The death of the Motherbloom might have removed the primal magic infused within the plants around the church, but it certainly didn't remove the plants themselves. The church was just as overgrown as when they left, although that wasn't necessarily a wholly bad thing. For one thing, they certainly weren't short on restraints for their dominated friend.

Clara finished tying a sixth abnormally tough vine around Pyotr and nervously stepped back. He'd thaw out pretty soon, and she'd rather not be within striking range when he did. They'd removed his sword, but he was no slouch when it came to tavern brawling. He'd gotten more than enough experience in that field when salvaging Drossie's failed distractions. Sure enough, the first movement he made was clenching his fists, his glowing orange eyes locking onto Clara. She was confident that her restraints would hold, but it was deeply unnerving regardless. He just stared at her with an unnaturally blank intensity, his face completely expressionless. The vines held fast against his struggles as Clara backed away nervously. Hopefully Maia had found something in their book about removing demonic domination. 

Maia was flipping through their book intently, but snapped it shut as Clara approached. They glared up at her. "What do you want?" Clara flinched at the cleric's unexpectedly cold tone. "I... I just wanted to see if you'd foun-" Maia harshly cut her off. "No. And I won't if you keep interrupting me. Go away." Clara was taken aback at the intensity of their reaction. Maia always acted a bit rude, but it didn't usually feel this mean. They often made jabs about Clara's indecisiveness, or Drossie's airheadedness, or Pyotr's ego, but it was usually just banter, not genuine insults. But now... It felt like Maia was genuinely angry at her. And Clara didn't know why. As the cleric got up to observe some carvings, Clara called over to them, her voice trembling. "What... What is it? Why are you so... Angry at me?" Maia was silent for a while, and Clara began to sneak away before they took a deep breath. Turning to Clara, they asked in a measured but intense voice, "Why didn't you do anything back there, Clara?" 

Clara stared at her friend, shocked and hurt. "...What?" Maia glared at her. "You just stood stock still the whole time! You left me and Drossie to fight Pyotr alone!" Clara tried to stay calm. "That... that was the plan. Like always. You two distracted her, while I snuck behind and incapacitated her... But-" Maia angrily interrupted her. "Then why wasn't she incapacitated?! Why was she still conscious?!" Clara yelled back. "She was a demon! I couldn't do anything to her without blessed weapons!" Maia's light blazed up. "How do you know?! I saw you standing there while I burned through every last bit of power I had! You didn't move an inch! You just stood there, unable to decide what to do, like always! We almost died, and you didn't do anything! Did you even try to-" Clara couldn't hold it in anymore. "YES! I DID! I DID EVERYTHING I COULD! AND IT DIDN'T WORK!" 

Clara's eyes were filled with tears, but she continued. "SHE CRUSHED MY NEEDLE IN ONE HAND! MY DAGGER BARELY SCRATCHED HER! I WAS POWERLESS!" Maia just glared, not having any response to this. "AND I DID HELP! I DISTRACTED HER WHILE SHE WAS TRYING TO HYPNOTIZE YOU! I SAVED YOUR SOUL, OKAY!" Maia averted their gaze. "DO YOU THINK I WANTED TO BE USELESS?! I WAS SCARED! I COULDN'T DO ANYTHING! I DIDN'T WANT TO FAIL YOU ALL, BUT I DID! AND I KNOW IT'S ALL MY FAULT WE'RE EVEN IN THIS SITUATION, AND-" She felt a soft hand on her horn, and collapsed into Drossie's arms, sobbing. "Shh, shh, shh... We're fine now... Everything turned out fine in the end... Nobody blames you for this... RIGHT?" Drossie glared over at Maia, who quickly shuffled away, not willing to look at either of them. Clara sniffled. "Th-Thanks..." Drossie smiled kindly. "Come on, let's sit down, I found some softer vines we can use as cushions."

