When the humanoid finally came to, he groaned in pain. Coming out of the violet curse always wore him out, physically and mentally. Who knows what he'd been up to this time while he was unaware, helpless to the orders that drove him? He just hoped it wasn't manual labor- that's all he asked.

Tired blue eyes blinked the creature back to reality, but it was a world Virgil wasn't ready to face. The being screamed; what kind of hell had he traipsed into now? He was in a cave tunnel, that much was certain. Judging by all the torches lining the wall to his right, he was likely somewhere underground. Normally, Virgil would have been fine with a situation like this. Waking up in an unfamiliar place? No problem. Forgetting what had happened over the past few hours? Easy. All of that would have been fine had it not been for the presence of red trinitrotoluene. Mountains upon mountains of the stuff were stacked high above his head in a wall of terror, just waiting to ignite. The sentient scrambled to the top of one of the mountains, and gasped. A river of red dynamite stretched down the tunnel and around the corner, leaving the humanoid wondering how much of the deadly TNT was down here with him.

What am I doing here?! Virgil panicked. Who- Who sent me here?! A flash of Finnegan's malevolent stare came to mind, and the being instantly recalled the illu attack. Oh, right. The sentient raised his hand to hold his weary head, when some sort of object met his forehead instead. He looked down at his hand, and immediately jumped back in a hiss, dropping the item to the ground. What am I doing holding TNT?! What if I'd set it on fire, huh?! What then?! Even one stick of dynamite was enough to cause injury; an amount as big as what lay before him was bound to wreak havoc on, well, wherever he was. I have to get out of here before it's too late.

With that, Virgil hurried back down to the cave floor and sprinted the length of the tunnel.

The nightmare just wouldn't end. Around the endless bend he went, finding more and more stacks of the dreaded explosives. The obscene quantity combined with the horrific power of trinitrotoluene would be enough to level a small home, maybe even an entire village. After a while, Virgil realized he'd been running in a circle, and came to a stop right where he'd started. His lungs may have given out, but his interest in the hidden dynamite only grew stronger.

There had to be a reason behind all the TNT, and considering how it was all arranged, Virgil figured the answer to the mystery was actually rather close. Determined to solve this strange puzzle, he decided to dig into the wall of the tunnel towards the other side of the circle. Whatever Finnegan was trying to eradicate had to be at the center, and Virgil had resolved to find what it was.

At the foot of one of the smaller TNT hills lay something metallic. It glinted in the torch light, catching the being's eye. Lo and behold, the item was a discarded pickaxe, with an iron pick and a wooden handle. Virgil took the tool into his hands. Despite the numerous dents and scratches, the sentient could tell the mining hardware still had good durability; it would do its job well. Virgil lifted the pickaxe over his head, and in one, powerful swing, he struck the stone wall. Due to its enchanted ability, the rock slid off the wall of the cave like butter, making work light and easy. Virgil continued mining until he finally carved out a coffin-sized hole, eventually forming a thumb-sized opening into somewhere else. He mined his way into this new area, and what he saw absolutely floored him.

The sentient's crudely carved doorway had expanded into a huge cavern, one that doubled the size of Edison's underground train station. Instead of the usual torch light, whoever had mined this space relied on glowing crystal lamps along the walls, and high above as chandeliers. The strangest part, however, were the streaks of black running along the floor. Virgil didn't recognize the black substance; he'd never seen it anywhere else in the kingdoms. The streaks were as thick as logs, but looked as soft as moss. Like an intricate web of roots, the black veins were spread throughout the cavern, dominating the space in a mess of ebony. Something about these black roots had to be important if Finnegan wished it gone; Virgil decided to investigate.

The humanoid jumped from his entry way down to the floor of the cavern. He scanned the area for potential threats, but found himself alone in the space. Good, he thought, That'll make my mission easier. Virgil twisted and contorted his body, carefully avoiding any and all contact with the strange, black tendrils. The being had seen too many tragedies in his life to know what came from unchecked curiosity; he didn't want to become the next patient zero to an unnamed disease.

The closer Virgil crept towards the back of the cavern, the thicker the vines of black became. They hung from the ceiling like streamers, reaching for the small humanoid down below. The tendrils were an infestation like none other. They wove this way and that, over and under each other in every direction. The sentient was lucky to find any untouched floor space at this point. Every vine led back to the mighty source, and indeed, the source was truly formidable. At first glance, Virgil thought it was a giant, ebony-colored egg, born of a dragon and left to hatch. Considering how there were no dragon-sized exits from the cave, however, the humanoid quickly dismissed the theory. It could have been a large, mold-covered fungus, but Virgil doubted this idea as well. Molds and fungi typically held an odor, or at least, he thought they did, and yet the sentient couldn't detect any unusual scents. Was it a creature of some sort, perhaps a rare or extinct species? There was only one way to find out:

"Uh, well, hello there."

