Author's Note:

I don't have an awful lot to say about this. Pretty self explanatory chapter. As always, tell me what you thought.

Unearthly fire crackled around the darkened figure who commanded it, incinerating everything closer to him than ten feet. He stared up at the sky, spirit almost consumed by his hatred.

The airship that carried Cinder and her disgusting kind was drawing almost within range, and as soon as it was, he would annihilate it. His master knew he would fight to his last breath, and with every ounce of his blood. The demon's power coursed through him now, making him feel stronger than ever before.

He didn't think about a plan. He didn't even think about what had been said to him hours before. All he thought about was his anger. Cinder was going to pay for what she had done, and he would be the reckoning blow to end everything that she was. Nothing was going to stop him from this. Nothing possibly could. Her fate was sealed. She was going to die, and he would laugh when his heel crushed her skull.

His body burned with his need to kill the wretch, but he couldn't take out his vengeance yet. All this waiting was torturous, but he had to do it. His master demanded that his competition be destroyed. Cramus was weak, and its servants would break. Nothing could break his master, and his master would ensure that nothing could break him.

His mind started to wander at the possibilities. So many ways to kill, and he was sure that he was going to have plenty of people to experiment with.

His master had raged in his head while he waited, but now he could not hear the shouts or the threats. Now all he could hear from his thoughts were the urges to do those things his master had commanded them to do. Maybe that meant that he had lost more of himself than he had ever wanted, but he was beyond caring.

He had his plan all set up. Or, at least, a plan had been set up for him. He could murder as many as he wanted, and then, when he died, his soul would be safe. His master didn't know about it, and the small piece of his mind that still remembered it was clutching the information with a vice grip, keeping it away from the master.

His attention started to drift back, though, when the airship started to enter into what he knew to be his range. A cruel smile slinked across his face when he thought of the sounds of drowning cultists, and the sea being dyed red.

The fire around him hissed and spat as he focused his anger, and it started to take on physical power. The fire grew larger and larger, until everything around him was burning. Adam took his blade, and started to siphon his power into it. Cinder would die, and the rest of her pathetic little coven would follow.

He slashed his blade through the air, and hellfire leapt from its edge, screaming horribly as it flew through the night. Its red glow bathed the air around it, and carried the scent of blood.

The airship, whether its pilot saw the projectile or not, was too big and bulky to have even the slightest prayer of moving out of the way. His aim was true, and the fire collided with the hull of the great ship, rending its way through the metal and steel, leaving not even ash in its wake.

It wasn't enough to split the ship in two, but it was immediately clear that he had crippled it. It started to descend, taking up a rather precarious angle, and he could see that it was going to make it to land before crashing. The sound of severed mechanical parts falling to the ocean was pleasing, and it amused him to see that the ship's dust fuel had been ignited, but the resulting blaze revealed something else too.

Several of Cinder's harpies were speeding towards him, screeching curses and threats about what they would do to him. They didn't look like they were particularly powerful, but it didn't matter what they were. He would deal with them all the same.

As they got closer, the fire that fed him illuminated their twisted forms. Some looked like they had been human at some point, but others bore the appearance of full-blooded demons. Those who were corrupted still had a few of their human or faunus traits, but not nearly enough to fool any onlooker.

They swooped like hawks at him, but they underestimated his powers. They were too eager to fight him, and he showed them their error. As soon as they were within striking distance, he lashed out, burning blade slashing through their thick demon hides like butter, and spilling their foul blood onto the charred earth.

Four corpses slammed into the ground, bones crunching and bodies folding from the force of their impact. If Cinder thought a few pests like that was going to stop him, she couldn't be more wrong.

Their blood boiled out of their bodies as he cast his gaze back towards the airship, now almost directly over him. He had looked forward to tossing corpses into the sea, but he could do without all that.

No other harpies followed them, and he knew that Cinder was probably deciding to keep her minions together. That way he would have a harder time disposing of them all. She was right, in a sense, but only in that it would take him longer to reach her.

