Two weeks had gone by, Isaac taking upon royal duties expected of a spouse of a member of the royal family, while also devoting his time to restoring his parents' homestead. Isaac was currently in the training yard, a squad of soldiers from the garrison there. They were cold, but they did not shiver in the snow. Isaac was standing before them, his hands crossed behind his back, acting as an instructor.
"Guards, I have no love for the cold. Personally, I want to go back inside and sit by the fire. Unfortunately, we do not get that privilege. I have been tasked with ensuring you all can survive in the wilderness with minimal interference, in the event you are separated from your unit." Isaac explained, pacing.
The guards were still standing at parade rest, having been instructed to treat Isaac as a commissioned officer by King Nigel. Isaac motioned to the bundle of firewood, knife, and flint.
"These are the tools of survival. With these, you will make a fire capable of warming yourselves up, and able to withstand the cold wind. You will not be timed, but trust me, time is not your friend. The longer it takes to make the fire, the longer you'll be exposed to the cold. And this usually kills. Start when you're ready." Isaac instructed.
The guards began to work on the fire, one of them using the knife to shave wood off one of the pieces of wood, while the others were doing what they could to make a shield from the wind to give this fire a chance. As they worked, Isaac's gaze snapped towards the walls of the training yard. He thought he had seen something nearby, but the lack of evidence had told him elsewise.
"I could've sworn I saw something." Isaac said to himself. But as he continued to look towards the ledge of the wall, the gentle warmth of a made fire snapped him out of his gaze, returning it to the guards.
"Good job. A little teamwork and ingenuity can ensure survival almost anywhere." Isaac observed, before walking over to a cooler.
"For your next exercise, I'll need all of you to work together to cook a decent meal. Get a feel for how to cook your food in the field. Now, rations will not always be the best. Some days, you might go hungry, access to rations being unavailable. When traversing the wilds, you'll be given biscuits and meat, sometimes flour. But oftentimes, you'll have to get creative with how you prepare your food." Isaac instructed, pulling out a slab of beef with bone, and preserved ship's biscuits.
"You have a fire, a pot, and some food. Get cooking." Isaac ordered, letting them go to work.
One guard scooped up snow with the pot, hanging it over the fire to melt and boil the snow. Another began working with the meat, cutting it off of the bone. As they were cooking, Isaac saw a figure in the corner of his eye! His head snapped back to the wall, finally seeing a figure sneaking around on the wall's ledge.
"Jenkins." Isaac said, one of the guards approaching him.
"Yes, sir?" Jenkins questioned.
"Make sure you all finish the assignment. I need to investigate a potential security breach." Isaac answered. Jenkins saluted him, Isaac returning the gesture.
Isaac quietly made his way to the wall, suddenly jumping almost thirty feet in a single attempt! He silently landed on the ledge, seeing the footsteps of whoever was there in the snow. He slowly followed the footsteps, seeing a Mobian figure crouched behind part of the wall. Isaac cleared his throat, alerting the Mobian.
"Come on out. It's too cold for this nonsense. I don't care if you lie to me about why you're up here, but staying up here isn't safe." Isaac said, wanting this to be over and done with.
The figure was hesitant, but soon moved from its spot. Isaac saw the identity of the figure and was immediately confused.
"Sally? What are you doing up here?" Isaac asked. In front of Isaac was Princess Sally, but she was wearing a black jumpsuit instead of her usual vest and pants. But upon seeing Isaac, she smiled.
"Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to distract you. I was just… working on my balance." She explained. Isaac raised an eyebrow.
"Kind of a strange place to pick for training. Unless…" Isaac began to say, before approaching her. His hand caressed her cheek, Sally looking a bit confused.
"You didn't come out here to get my attention, did you?" Isaac asked, grinning. Sally's look of confusion was soon replaced with a look of understanding, herself soon smirking.
"You saw right through me. I just wanted to watch you order those guards around, my dear handsome hedgehog." She romantically said. Isaac chuckled.
