"And it's going to get much, much worse for that wooden bastard, my friends." Ripha Menadion had finished reforming her body and she had sought Baba Yaga's protection as well. "Prepare yourself, because I'm going to take this back!"
"Ripha?" Silverwing and the Red Mother said in unison, almost interrupting their offense in a flabbergasted stupor.
Almost.
"Master Menadion?" Sinmara and Surtr froze in mid-air, incapable of believing their own eyes.
"The First Ruler of the Flames?" Ayleen asked. "Where did you get that?"
Only then did everyone else notice what the greedy Lich had seen at first glance.
Ripha wasn't just back from the dead for apparently no reason. She was also wearing her legendary full Menadion Set in the form of the Anvil. After merging with Solus and retrieving his tower, Lith had no need for the Apprentice Set and had entrusted it to Ripha.
It shrouded Menadion from head to toe, hiding her nature as a Demon.
"Menadion?" Hearing that voice and seeing the old Fury in the grip of her late mentor made Bytra stumble and then trip.
At her supersonic speed, it resulted in a ruinous fall that turned the Raiju into an armored meat projectile that dug through mud and rock for hundreds of meters before stopping.
"Ripha?" The Fourth Ruler of the Flames was lying on her side in her Raiju form, completely helpless while surrounded by mortal enemies.
Yet she couldn't avert her gaze from the petite figure wielding the painful reminder of her crimes. Bytra had prayed to meet Menadion again since the day Zoreth had rescued her, but she had never expected it would actually happen.
Now that her plea had been granted, Bytra felt happiness and gut-wrenching fear. Happiness because she had the opportunity to ask her old mentor forgiveness for all the wrongs the original Bytra had inflicted upon Menadion's family.
Fear because Bytra knew it was unlikely she would receive it and was willing to accept any punishment Ripha deemed appropriate.
"What the fuck is happening?" Xenagrosh didn't like the situation one bit.
She had already seen Solus take over Lith's body before their trip to Verendi and after learning about the tower, the idea that there was more they could achieve together wasn't a far-fetched explanation for the sudden apparition of the murderous giant.
'I knew that with how Menadion died, her becoming a wandering soul was possible, but I assumed that if she were still here, she would have come out for a long while now.' Xenagrosh thought. 'This doesn't bode well for Byt.
'Menadion just needs to say a word to make Byt the most wanted woman on Mogar and rob her of what little forgiveness she has received from Solus.'
Ripha Menadion knew of the presence of her murderer and former apprentice. She was there every time Bytra had interacted with Solus. Ripha had many things to say and even more to do to the Fourth Ruler of the Flames but right now she didn't care.
Rescuing Solus was her first and only priority.
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