Clara cuddled up to her friend for a while, letting herself cry as Drossie stroked her horns. As her breathing steadied, Drossie quietly commented, "You haven't gotten a good rest in a while, have you...?" Clara sadly shook her head. "...No... I was too worried about Pyotr... A-And I guess you as well... When you had the flower stuck on you..." Drossie made an annoyed grunt at the memory, but she continued to comfort Clara. "Yeah... I think we've all been needing a good rest since then... Look, once this is done, we can find a nice town and just rest for a while. No bounties, no evil plants, no demons, okay?" Clara shook her head, pushing herself up. "N-No, I... I'm fine. I'm used to not sleeping... I'm fine... I'm fine..." Drossie embraced her. "No, sweetie, you aren't, you- What?" Drossie suddenly glared across the room, and Clara followed her gaze, seeing Maia standing there. The cleric spoke up, their voice quieter than usual. "...I found a ritual that might work. Come on."

The three of them gathered around Pyotr, standing back just in case, and Maia opened their book. "...I don't know how well this will work, but it's the best we can do with what we have. Whatever that demon was, she's a lot stronger than a typical succubus. Normally dispelling corruption of that level would require some very powerful divine magic... And I'm still very drained... But I did find something that might work. It's a bit risky... Considered a major heresy by several sects... And still considered a minor heresy by my sect... I hope I'm not testing my Goddess's patience too much... I'm sure she'd understand, though... Hopefully..." They awkwardly trailed off. Drossie broke the silence. "So what is it?" Maia looked back at their book. "It's a ritual that supplements divine power with arcane magic. That combined with a Binding Severance ritual should free him. Hopefully." Drossie hesitated a bit, then nodded. "Alright, I... Have a decent amount of power left. What do you need me to do?" Maia began explaining to her, and Clara stood there, tired. 

She really hoped this worked... She'd already gotten Pyotr in trouble, she didn't want to drain Drossie's magic and make Maia's Goddess hate them... No, no, she shouldn't think about things like that! She shouldn't think about how- "Uh... Clara... I... Over here please." Maia's voice snapped her out of it, and she walked over. "We need someone to sever the astral ties with a blessed knife. And I think you are the best choice. Since you're good at using your dagger. So... Let me bless it please." Clara handed over her dagger and Maia took it, not even looking at her. They chanted some Celestial hymns as they traced runes in the blade, and the dagger started glowing with a pale lavender light. Maia thrust it back into her hands. "Here. Blessed Dagger. Wait for me to tell you what to do." Maia quickly walked away, burying their head in their book again, as Clara observed her dagger. If only she'd had this earlier...

Maia began a celestial prayer, causing the runes they had carved around where Pyotr sat to begin pulsing with purple light. Their voice echoed around the room as the light slowly swirled off the ground in tendrils of shimmering divine power. It was joined by Drossie's voice, chanting in elvish as she channeled all her power into her arcane focus. A roiling mass of arcane magic surged forward, engulfing the divine power and crackling with barely restrained energy. The mass of power swirled around chaotically before plunging down to the dagger in Clara's hands. The force almost knocked her off her feet, but she stood firm, holding the dagger as tight as she could. Her being was filled with excess magic, every sense vibrating with it. Her body tingled like every inch was filled with lightning. She could only see whirling, indistinct colors all around her. It smelled and tasted sweet... and a bit fishy... While trying to keep herself upright in the maelstrom of magic, she heard Maia's voice, sounding as if it was miles away. "Close your eyes and focus! Find the demon's leash... And sever it!" Clara took a deep breath, inhaling more fishy sweetness, and closed her eyes. At first she could still only see the roiling energy, but as she focused, she saw it. A massive glimmering orange rope, tied around Pyotr's essence. 

