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spilling blood that sizzled upon the ground. But they did not prevent K’ntu from landing hard atop the Peregrine, sending him tumbling down. Claws and teeth raked across Max’s torso, drawing bloody lines across his flesh.
    Max twisted beneath his powerful flow, disgusted by the way K’ntu’s skin felt against his own. It was like rolling about with a python, one whose stamina was far greater than any human’s.
    The Peregrine managed to swing his feet up, latching them around K’ntu’s head. He rolled then, knocking his foe from atop him. K’ntu landed close enough to the flames that his tail brushed against them and made him jerk away.
    Ignoring the pain he felt, the Peregrine struggled to his knees and reached into his cloak. He drew out a dagger, the one that he’d found in Darkholme’s lair. The blade was inscribed with mystic runes of a sort that Max did not recognize… but given the fact that his bullets were having too little effect, Max hoped they might carry some power he could use against K’ntu.
    The lizard man was stalking his prey once more, blood dripping from a dozen or more bullet holes. “You are brave for a human, Mr. Davies. But surely you realize that there are cycles to all things… mankind and its God have ruled in ascendancy for far too long. It is only natural for things to reverse upon occasion. Put down your weapons and beg for mercy… perhaps I shall grant it to you. Perhaps you will be allowed to serve in our master’s army!”
    “Go back to Hell,” Max answered. He dove forward, pushing the blade in front of him. It met with resistance when it struck the lizard man’s stomach and for a moment Max feared he lacked the strength to pierce his opponent’s scaly hide. But then the runes began to glow and an awful ear-splitting wail filled the air. Then the blade was on the move, slicing through the lizard man’s skin like it was a warm knife passing through butter.
    K’ntu howled in pain, a scream of torment that only worsened as Max began digging the blade in deeper, twisting it from side to side until a deep rift had appeared in the scaly flesh. Intestines, warm and slimy, gushed out upon Max’s hands and the repugnant smell made him retch. He finally shoved K’ntu away from him, holding firmly onto the still-glowing blade.
    The lizard man landed hard on the ground, gasping for air. He wheezed like an old man who had run too far, too fast.
    The walls of flame began to burn down to nothingness, revealing the worried visage of Evelyn. She started to run to Max, but the Peregrine held her back with a shake of his head.
    Stumbling over to the prone form of K’ntu, the Peregrine knelt down and nudged the lizard man’s arm. The elder being turned to stare at him with glassy eyes. “The Master will remember my sacrifice, Mr. Davies.” K’ntu coughed, sending a spray of bloody droplets into the air. “And he will remember you and yours forever. I curse you and your bloodline. I curse you to…”
    The Peregrine raised the dagger and brought it down into his foe’s chest. He repeated this action twice more, stopping only when he was sure that K’ntu was dead.
    “Max…”
    The Peregrine turned to face his beloved, reaching up to wipe blood from his chin. The action only spread more of the gore across his face. “I’m fine. My wounds are superficial ones. Were you hurt?”
    “Of course not,” Evelyn laughed nervously. “You were the one fighting… whatever the hell that was.”
    The Peregrine sighed, feeling tired. “That… was what awaits the world if we don’t stop Trench.”

CHAPTER XVIII
    A Match Made in Hell
    “A bride?” Trench found himself unable to quite grasp what he’d been told. His eyes kept drifting back to the golden key that rested under a glass seal. Rosenkreuz had taken Trench to the key, but had warned that he would not be allowed to take it until their awful bargain had been completed.
    “Yes,” the ancient being replied. Rosenkreuz was pacing