"I have to go back to make sure they finish their exercises. But I leave you with this." Isaac said, before planting a kiss on her lips. Sally flinched slightly, Isaac stopping.
"Is there something wrong, dear?" Isaac asked. Sally responded by aggressively grabbing Isaac's shoulders and pulling him towards herself, kissing him! She soon let him go, Isaac feeling the wind knock out him!
"Holy… wow!" Isaac exclaimed, Sally never before kissing him like that. She coyly smiled.
"You better get back to the guards. But when you're done… you'll know where to find me." Sally implied.
Isaac, still catching his breath, quickly dropped back down to the training yard, running towards the guards. Sally only watched, sighing.
"Oh… I'm going to enjoy breaking him." She sinisterly said, before continuing her way atop the wall.
3 Hours Later:
Isaac was walking out from the cold, a bowl of impromptu stew in his hands, a result of the training exercises the guards had been going through. He put a spoonful of it in his mouth, chewing a bit.
"Simple, yet delicious. I better remember to grab them beer next time." Isaac said to himself.
As he walked, he heard uproarious laughter from the common room. He went to investigate, seeing Vylania and Xorelaz. They were cracking jokes and telling stories to Prince Elias, his wife Megan, and their daughter Alexis. Horace was sitting near the fire, drinking a mug of coffee as he listened as well. Vylania was holding Camilla, a mothering nature radiating from her as she watched over Isaac's daughter. Isaac was still eating, chuckling softly as he watched them. As he did so, a soft hand on his shoulder caused him to turn around.
"Sally!" Isaac exclaimed, seeing his wife. She was wearing her usual vest and pants, a stark contrast to the black jumpsuit Isaac had seen her wearing.
"I missed you while you were gone. How was training today?" Sally asked.
"Pretty good. They were quick and effective. A few days from now, we'll be covering how to built shelters to wait out a storm. There's a hell of a storm coming, and it'll be a good exercise for them." Isaac said.
Sally nodded, before seeing the others. She smiled, Isaac remembering what she said earlier.
"You know… if you want to… go upstairs…" Isaac slyly said, Sally furiously blushing. She couldn't believe Isaac, asking her so bluntly!
"Wait, now?!" Sally asked. Isaac took her hand, kissing the back of it. He looked back at her, his eyes filled with a burning intensity.
"If you're available." Isaac answered. Sally peeked into the common room, Vylania holding Camilla with a gentle touch. Knowing she was in good hands, she turned back to Isaac.
"Start running." Sally said. Isaac, smiling ear to ear, began running towards the staircase, Sally not far behind him.
Isaac leaped up the staircase, taking no delay by taking the stairs! Sally leaped up on the handrail, running up as if she was an assassin, prepared to take out her target! Isaac quickly bolted through the chamber doors, Isaac seeing a strange figure on the bed. It was Sally, dressed in the black jumpsuit from earlier.
"So, handsome, you finally made it! Thought you were getting cold feet." She said. Isaac was confused, knowing Sally couldn't have beat him here.
"What the hell?" Isaac questioned. Sally could only smile, sitting up.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" She asked. Suddenly, Sally, the one that had been following Isaac, turned up, seeing the other Sally!
"What the- Alicia?!" Sally exclaimed. The other Sally quickly leaped from the bed, realizing she had been found out.
"Sally! I haven't seen my interdimensional sister in so long! When I saw the crib, I knew you had to have been busy. A baby! How come I wasn't invited to the baby shower?" Alicia asked.
Sally gritted her teeth, feeling every ounce of anger she could feel at this moment!
"Why are you here?!" Sally asked, venom spilling from her voice. Alicia smiled, pacing around the room.
"Why else? Ruin your life. Take over the throne. Take everything that I deserve. Take your pick." Alicia explained.
Isaac was growling, realizing just what had happened earlier today.
"You made me believe you were my wife! You tricked me!" Isaac yelled. Alicia laughed, stretching out her arms.
"Wife? I might've figured you out to have been in a relationship with her. But actually, married to her? I wouldn't have guessed it." Alicia revealed.