He started to run, following the airship like a vulture, waiting for it to finally die so he could rip out its occupants. He didn't have to wait long. The wind created from the large thrusters buffeted him, blowing leaves from trees and even uprooting smaller plants.

It wouldn't save her. Nothing would.

Plants ignited as he ran past, hellfire consuming everything it could as it leaped to anything even vaguely alive. His mind started to blank. Thoughts and plans, hopes and wants, everything was simply gone, and his vision went completely red.

Cinder sighed as her airship started to brush the tops of trees as it careened towards the ground. It felt good, but it was something she had felt before. There was no particular flavor to it now. It wasn't something she would pass up, but there was nothing new. Nothing special.

Still, Adam would give her something special to play with. She looked forward to seeing what it would take to break him. She knew he had one of her master's rivals inside of him, but nowhere near as long as she had bourn hers. He wouldn't be able to draw nearly as much power as she could, and his anger would leave him totally blind. Manipulating him would be easy, but she didn't want to have to deal with him. She would be sure to have as much fun as she could when she killed him.

The airship started to plough into the ground, and everything jolted forward. Several of her weaker followers were thrown from their places, slamming into the walls or windows, a few of them getting injured. They didn't feel pain, though. All they felt was ecstasy.

The ship grumbled and ground to a halt as its momentum died, and Cinder stood from her chair. It was certainly inconvenient that their ride had been destroyed, but it was nothing more. She stretched her body, feeling the wonderful sensation of her muscles loosening. If she had to fight him herself, she wanted to be able to show him how useless all of his struggles had been.

A primal, bestial scream echoed through the air, vibrating through the crashed craft, as though Adam was letting them know where he was. That was fine. She would rush to meet him.

She leapt forward towards the plain grey steel wall, lashing her claws out as she went. The metal crumpled like tissue paper, and she sliced her way to the exterior of the ship.

The night air was cool, tingling against her skin, but she paid little attention to it, instead bending her legs, and leaping to the roof of the craft. Her hooves made dents where she landed, and she looked around with a smile.

From the direction that they had come, something very bright and very red was approaching. Flames flared up, dancing briefly in the night sky before sputtering out as their fuel was destroyed. If he thought that was going to intimidate them, she would be sure to let him know how cute it was.

Her followers would probably be able to deal with him, and she definitely wanted to allow them the pleasure, but she also needed to make sure she still had forces to destroy Naze when she reached him. That was the only thing that really mattered. If by some chance Adam did prove more capable than she thought, she would have to step in herself, and finish things off.

In her mind, she felt her followers start to react, pouring out of the ship and starting to move towards Adam. She let them go. Those that felt either more of a need to protect her, or simply wanted to be closer to their master stayed with her, and would be able to protect her from any tricks Adam might have.

The stretch of land that had been flattened by the airship was torn up, with roots and layers of dark, fertile dirt having been overturned. The skid mark started a large distance away, but she could see the glow growing brighter. Adam was almost through the trees.

She called out to him, a taunting edge to her voice. "Come on, boy! Don't be so scared! We won't be too mad about the ship."

Her voice carried wonderfully through the trees, and her superior ears could pick up on every reverberation off of every surface. It sent a quiver down her spine, and she waited for a response.

Crimson fire exploded from between the trees, and a figure sprinted out with it, sliding to a halt. Adam, or what had become of Adam, was staring at her with red eyes, and fingers working ceaselessly around the handle of his weapon.

Cinder laughed, and spoke again, "Oh my, dear! You look like you're about to burst! Maybe we could help you work out some of that stress!"

With that, several of her demonesses launched out towards him. She knew that he had already killed several others, but they had been rash, and too eager to fight. Now was a much better time to fight.

They flew at first, but then landed again when they got close, not wanting to give him the opportunity to outright kill them. Their reaction times were fast, and with a little luck, they could dodge everything that Adam could throw at them. He was weak anyways.

She smiled wider to herself. Maybe they could even bring a few intimate feelings from the beast for them all to enjoy. Perhaps he wasn't really as primitive as he seemed, just standing there, staring and being angry. Or maybe he was. Either way, it would be fun to try and coax it out of him.

