JUDICATOR JANE 6 - CHAPTER 9 (Patreon)

Back With a Vengeance

Jane sprinted down the pathway just in time to see one of the village house walls erupt outward in a storm of splintered wood and flying debris. Through the settling dust, Gral’gor emerged—bare-chested, violet hair whipping wildly in the wind. In one hand, he held the young Ur by the throat.

Despite being the larger of the two, the Voidwalker flailed helplessly, his form flickering—trying to phase away, but failing.

“My old nemesis,” Gral’gor boomed, voice like thunder. “Of all faces to greet me in the afterlife, it had to be yours. But don’t worry—I’ll make your end swifter than your reign was long.”

His other arm snapped upward, revealing a blade. Holding a blade? No, it was a blade.

Jane didn’t hesitate. She activated The Drawn Veil—wings of steel burst from her back as she launched skyward. In the distance, the two demons jerked their heads toward her. She then triggered her skill, Voice of Truth.

”STOP THIS BICKERING AT ONCE.”

The shockwave from Jane’s voice shattered the last of the village hut, reducing it to splinters and hurling the two formless gray figures across the ground like ragdolls. Skimming low along the surface, she dismissed the skill the moment her feet touched down, her steel wings and blindfold dissolving away. Both demons lay stunned, but Gral’gor stirred first, rising to his feet with deliberate effort.

“Jane King?” he muttered, blinking through the dust. “What… how?”

Before he could say another word, Jane threw her arms around him. “Gral’gor! I missed you so much!” His blade-arm shifted back into a hand as he hesitantly returned the embrace.

“I… I don’t understand. Where are we? What is this place?” he asked, voice raw with confusion.

Jane pulled back, her expression softening. “Don’t you remember? You found the gateway. You opened the portal to the Netherrealm.”

Gral’gor touched his head, trying to piece things together. “The portal… yes. That’s right.” He turned slowly, surveying the valley. In the distance, legions of demons stretched across the fields beyond the farms, with more pouring steadily from the labyrinth’s entrance. “Then this valley… is outside the labyrinth?”

“Exactly,” Jane confirmed with a nod.

“But that’s impossible,” he muttered. “Even if you made it through the portal, the terrors within… how could so many—could any—demons have survived?”

Jane’s cheeks flushed. “Uh… let’s not get caught up on that right now. The more important question is what happened to you? How did you get here? And where is ‘here,’ exactly?”

Gral’gor rubbed his chin, frowning as his hand caught his attention—he stared at it as though it belonged to someone else. While he searched for answers, Jane glanced toward Veralaktus and nodded toward Ur, who remained frozen in place. The demoness moved swiftly, seizing the Voidwalker by the arm and dragging him away.

Jane led Gral’gor toward the remains of the hut, motioning for him to sit on the broken wooden deck. Melindra stood off to the side, arms crossed as she leaned against a pillar, watching in silence.

“I was searching for the portal,” Gral’gor began, voice low and measured. “A demon loyal to Lord Melkit told me of its existence. I flew north—through the Great Woods, past the wandering titans. Beyond the forest was a frozen wasteland, endless and bleak. There I found a castle made of ice, surrounded by frozen corpses. But it was deserted, lifeless. I felt no presence inside, nor any sign of the gateway.”

He paused, glancing down at his hands again before rubbing his arms, as though unfamiliar with his own skin. “From there I went west, across glaciers and a vast ocean. Even shifting through the void at every opportunity, the crossing took weeks. The sea went on forever, but… it was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” His eyes drifted toward Jane. “Eventually I reached land again—a forest, buried in snow and ice. The cold was unlike anything I’d ever experienced, even in the skies high above the surface. Still, I pressed on. I flew south, and that’s when I saw it.”

He pointed toward the great glittering structure at the heart of the valley.

“The labyrinth. Constructed entirely of Arcanite. I had never seen anything like it. I followed its megalithic path, fascinated, until I found this valley. It felt… significant. Powerful. I located the entrance and entered without hesitation.”

A shudder passed through him, and his tone grew darker. “At first, it was nearly the end of me. The labyrinth was pitch black, and each time I shifted through a wall, deadly traps assaulted me—relentless and lethal. I took heavy wounds and realized I would not survive much longer that way. But I do not believe the creators of that place planned for a Voidwalker. I shifted up and escaped through the ceiling. I then followed the structure from above, all the way to its end. When I dropped back down, I emerged into the portal chamber. And into the fiercest battle of my life.”

He gripped the edge of the deck, jaw tightening. “They attacked without warning—spellcasters, warriors, hundreds of them, with powers I’ve rarely seen matched. I thought I’d fall—I nearly did… but then I saw the gate. The very same gate I glimpsed long ago in Jaridume. Its presence fortified my resolve. I fought to the very end. They gave no ground, no mercy, and fell to the last. Not one fled, not one did anything less than battle to their dying breath. If the Maker wills it, those warriors will return as something greater, for they earned it.”