"Isaac, what is she talking about?" Sally asked. Isaac was mortified by the question, not knowing how to explain to his wife that he had accidentally kissed someone that looked exactly like her!
"Sally… I'm so sorry." Isaac said, feeling his throat aching. Sally was looking at Alicia, beginning to piece together what she was talking about.
"Don't be too mad, Sal. We're practically twins." Alicia taunted, Sally quickly walking to the bookcase, reaching into it, pulling out her sword!
"I'm going to kill you!" Sally screamed, running towards her! Alicia quickly dove out of the way, Sally's sword cleaving through the nightstand!
Alicia saw how serious she was, realizing she was actually going to try to kill her!
"Oh shit! Okay, I see you're angry! But it wasn't that serious!" Alicia said, before backing up into Isaac! She turned around, seeing Isaac had his arms crossed, his eyes glowing!
"Oh… hey. Uh, I know this is a bit awkward, but… you wouldn't hurt me, right?" Alicia asked.
Isaac said nothing. Suddenly, he burst into flames, his bones breaking and fusing! Horns erupted from his forehead, his skin turning black, the same color as charcoal! His veins glowed red, feeling as if his blood was flowing with lava! Alicia backed away, horrified by what she was seeing! With a great roar of pain, Isaac had turned into the demon, his breath permeated with the scent of sulfur!
"Oh… shit!" Alicia exclaimed, seeing the demon side of him! Isaac chuckled, walking towards her.
"I shall bring upon you every torture of the Inferno. I shall parade your corpse amongst the earth and the world below. I shall teach you what it means to make a fool out of me." Isaac calmly said, his voice distorted.
Alicia, seeing the balcony window, quickly ran as fast as she could, before barreling out! She managed to grab onto part of the ledge, throwing herself onto the wall of the training yard, running away from the castle.
Sally relaxed her arms, her sword resting on the floor. Isaac returned back to his normal form, seeing a big problem. Sally turned to him, exasperated.
"Isaac… what did she do?" Sally asked, hoping not to hear the worst.
"Sally, before you get angry, you have to know, I didn't know she wasn't you." Isaac said. Sally shook her head, needing to know exactly what happened.
"What happened?!" Sally yelled. Isaac sighed, knowing she deserved to know.
"I caught her on the ledge of the training wall. I went to check it out, and she said she was you. I didn't think because I thought she was you. I kissed her, alright? And then she kissed me. I'm sorry." Isaac explained.
Sally actually breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that was the worst of it.
"Oh, thank God. I thought she tricked you into sleeping with her." Sally said, before walking over to the balcony window.
They saw Alicia as she ran on the wall, leaping from the rooftops of houses, headed towards the Great Forest. Isaac walked over to the bookcase, pulling out the tome he had gutted.
"What are you doing?" Sally asked. Isaac opened the tome, pulling out the Warp ring he had hidden.
"We need to send her back where she came from." Isaac responded, before walking over to trunk near their bed.
"Where did you get a Warp ring?" Sally asked. Isaac opened the trunk, his knives, his gauntlet, and a quiver full of arrows there to greet him.
"Found it while I was in the forest. Looked important, so I did some research. Found out it was called a Warp ring. When I figured that it was too dangerous to have lying around, I decided to hide it in case I would need it." Isaac lied, hiding the true origin of where he had found it.
"We have a problem: Warp rings don't work unless they're charged with Chaos energy. And we need a lot of it!" Sally explained.
Isaac took a deep breath, his aura taking upon a white light. His hands began to glow, the Warp ring itself taking upon the color of his aura! After a few moments, Isaac's aura dissipated, the Warp ring radiating with Holy energy. Isaac tossed it in the air, the Warp ring expanding! The ring created an opening in reality, able to see another landscape.
"Will that work?" Isaac asked. Sally looked into the opening, seeing that the opening actually led to another universe!
"How did you know that would work?!" Sally exclaimed, surprised.
"I didn't. But it seems my energy is similar to Chaos energy. Now, I don't know if that's her universe, but it will be our best shot." Isaac said, grabbing the ring.