The demons started to speak, and Cinder could hear every one of the things their sultry, corrupting voices said. "Why are you here? Who made you come?" What's her name, Adam? I can tell you love someone, at least a little bit. What's her name?" "Is it someone special?" "Did they love you back?"

All were delicious questions, but they didn't quite have the desired effect. Instead of saying anything, or giving any hints as to any of the questions, he simply let out another primal scream, and lashed out at the nearest demon. They were prepared this time, but he moved faster than they had anticipated. The demon he slashed at managed to escape being immediately killed, but it did suffer a large slice across its belly.

Its hand went to the wound, and Cinder was surprised to find that she had to hold her innards to keep them from spilling out. This didn't mean that the taunts stopped, though. If anything, this only made the demons more interested in prying out his secrets.

"I don't think they did love you. I think they thought you were a monster, just like you are now. Isn't that right, Adam? She couldn't love something like you, could she?"

He lashed out again, shouting a wordless battle cry as his hellfire rose up again, splashing over the ground around him. He moved faster than he had before, meaning that the seductresses couldn't dodge fast enough. The first strike hit the demon who had been speaking, cleaving through the demon's discolored skin. A clean cut, starting at the shoulder, straight through the chest, and ending at the ribs, parted the demon into two pieces.

The other three saw their opportunity, and moved in for an attack. If they could knock him off balance, then they would have an even greater opportunity to taunt him. The two who were still in good health rushed forward before the other's corpse had even hit the ground, hoping to get in under Adam's guard before he could recover. To a normal person, they would've been mere blurs, but Adam was able to see every seconds of their approach. He wasn't in the position to do anything about it, but that didn't stop him from reacting.

He tried to pull his blade back, so that he could kill the rest of his opponents, but he wasn't fast enough. He felt a pair of claws rake into his side, and a shoulder slam into him, trying to knock him down.

Cinder smiled as she saw her minion's claws rip into him, but something else started to happen as well. He stumbled, but the fire around him grew in power. Adam let out another shout, and his hellfire exploded from him, engulfing the demons around him.

She couldn't see through the veil of flame that separated them, but the injured demon had been further away, and she saw its outline in the fire. She struggled to keep her ground for a moment, then her flesh was blasted from her bones. For a moment, her skeletal silhouette stood there, still struggling to stay in place, then it was blown away as well, crumbling into nothingness as the fire licked past it. She raised an eyebrow as she saw the dirt at the edges of the explosion curl and crack as it was instantly baked into glass.

The fire subsided, and Cinder expected to see him exhausted from summoning that much power. Instead, he was still standing, panting heavily, but it didn't look like it was because he was exhausted. Instead, he seemed even more enraged. The fire that still swirled around him brightened, and he started to run towards Cinder again.

More of her followers ran out to meet him, and Cinder let them go. His feet cracked the glass he had created with every step, shards being flung into the air behind him. The trunks of the trees around him were being eaten through by any flame that had touched it, and they threatened to fall over if they burned too long.

Her followers were mostly human, with a few demons interspersed in the crowd. There were a few hundred of them, and all were calling out different things to Adam, trying to get some response. Cinder's voice carried over them all, and she said, "Are you feeling better after your little tantrum? I hope you didn't hurt yourself. It would be such a shame if you ended up dead too soon."

Adam still didn't respond, much to her annoyance. It would be horribly boring if he really was as stupid as he seemed. An animal like that was much less fun to play with than a person. She almost found herself hoping that he wasn't as debilitated as that.

She knew it would be good for fighting him, though. It would be so droll if she had to simply kill him, but that was looking like the way things were going to happen. He deserved it for destroying their transport of course, but she wanted to do so much more to him.

Hit steps quickened, and he collided with the group of her followers with a new fury. She had thought that from the top of the ship she would have a very good view of the fight. What she found as she looked down, however, was that blood from his strikes flew in every direction, completely blocking her vision. Her vision was not her only sense that she could use to tell what was happening though.

