"I take it you were the one who was control the succubus we fought." Ryn said calmly, not taking her eyes off of the figure of Charline.
"My, my, aren't you a clever girl," the lioness succubus snickered, "but yes, I was the one controlling her. She resisted at first, but it wasn't long before I had her under control."
"I guess there is only one question; why?" Ryn asked, folding her arms as she waited for an answer.
"To test you all, my dear girl. Especially the half-breed." Charline replied, folding her arms as she glanced with a smirk at the unconscious form of Gareeku.
"Test?! A test?! You made that succubus into a fucking plaything! What kind of sick test is that?!" James spat, filled with fury at what Charline had done.
"Temper, temper, my dear boy," Charline said as she looked at the squirrel warrior, "I tested you all to see if you are ready to fight me."
"Oh I'll fight you all right... " Paladin growled, reaching for his axe which was now refastened to his back.
"Calm down, Paladin. You wouldn't be able to harm her anyways." Ryn said, putting a hand on the wolf's shoulder. Knowing his ally was right, Paladin let go of his axe and folded his arms, not taking his eyes off of the succubus in front of him and the others.
"However, I won't be fighting you yet," Charline continued, "but you will all know when it is time."
"Believe me when I say that I'll be looking forward to it... " Paladin growled, his fists clenched tight in anticipation of the prospect of fighting Charline.
"I'm sure you are, Paladin. You always were quite the goody two-shoes," Charline replied as the smirk reappeared on her face, "and I think your friend could use a little attention, too... "
As soon as she had finished speaking, Charline then disappeared, the magical energy that had taken her form disappearing into thin air as a sinister laugh echoed throughout the otherwise silent building. It was then that a groan was heard from behind them. Looking round, many of the faces in the group turned to looks of horror at what they saw. Lying on the floor was Aisha, a pool of her own blood surrounding her as she clutched a deep gash in her stomach. It seemed that, while distracted by Gareeku's tranformation, Aisha had been attacked by one of the shadow creatures, inflicting the massive wound upon her in the process.
"Aisha!!" Xzeliea cried out, despair evident in her voice and on her face as she rushed to the panthress' aid, "Someone heal her, quick!!"
"I...I'm sorry...i dont have the energy...that fight took a lot out of me..." Gabi said, almost ashamed of herself that she couldn't help.
"Don't worry about it, Gabi. I can't either, i used up a lot of my energy in the fight too. Jakob, you know healing magic right?" Paladin asked, turning to the wolf incubus.
"I...I'm an engineer! Not a doctor!" Jakob exclaimed in slight panic, his squeamishness getting the better of him.
"Damn it! She needs a doctor, but its quite a trip to the town's hospital..." Ryn said with a grim expression on her face.
"I'll take her." Nero suddenly said firmly. As everyone turned round to look at him, Paladin sported a frown on his face.
"Listen, kid. You won't make it in time..." Paladin stated, folding his arms as he spoke.
"Yes I will! I'll make it!" Nero suddenly shouted in frustration, determined to get his own way on this occasion. Ever since Aisha had joined the group, she had almost shunned Nero because of his demon heritage. It now appeared that Nero wanted to prove himself; to prove that he wasn't just a "kid", but a member of the team who could hold his own.
"...Ok, fine. Get moving quickly, we haven't got much time." Paladin finally said, nodding his head in acknowledge of the young demon's desicion. Without saying another word, Nero picked up the wounded panthress in his arms, her blood beginning to stain his clothes as he rushed over to the balcony at the end of the large throne room, flapping his wings as best as he could and taking flight down to the town below.
"We need to get Gareeku, the succubus and ourselves to the hospital, too. A lot of use need to be treated for our injuries." James said as he turned to the group after watching Nero leave. Picking up his friend as James picked up the succubus, Paladin turned to the squirrel warrior.
"James...you seemed to know what was happening to Gareeku back there, and what he turned in to. I think we would all like to know as well." Paladin said calmly, the members of the group agreeing with him as he spoke.
"I know...I'll explain at the hospital..." James said with a nod of his head, before they all turned to leave the now-silent fortress.