The ring shrank back down, the energy field dissipating. Isaac pocketed it, before walking back to the trunk. Isaac put his belt of knives onto his person, slinging his quiver over his shoulder. Isaac equipped the gauntlet on his left arm, latching it into place.
"Where do you think she'll go out there?" Isaac asked, walking over to a wardrobe.
"There's not a lot of structures out there. She'll either go to that cabin you guys found last year, or…" Sally began to say, realizing what was the other option. Isaac opened the wardrobe, equipping his bow and strapping his sword onto his belt.
"She'll have ran all that way for nothing. There's not much out there right now. I haven't even found my father's cellar." Isaac said, before walking towards the balcony.
"What about the others?" Sally asked.
"I don't wish to involve them. I'd rather they not have to interrupt their vacations to deal with a trivial matter." Isaac responded.
"You shouldn't consider her trivial! She's incredibly dangerous!" Sally reacted. Isaac shook his head.
"Zeus was incredibly dangerous. She is nothing to me." Isaac bluntly said, before stepping out onto the balcony.
"We better find her before she does anything else." Sally said, Isaac holding onto her. Isaac's wings materialized from his back, soon taking flight towards the Great Forest, following Alicia's path.
Ten Minutes Later:
Isaac and Sally landed near the homestead, having been tracking Alicia's footprints through the forest. Isaac and Sally were concealed by a pine tree, Isaac able to see faint smoke from near his parents' burial place. He gave her the Warp ring, Sally unsheathing her sword.
"I'll go and distract her. While I have her talking, you sneak behind her and activate the Warp ring. Once it's active, I'll throw her into it, and then you close it as soon as she's gone." Isaac explained. Sally nodded.
"After this is over, I feel like we need to discuss you hiding things in the books. You ruined a perfectly good book, hiding that Warp ring." Sally said.
"You really needed a tractor maintenance manual?" Isaac questioned. Sally rolled her eyes, Isaac quietly walking towards the smoke.
Isaac crouched down, seeing Alicia using the hearth, before she stood up, walking towards his parents' cairn. She was studying it for a moment, before beginning to remove the rocks. Isaac quickly stood up, angered by this blatant desecration!
"Get away from my parents' grave!" Isaac yelled, alarming Alicia! She stumbled back, the same look of horror plastered on her face when she had seen Isaac transform!
"You found me already?! Now I know who you are! And to think I escaped you the first time!" Alicia exclaimed, confusing Isaac.
"The first time?" Isaac questioned.
"You're Abaddon the Agonizer! The Demon of the West! You're the most lethal bounty hunter on Moebius!" Alicia ranted, backing up further.
"Bounty hunter? I'm a bounty hunter in your universe?" Isaac asked. Alicia only nodded, Sally preparing the Warp Ring.
"You were after me before I escaped to here! You were hellbent on capturing me! And when I jumped through that Warp Ring, I saw that horrible, horrible form! A dark demon, ready to tear me apart!" Alicia revealed, before the Warp Ring activated, Alicia turning around!
Isaac took advantage of the confusion, hurling himself towards Alicia, grabbing her and throwing her into the Warp Ring! Alicia had grabbed onto Isaac as he threw her, Isaac pulled in along with Alicia! Sally, seeing the struggle, leaped into the Warp Ring as well, intent on retrieving her husband to escape being trapped in Moebius! The three of them fell onto a forest floor, the Warp Ring depowering. The golden ring fell onto the ground, Sally quickly grabbing it and putting it into her pocket.
Alicia escaped Isaac's grasp, standing up and looking over her surroundings. She recognized the forest, being the one she had escaped before! Her breathing became erratic, terrified by the chance of being found!
"You idiots! Do you realize what you've done?!" Alicia screamed, before a jet of fire erupted around her! She was trapped in the ring of fire, cowering in fear!
