My Servant System

My first arrow sliced silently through the air, the thin crystalline rod arcing down towards the closest Cultist's back and sinking deep into their spine, severing it and dropping them to the ground with a thud; a thud that was concealed by the explosion of a second firebomb, which washed the street in flames and scorched the rubble.

Lifting the next arrow, I slung it forwards and grabbed the next even as I watched my second impale a woman in the back of her skull, freezing her brain and killing her just as silently as the first, though this time her companion beside her let out a scream as she watched her comrade drop to the ground, her head leaking copious amounts of blood across the cobbled street.

Her scream was cut off as the third arrow skewered her throat, but it was too late since the Cultists turned and caught sight of their three dead comrades, though I could say it was too late for them as well since two Demonesses were waltzing down the street with weapons drawn.

Jahi was wearing a small smile as her amethyst eyes located me, the blue skinned Demoness hefting her great sword and blocking the desperate spear thrust from a man that ran up to her, the sheer difference in size and strength made apparent when he stumbled forwards and slammed against Jahi's body, horror spreading throughout his body as the Demoness reached forwards and lifted him by the head.

Staring at him, she said something before squeezing her fist, her fingers sinking into his skull and cleanly shattering the bone as she popped his head like a watermelon, blood and gore pouring out of the lumpen mass that was now his head.

Beside her, Satanya swished her serrated longsword around and walked calmly towards two humans, who were both shouting and pointing their own blades at her, trying to get the taller woman to step back... or something...

I don't know what goal they had in mind, but I do know that the result was definitely not what they had in mind; a singular swift slash was enough to tear through their patchy leather coats and cut apart their flesh as Satanya cut deep into their chests, sending them reeling as they both received the same injury with one movement from the Demoness.

Pulling her arm back, Satanya stabbed her arm forwards and skewered the throat of one of the men before yanking the sword free and cutting the other one down, leaving two bodies in her wake as she continued walking forwards, her gait completely unchanged as she made her way further into Emor.

Watching as they continued on down the street, I lifted another arrow and continued on with my work, cutting down the humans who were trying to flee, Leraie coming to my aid as she stood in the center of the road behind them, trapping them between us and the other Demonesses.

They... posed little threat, their individual strength amounting to almost nothing as they tried to go against full fledged warriors from stronger races, doing their best to make their lives end quickly as they rushed straight into the arms of death, be it straight towards Jahi and Satanya or back towards Leraie and I.

Cutting them down quickly, our group was left with an empty street that only held the sounds of two human's screams, their knees pierced by icicles that robbed them of their mobility, allowing us to get some further questions asked about where they were from and why they were here.

Amioux was a clue, as was the fact that this Cult seemed to be rather large if it spanned throughout the west... and had the ability to have branches all the way over in the Empire.

That was worth looking into, and I couldn't help but wonder what this Cult wanted to achieve; truly achieve, not the propaganda and wishful dream of a real breadth of equality for all, a world where the strong and the weak stand shoulder to shoulder without any qualms in doing so...

An impossible world, because every mortal holds the capacity to sin, and sin... is far too easy to commit; far, far easier than virtuous deeds for your fellow mortal.

Sex and liquor will forever run the world, and getting those things will always come with the need for money, wealth and a certain amount of prestige; things that are then earned through exploitation and murder.

There is no such thing as equality between the strong and the weak, not in this world; a peasant cannot fathom the power of the Empress, let alone the average Knight of Cinder that serves her.

The difference in what they provide is far too large to equate to being equals; a Knight protects the Empire from internal and external threats, keeping thousands upon thousands of people safe, while a peasant might produce enough food to sustain their own family for a year and a half if they are lucky.

That... is the difference between the weak and strong, and trying to tear that down and make them equal is idiotic and impossible; the strong will always be in power, either with their own physical or arcane strength, or with a dominant charisma that draws people together to work for them.

So what was the real goal of this Cult, and... was there a chance that Jillian and Ayla were aiding them..?

We still had no idea what the rogue Elves were doing, and until I saw their cold, bloody and broken corpses beneath my feet, I would never not think about where they were and what they could be doing.

Who knows what they could be capable of, since when we had last seen them, they were still barely sprouting from being seedlings; had they sprouted into a common dandelion, or were they immaculate roses?

Not knowing this was something that weighed on my mind, but what was really weighing on my mind was my heated body, the sight of how casual Jahi had dispatched those humans stoking the flames that had sparked inside me earlier...