The initial line of bodies was like nothing to him, and a single strike from his blade was enough to scatter any resistance that they could have posed. A wave of flame accompanied his sword, engulfing those that it hit, and spreading to those close by. Her followers didn't stop, though. They didn't feel pain anymore. All that they felt was an intense pleasure as their bodies were quickly consumed by the flame.

She peered down, watching as the crowd reacted. The demons were the first to start the surge forward, making those still human and half human start to charge. Then they themselves joined in, waiting for an opening to land their blows.

Adam was powerful, but it was possible for him to be overwhelmed. He swung his blade again, but every body he cleaved apart was replaced, and those set on fire weren't burning fast enough to die. Hands flailed and grabbed at him, all the while their taunting, maniacal voices continued to whisper at him.

He didn't have enough room to swing his blade again, and snarled like animal at the still taunting faces. He tried to pull his arms back so he could swing his blade again, but the many grasping arms kept it unusable. He swung his off-arm at them, knocking several of them away, but he could see one of the taller demons approaching.

The fire around him swirled faster, and Cinder could see her followers being ripped apart. Adam tore his arm free, bringing a few still-clenched fists with it. The fingers broke apart quickly though, and he was for the most part freed. The demons saw their opportunity though, with most of the way between them cleared and Adam still vulnerable.

They charged forwards at once, using their wings to propel them across the ground, and wrapping their arms around him. They did their best to enthrall him, letting as much calming and seducing air surround him. Any mortal man would've been a drooling slave instantly, but they knew that he was something much more dangerous than a normal man.

Cinder watched intently, waiting for the fight to leave Adam's eyes. That would be when she finished him. He would already be defeated. He struggled for a moment to stay on his feet, then fell to his knees. The demons kept whispering to him, trying to break him, and Cinder even started to come down from her perch. She could wrap him around her finger no problem, it was just a matter of his malleability.

He was growing weaker by the second, that much was obvious. He struggled against her demon's grip, shouting and screaming, but it didn't do him any good. The strength continued to drain from his body, leeched out by her demons, and she dropped off the side of the ship, going to examine her prize. Even the harsh fire around him was starting to die down.

The seductresses whispers quieted as she got closer, and she started talking to him again. "You see, Adam? All of your struggling has been for nothing. If you had just turned yourself over from the beginning, everything could have been so much easier, and you could've felt this wonderful from the beginning. Don't you feel foolish for having fought?"

Her hooves touched the ground, and a path parted for her in the crowd for her to approach the man. She walked gracefully and seductively, the eyes of her followers tracing her every move, and Adam's struggles against the demons who still held him still losing steam. She smiled, and continued approaching.

Adam's eyes flicked to her, and he snarled, but didn't break free. Cinder could see that he was losing the will to fight. It was only natural. Why struggle once you had everything you could possibly want?

She continued to walk towards him, smiling. When she was within feet of the man, she bent over, and whispered in his ear, "I think they were right, Adam. What was her name? Does she really love you back? I don't think she does, does she? What a shame, but then again, you can't really blame her, can you? I wouldn't, I don't think anyone could really love you. But you must be so lonely. You could find some companionship with us, if you really want it. All you have to do is to say you want it."

It didn't look like Adam could entirely understand what she was saying, but his struggle continued to slow down, and he seemed to be starting to break under some emotion that was pushing its way out. She thought she could even see tears leaking briefly out of his eyes, before they disappeared is a sizzling puff.

His lips moved, and he whispered something that was barely audible even to the demons who clutched to his body. Cinder leaned in closer, determined to hear the name, and said, "What was that?"

Cinder felt what was coming before it happened, and time seemed to slow down. Adam gave another mighty roar, and hellfire again exploded from within him. At first it spilled out of his eyes, mouth, and anywhere a demon's claws had punctured him, then seemed to simply be emitted from his body. The demons clinging to him were destroyed instantly, and what seemed like a solid wall of the flame was swiftly approaching Cinder.

She was more than fast though, and leaped backwards, soaring over the heads of her people before landing back on the top of the airship. The hellfire followed, engulfing every single one who had come out from the ship. Hundreds of voices cried out at once as they were completely and utterly destroyed, but Adam's voice still rang above them all. Cinder could make out a name from the visceral sound, and even felt Adam's voice strain her eardrums, putting them in danger of bursting.