She stepped towards it, feeling like she was moving inside a dream. With all her might, and all the magic flowing through her, she stabbed the rope with the blessed dagger. It wasn't severed, but it shuddered terribly, a massive gash in its surface. Again, again, again she stabbed it, letting her regrets and frustrations fuel her strikes. This was for leaving him alone! This was for not following him in the market! This was for not helping Maia during the fight! And with one final stab, one final regret for not always being there for everyone, the rope was severed. She dropped the dagger as the orange energy faded, and it felt like she was being pulled out of an ocean by her arms. She collapsed to her knees and took several deep breaths. A thud sounded from somewhere in the room as Drossie collapsed as well, and she could hear Maia breathing just as heavily. However, another voice breaking through the silence made her feel much, much better. "...Can someone please untie me?!" Clara smiled. Pyotr was back.

Clara and Maia stood up slowly, the cleric looking at Pyotr carefully. "Untie you? How do we know you aren't still dominated?" Their tone was only half-joking, and Pyotr glared at them. "Would I be talking to you like this if I was?!" He followed in a more embarrassed tone, "...I wouldn't, right? Ugh, everything is so fuzzy... Not sure all of what happened..." Clara glanced at his eyes. "His eyes are brown, Maia. I think he's fine." Nodding, Maia came over and helped her remove the vines. They were both exhausted, and the primally enhanced toughness didn't help, but they were eventually able to loosen them enough for Pyotr to wriggle out. He stretched as he looked around, and winced as he stretched his bruised leg. "Ugh, back in this place... Or... Still in this place... Wait..." He looked over at Clara and Maia, rubbing his head. "...How long was I out for...? Can't remember much..." Maia told him the current date, and he absentmindedly fiddled with his mustache for a while before shaking his head, groaning. "...Can never keep those names straight even when I CAN think... Okay, uhh... There's a festival upcoming, right? I remember I wanted to check it out..." Clara thought for a bit. "...The Shadefall festival? Back in town?" Pyotr nodded eagerly. "Yeah, that one! ...It hasn't happened already, right?" Maia snorted. "It ended eight days ago. Before you even got dominated." Pyotr cleared his throat, embarrassed. "Ah. Right. Yes. Shame. Met a lovely lady in the tavern, would have loved to bring her t-" He paused, his eyes widening. "WAIT. That was the woman who dominated me!" He rapidly looked around the room and ran to grab his sword. "We have to go after her! For revenge! For justice!" He grinned broadly, though deflated a bit when he saw the others all glaring at him, clearly exhausted. "...Once we've rested, of course..."

Maia shook their head. "There's no reason to go after her at all. Far too dangerous." Pyotr looked at them in shock. "What?! How could you say that?! Do you have any idea how... Humiliating that was for me?! And how dangerous letting her continue her ways could be?!" Maia fired back. "And do you have any idea how outclassed we were?! She's a demon! I don't know if you remember, but we only SURVIVED against her because my Goddess intervened! Clara didn't even scratch her! We stand no chance against her! We are not risking this!" Pyotr was taken aback. "She's a demon?! Really...?! Well..." He scratched his head, embarrassed, "...I guess that makes the fact she charmed me so easily feel a bit less humiliating... And, uh... I guess we don't need to go after her IMMEDIATELY, then... If she's so powerful... Although," A mischievous smile appeared on his face, "We do have an advantage! We know she's a demon, but does she know we know she's a demon?" Clara remembered the feeling of the demoness's infernal gaze bearing down on her, and quietly said, "Yes... She does..." 

Drossie piped up, propping herself off the ground by her elbow. "But does she know we know she knows we know?" She giggled as the others glared at her, and continued. "And hey, you were dominated for quite a while, Perry. Maybe she told you about her plans! People love bragging about their evil plans." Pyotr nodded. "True, yes! Let me think!" He closed his eyes and began trying to focus intensely, trying to get any insight into the scattered memories from his time dominated. Clara smiled to herself. It looked very stupid, but that made her feel a bit better. It felt like things were getting back to normal. Eventually Pyotr groaned and put his head in his hand. "All I can remember is her saying, "Ah, too bad I will be making you forget all of that, toy!"" Drossie laughed. "That's kind of funny though. And anyway, she didn't see us at our full potential! We can definitely think of some ways to catch her off guard next time!" Pyotr nodded. "Indeed! We just need to plan! Perhaps if we..." He and Drossie began conversing about ridiculous plans to catch the demoness off guard, and Clara smiled. She went back over to the bench to rest off the ritual, her body still feeling a little buzzy. It took her a few moments to notice Maia standing still in front of her, not saying anything.