The weight of his words lingered in the air rippling like a stone dropped into water.

“So, you crossed the Green Sea,” Melindra said quietly, breaking the silence.

Gral’gor turned, squinting at her. Recognition dawned and his muscles tensed. “You… the Demon Slayer.”

Jane laid a calming hand on his shoulder. “Not anymore. She’s with us now. It’s… complicated.”

Gral’gor nodded slowly, then brushed his fingers through his hair, brow furrowed. “I feel strange. I seem to have… changed.”

Jane winced. “Yeah. I kind of, maybe, had to change your class to save your life.”

“Executioner…” he whispered, the word foreign on his tongue. Raising one hand, he concentrated. The flesh shimmered into metal and reshaped—first into a blade, then a battleaxe, a jagged spear, a scythe, and finally a set of sleek silver claws. They flickered fluidly from one to the next.

Jane’s mouth fell open. “Holy cow… you’re just like that guy from Terminator. The T-1000!”

Gral’gor raised an eyebrow. “Terminator?”

Jane reached out, her hand brushing the edge of the blade. It was smooth and seamless, impossibly fused with his skin. “That’s insane…”

As much as she wanted to keep marveling at his transformation, she forced herself to focus. There were more urgent things to discuss. “Gral’gor… What’s happening in Arcadia? What happened with Pogg?”

His face darkened again, the gravity returning to his features.

“There is much to tell.”

***

As the sun dipped behind the hills, casting long golden shadows over the quiet village, Jane walked silently beside Gral’gor, her rage bubbling hotter with every word he spoke. After her banishment, Pogg had launched a brutal campaign against her demons, leading armies drawn from both Arcadia and the Providencia. Wielding his Legendary class skills, he had repulsed her forces, pushing them all the way back into Grandia. It was during that dark time that Gral’gor departed—and whatever became of those left behind, he could not say.

“And… that is not all,” Gral’gor added quietly. “The boy. Mint. He has fallen.”

Jane stopped in her tracks, every hair on her body rising. “...Fallen?”

Gral’gor exhaled slowly. “Yes. Eli’va formulated a plan whereby Mint would be armored in Arcanite and provide healing in order for us to counter Pogg’s growing power. We nearly defeated him, but in the skies above the front line Pogg struck Mint from my back. He fell, and I could not reach him in time.”

Her voice sharpened. “Tell me everything. Did you see the body? Are you certain he’s dead?”

Gral’gor shook his head. “I could not confirm it. Pogg overwhelmed me, assailing relentlessly. But… from that height, I do not see how he could have survived.”

Jane’s hand went to her mouth, her eyes narrowing. The last time I saw Mint, he was level forty-four. His Health would’ve been… four, maybe five hundred or more? She closed her eyes, thinking. When I fell into the Netherrealm, I took around five hundred damage… and that was without armor. Mint had Arcanite gear. That had to help. And his Luck stat —it was unusually high at nine. That had to count for something.

Her thoughts spun, then locked into clarity. Can my Luck help me in this scenario as well?

“Melindra,” she said abruptly, “I’m going to close my eyes. I want you to hide somewhere I can’t see you.”

Melindra blinked. “Hide…? Very well.”

Jane closed her eyes and spun in place, focusing on the idea of finding Melindra—her intention sharp as a blade. She stopped and stomped her foot down, opening her eyes. “Wave or stand up!” she called.

From behind a house directly in front of her, Melindra waved. “I’m right here.”

Just like the library. Just like the demons in the Netherrealm. If I focus my intent, I can find things, Jane thought. She closed her eyes again and focused, harder this time—on her mother. She spun, stomped, opened her eyes… and pointed toward the mountains. She tried again. This time, her finger landed somewhere else. A third time: different still.

So if they’re dead… it doesn’t work, she realized, her heart aching. Thanks, Mom.

Taking a deep breath, Jane turned her thoughts toward Mint. She focused all her energy on him—on finding him. She spun, stomped, and opened her eyes.

A tall pine tree waved in the wind, far to the southeast.

She repeated the process. Again, the same tree. And again. Same direction.

Jane exhaled in relief. “He’s alive. My Luck pointed me to the same place every time. Wherever he is, he’s still out there.”

Gral’gor straightened, his voice cautious. “Are you certain?”

She gave a slow nod. “Certain enough. I suppose we can’t know for sure, but I think we can be optimistic.” Her hands curled into fists. “And Mint isn’t the only one I can try this on.”

With the last rays of sunlight spilling across the farms scattered in the valley, Jane closed her eyes again. One by one, she began searching for every person who mattered to her.