"Blake!"

The fire met with the metal ship, and then started to subside its assault. Cinder looked down to find nothing but molten slag where strong steel had been. It smoked and popped as it fell back to the ground, and Cinder tried to tell where Adam was again. There was no way she could detect him, she could not hear him, see him, or even feel him. The possibility that he had destroyed himself crossed her mind, but that couldn't be what had happened. There was no way he had done that. He couldn't take revenge on her if he was dead.

The flame died down a little more, and she could see his outline in the swirling fire, eyes practically glowing in the middle of the fire, staring directly at her.

There was a brief second where they simply stared at each other, neither one sure what to do, before Adam exploded again. He rocketed towards her, as though he was propelled by the hellfire that still spewed out of him, blade at the ready. She barely had time to jerk her body to the side, avoiding the burning blade as it passed within a mere inch of her face.

A few strands of her hair were sliced through, and she watched as Adam careened past her, before his feet hit the metal, which immediately started to melt. If Adam noticed this, he didn't show any sign of it, instead opting to charge directly at Cinder again.

Cinder was prepared, and as Adam brought the smooth, razor sharp weapon swinging towards her midriff, she jumped back, only far enough so that the blade would miss.

Then it was her opportunity. As she lunged forward for the hit, she felt her skin start to heat up, and even start to flake away. What she lost would grow back quickly, but that would require getting out of the fire.

She wasted no time in planting a solid blow to Adam's chest with her fist, feeling even her own bones buckle from the force. A wave of air, visible to her enhanced eyes, circled out around the point of impact, as though emphasizing the force of the hit.

Adam was knocked back, but his feet never left the airship. Instead, where he skidded backwards, his feet left trails of malicious dark fire that melted through the surface quickly. Cinder knew that it would only cause her to lose more people than she already had, and even though it would probably be a more enjoyable fight if they did it on the top of the airship, she had to move it.

She gave Adam a playful wink, then leapt off the ship again, hooves landing heavily on the glass that had been created by his little tantrum fit. It was pretty, with a few odd spires jutting out at about her height every now and again, but the surface was overall fairly flat. The stretch of land that had been cleared by their crashing ship would serve well enough for a place to kill him.

Adam predictably followed, dropping off of the side and straightening back up once he had hit the ground. Each time he exhaled, a spout of fire shot from his nose and mouth, and he now seemed like a much more imposing target. Cinder wasn't threatened though, and only tilted her head, smiling.

"You know, I think I remember Blake. She went to Beacon, didn't she? Perhaps I'll pay her a visit and give her your regards once I'm done here. Would you like that?"

He threw an arm recklessly forward, and a thick gout of flame burst from his hand. It was easy enough for Cinder to simply jump to the side, evading it, and she did so with grace.

"Oh darling, I you don't want me to mention you, all you have to do is ask."

Adam didn't hesitate in dashing towards her again, obviously intent on ending her. She watched him come, smiling, then just as he entered striking distance and reached forwards with his blade, she jumped over him, intending on landing behind him.

What she didn't expect however, was that as she arced over him, his body came to a dead stop, and he pivoted to follow her. What had been a horizontal strike turned into a downwards vertical one, chasing after her, threatening to slice her in two. For the first time she could remember, she actually felt threatened. Her hooves hit the ground, and she tried to jump again out of the way, but she could not beat the blade that was already plummeting towards her.

She managed to move slightly before being hit, but that didn't stop the bite of the superheated metal on her back, cutting and burning her flesh apart.

She continued away from Adam, feeing blood seep down her back. More than that, though, was the presence of something she didn't think she would ever feel again. Pain racked the area that had been touched by the flame, and she felt the egg of her master inside her soul start to writhe.

Whatever that fire was, it clearly did not agree with her master. Her body had withstood the heat fine, but once it was inside of her, it was clear that it could strike at something other than just her body. It burned at the edges of the thing she valued most, her master's gift to her. Her chance to become one with her master.