Clara looked up at Maia, raising an eyebrow. "...What is it?" Maia didn't meet their gaze. "...Wanted to say something." They awkwardly flicked the pages of their book, waiting for Clara to respond. She slowly asked, "...What is it? That you want to say?" Maia looked away, more nervous than usual. "It's been a stressful month. I haven't rested as much as I'd like. But anyway. I just needed to say... I... I, uh..." Clara leaned forward, and they started flicking their book even faster. "I... I am..." They shuddered slightly, and seemed to calm down. They stopped fidgeting, and their breathing returned to normal. Their body relaxed, and they lowered their arms to their sides. They stood up straight. Uncannily straight. And as Clara stared up, a hole of pure terror quickly starting to form in their stomach, Maia's eyes began to glow.

A Deep.

Bright.

Intense.

Orange.

"Ahhh, this should be far more fun now that you are my toy, little celestial~!"

The demoness's voice filled the church like a roar of fire, causing the slightly glowing runes to be snuffed out like candles. Drossie and Pyotr's planning session was interrupted, Pyotr hastily raising his blade as Drossie scrambled to her feet. Clara could hardly tear her eyes away from Maia's dominated face, but she could still see the demoness just fine. She wasn't bothering with a disguise this time. Her full, terrifying majesty was on display now, her massive wings casting a shadow that was filled by the infernal glow of her hair. She smirked as she looked at the trembling adventurers and gave a giggle both playful and menacing. "I was not finished playing with my toy yet~..."

Too caught off guard to implement any of the plans they had discussed, Pyotr charged forward, sword slicing through the air. "I WILL NOT BECOME YOUR TOY AGAIN, MONSTER! YOUR P-" His battlecry was interrupted as the demoness casually intercepted his strike, grabbing his sword as if catching a stick. She mockingly clicked her tongue, chiding him. "Oh, what makes you think that, Poyotair~? You fell so easily before, what makes you think I cannot just click my fingers and command you to Sleep~?" She clicked her crystal claws, the motion completely unburdened by the blade across her palm, and Pyotr's eyes flashed orange. Before he even released his grip, he was fast asleep. She rubbed his head and turned to the two remaining adventurers, grinning as they trembled before her.

Drossie and Clara looked at each other, Clara still on the bench and Drossie barely able to stand. As the demoness casually walked forwards, Drossie started yammering. "Hey, you know, there's really no need to dominate us! Because, you know, we can just do what you ask us to do without our souls being bound! It'd make this whole thing a lot faster and would be better for both of us! Because, uh, umm, uhhh..." The demoness was looming over Drossie now, clearly enjoying her struggle, "...Uhh... Oh, we'll be far better if we aren't dominated! Because me and Clara are very smart and we're really creative too and that's all just wasted if we're dominated! Because we'd only be able to do what you specifically commanded us to, and that's just a waste of our talents!" The demoness paused, scratching her chin in consideration. "That is quite true... Dominated toys are quite ineffective at complex tasks... You do have a point..." Drossie was elated her plan had worked, but Clara had a sickening feeling another shoe was about to drop... So she was crestfallen, not surprised, as the Demoness grinned down at Drossie again. "However, I have many more ways of creating toys than mere domination. It just happened to be the most efficient option~. But now that I have a helpless, adorable mortal before me~..." She bent down, her shadow covering Drossie, "I can perform my favorite thing~... Hypnosis~..." She gently fluttered her shimmering garnet nails before Drossie's eyes. "Looky looky, little elfie~"

