<strong>Chapter 02A: Journey to Oerba</strong><br/><br/>The road was long and dark, and Jisoo kept looking over their shoulders, half-expecting a band of gamblers or knights to chase after them for the murder of two innocent men. Wind howled and nipped at the four girls, who were less adequately clothed than they were used to. Their once fine robes and outfits had long been shredded by the beasts and monsters they fought - it was expensive to keep buying new finery, and so the four of them had grown accustomed to wearing whatever they could pick up for cheap lest they strut around naked after each battle. Only Jisoo's original robes had been left intact.<br/><br/>Altair's seed had taken firm hold of her womb now. The once small mark on her pubic bone had sprawled out over her lower torso, wrapping around her waist and covering her stomach. The brand of a demon was black and intricate, weaving demonic patterns over her creamy flesh - she was to be the mother of a demonic prince, and her markings denoted her as such. No other demon would dare to harm her; they would do everything in their power to ensure the birth of the child. Altair's child had grown quite large, although he was still much smaller than a human child. Demons were born small - it was only after they had consumed demonic energies would they suddenly swell to their full and monstrous size. The baby demon, about the size of Jisoo's fist, had began to thrash around in Jisoo's womb. Her stomach was heavy, and it took all the muscles in her back working hard just to keep her upright. All of the lust energy that Jisoo had absorbed was agitating the child, making it eager to emerge. Demons could only be born in a ritual frenzied with lust and sin.<br/><br/>In reality, what Jisoo needed to be doing was lying on her back, resting while she prepared to give birth. Not fighting. Her visions of the future began to grow cloudier and cloudier; as if she was trying to recall a dream days after it had happened, rather than seeing it in real-time. Images of Altair's cock, and him calling to her, interrupted her sights of the future - they would cut themselves in like interfering waves. Still, the four soldiered on, with only Jisoo to bear her burden alone.<br/><br/>It wouldn't be long now.<br/><br/>A few days of travel whirled by in a flash. There were no battles, no monsters, and even people were scarce. It was like the road to Oerba, normally crowded with traveling parties and merchants, had been emptied by someone, some<em>thing</em>. The food they had brought with them was all but gone; and without a living soul in sight, the four girls were hard pressed to find some way to replenish their supplies.<br/><br/>As the dark of night seemed darkest, Outrider Post finally came into view. It was along the main road, but all of its usual fires had gone out. The sounds of cheering and soldiers drinking was eerily absent, replaced by the quiet of darkness. Only the pale moon illuminated the entrance to the ghost camp. Careful step by careful step into the camp revealed more of the painting - masses of bodies lay scattered around the area, horribly mangled and disfigured. They were strewn about like children's toys after a particularly nasty tantrum.<br/><br/>In the center of camp, surrounded by the tattered remains of military tents was a single large figure, hunched on top of a mountain of dead soldiers. It was chewing the remains of one soldier's leg, when the four girls alerted it. Two pairs of glowing red eyes fixed on them, and a screech, a terrifying screech filled the air.<br/><br/>Jisoo felt something call to her; it was the creature before her. Come, it said. Her eyes glossed over, reflecting the moonlight in the night sky. Her body moved of its own accord, walking towards the pile of bodies. A space had been cleared, and a stone altar had been raised amongst the carnage. Before anybody could stop her, she found herself lying on the Altar, surrounded by demons.<br/><br/><span class="bbc_u"><strong>Mission: Stop the Ritual.</strong></span><br/><ul class="bbc_list"><li>Kill Infaeli. The ritual fails and Jisoo is spared, losing the Mark of Altair.</li><li>Fail to stop the ritual. Jisoo gives birth to the spawn of Altair. She loses all levels gained.</li></ul><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Combat</div><div class="spoiler_body">Ritual Lust Counter: 0/500<br/><em>Lust Counter: All Climax generated in this encounter is added to the Lust Counter. If the counter exceeds 500, the ritual is complete.</em></div></div>