That was something that she could not allow. Obviously she had been too lax, but she hadn't known that he had the power to injure her like that. She resigned herself to the fact that Adam would merely have to die, and could not be toyed with any more.

Her eyes narrowed, and every muscle in her body tightened as she started waiting for an opportunity. She was faster, stronger, and in every way better than the little upstart. Killing him would be simple.

He dashed towards her again, and brought his sword to bear. If this strike hit her, she would be impaled.

She waited, keeping perfectly still until the very last second, when she could almost feel the sword stab through her belly. She shifted to the side, making sure that she moved to the dulled side of the blade. Next, she brought an elbow down on the back of Adam's head, knocking him to his knees. Then she kicked out at him with a hard hoof, hitting him square in the temple. Her attacks were too fast and too heavy for him to react to, and he was growing more and more battered with every hit he took. His struggles to strike Cinder were powerful, but he couldn't even raise an arm.

Her hoof cracked his skull, and he slumped to the side, stunned. She didn't let up on her assault, continuing to beat him. Once he had rolled over to his back, she started to stomp her ribs in, hoping to suffocate him to death.

He was able to manage a single more sword swing, weak from the ground. Cinder was able to dodge back, and come back with a new vigor. She made sure to stomp his arms until she was sure that the bone was nothing but dust, then moved onto the other one.

Once she was satisfied with the amount of crippling she had inflicted, she went back to beating the life out of the man who she now saw as a very dangerous threat. He was coughing now, blood leaking out of his mouth and nose, signaling that his life was coming to a close.

Cinder watched, smiling, as what had tried to destroy her slowly started to fade away into a cold, lonely death. He deserved nothing less.

When it was clear that he was going to die no matter how desperately he clung to life, Cinder stepped back, taking pleasure from watching him cough up so much blood, trying to stay alive so hard. His wounds tried to heal, steaming as his fire started to dim, letting more of the cool night air embrace him. She could still feel the heat radiating off of him, and she knew that he might explode again, but he couldn't do it fast enough to actually catch her. He had to know that, but that didn't mean he wouldn't try, of course.

Cinder watched him for a few minutes in silence, simply enjoying the sounds of his breathing becoming ragged and gurgling. She started to taunt him too, deciding that gloating was a pleasure that she couldn't simply pass up.

"You know, Adam, you actually had me worried there for a second. I thought that you would be able to hurt me. You came close, I can't lie. But you just aren't powerful enough to stand up to me. I know it must break your little heart to hear, but you never had a shot at winning. Sorry, but that's just how it was. Your master must be so disappointed in you, and to be honest, I am too. You always seemed like such a strong, determined person, and now here you are, choking on your own blood, not even able to talk back to me."

She clicked her long tongue and shook her head. "So sad. Come on Adam, you can at least speak, can't you?"

She leaned towards him, giving him the chance to talk. He couldn't hurt her now, he was much too injured to do anything. He couldn't even move. She had already beaten him.

Adam's mouth moved, but all that came out of his throat was a thick gurgling sound. He continued to try and speak, but there was too much in his throat to allow him to. Cinder decided she would help, and put a hoof forward, placing it on his cheek and tilting his head to the side. He coughed and spluttered again, and a large wad of blood, spit, and mucus hit the glass that he lay on, giving off an acrid and acidic scent.

He pulled a few ragged, deep breaths in again, trying to keep from passing out. After a few moments of that, he turned his face upwards again, eyes glaring at Cinder, and moved his lips slowly.

If Cinder was placing his body language correctly, he was laughing. This didn't make her upset, in fact, it mostly amused her. She gave a small laugh too, and said, "What's so funny to you? Have you seen how useless your struggle was?"

His words were frail and barely audible, and even with her superior ears, she had to lean close to him to hear.

"You…" his breathing was still labored, and the space between every word was long. "…stupid bitch. I was never…" his eyes seem to be unfocusing, like he was remembering something from a long time ago. "…supposed to win. There's a plan, and you can't…" the glow in his eyes was fading, his life slipping away from him now. "…escape it."

Cinder's eyes narrowed. So his being here wasn't just a whim of his master. Or, if it was, then his master had orchestrated more resistance than just his weak champion.

