And that altar is clearly the center of the magical nexus here, which is exactly why the gateway between our world and the one where these demons are from is specifically located there.

Now, I'm not entirely sure about a couple of details yet, like who's behind this, first of all, and..."

“And why this mysterious Archdemoness who sent the succubi isn't here too," Shayla interrupted, anticipating exactly what Jadrik was about to say.

“But then again it's possible that she may have been banned from this plane of existence in a final way, so she can't return here in person and therefore the only choice would be to send in some lackeys to do the job, or..

“Or it's also possible that the Archdemoness in question is just waiting for her flunkies to gather enough energy and then, when they have literally fucked the life out of every paladin in there, at that point she will cross through the portal, finish the ritual and call back the spirit of the banished demon that was annihilated here, and do whatever she intends to do with it," Jadrik concluded with a smile.

The warlock's thin, handsome face was glowing with the same joy that brightened Shayla's expression, their pleasure in being once again discussing magic and figuring out sorcerous mysteries more than palpable.

Talking shop and sharing wizardly knowledge and advancing their grasp of the arcane arts had always been a central part of Jadrik and Shayla's relationship, the pleasure they shared in that activity coming second only to the supreme bliss that came of their perfect sexual compatibility.

Holding each other's hands and gazing intently into one another's eyes, the warlock and the wizardess were smiling like goofy, lovestruck teenagers when a deep groan made them turn to see Aldarius waking up and scrambling to a sitting position on the dirt floor of the tunnel, his hands going to his swollen face.

“ouch... My nose... I think it's broken..." Al mumbled groggily, his pained tone getting indignant as soon as he turned his gaze up to see Max.

“Mensen, you dumb oaf! What did you do that for? Attacking a fellow brother of the Order is a direct violation of the Code of conduct and I intend to make sure that you're duly prosecuted and punished for it!"

Far from concerned about his fellow knight's predicament and unfazed by his threats, Max ignored Aldarius and went as far as to kick his armored shin as he hurriedly stepped closer to Jadrik and Shayla, a glimmer of hope finally peeking through the exhaustion that had so far dulled his eyes.

“Okay, so you figured this all out, that's great! And now you can save us, right?" Max said, staring expectantly at Jadrik, nervous anticipation bringing some life back into his voice.

"You'll fix this mess, won't you, with your warlocky magic? Sorry about calling you a priest, man. You obviously are a great warlock, definitely, no doubt about it."

“Yes, I am," Jadrik tersely stated, a prideful smirk dancing on his lips “and don't you forget it, paladin."

“Yeah sure, whatever you say, absolutely," Max nodded with fervor, choosing to ignore the disdain with which Jadrik had pronounced that last word.

“Okay, so you know what to do to get rid of those fucking demons and save my guys in there, right? I don't think they're gonna last much longer, so, respectfully, anytime you wanna get started..

“Mensen, what in the name of the Gods are you talking about!?" Aldarius exclaimed, rising unsteadily to his feet with one hand holding his bleeding nose and the other pointing accusingly at Max, his voice trembling with righteous rage.

"You can't possibly be thinking of entrusting the lives of our brothers to this warlock! It's blasphemous to even think about it! In the name of the Order and of all that is Holy I forbid you from..."

The solid smacking sound of Max's knuckles socking Aldarius square in the jaw was followed immediately by the pained groan that burst from Al's mouth, both sounds soon drowning in the clanging crash caused by his armored body hitting the ground once again.

Looking down at Aldarius with calm detachment, Maxmillian Mensen sighed before he said: “Shut up, Al.

Just keep quiet, or I'll make you stay quiet. And don't even think about telling me what to do again, or starting off on one of your ridiculous bullshit rants about what the Gods want, which is way too often something that benefits you, strangely enough. I'm in charge here, so you're the one breaking the Code by not obeying me.

And this guy," Max said, nodding at Jadrik, "is the only person in these damn tunnels with an idea of what's going on and how to fix it and maybe get us all out of here alive, so yeah, you bet we'll go with his plan, whatever it is. Clear enough, brother?"

Grinning with satisfaction as she watched Aldarius bowing his head in deference to Max and nursing his stupid battered face, Shayla turned to Jadrik and arched her eyebrows as she said: "So, Jad, do you have a plan? Can you really get rid of the succubi and destroy their portal and undo their ritual?"

Taking the hint of doubt in Shayla's voice as a veiled challenge that he was very much sure he could overcome, Jadrik looked the wizardess in her deep blue eyes, then turned to meet Max's expectant gaze and then finally looked into the huge cathedral hall, grinning all the while.