"Hmmm? Oh, there are people here! Hahahahahahaha.. to think there’d be people waiting to receive us, hmm.. hmmm.. I guess I haven’t lost my charm yet." The deep magnetic voice of a man rumbled through the silence as the new arrival kept on saying words that most of the soldiers gathered couldn’t make heads or tails

Aof..

"Old man, you’re going to fry their brains with your nonsense.." a softer more feminine voice sounded next to the male..

"Ack! Dakota, I told you! I’m not that old, just a few years older than you is all."

"You’re older than that grumpy Valen who never smiles and acts like his got a dildo up his ass, you’re old!" The feminine voice mercilessly shut down the man...

"Fuck! Dakota, you trying to pick a fight? Cause I swear we can square up!"

"I’m not afraid of you, you old coot!"

As both voices continued their back and forth banter, a third voice interrupted, this one calmer, indifferent...

"I see time in the abyss hasn’t changed you guys much."

The two bickering fellows froze, as they and every other soldier and higher up turned towards the sky.

There, a figure was floating silently, arms behind his back, his black robes fluttering despite the lack of any wind..

"Hahahahaahaha!!!! Valen, you old robotic bastard. Come to welcome me personally, have you?" The male voice laughed uproariously, his figure disappearing from the edge of the rift to appear right beside valen, his massive form towering over him.

"Not really," valen’s signature flat voice replied, "I’m merely here to make sure you don’t start tearing the place apart upon your homecoming."

"Bahahahahahaha... so long as I don’t see any Draken scum so early on, I’m good." The voice laughed, arms draped over Valen’s shoulders.

"Haa... and that’s exactly why I’m here, the old man sends his greetings." Valen added shortly..

A silence descended upon the area after he said that, the man going silent.

"He had his reasons, you should know by now, he wouldn’t have let things play out that way otherwise." Valen’s voice was more subdued this time around..

"Haaa... enough of this! I don’t care about any of you bums, I’m only here to see my beautiful young nephew, where is he? Where is Dante?" The feminine voice broke the solemn atmosphere instantly...

"This..." for the first time since appearing, Valen couldn’t get the words out..

"What. Happened?" The atmosphere deepened instantly, a horrifying stench of blood suffocating the entire area as soldiers began collapsing in droves, their bodies failing them..

"Dakota! Stop!" Valen called out..

"What. The. Fuck. Happened. To. DANTE!!!!" Her yell instantly turned every single soldier that had gathered around to receive them into a blood mist that was instantly absorbed by her, the baleful intent around her deepening considerably as her murderous rage threatened to spiral.

"It’s nothing! The young man is fine, he’s currently within the academy, making good progress, I’m sure you’ll be impressed!" Both Valen and the large man from earlier tensed up as they tried to calm the raging woman down..

The moment valen’s words registered in her head, her murderous aura instantly vanished, as her voice became bright..

"Yay! I knew it! My cute little nephew is definitely the bestest of the best." the woman clapped cheerfully..

"Fuck, crazy woman." The large man whispered under his breath.

"But!" The woman’s mood switched once more as her expression turned cold.

"Why did you hesitate earlier?" She asked.

"This.. well, how do I put this?" Valen, cold, pragmatic and indifferent valen, was suddenly cautious with his own words..

"Just spit it out you old man, I don’t know why old people always have issues getting their words out." She snapped, valen’s lips twitching at her jabs..

"Haa... fine, whatever, it’s not my problem anyway," taking a deep breath, he bit the bullet, "raven and Dante, they’re a couple now, that’s what I was trying to avoid telling you, but you’ll find out anyway, so yea, there you have it!".

Silence.

A chilling, creeping silence that sent shivers through one’s spine..

"Umm... V.." the large man tugged valen’s robe gently..

"Yea.. I know.." the two immediately put up a barrier around themselves.

No sooner had they done that, an abysmal darkness fell upon the entire land, for miles and miles around, the whole world was plunged into an unfathomable darkness..

Then it happened, twin red suns blinked open within the darkened skies, only they weren’t suns, they were pupils, pupils belonging to an existence so horrifying even the dreadful presence that surrounded the rift to the abyss felt subdued, the darkness hadn’t spread from the woman, No! The darkened Was Her!.

And then came the voice, a screeching noise so horrible it felt like it was scraping against your very soul.

"That! Thieving! Conniving!! Filthy!!! Cougar!!!!"

"Gone!!! Gone for a few years and she dares to steal from me???? I’ll kill her.. I’ll kill her.. RAVEN!!! You filthy bitch!!!, I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU!!!!!!!!" The landscaped died at the unholy screeching of whatever that was, before the twin red suns blinked out of existence, but the darkness, the darkness remained..

"Damn, Valen, you bastard, you couldn’t let me have this one moment of rest after just coming back?" The large man complained..

"It doesn’t matter Tian, she was bound to find out either way." Valen’s voice had returned to that indifferent tone of his..

"Yes, but still, I would have had a few hours at least to enjoy my peace and breathe in air that doesn’t taste like death, ashes and sorrow." The man, Tian, retorted..

"You love the taste of sorrow though?"

"Yes! But it doesn’t mean it’s all I want to be tasting all the time! Diversity matters, you robotic bastard!"

"Yea, well, welcome to diversity then, now you get to stop two very crazy women from destroying the entire continent in their squabble, congratulations."

"You know? I always hate it when you start making jokes, you bastard."

"Well, it is what it is, now come on, we need to go stop them before their fight turns the whole place upside down." Valen started moving when he noticed his friend wasn’t budging..

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"What do you mean, what am I doing? Isn’t it obvious? I’m letting you go clean up your mess."

"What?"

"Huh? Wait, you really expected me, to get involved in a fight between two people that would probably gang up on me and rip me to shreds for daring to step into something that doesn’t in anyway concern me? Hah.. be for real man!" Tian scoffed..

"Heh.. and I thought time within the abyss would’ve toughened you up." Valen scoffed.

"Heh. I’d rather fight eldritch infernal horrors any time, any day, than step in between those two crazies.."

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!

The land shook violently as an epic clash ensued..

"Better go get the old man, cause I’m pretty sure your robot ass don’t want any of that smoke either.." Tian laughed...

Valen stared into the distance for a few seconds, before descending slowly.

"I guess it wouldn’t be bad to catch up on some lost time, my friend." He spoke to tian, as both men walked off quietly..

neither bothering to go check on what was causing the land to shake constantly.

Neither, bothering to check if those within the fortress had been spared from the earlier rage, not even valen, who had come to prevent "damages" bothered to check on their wellbeing.

Both men simply walked for a few meters before their figures vanished completely.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!

The world left shaking behind them as the world’s most dangerous cat fight ensued...

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A/N: and we begin day 2 with a cat fight, sexy....

1/3

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Thanks for reading..