Isaac unsheathed his sword, standing next to Sally. Sally equipped her own, ready to stand against whatever threat was present. As they stood there, an eerie whistling was heard, before a figure was seen walking towards them, carrying a scroll of paper. It was a maroon hedgehog, dressed in a dark cloak. Underneath it, he was wearing a fur coat, made from the pelts of wolves. He was wearing a pair of deerskin pants and a pair of deerskin boots, handcrafted, and sewn together with sinew.
The hedgehog grinned, seeing Alicia cowering, knowing she had nowhere else to go. He unfurled the scroll of paper, revealing it to be her bounty, worth 145,000 rings!
"Be afraid, Alicia. I am here to collect!" He announced, before unsheathing a large knife, stained with blood. As he walked towards her, he saw Isaac and the other Sally, stopping in his tracks.
"I don't know who any of you are, or why she looks like Alicia, but this bounty is mine." He said, before snapping his fingers, the ring of fire dissipating. Alicia tried to run, but an iron chain suddenly wrapped around her ankle, being pulled towards the alternate Isaac! He had a hand on the back of her neck, a firm grip keeping her from running!
The alternate Isaac placed his knife under her chin, the blade touching her skin. The primary Isaac stepped towards them, stopping him.
"Wait! You don't have to kill her!" Isaac exclaimed. The alternate Isaac shook his head.
"She's worth far more to me dead than alive! And the Central City Rangers believe that as well. Now, if you'll allow me, it's time to water the grass." He menacingly said, gripping the knife tighter.
Isaac threw a knife from his belt at the alternate Isaac, him quickly throwing Alicia to the ground and deflecting the thrown projectile with his own knife! Alicia began running, Sally unsheathing her sword and running after her, leaving the two Isaacs in the clearing!
"You idiot! Do you realize what you've done?!" The alternate Isaac yelled, drawing two Glocks from his belt! Isaac unsheathed his sword, holding it in a defensive position.
"She may deserve death, but it is not your place to determine that!" Primary Isaac responded.
Alternate Isaac began shooting primary Isaac, primary Isaac running towards alternate Isaac! He was deflecting bullets as he ran with his sword, closing the distance between the two! Alternate Isaac soon threw his guns to the ground, drawing out a sword of his own, taking inspiration from samurai swords of the Orient! The two began clashing steel against one another, sparks flying as they fought! But as this was going on, Sally was still running after Alicia, Sally determined in stopping her, once and for all!
"Raaagh!" Sally yelled, swinging her sword at Alicia's ankle! The blade sliced through her Achille's tendon, Alicia falling to the ground, bleeding profusely from the wound! Sally stood above her, angry, and determined in her resolve.
"I can't believe, after everything you've ever done to me and my friends, that this is what finally stops you!" Sally threatened, before raising her sword above her head! Alicia cowered, her arms crossed in front of her face, shielding herself from the impending execution! But after a few moments, Sally lowered her sword, seeing Alicia's fear.
"I… no. I can't stoop to your level. That's not who I am." Sally said, sheathing her sword. Alicia's hands were now on her ankle, attempting to stop the bleeding. Sally crouched down, deftly ripping off Alicia's sleeve, tying it around her ankle. She soon grabbed a stick, inserting it underneath the sleeve.
She began twisting it, creating a tourniquet. The bleeding stopped, the immediate danger taken care of for now. As she began to wrap a bandage around the wound, a pair of horses were heard trudging through the snow, ridden by two black-cloaked figures of human origin. They dismounted their horses, landing in the ankle-deep snow.
"Well, well, well! I don't know why you look like our target, but it takes nerves of steel to cripple a heartless bitch like her! But we'll take her off of your hands, now. Here, this'll sweeten the pot a bit." One of them said, tossing Sally a small leather bag. She snatched it out of the air, seeing it was full of rings.
"That's the easy way of doing things. But if you toss it back to us… that's the hard way." The other human said.
Sally looked back down to Alicia, seeing she was terrified of the bounty hunters! And Sally knew she had good reason to be. She was wanted dead! Not dead or alive, just dead! She kept thinking of all the horrible things Alicia had done, all the bloodshed, all the deaths! But she kept hearing Isaac's words from other encounters, how executing people was never their decision to make. She tossed the bag back to them, unsheathing her sword to prepare for combat!