But the demon lord of rage was not the clever planner that her own master was. She had amassed more than enough power to destroy Naze, and after that, their world would fall easily. But that Lich…

She knew that Liches were known for their planning. Perhaps it was his plan.

She felt herself become disgusted at the mere thought of the undead. It was such a repugnant, empty way to exist. There was no way they could feel anything like what Cinder tried to bring to everyone to, absolute bliss, and so she hated them. There was no help for them, and worst of all, they had done it to themselves.

There was nothing that would make her feel better than wiping them out for good, other than becoming one with her master, of course. Nothing could compare to that.

Adam started to move his lips again, but there was no sound. Cinder tried to hear, but she couldn't. It just seemed like the man was mouthing now. She took the opportunity to taunt him again, saying, "If it's another insult, I suggest you save your breath. I think you could die any second now."

Adam gave his head the faintest of shakes, and continued to try speaking. Cinder regarded him for a moment, weighing his current state against what he had done. There wasn't anything he really could do. Perhaps hearing him out was the best thing she could do. It wasn't impossible that he had, in his final moments, decided to feel what Cinder had offered for so long. If that was it, she wanted to hear it.

She brought her ear down, next to his mouth, and said, "Go ahead, talk."

The sounds that came out of Adam's mouth were extraordinarily quiet at first, but slowly grew, like a rising wave. She didn't move away, and kept listening.

Adam's body started to move again, and he lifted his head up off the ground. It was only about an inch, but still impressive considering the damage he had sustained. His arms also started to come up, and they seemed to be trying to caress Cinder's face. She smiled as it became clear that he had surrendered himself.

His fingers met the sides of her head, then closed tightly. Perhaps she had been wrong. Maybe he was making some final desperate attempt to destroy her.

What happened next was too fast for even Cinder to respond to. Adam's jaw slid open, and a strong blast of hellfire spilled out, engulfing Cinder's head entirely. It flooded into her nose and mouth, and she immediately felt the torturous sensation of her master's egg being burned.

She lashed out, her fist meeting Adam's head, and stopping the hellfire.

Adam's body slumped over, finally dead, and she stood again, trying to squelch her burning soul.

She could still feel the frayed edges of the egg burning when she finally decided that it was time to move on from this little distraction. With gusto, she brought her hoof down a few more times on his throat, making sure that he wouldn't get back up again.

Maybe he had accomplished his part of the plan he had spoken of, maybe he hadn't. The laughter he had managed to choke out, though, seemed to suggest he had.

She called out to the rest of her minions, commanding them to move. They had ground to cover, and it would take days to make it on foot. Her ranks emerged from what was left of the ship, and started to follow as she broke out into a sprint, leaving Adam's corpse for the worms.

When Roman managed to blink after having witnessed such a battle, the first fourth of Cinder's people had already disembarked from their ruined ship. He had never seen anything like it, and he doubted that he ever would again.

Neo had been clutching him the whole time, scared out of her wits. Roman guessed that he was lucky not to see whatever it was she was so completely terrified of, because it took a lot to shake Neo.

As the pair dropped down from the airship's exterior where they had been hiding and made to follow the rest of the lunatics who called Cinder their master, he noticed the broken and beaten body of Adam. Roman didn't feel sympathy for him, but there was definitely something. He had known that guy, sort of in the same way he had known Cinder. The two hadn't been on the best of terms, sure, but it felt big to see him simply dead on the ground.

He was about to keep walking when he felt Neo stop, and pull his arm in the direction of the corpse. He didn't know about the wisdom of messing around with a corpse like that one, but given all that had happened to her recently, Roman decided that her wish wasn't too much to oblige.

He walked back with her, and she knelt over next to the body, gently picking through a few of his pockets before withdrawing a small, red-ish orb. It was about the size of a pearl, and glowed with a strange otherworldly energy.

Roman raised an eyebrow, but Neo simply smiled back at him. Whatever it was, it made her feel better, so he figured that letting her keep it would be alright. She probably had a better idea of what it was anyways.