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Fleur nodded as she looked back towards the heroes. She was about to say something else when the room shook again and the wailing grew louder. "Whatever we plan to do, we should do it quick!" She warned, glancing towards the pit. "So defying someone gives you the authority to speak with them? That would seem like the opposite to me," replied Mayor Lightheart. "And your opinion of me doesn't matter. You will be dead soon." He walked up behind Blake who was being held at the edge of the pit. Blake struggled against the chains but was unable to free himself. He knew what was about to happen. At the last moment he stopped, looking over at the Blackwings. "Please...save them," he said desperately. As soon as the words had left his mouth, Mayor Lightheart gave him a shove and for a moment he hung over the pit, nothing between him and whatever was down there but empty air. Then he was gone, falling into the seething black morass of darkness. "NO!" Screamed Faye as Blake vanished. Mayor Lightheart looked at the Blackwings and then to the heroes. "Throw the heroes in, then allow our divine being to do his work on the Blackwings," he instructed the robed townspeople as he walked away. He quickly disappeared out the other exit to the massive room, fading into the darkness before a massive stone door slammed shut behind him.

The townsperson Chilia's wolf punched went flying backwards, slamming into the stone wall behind them, killed instantly. The other hooded figures took several steps backwards, pulling out swords, axes, knives and other assorted weapons. Each weapon had a silver glow to it; they were enchanted to fight against madness based creatures. "Death to Blackwing!" One of them shouted, charging forwards with a mace. He swung it towards her, attempting to hit her into the pit.

Fleur was already obliging, her crystals flipped horizontally and glowing brightly as they charged. Several seconds later they all began to fire in quick explosions of light. Being regular humans, the townspeople were dropping left and right, smoking holes in their bodies as Fleur's blasts found their marks. As Chilia hit the townsperson that attacked her, he flew backwards, falling into the pit. Suddenly there was a groan and a deep red glow from the pit, as if the creature were in pain. Fleur looked over at the pit, pausing in her firing. "Looks like whatever's in there doesn't like that!" She said with a small smile.

Jacob, Lexi and Faye had entered the fight rather than retreating. Blue flame and purple energy flashed back and forth across the room, while Faye engaged several enemies with her thin rapier. Finding herself surrounded, Lexi attempted to jump backwards, launching herself over the pit. As she was about halfway across a dark bolt of lightening lashed out from somewhere deep inside. It was a direct hit of incredible power and Lexi was knocked out of the air, disappearing headfirst into the pit. "LEXI!!" Yelled Jacob as he saw her disappear, clearly having feelings for her. But it was too late; she was gone. The entire room shook again as the creature pulled itself even closer to the surface.

Jacob went flying backwards past Fleur through the way they came. "Watch it!" Yelled Fleur as he flew past her. She fired more shots into the crowd, dropping even more towns people. She dashed forwards, grabbing one and throwing him into the pit. The pit turned crimson again and there was another loud groan. "Enjoy!" sneered Fleur before turning back to the fight. Faye was surrounded and the townspeople were slowly pushing her back towards the edge of the pit despite her best efforts. Just as she was about to break through their lines, a black tentacle of lightening lashed out of the pit, wrapping around Faye's leg. "Ahh!" cried Faye as it pulled her off her feet, dragging her towards the pit. She dug her rapier into the ground, trying to halt the tentacle's progress. It only held her for a few moments before it snapped in two and she continued being dragged towards the edge. She looked over at Chilia then. "H-help me!" She cried fearfully, forgetting about their differences as fear overcame her.

[[Warning: Your decision to save Faye or leave her to her fate will have future consequences in the mission!]]

Many of the townspeople fell as Chilia sent her waves of white energy towards them. The rest scattered, attempting to reform around her in a circle. The tentacle was strong, and despite Chila and her wolf's best efforts, it continued to drag Faye towards the edge of the pit. Suddenly the tentacle released a massive burst of madness energy, lighting up the entire room with an eerie glow. Since Fleur, Chilia and her wolf were powered by madness, the blast had no effect on them. But Faye screamed in pain as the flash blinded everyone. When the eerie light faded the effects of the blast were apparent. The townspeople closest to the pit had been fried to ashes, weapons and all. Faye however was still alive, but changed. Her form and appearance had altered and instead of normal soul resonance coming from her, it was the power of madness.

When Chilia slashed the tentacle, it disrupted the flow of lightening, causing the tentacle to disintegrate entirely. Faye pulled her hand out of Chilia's and stood up slowly, looking around the room. Fleur, Jacob and the townspeople paused, wondering what had happened to her. Then a grin spread across her face and she extended her hand towards three of the towns people, palm outward. Suddenly a blast of energy came out of her hand slamming into the three townspeople and throwing them back against the wall, killing them instantly. Faye looked down at her hand, a grin still on her face. "I see..." she said. Her voice had changed: it now had a slight edge to it. In fact, it seemed as if her whole personality had changed. "It wants to corrupt us. But if this was only a fraction of the corruption it planned for us..." she looked over at the pit. Despite Blake and Lexi's fates looking relatively brutal in light of this new information, Faye didn't seem concerned.

"Faye!" Yelled Jacob, running back into the room. "What....what happened to you!?" He looked her up and down as if he didn't recognize her. All things considered, that could be the case. Faye looked over at Jacob, still smiling. "What happened? This is the power of madness. It's...intoxicating." She held her hand out towards another townsperson, blowing him back into the wall and shattering his bones. "I...this can't be happening..." Jacob said in disbelief. Faye looked back at Chilia. "Thanks for the save. Now I understand the power you wield. I like it." Fleur was watching the whole scene in surprise. She hadn't been expecting something like this. "So you're saying you're with us now...?" Asked Fleur skeptically. Faye nodded. "Yes. I can see how stupid I was before. The Mayor was right, but not in the way he thinks. Let's finish off these scum and go after him." She clenched her hand into a fist as she looked back towards the townspeople. Fleur gave a small smile. "That sounds like an excellent idea," she replied. Jacob stood stock still, still in shock.

Mayor Lightheart was at the end of a long, dark corridor that presumably led towards the exit of the strange temple. He looked back when he heard Chilia chasing him. "Oh child, aren't you concerned with what is coming out of the pit more than little old me? You know once it arrives you won't be able to stop it. I can already feel that half of its meal has been consumed. Or have you come to beg for mercy?" Mayor Lightheart grinned as he turned to face her, leaning forward on his cane.

Mayor Lightheart had no time to respond as Chilia attacked. Both attacks landed, slicing almost all the way through Mayor Lightheart. He collapsed to the ground in a pool of blood, looking up at Chilia with a shocked expression. Then he began to laugh. "As if a being like me could even challenge a great being such as our god," he told her. Then his skin began to melt as if it were made of putty. His bones followed and his clothing, until he was nothing but a puddle of multi-colored liquid on the floor. Then something rose out of the pool.



The creature floated before Chilia, making a noise that sounded like a cross between a gurgle and a choke. It sounded vaguely like a laugh. You have no idea what you have intruded upon the being told her, speaking directly to her mind instead of audibly. You face a fate worse than death here and it is coming swiftly. Your actions will change nothing.