A fork in the road.

Name: Emily Silver

No changes to character sheet since last review.

You have unspent lust essence.

I watch as the Kitsune woman approaches the man at the end of the alley. My pulse pounds in my ears as my heart beats rapidly, the adrenaline in my system preparing me for the worst. My body is ready. Ready to run, or to fight. Then, a flash of movement. The Kitsune lunges forward, slamming her concealed weapon home, a syringe.

Hope swells within as the man drops the thief to the alley floor, then staggers towards the Kitsune. A flash of movement. The scene has somehow changed. The Kitsune is now staggering backwards, the remains of her mask crushed in the man’s hand. The man stands tall, rage blazing in his eyes. Ripples of energy pour from the man, a vibrant red and visible to the naked eye. I gasp as the man's body swells, muscles growing before my eyes. With a mighty rip the man’s filthy shirt tears, revealing the man’s torso.

Radiating out from where the man’s heart should be, veins, pulsing black and red with power, cover the man’s body like the strands of a spider’s web. I stand completely frozen, a deer in the headlights. The alley is completely silent, as if the world were holding its breath. Then, a flash of brilliant white fills the alley. Dazzled, I shout in alarm, panic filling me as I realise I've been blinded. The man, if I can still call him that, apparently has it worse. He bellows in rage and pain, breaking the momentary calm and causing my ears to ring. I feel a hand grip my own, pulling me towards the alley exit, away from the monstrous man. A voice filled with urgency shouts, “Run!” I am more than happy to comply.

I stumble after whoever is saving me, eyes slowly recovering from the flash. I blink rapidly, reflexively trying to clear my eyes. As my vison returns, I see a figure running a few paces in front of me. With one final blink, I can see clearly again. Ahead of me, the kitsune girl is running, a wide-eyed mouse-kin girl bouncing in her arms in a firefighter’s carry. “If she’s carrying the girl, who has my hand?” I look down at my leading arm, only to find it in the grip of an ethereal floating hand. With a small shriek, I shake the thing off me, relaxing slightly as it dissipates. “Mage hand? Freaky.”

A mighty crash sounds behind me. I chance a glance over my shoulder and soon wish I hadn’t. The massive man is lumbering after us, and with horror, I realise he’s gaining ground. I double down, pumping my arms and legs as I pour on the speed, I quickly draw level with the Kitsune. Seeing me beside her, she pants, “Can you take the girl? I need my hands free to cast.” Without waiting for my answer, a terrified mouse-kin girl is dumped into my arms.

We were moving at a fair clip, so it’s a miracle I don’t drop her. The thief is willowy, and incredibly light, probably the only reason that we both don’t take a tumble. I see as she looks up at me. She stays incredibly still, eyes full of fear and an intense pleading. A little part of my heart breaks as I realise something. She thinks I’m about to dump her as a distraction for stealing my letter, let her take the fall whilst I get away safely. A dark part of me rears its ugly head, brought up from the deep by my ever-increasing panic. It's her this beast wants. It’d be so simple. All I have to do is let her go. Leave her to her fate.

(Author's note: Bit of a short chapter but we have come to a major splitting point in the story and I felt here was the perfect place for a big choice. I was only originally planning for a lighter route, but a request from fyreant got me thinking. Now we will have the "good" route I was planning and a much darker route that runs alongside. Moral of the story is, got a scene you want to see? Request it. Good things (or bad things, if that's more your cup of tea) may come of it! Love and kisses. H.B.)