Drossie's mind was filled with sparkles almost immediately as she watched the pretty shimmering lights fluttering before her eyes. "Sparkly... Pretty... W-Wait, no-" She tried to pull away, but the demoness gently grabbed the back of her neck and adjusted her head. "No, no, don't fight it, little elfie~ Let yourself enjoy the pretty sparkles~... You're so sleepy, anyway~ So exhausted from that big, loud, tiring ritual you performed to take away my toy~... You already wanted to just Drop into Sleep before I showed up, so why not let yourself Drop into Sleep for me now~? Watch the pretty fluttering fingers~... Let the sparkles and flutters make you so, so Sleepy~..." Drossie's eyes were barely open, gently flashing orange as she tried and failed to resist. "Not... gonna... look..." So she let them snap shut, but of her own accord. And lest she fall to the demoness's soporific whispers... "...MmmOoough! Oawww..." She bit down on her tongue as hard as she could. It hurt so, so bad, but pain was better than submitting! The demoness laughed, genuinely amused. "Oh, clever little elfie~! I have not seen this strategy before~ But... It was quite foolish of you to assume my hypnosis was only visual~..."

Drossie started trying to think of the most annoying sound she could in order to drown out the wonderful whispers, but was completely blindsided as a warm, soft blanket brushed over her. "My hair is awfully hypnotic as well~ It feels so wonderful to the touch~ Such a deep, comforting warmth~... So soft~... Silky~... Smooth~... Soothing~... Sleepy~... Sleepy~... You are getting Sleepy~... So Sleepy~... Snuggled up in my Soft, Silky, Smooth locksss~..." Drossie could barely think. She was so sleepy... Wrapped up in a warm, comfy blanket... Wait, but she was fighting a demon... Why was she in a blanket...? Oh, of course... She was dreaming... She was really in bed, in a nice warm inn, all full and comfy cozy and happy... There was nothing wrong with letting herself drift away... Drift deeper into a warm, snuggly, sparkly, orange, Sleep~

Clara watched, helpless and scared, as Drossie snuggled up into the warm orange hair of the demoness, a gentle orange glow emanating from behind her eyelids. In a matter of minutes, everything had gone from being alright to being worse than it had ever been. She should have known the demoness would follow them! She clearly saw that the demoness was just injured and left of her own will instead of fleeing, and she shouldn't have taken them to somewhere so close, and of course the demoness would have ways to track her dominated slaves, and especially ways to track her spells being broken, and she should have just stayed at the tavern with Pyotr back then and none of this would have happened and it was all her fault and- "Your turn, little mouse~" The demoness's powerful voice grabbed her attention. She slowly looked up at the massive, beautiful monster standing above her. She trembled, not willing to speak. The demoness giggled. "Awww, nothing to say~? No yelling? No fighting? No struggling?" Clara looked down, defeated. She was helpless... Useless... But then her eyes caught a glint... The blessed dagger lay on her belt, still thrumming with energy... And the demoness had said blessed weapons would hurt her... This might be her only chance... So she subtly reached a hand toward the dagger, felt the energy buzz through her, grasped it as hard as she could, and then...

She let go.

There was no way a single strike would do more than anger the demoness. And if she made the demoness angry... She didn't want to make her friends suffer any more than they already had. So she let her hand fall to her side again. As she stood there, numb with fear, she noticed the demoness looking curiously at her hand. "You are not going to try attacking me?" Clara shook her head sadly. "No point... It wouldn't kill you... Just make you angry..." The demoness giggled, a bit softer this time. "I appreciate the concern~ And you are correct, it would not kill me. Hurt me, certainly, but not kill me. Quite a clever little mouse you are~" Clara nodded, tired. "Yeah... Clever..." The demoness smiled. "Well, seeing as you cleverly decided not to attack me, I imagine you are ready to become my toy~?" Clara weakly nodded, her mind racing for a final time. What use was being clever now? Maia had been clever by finding that ritual, so they were therefore too drained to resist domination. Pyotr had been clever by stopping to plan, but it was pointless because he just rushed towards the demoness in a reckless panic. Drossie had been clever by trying to bargain, and now she was fast asleep on the cold stone floor. And being clever had gotten them all into this mess! They wouldn't even be here if Clara hadn't found the demoness's room, had Drossie make the map, and had Maia track her! They'd all be fine and rested, and Pyotr would probably have been safe at Threefallow, and... Wait!

