eyes widened. She tried to yell for help. For someone to save her. All her squirming and muffled yells did was make the king laugh. Her heart was beating fast. She didn't want this life. She felt like crying again.

"I like it when pretty trash squirms," King Norman chuckled, "It makes breaking your type all that sweeter. Don't worry, it'll be good for you."

It was at that moment someone walked in. It was a teenage boy with ragged, brown clothing. A commoner. He had a tray of fresh cheese with him. All of the pieces were cut into perfect squares, "My Lord, your cheese."

"Bring it here," King Norman said as he gestured to himself. The commoner brought over the platter. The instant the king touched the cheese, he snapped. "This is cold! I wanted it warm."

The boy gulped, "It… It was warm but I had a hard time getting past the camp. It's kind of a mess-"

"Unacceptable," King Norman shouted, "Guards. Guards. Take him away and cut off his head."

"What?" The boy's eyes widened. Instantly two large guards came into the tent. The king always had ten fully armed guards around him at all times. They grabbed the boy's arms and dragged him away, "Wait! Please. I didn't mean to. I'll bring it sooner next time."

"I'll get someone else next time," King Norman said as he threw in a piece of cheese into his mouth, "Maybe a cute young girl. That would work better."

The king ate his cheese in relative peace. All he cared about was the riches he was sure to get once the dwarven hold was taken over. Yes, the dwarves had struck a few times beforehand. He'd lost a good few hundred troops to surprise attacks along the way. Nothing he couldn't take. A few deserters here or there. Fine. They'd be found and hung. He got here with most of his army intact. They should be able to take the wall. He was paying them enough to do so after all.

All he needed now was to think about having a good night's rest with his new conquest. He chuckled. He picked up another cheese squire.

A slicing noise could be heard by him. It was the last thing he ever heard. He slumped in his chair. The back of his neck had been sliced over in such a way that he was killed instantly. For some reason, the advisor didn't react.

"Yes, you should have a decent night's rest." The Advisor spoke to the body as thought it was alive.

The former hero looked on in surprise and fear. What was going on? Why was he dead? Why was the advisor acting like nothing was wrong? Was this a good thing or not? She started to panic.

Suddenly someone appeared before her. It was a beautiful and shapely woman. Far more developed then she was. She wore black light leather across most of her body except for a star shaped opening over her chest, showing some of her generous cleavage. Her mouth was covered by a black sash. Her long, black hair was tied in a ponytail. Her eyes were slanted. The former hero had heard about that kind of feature. She was foriegn. What worried her wasn't that.

She had pointed ears and she could see small wings on the woman's back. A long tail with a spade at the end swooshed around. This wasn't human. This was a mamono. The former hero's eyes widened as she made to cry out.

The mamono put a finger over her mouth, causing her to pause. The mamono pulled down her sash so she could see her rather human face. The mamono's purple eyes started into her own, "I need you to stay calm. My illusion magic can suppress noise but not if you start shouting."

The former hero kept quiet. She wasn't sure if it was because she was scared of her or being found out. So she complied.

"I'll get you out of here," she said "My name is Yua, a Kunoichi. What is your name?"

"Audrey," the girl said, "I have no last name now. My family-"

"I heard," Yua said with a sympathetic look, "I'm sorry, but at least I can get you somewhere safe."

"Why?" Audrey gulped in fear. Maybe she shouldn't question the monster, "Why are you helping me?"

"Because it's the right thing to do," Yua cut all of her bindings with her small, strange knives. She pulled Audrey to her feet, "We should hurry. They'll find out soon enough."