A giant eye, violet eye opened, its pupil dilating at the sight of Virgil. The tendrils around the sentient tensed up as a long, menacing groan echoed throughout the cavern. A sudden, invisible force knocked Virgil's head back, sending him stumbling with a pounding headache. From the deepest pits of hell, a wicked murmur wormed its way into his mind: "Virgil, extension of the human species, you've come to meet your doom."

The sentient gasped, eyes widening in shock. He wasn't sure how he knew, but there was an instinct buried inside him that told Virgil the egg structure had spoken. It didn't sound too pleased. "Uh- no. No, no," the humanoid countered anxiously. "Definitely not here for that. I was just wondering where I am and what you are, uhm...?"

"Call me 'The Holy One'," the being whispered in Virgil's mind. "I am a species far beyond your comprehension, mortal. Your weak and brittle body will nourish my soul."

The humanoid gulped. "Well, you see, I kind of need this body right now. I mean, I have friends and family-"

"Friends? Family? Fellow mortals that will soon share your fate," The Holy One hissed. "Either you die to sustain me, or you join Dr. Iva under the world's true power: The Holy Legion."

Virgil pursed his lips in a tight, thin line, and lowered his gaze into a glower. "I will not die, and I will not join you."

"Oh, but you will, creature born of man. You will." A thick, ebony tentacle suddenly rose from the ground like it was alive, the end of it now facing Virgil. The tendril looped itself around the humanoid and squeezed, catching its victim by surprise.

The second the tendril made contact with Virgil's skin, the nightmares began. Dangerous thoughts spun through the being's mind, like a tornado tearing away his sanity. The howls of ansords filled his head in an effort to drown out the sentient's consciousness, but Virgil held firm. "No, no. Stop."

A thousand voices called out to him, all telling him countless lies, one after the other:

"You're not strong enough, Virgil."

"You're just a violet trance from finding your new master."

"Give in to the thoughts. Surrender your free will."

"No! Never!" the humanoid yelled. "You can't turn me! Let me go!"

"I see you're not as vulnerable as you once were," The Holy One mused, "but every creature has its weak points."

Visions of Virgil's family hurt and suffering flashed before his eyes. Jules lay on the blood-covered snow, mute and motionless, while a burned Evelyn clung to him in tears. "Mama, wake up! Wake up!" the little girl cried. The child looked around helplessly. "Papa? Papa! Where's Papa?! Mama no wake up!"

Virgil's soul broke. Watching his platonic wife and his only daughter endure such pain brought the being to his knees in grief. He could feel a familiar tingle run throughout his body: he was about to shift. Virgil fought his violet trance with every ounce of strength he had, slowly failing as the mindless state washed over him. He slipped further and further, until-

"Okay! You win!"

The tendril ensnaring him immediately unraveled, releasing its victim. Virgil placed his hands on his knees, panting heavily from such strenuous mental exertion. "I have a deal."

"I'm listening," The Holy One encouraged.

After a moment to catch his breath, Virgil faced his enemy with a new resolve. "If you let me go, I will bring you a suitable sacrifice," the sentient announced. "I will bring to you my firstborn child."

The Holy One hummed in delight, seemingly satisfied by the negotiation. "Very well, son of science. I look forward to devouring my first humanoid child." The vine that had once trapped Virgil lifted its end to point towards the shadows of the cave. There, behind The Holy One and off to the right, was a darkened staircase. Hallelujah. "You may leave, creature, but be warned," The Holy One hissed. "If you do not deliver on your promise, I will drag you back to my lair, and you will die a death of agony."

Virgil nodded. "You have my word." The ebony tendrils along the cavern floor parted like the waves of the black sea, marking a clear path for the sentient to follow. The humanoid took this as his que to leave. Virgil felt his muscles relax with every step he took away from The Holy One. As soon as he reached the stairway, and the strange creature was out of sight, the humanoid chuckled. Despite how unnerving the entire experience had been, Virgil had managed to fool the cryptic beast. He and Jules were strictly platonic, and saw no reason to pro-create. With Evelyn being their adopted child, there was no reason to spawn more children. So, in effect, Virgil had fooled a strange, new monster with his silver tongue. He wondered who the inferior species was now.

Our final villain has taken the stage. What do we think? Who's the scariest villain in the story? Who will win the war of the Five Crowns? Only one way to find out! Coming soon!

-Zym