Just before the demoness lifted Clara's head to meet her hypnotizing gaze, Clara spoke up. "I can help you!" The demoness stopped. "Hm?" Clara took a deep breath, and tried to speak steadily. "I know you're going to Threefallow. I can go there instead. By myself." The demoness cocked her head, curious. "Why would you offer this? Of course you will help me, you are becoming my toy, little mouse." Clara took another deep breath, hoping with all her soul this worked. "Because this way you won't have to do anything. You can just relax with your new toys while I get whatever it is you need. I've delved into a lot of ruined temples. I can handle everything." The demoness nodded, looking genuinely interested in the offer. "And what do you desire in exchange, little mouse?" Clara steadied herself. "In exchange, I ask..." She swallowed nervously, "...That you let my friends go. All of them. You can play with my friends as much as you want until I come back. That's my desire." The demoness ponderously scratched her chin, but not in a mocking way this time, and Clara began to feel lightheaded. Every second felt like an hour of pure, agonizing suspense. She worried that she had angered the demoness anyway, and that she should have just a- "That does sound like a wonderful idea, little mouse~!" Clara almost collapsed. "R-Really?!" The demoness laughed. "Of course! It would be so nice to kick my feet up and relax while you fetch my Gem~! Now, off you go~! Time is of the essence~!"

Clara was stunned. It worked! She had a chance! Sure, she was a bit tired, but she was used to not having sleep, and she was very accustomed to the typical traps left in churches like that, and- Her train of thought was interrupted by a set of glittering garnet nails gesturing her away. "Quick quick, little mouse~! You want to save your friends, do you not~?" Clara looked away from the pretty sparkling claws. "I-I... Yes, but I need to prepare first." The demoness giggled. "Really~? Are you not skilled enough already~?" Clara glanced around at her enslaved friends. If she was going alone, she definitely had some items she'd want to take for safety. "I just need to grab a few things from my friends first." The demoness smirked slyly. "Ah, but Poyotair has told me all about your skill~! Are you sure you need-" "YES I NEED THEM OKAY?!" Clara's outburst surprised her, but more impressively it surprised the demoness. An ice cold chill ran down her spine as she realized she might have just completely blown her chances. The demoness stared down at her... And laughed, amused. "Aww, what a feisty little mouse~! Of course you can take what you need, why would I want to make retrieving my gem harder~?" She condescendingly rubbed Clara's head, and Clara tried to ignore how absolutely WONDERFUL it felt.

Clara didn't like taking her friends' precious possessions, but she hoped they'd understand. As she carefully pocketed Drossie's lucky firebead, the demoness told her what she needed to know. "You are searching for a beautiful orange Gem, almost certainly hidden within the depths of the temple. Make sure not to damage it, it can be quite dangerous. And once you have it, bring it back to me. I will be eagerly waiting for you back in Shevadale." Clara looked over at her in surprise. "Shevadale? That small town?" The demoness laughed. "Who did you think lived in that lovely mansion~? It is truly a wonderful place, perhaps you should take some time to see the sights after you return my Gem~!" Clara wasn't sure if she'd ever want to see that place again... Although she did have that agreement with the botanist there, so she'd have to return eventually anyway... 

Clara's body was buzzing as she finished her preparation, both from the blessed dagger and from the stress. The demoness smirked at her. "Ahh, you look much more prepared now~! Now you can return my Gem~! Good luck, little mouse~!" She blew a kiss, and Clara ducked away from the shimmering orange spiral. The demoness laughed brightly as Clara left the church, feeling more nervous than she had ever felt before. But she couldn't freeze up this time. She had to save her friends. She took a deep breath to steel herself. She was more than used to dungeon delving. What trouble could a random abandoned church give her?