"Seriously? Do you even know what she's done?!" One of the bounty hunters asked, outraged by the denial of their bounty.
"Yes! I know that firsthand! But… final judgement should never be our decision to make." Sally responded.
The bounty hunters equipped machetes, running towards Sally, determined to nab Alicia off of her! Sally relied on her training, blocking their strikes as they came! She was pushing them back, attempting to take advantage of openings!
"Who the hell are you?!" One of them yelled as they fought, before slashing down!
Sally sidestepped the attack, before slashing down on his arm! Her sword cut clean through his forearm, quite literally disarming him! The bounty stumbled back, staunching the blood flow with an actual tourniquet in his pocket. Sally was in a defensive stance, waiting for the next attack. But the next attack didn't come. The other bounty hunter sighed, sheathing his machete. He grabbed the other hunter's hand and walked back to their horses.
"Wait, that's it?" Sally questioned, confused by the end of the attack.
"You cut off my brother's hand. It's obvious you're skilled. And no bounty is worth us losing our lives for it. It's the Central City Rangers code of honor. If you're defeated in combat, you lose the right to the bounty." The uninjured hunter said, before hopping onto his horse.
The amputated hunter hopped up onto his, his movement not impeded by the loss of his hand.
"Alright, Adam. Let's hurry back to the city. We'll be able to reattach it again like we did my foot the last time." The uninjured hunter said, before the both of them began riding away from Sally and Alicia.
Confused, yet unscathed, Sally sheathed her sword, turning back to Alicia. She saw that she had attempted to hobble away in the midst of the fight, noting the trail of bloodied snow. Alicia was leaning on a tree, her severed Achille's impeding her movement.
"When the hell… did you become… such a badass?" Alicia asked, grunting from the pain of her wound. Sally rolled her eyes, before grabbing under Alicia's arm.
"I can't believe I'm saving your life. Come on, we need to get going." Sally said, walking a hobbling Alicia back to where they came from.
Abaddon Fight:
The two Isaac's were beaten, bloodied, and breathing heavily. Blood spattered the ground, their swords were stained with their respective blood. The trees were scorched by Hellfire, evidence of them having transformed during their fight. The alternate Isaac sheathed his sword, exhausted.
"Do you not see the futility in this fight?" The alternate Isaac asked. The primary Isaac sheathed his sword as well, not wanting to continue the fight.
"I do see the futility. But do you see the futility in being jury, judge, and executioner?" Primary Isaac asked. Alternate Isaac rolled his eyes, unamused.
"Again, with this? Who are you to say I have no right? I kill those who deserve death." Alternate Isaac clarified.
"Who are you to say they deserve death?!" Primary Isaac .
"The bounty posters I'm given. They have already been judged. And it's my job to carry out sentence. Sometimes, they want them alive, and sometimes, they want them dead. Alicia: They want her severed head on a pike." Alternate Isaac explained. Primary Isaac shook his head, angered!
"FUCK YOU AND FUCK THE BOUNTY!" Isaac screamed, before transforming once more into his Demonic form, charging towards the alternate Isaac! The alternate Isaac grinned, transforming himself!
The two demons clashed, punching, and clawing at each other, reigniting the fight with ferocious intensity! More of their blood began to stain the ground once more, alternate Isaac managing to impale his horns into primary Isaac's abdomen! Primary Isaac felt his back hit a tree, coupling his hands together and slamming it down onto the back of alternate Isaac's neck! A hoofed foot quickly sent alternate Isaac away from primary Isaac, his gore wound already healing. But as they continued to fight, Sally, and the hobbling Alicia, finally reached the clearing, seeing the two demons fighting!
"Holy shit!" Sally exclaimed, never seeing such a brutal fight up close! Alicia only stared in horror, knowing she couldn't win a fight against something like that!
