>>5603980You quickly settle on the five mercenaries you wish to accompany you. Even accounting for your lack of pegasi, you have extensive experience fighting side by side with Diana and Shelley. Scratch has proven herself to be an extremely powerful warrior thanks to the addition of her Crest, and it seems as though she’d appreciate getting a chance to thank Diogenes in person for experimenting on her. Damian should come in handy should you require the aid of another magic user. And Corrine will be there to ensure none of you die prematurely. You bark out their names quickly and the group steps up ready to accompany you forward.
“You’re forgetting someone.” Lysithea says, stepping up as well. “I’ve waited for this moment my entire life. There’s no way I’m not going to be there when he’s finally done in.”
You see no sense in trying to dissuade her. Rather, having another Crest user at your side only serves to fill you with more confidence. “Very well, you’re with us.” You turn to Uriel. “Think you can handle things while I’m gone?”
The veteran paladin nods. “Best of luck, Commander.”
“Get em’ Blair! We’ll be fine.” Ashe promises, firing an arrow off at one of the grotesque Gargoyles. The creature is sent crashing to the floor dead, only to be replaced by two more.
Knowing you have no further time to waste, you and your small party venture forth into the room that Hypatia had described to you as the ‘sanctum.’ You find yourself in a circular-like room that looks remarkably different than the ones you’ve seen thus far. Unlike the others which were stained with blood and gore and Demonic Beasts that were abound, this one almost resembles a place of worship. Instead of the pillars that were decorating the previous area, this room contains several statues, each depicting some sort of different humanoid figure you’re unable to distinguish. A stained glass window lines the back wall, bearing the image of some sort of strange, black figure that closely resembles that of a dragon. And in the middle of the room, waiting for you, stands Diogenes. He’s shed his human disguise for what must be his true form. The Sage, as ghostly pale as the others of his kind, has a shock of white hair with some sort of intricate markings strewn across the left side of his face. You notice that he’s somehow even managed to grow another hand in the short while since you last saw him. Once more, despite his current predicament, he seems as aggravatingly confident as ever.
>“You’ve made a costume change. I don’t care much for the new look.”Diogenes laughs. “We’ve reached the climax of our experiment today. There’s no need for me to hide my true self any longer. Only one of us gets to leave here alive. Show me what the famed ‘Agarthan Hunter’ is capable of!”