The two demons suddenly stopped fighting, noticing Sally and Alicia. They both powered down, the both of them tired and sore. Primary Isaac walked towards his wife, Sally letting go of Alicia, knowing she couldn't go anywhere. She was hesitant to hug him, being covered in blood, but she decided against it, fully embracing him. Isaac was slow to return the embrace, his arms and chest sore from fighting someone as equal to him in skill as he was.
"Isaac, can we go home? I cut off a guys hand and hobbled Alicia. I think we did what was required of us." Sally asked. Isaac shook his head, completely exhausted.
"The other me will kill her. If I could just convince him that killing isn't the way to collect bounties, I would feel more than welcome to ditch Alicia here." Isaac explained. Sally rolled her eyes.
"If he won't change his mind, we can't change it. I've dealt with people from this dimension. They don't change! We've tried! Please, can we just go home?!" Sally begged.
Isaac looked over at Alicia, seeing the alternate Isaac bandaging her ankle, slowly releasing the tourniquet to control the blood flow to the bandaged wound.
"Are you going to kill her?" Isaac asked his alternate counterpart.
"I've been thinking about what you said, and… not yet to be honest. I'll take her to the Central City Rangers myself and let them decide. If they kill her, I get paid. If they don't, I'll still get paid. But I'll admit, your girlfriend really did a number on her. That slash to the tendon is going to require surgery to fix. Granted, I could give a few drops of my blood to fix it… but I won't." The alternate Isaac explained.
"Wait, your blood can heal wounds?" Isaac asked. The alternate Isaac nodded.
"Yes. Yours don't?" He asked. Sally snapped her fingers, realizing something!
"You gave me some of your blood in a blood transfusion! Remember, I felt invigorated! I was healed! Your blood has healing properties!" Sally realized.
After a few minutes, Sally took out the Warp Ring, handing it to Isaac.
"Just like last time, right?" Sally asked. Isaac nodded, focusing on channeling energy into it. Isaac's arms spasmed, causing him to drop the ring! The ring fell into the snow, Sally quickly picking it up.
"What happened?" Sally asked, not knowing why it wasn't working this time. Isaac tried to channel more Holy energy, but only managed to create a small flash of white light from his palms. Isaac felt his heart strike against his ribcage, his attempt at drawing more energy painful!
"I'm drained! If I try to focus more energy, it'll kill me! Right now, and this is only temporary, we're… well, kinda stuck here." Isaac explained.
Sally sighed, Moebius being the last place she wanted to be. But she also knew it wasn't worth risking her husband's life to go back immediately. Home would have to wait. A throat clearing alerted them back to the present, seeing the alternate Isaac was still there.
"Uh, listen… I don't usually do this, but… if you two need a place to stay, well… my door is open, all considering." He offered.
"Really? After me spilling a half-fucking-gallon of your blood around the forest, you're offering my wife and I a place to sleep until I've recovered?" Isaac questioned. The alternate Isaac smirked, wiping his nose.
"Didn't take her for your wife, but yes, I'm offering despite you trying to punch my clock out." He responded.
Isaac looked over to Sally, looking towards her approval. Sally hesitantly nodded, not seeing a better alternative.
"We'll accept your offer." Isaac said. The alternate Isaac smirked, grabbing Alicia, and hoisting her over his shoulder.
"Well, let's get a move on! Night falls quickly this time of year!" He announced, walking towards the shore. Isaac and Sally both followed, the setting sun beginning to shine its last light.
"Hey, you got a name we can call you?" Sally asked. The alternate Isaac chuckled, people not usually asking for his name these days.
"My name is actually Deimos. Deimos Abaddon." He said, before resuming his walk.
"Deimos? That's a Greek name." Isaac identified. Deimos nodded, taking out a small token from his pocket. He tossed it to Isaac, who snatched it out of the air. Isaac looked into his hand, seeing a small golden coin.
"It's drachma. It's a call sign I use. When I kill my bounties, I lay them over their eyes. Fare for the ferryman. Call it a courtesy." Deimos explained. Isaac felt a bit of bile rise in his throat, before gulping it back down, rubbing his throat.